There are many ways to compare clarinets. But setting aside extrinsic factors like price, there's really only one question that an instrument needs to satisfy: does it make you want to play it?

In this comparison, Buffet-Crampon is indisputably the manufacturer with the longest history and the most established prestige. While their professional clarinets are used by orchestral players all over the world, I'm interested to see how the E12F stands up against clarinets by other makers in the intermediate-level segment of the market.*

Like many clarinets in the student and intermediate levels, the E12F comes in a fairly bulky backpack-style case which I found tended to tip over backwards once I'd taken the instrument out. As with its competitors, the E12F comes with a large adjustable thumb rest that can be fitted with a both a sling and with the supplied rubber cushion. I had no complaints with the presentation of either the keywork or the body, and the action is finished off with blued steel springs and leather pads. Other than a slightly sluggish left-hand C lever there was nothing to catch my eye with the setup; the E12F competes well against the YCL-450 in this regard.

As with all the clarinets in this comparision, the E12F showed no shortcomings in its playability, with everything being as it should be regarding intonation, placement of keys, and responsiveness.

So is there anything about the E12F that marks it out as coming from such a distinguished stable, or have Buffet reserved their best tricks for their premium models? In my play test of the four instruments, I left the Buffet until last. When used with my mouthpiece (a Selmer C85 120) instead of their respective stock mouthpieces, the other thee models demonstrated notable consistency. Listening to the recordings I made, I had trouble distinguishing one from another; they were all good and purely on the basis of their sound I'd be happy with any of them.

But then along came the E12F, and within a few minutes of playing it I heard a distinct quality in the sound that I can only discribe as complexity. Particularly when played softly, this clarinet has a depth and an interest to its sound that I immediately wanted to explore over the long term.

This characteristic for me sets the E12F apart from the YCL-450. Although I think that the Yamaha wins overall in this segment when you take price into consideration, the Buffet has a depth of musicality that none of the others can match. Only you can decide whether the extra $400 is worth it.

* This review forms part of a comparison of the following clarinet models:
- Uebel Etude
- Yamaha YCL-450
- Jupiter 1100DS
- Buffet E12F
My reviews of these other models may help you to evaluate this segment of the clarinet market.

Rating: [4 of 5 Stars!]