the difference between 9K, 10K, 14K, 18K, and 24K gold flute

howdtwami · Post by **howdtwami** » Mon Nov 29, 2004 8:54 pm

Hello

I am about to buy new gold flute now. I tried so many gold flutes, and I finalized to Brannen, Muramatsu, and Pearl. However, I had one questions. What are the differences between 9K, 10K, 14K, 18K, and 24K? I do know that its the difference of how much gold mixed with other metal. However, does it make difference in sound? if so, in what kind of way? I tried 9K, and it sounded like silver flute. 10K was ok. I really liked both 14K, and 18K, and somehow, 24K, for me, was quite softer than 14 or 18. I was just wondering, how does that "K" make difference in sounds?
Thank you

NicoMoreno · Post by **NicoMoreno** » Mon Nov 29, 2004 8:58 pm

The difference is that they are all not as good as wood.

Get a real instrument! Go WOOD!

(PS. This is a flue forum dedicated to the so called "simple-system" flutes.)

jim stone · Post by **jim stone** » Mon Nov 29, 2004 9:06 pm

That is, we don't know about the sort of flutes you
play. We play wooden flutes with six open holes.
Wish I had the info you want, however.
Good luck with your flute!

Doug_Tipple · Post by **Doug_Tipple** » Mon Nov 29, 2004 9:21 pm

I played a $9,000 gold Pearl flute last weekend. It was nice, but I liked the Muramatsu flute better. However, if you stick around this forum for long, we will have you getting a wooden headjoint. Good luck on your search for the perfect flute.

JessieK · Post by **JessieK** » Tue Nov 30, 2004 7:31 am

If gold at all makes a difference in sound, it stands to reason that the more gold content (the higher the K), the more different (for the better) it will be. 24K isn't very practical...it is very soft and not many makers use it on anything other than the riser. 18K is probably the best and 14k is the standard.

The maker of the flute matters more than the material. I don't like Muramatsu flutes at all. I find them unfocused and clunky. I believe that, as wonderful as James Galways sounds, he would sound better on a flute by another maker. Haynes flutes can be excellent (I have one that I love), but aren't always. I have looked into gold flutes, and if I were to get one, I would BEG John Lunn to make one for me (he has stopped making flutes to concentrate on writing books for children). Short of that, hmm...Brannen flutes are, indeed, very comfortable to play and rich in tone. That's a good bet.

Dana · Post by **Dana** » Tue Nov 30, 2004 11:57 am

The nice thing about getting a gold Brannen is its resale value. (That is, if you can afford it to begin with).

As far as various gold karats vs. silver: Pick the metal you like best, but play lots of flutes before making a final decision. Gold has a characteristic warm sound that is wonderful on some brands, and not needed on other brands. If you live somewhere near a major dealer, it's worth going there to play flutes. If not, Flute Center of New York or Carolyn Nussbaum in Dallas will send you several flutes at a time to try.

Dana

Tom O'Farrell · Post by **Tom O'Farrell** » Tue Nov 30, 2004 1:10 pm

I wonder what the effect would be if a gold headjoint were put on a wood simple system flute. A reknowned gold headjoint maker is J.R. Lafin, prices are about $6-7000 I think, but that's only for his basic model.... of course. Strange no-one has tried this approach is'nt it?

Doug_Tipple · Post by **Doug_Tipple** » Tue Nov 30, 2004 1:47 pm

There is a problem that you will encounter if you put a Boehm headjoint on a wooden flute with a conical bore. The problem is that both the headjoint and the conical flute body will be correcting for second octave intonation, and this will result in the second octave that is too sharp, I believe. There are some wooden flutes with cylindrical bores, and they would work better with a Boehm headjoint.

They use to call me "Mr. PVC" in derision, so my opinion about upper end flutes is not to be trusted without serious reservation, I warn you.

glauber · Post by **glauber** » Tue Nov 30, 2004 1:55 pm

I believe Terry McGee makes silver headjoints specifically designed for simple-system flutes. If i remember right, they work very well. There's someone else who does this... Eugene Lambe, maybe? Nice flute too. The idea is to get rid of the wooden headjoint, which is the piece most likely to crack, in dry weather.

And of course, the other way around is done often. I use a Mark Hoza headjoint on my Boehm style Miyazawa flute, and it's an awesome honker.