Woodshed Lab Utility

Reed All About It

A reed strength converter for players moving between Vandoren, D’Addario/Rico, and Légère-style reed families. Choose your current reed, pick a target cut, and get the nearest practical starting point.

Converter

If you are between two options, buy the softer one first for jazz/lead/free-blowing setups and the firmer one first for classical, chamber, or closed-tip setups.

Recommended starting point

Choose a reed.

Your conversion will appear here.

Ready
Softer backup — Useful if response feels blocked.
Closest match — Start here first.
Harder backup — Useful if pitch or tone feels unstable.
Softer Harder

Reed cut, mouthpiece facing, embouchure, room humidity, and instrument resistance can shift this result.

Current Target Result
— — —

Why the same number feels different

A “3” in one brand can feel softer, harder, brighter, darker, thinner, or more resistant in another cut.

How to use this

Treat the closest match as your first test reed. The softer and harder backups are there because reed charts are never the whole story.

Best next upgrade

Add player notes later: mouthpiece, instrument, current reed, target sound, and whether the reed felt too soft, too stiff, or just right.

Source note: This tool is modeled from public reed comparison chart conventions used by D’Addario, Légère, and Vandoren-style cut comparisons. Results are approximate and intended for choosing a first reed to try, not for replacing private teacher guidance or direct play-testing.