American Scrape Oboe

When the American Scrape oboe reed first came out, I liked it. I purchased another just last month directly from Legere. The new one is not like my original American Scrape, and in fact more like the European Scrape, of which I have a few. The new reed does not play near as well as my old American Scrape reed.

I have this reed for 6 months and I love it!

I am an oboist who recently made the decision to return to playing. I signed up for an adult wind ensemble at my local community college. I played at the university level along time ago for a couple of seasons. In all that time I never made my own reeds- I always relied on other students and pros who could make reeds and I would buy them for an average of 30 bucks and I would simply let my instructor and fellow players scrape and adjust for me. But now, finding a reliable maker was hit or miss and I had none to scrape or adjust. Upon returning a fellow player (who actually is a former woodwind instructor of mine) gifted me a legere reed that was too hard for him and whoa- I was blown away. The reed, even though it had been used a bit, played well- great response In all ranges. It was a medium hard (blue rings)and to me it felt like the pro strength I was used to. I was also able to try his medium (gold ring) reed and it was too soft for my liking, felt like a beginner reed to me, didn’t play as well in the lower range. The medium hard was a bit tough at first but I believe it was due to my chops being weak from having not played in a while. I used the reed for every rehearsal once a week and then for the performance. I used the various cane reeds I had at home for practice. The legere was consistent throughout. At the end of the semester I noticed one bit of fraying at one corner- like a cane reed does. Still, it played beautifully. For me, the consistency and peace of mind knowing that the reed will work every time is worth the price and I can play again which is lovely. Because it did so well I saved up and I now have two more and between the two new ones, one is more “open” than the other. And at first they were a little tougher but after a couple hours on each they are great. Go ahead and try it. If you can, get two so you can see the difference because it does seem there is some slight variation between the three. But overall I’m super happy with them all. I’ll probably still order some pro reeds just to use for practice so I don’t wear the legeres out. They are warm and not shrill. I returned to playing at the right time - the technology caught up and now there is a beautiful synthetic option for folks like me who love to play but always had a reed issue holding them back. Go for it.

Hello!
I wanted to say the Reed sounds great in tone quality but unfortunately I was practicing it and realized my tuning sounded weird, when I play it is an entire half step under, I’d finger an A and a G# would come out, I’d finger a Bb and an A would come, this Reed unfortunately plays an entire half step under, I understand I can’t return it due to the policy but is there anyway I can fix it?

I was really looking forward to trying this reed. As an oboe player, I know how challenging reeds can be, so I was intrigued after seeing so many positive reviews and decided to give it a try despite the high price. At nearly $150, I expected it to be well-crafted and performance-ready right out of the box.

When my package arrived, everything looked fine at first, but after a closer look, I noticed a visible crack along both the scrape and the lateral sides of the reed. When I played it, the sound was dull and flat, which isn’t what I’d expect from a reed in this price range.

It’s disappointing to spend so much on a product that didn’t meet the quality it’s known for. I believe mine may be faulty, and I’d really appreciate a replacement or a solution. I’ve heard great things about these reeds, so I’m hopeful this was just an isolated issue.

This reed completely bypasses the soaking process, where you may not have time to soak or the reed may have soaked too long after a long rest. Additionally, the pitch is perfect, it is very responsive, and the sound is excellent. I did not own a case for these reeds, but I found one (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00BRXLZEO). We need a multiple reed case which holds them better than the standard mandrel case (which doesn't secure them at all) or the velvet pinch case (which doesn't assure me).

I have been playing happily with my new American scrape reed for 2 weeks - good response, nice tone - then, while warming up at band practice, it just split. I'll try to send a photo. Up until then, it was wonderful. Patty Gagnon /Users/harveypattygagnon/Desktop/IMG_1427.jpeg

I just received my second reed- both Medium Soft - the first one from a year ago was a little harder and this new one feels more like a true medium soft. I love them, like I will never go back to cane if I can help it. I am encouraging students to try these as well (I use clarinet and alto sax reeds in class for demonstration and love that they don’t have to get wet first).
These reeds a truly a game changer!

Reed took a few days to break in for intonation and was not fitting easily into the oboe but over time it has become very consistent with great response and for being softer hass very stable tone quality

Great tone! And I just did a long performance doubling on oboe / English horn. The stress was so much less!

Great reed!

I have several of these reeds now. I love the consistency and the beautiful sound I get when I play on a Legere Reed.

I appreciated that the reed was comfortable to play, which is very important, and had good response and a big sound for such an easy-blowing reed. But the reed was so flat that there is no way to even consider playing it with other people. I tend to be sharp, like many oboists, but there was simply no way to get these reed even near a reasonable pitch level.

No a bad reed if you have no sense of pitch and aren't planning on playing with other people.. It plays straight out of the box and has a lot of good qualities like response and tone, but the sides leak air.

The only reason I'm writing this is that a lot of people mention the reed being flat, but nobody seemed to notice why. Unfortunately, lipping up or clipping the reed isn't going to fix this issue.

For triple the price of a professional quality handmade reed, I'm utterly disappointed. Maybe in a few years they'll get it right, but in the meantime I recommend supporting your local reedmaker and steering clear of the synth reeds.

The medium oboe reed produced a beautiful sound and played in pitch throughout all registers. I’ve been ordering these reeds as a substitute for cane reeds - amazing!! Definitely worth the price. I give it five stars!!

The overall sound is okay. Above the staff gets a bit iffy, and the high register is not great.

The pitch is unacceptable though. Well over 30 cents flat. Made tweaks to try and give it an honest try by clipping the tip slightly and shortening the over all length from the “staple” but it’s still 20+ cents flat. And it’s inconsistently flat. Some notes read over a quarter tone low.

American Scrape Oboe

My daughter just got her new medium American scrape reed today. She was super excited only to find the reed does not work. It is flat and super resistant. She has been playing for years and is in college. It is a shame there is no refund police, I feel like i wasted alot of money for nothing. It was a birthday gift to her because she was finding it hard to make and be able to afford reeds to play while she is in college.

Was loving the reed and then it cracked. Will try again

I was pleasantly surprised, and shocked that there was a nice crow right out of the box. Low registers played surprisingly well. Higher registers felt a bit "thin", lacking some body to the tone. Volume control with the reed will need some practise. Bought Medium Soft because I hadn't played regularly for a while, and it was good for my weak embouchure.

Great. Doesn't sound like a buzzy mess.

I have been pleasantly surprised by this oboe reed. It has been two years since I tried one, and wow what an improvement. I am a repair tech that needs to be able to easily play instruments to check them out and this reed is perfect for that.

I ordered two reeds to take advantage of the 20& discount. Both play easily and sound great. I am only using one and keeping the other for my next reed. Looking forward to the orchestra season starting soon. Thank you, Legere.