Why Buy a Second Hand Clarinet from Dawkes?

We offer a range of second-hand Clarinets, all of which are fully checked and set-up in our workshop prior to sale. We make sure each Clarinet is carefully prepared and assessed before the sale, ensuring you can buy pre-owned in total confidence.

Each second-hand Clarinet comes with an immediate 14-day approval period and a 6-month warranty. If you’re not sure it’s the right instrument for you in 14-days, we can refund the instrument in full.

How to Buy

There are two main ways to buy a second-hand Clarinet from Dawkes:

Order Online:  Browse our second-hand Clarinet stock online and when you’re ready just complete the simple checkout process. Your instrument will be fully checked and set-up prior to despatch and comes with a 14-day home approval period. Buy securely and with total confidence in our award-winning customer support.

Visit In Store: If you are able to visit our Maidenhead (Berkshire) store you can try a range of Clarinets. Use our booking system to pre-arrange your visit and choose the room, day and time that suits you best. Our expert staff will be on hand to look after you and assist with any queries.

How to choose

Our first advice is to stick to main brand models such as Buffet, Yamaha, Selmer, Backun, Uebel, Yamaha, Leblanc, Jupiter and Windcraft. These main brands offer spare part support, keep a good re-sale value, and benefit from higher-quality manufacturing.

Which level/model to choose then depends on your experience, current set-up and ambitions. Beginner Clarinets are made of ABS plastic and as such are lighter and slightly easier to play. These would be ideal for a new player of any age.

Once you’ve been playing a few years you will find that moving to a wooden Clarinet will offer you a fuller, richer tone with more projection and quality of sound. Wooden models can start from around £400 pre-owned for a basic first upgrade, and stretch up to many thousands of pounds. A budget of £500-£800 would be good if you’re looking to make your first upgrade into the wooden market, you may find a nice second-hand Clarinet in this price range that would normally cost £1,000 -£1,500 new.

Value vs New

How much do second-hand clarinets cost? This is a common question but it’s hard to give an exact answer as it depends on the level, make and model. As a general rule, a second-hand Clarinet will cost between 20-40% less than the new equivalent, but of course, it does depend on the condition.

Is it safe to buy second hand?

Yes, if you’re buying from a specialist Retailer offering you the correct level of support. For example, all of our second-hand clarinets are fully checked and assessed before even being brought into our stock. We look at the overall condition of the wood, the pads, the keywork and how the instrument plays.

When we do decide to add a model to our stock it is then fully serviced and set-up in our workshop prior to sale. This ensures you can a used Clarinet from us in total confidence, knowing our specialist team have prepared it accordingly for sale.