Polycarbonate C Mountain Ocarina

[Cliff]

I'm trying to make a simple "Customer Reviews" section like Amazon has for all of it's products. I find this the most useful help for me on Amazon when thinking about a product.

More Info About Polycarbonate C Ocarina

Some videos made on poly C's

If you own a Polycarbonate C Mountain Ocarina... let others know what you think of it. What do you like? What do you dislike? How does it sound? Help others know if this would be a good ocarina for them.

[Secretagentdan]

This ocarina was the 2nd MO ocarina I purchased and it's the one I play the most! It's light enough to keep on the necklace but it is sturdy and the tone is smooth, warm, and clear! It's a very expressive instrument and it's it's own entity compared to the poly G ocarina. This ocarina is more sensitive to breath and i find easy to make a strong sounding vibrato on. It looks sharp, and it sounds just as nice as the high end ocarinas minus the fine wood or warmstone materials/and looks. I love the lower register of this instrument and I play it just as much as my high end MO's, since it's so light and porable. In my opinion mountain ocarinas make instruments for all price ranges, but you NEVER sacrifice on sounds quality, even if you buy the affordable polycarbonate models. The more expreienced you get with these, you may naturally want to upgrade to a finer ocarina just to enjoy the sharp looks and subtle sound differences, which become more apparent with time. I give these 5 out of 5 stars and say if you want to learn to play ocarina,, this is your instrument!

[rweagle]

The Poly C Mountain Ocarina was my second MO I got.  I convinced my mom to get it for me for Christmas months after I got my Poly G.  The C is just as sturdy as the Poly G and plays wonderfully.  I mainly play slower, more haunting, tunes on it.  But it handles the upbeat and quick tunes just as well.  Some may be discouraged by the absence of the low B tone hole, but with practice achieving a low B becomes very easy.  Like any instrument breath control is key.  My Poly C and G share a case that is either attached to my belt or on my backpack, making playing whenever I have the chance a breeze.  I believe these instruments will be a lifelong passion for me.

Rob W.

[Laurent]

I got the poly C and G at the same time. I play the C mainly at home, because it is quieter, and I love its mellow low sound. It is a little less portable than the G, which is why I generaly take the G everywhere I go. It's really a great instrument!

[wcclark]

This is my main ocarina. I play it and take it everywhere I go. I prefer the deeper tone and the simplicity of it being in the Key of C. The Polycarb material is sturdy yet lightweight, and sounds great for any tune.

Not to mention, I love the fact that it's incredibly economical, and if something did happen to it, god forbid, I could replace it without taking out a loan on my car.

[Dangerous Dan]

After having this lovely little instrument for a little over a week, I can gleefully proclaim my undying love for it; this thing is fantastic! I've had experience with wind instruments in the past, but it amazed me how quickly it was to pick this thing up and play! The fingering patterns are really very intuitive, and with practice it becomes easy to smoothly and quickly transition between notes. And because of this instruments small size and portability, its easy to practice anywhere, even if you aren't blowing through it. Admittedly, when I first pulled it out of the box I was disappointed with the sound, but after several hours of practice, I began to use the proper breath pressure and add in vibrato, and then the beautiful tone of the instrument really started to shine through. It definitely takes a lot of practice to get the highest few notes to sound clearly, but with practice, clearly they will sound. Fantastic instrument, I look forward to picking up a G in the near future!

[zapot]

HI,
I did take advantage of the 'special' and bought the G and C at the same time.  And, following the suggestion, have been using the G for learning.  But, today I spent some time with the C and I think I am hooked.  The mellow sound is just too good to put down.  The G is a more interesting shape and somewhat more portable, but I do believe I will be sticking with the C for now.
zapot

[Noah]

I got the C and G polycarbonates, and I must say the G is much easier to "pick up and play," mainly because it requires little to no breath control.  The C, for beginners, will be a little bit tricky (perhaps only for complete wind instrument beginners), but it doesn't take long to get used to.

As for the sound quality, there is a slight "buzzing" present (probably only audible to the player), where the notes on the G seem crisp, if a bit airy on the high notes (also not noticeable unless you're playing it, as far as I can tell).

As for the sound itself, I really love the C!  When I started out, I greatly preferred the G (probably because of the initial trickiness of making the C sound nice), but as the others have mentioned, the C does have a very addictively sweet tone!  It depends on what tune I want to play, but I now use the C and G equally.

[hoodsmom]

I agree with Noah 100% and I wonder if other ppl agree with us that there's more of a buzzing problem on the C than on the G.  (edit 3/29 oops.  I also meant that the C buzzes more than the G, especially on low C & D)

[Noah]

Actually, I meant the C has a slight buzzing to it.  I have discovered, though, that this only happens if you blow even a little too hard.

[Michaelh]

yeah i got a polycarbonate C and its great. i highly recomend to everyone

[cerescop]

I just received my Poly "C" and am very happy with the fit and the appearance of this less expensive model of the MO line. I chose the "C" over the "G" after listening to the two models side by side in the sound samples listening section. I especially liked Mr. Almartinos  playing and the exquisite sound quality produced by the unit when in the hands of a very skilled and talented artist. Such, I am not yet. The sound of the instrument reminds me of the cry of a Loon on a cold, misty, morning up in the Maine woods near a pond I used to frequent. Its very haunting  and stirs emotions that I haven't revisited in many years. I am just learning the Ocarina and music though I like to sing. Thanks for a wonderful product I am sure is going to provide me with years of service and entertainment. Hopefully others as well.

[Michaelh]

i've got the C, i have nothing to compare it to but what i've seen/heard in videos and read on forums, but i think it sounds really good and is great for people to start on.

[RicTheGrt]

I have had my Polycarbonate C for two weeks and I have had a lot of fun playing.  Prior experience on the tin whistle helped a lot.

It is tuned correctly and I admire the craftsmanship in making the molds, assembly, tuning and finishing.  So many inexpensive tin whistles are very poor in the fipple an some are almost unplayable.  What a wonderful change for the MO C Poly.

Being a whistle player I would like an MO in D, but I can transpose to C. Or I can cross finger to get the F# and C# but this gives me one note less in the range.

I would also like a 12 hole since I am accustomed to a two octave range.

As my first Ocarina it is great.

One question, there is a little flash on the labium where the air exits the body and a little bit more on the sharp edge of the lip.  The sound does not seem to be affected.  Should I remove this bit of flash or leave well alone?

[Cliff]

Hello RicTheGrt,

Thanks for your comments. Regarding the flash, I believe you are right that it doesn't affect the sound. I believe all of our poly C parts have that bit of flash you are referring to. I would recommend leaving it there.

-Cliff