Why I Chose to Play Fibracell Synthetic Reeds Exclusively on My Alto Saxophone

I discovered Fibracell synthetic reeds in the early 2000s, and I found them to be superior to traditional cane reeds in every way. In this article, I will explain why I switched to Fibracell synthetic reeds, and what you can expect if you decide to make the switch as well.

Longevity

The first thing that I noticed is the extreme longevity of Fibracell reeds. I practice my alto saxophone every day, and I play my alto saxophone in church once every week on Sunday. On average, a single Fibracell lasts me about 3 to 4 months. That is probably about triple the time that I used to get on traditional cane reeds. The Fibracell reeds immediately play at what I'll call 100% capacity, and they stay at 100% almost all the way to the very end of the reed's life. In contrast, I think that traditional cane reeds degrade more quickly and more sharply. I basically buy three Fibracell reeds every year, and those three reeds will typically last me the entire year.

Price

Yes, Fibracell reeds are much more expensive than traditional cane reeds, but I get them for the best possible price by buying them in bulk on Amazon. I will usually buy three Fibracell reeds at one time. Since the Fibracell reeds last much longer than traditional cane reeds, I think that the price becomes a non-issue, especially since the Fibracell reeds have better quality, consistency and reliability than cane reeds, in my opinion.

Consistency

I always buy the exact same Fibracell reed: the Fibracell Premier Synthetic Alto Saxophone Reed Strength 3 sold by the Fibracell brand on Amazon.com. Every Fibracell reed that I buy plays exactly the same, so playing Fibracells removes one variable from my playing. In contrast, when I used to buy traditional cane reeds, I would always find some reeds in the box that played worse than the other reeds in the box.

Quality of Sound

When I play my Fibracell reeds with my Otto Link STM mouthpiece, I notice that my sound has a certain "ring" and resonance that I didn't get with traditional cane reeds. 

Conclusions

I have tried other synthetic reeds, and I have compared them to the Fibracell synthetic reed. I have never found another synthetic reed that is superior to the Fibracell reeds. In my opinion, the Fibracell reed is the best reed on the market, better than all synthetic AND traditional reeds on the market. If you decide to switch to Fibracell reeds, I don't think that you will be disappointed.