Quite nice sound indeed:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rURTpmiUSGA
yeah, it’s not a bad sound at all. Anyone out there had experience with this type of reed?
i doubt very much it would ever compete with cane at the top level of piping, but could be a great tool for learners- may help reduce the number of crap sounding bagpipes in the world!
Hi, I’m the guy who shot the video…
I’m not a good highland piper myself yet, but I do specialise in other bagpipe reeds so I know what differences in tone means for a piper.
I’ve been in the same room with Cory and Malcolm when both cane and the plastic reeds have been played and if you read the statement by Cory on the video, I reckon it’s damn good competition for a cane reed.
to quote the video spiel -
“They have been played by many pipers ( some “A” grade ) in solo competitions and demonstrations here ( and overseas ) and have not been picked as a plastic reed, as the tone is so close to that of a traditional cane reed, only the most well trained ear can pick it.”
The most important factor in these reeds is that they are maintenance-free, once set up correctly, and tuning overall is reduced to a minimum.
Remember, cane reeds don’t sound that crash hot on computer speakers either.
Cheers,
Tried it - liked it! 
i am still sceptical as to the claimed high end quality of this product. who in scotland plays this reed? where can i buy one? how much? website?
piping live next week would be a great place to launch this kinda product
If you click on the link in the first post above, you will see all the information you require regarding contacts.
Cheers,
DavidG
I just got my reed from Malcolm McLaren and gave it its inaugural blast yesterday. I’m thrilled to bits with it. Now I can spend more time playing rather than mucking about and cursing. (I’ll leave the cursing bit to the neighbours now.)
Overall the sound in the clip is pretty impressive. You can still hear the plastic in the topmost notes, especially High A and also in G gracenotes. I wonder if maybe the pressure of the GHB pipe chanter pushes the limits of plastic’s acoustic qualities. Hearing one in person would obviously be better to assess.
A showing at Piping Live or the Worlds could have been advantageous. Clanrye even had a booth at the Worlds.
Malcolm has a new website -
.
I’m now looking for a different host for the mclaren site. Will let you know when we have it up and running.