The best xylophones in the UK 2023

Are you fascinated by the bright, percussive sounds of the xylophone and want to learn to play it, or are you looking for a new model to accompany you in concert? There's nothing better than investing in a quality model like the Adams XS2LV35 Solist. Made of rosewood and adjustable in height, it offers 3.5 octaves for a stunning musical experience. Check out the rest of our selection via this guide.

Adams XS2LV35 Solist Xylophone A=442 1
8/10

Best value for money

Adams XS2LV35 Solist Xylophone A=442

The best xylophone in 2021

This is a beautiful 3.5 octave xylophone with rosewood sound bars that is expensive, but worth every penny. It's worth every penny, thanks to the bright, clear sounds it makes and its unfailing sturdiness that stands the test of time.

See the price

Our current favorite is a xylophone with octave tuning that offers a bright and clear sound. Made from the high quality material rosewood, it is extremely durable. Some happy users have even said that after six years of use, the instrument shows no signs of wear. This makes it a safe bet for a successful investment. Promising both on paper and in practice, the XS2LV35 can be adjusted to 80-100 cm in height and offers beautiful, rich, balanced tones that will delight beginners and advanced xylophonists alike. Fully portable thanks to its removable and foldable resonators, headboards and rails, this xylophone can accompany its owner anywhere without any problem.

Ammoon Glockenspiel 30 Note Xylophone Foldable 2
8/10

Best value for money

Ammoon Glockenspiel 30 Note Xylophone Foldable

The best entry-level xylophone

If you need a high quality, durable musical instrument with an excellent sound, this xylophone is for you. For family use, don't hesitate to invest in this quality instrument.

See the price

The THTH 3.0 promises you the essentials to get started on the xylophone and compose beautiful, warm, clean sounds on a practical instrument at a mini price. It will delight beginner xylophonists with its high quality wooden blades, 3 octave pitch and range from C5 to C8. Brilliantly designed, the THTH 3.0 features a wooden frame that provides good resonance throughout the structure of the instrument for clear sounds. If you decide to invest in this xylophone, you'll get a case with backpack straps and a mallet holder. This is a ready-to-play, beautifully finished instrument that will last you for many years as you progress in your musical education.

Adams XSLD Xylo Table Model A=442 3
9/10

Best premium value for money

Adams XSLD Xylo Table Model A=442

The best high-end xylophone

Take advantage of the expertise of the great Adams brand through this high-end xylophone. With the XSLD35 Xylo, the company guarantees a well-designed, comfortable and enjoyable musical experience for young percussionists and beginners.

See the price

The XSLD35 Xylo is an instrument that stands for the seriousness of the great Adams brand. When you invest in this model, you'll enjoy crystal-clear sound, easy setup and complete portability. Tuned to the octave, it offers a range of 3.5 octaves from F4 to C8 and comes with A442 tuning. This xylophone is very popular thanks to its 38.5 mm rosewood blades, which are pleasant to the touch and offer a brilliant and percussive sound, and its handle attached to the metal frame for easy transport. The brand has not skimped on ergonomics either: your instrument can be adjusted in height according to your height. For more comfort and convenience, the SXLD35 Xylo can be easily installed on any type of stand. Finally, the product comes with a dust cover and a pair of XB6 medium mallets.

Ammoon Glockenspiel 30 Note Xylophone Foldable 4
8/10

Best entry-level alternative

Ammoon Glockenspiel 30 Note Xylophone Foldable

The best instrument for the whole family

If you need a high quality, durable musical instrument with an excellent sound, this xylophone is for you. For family use, don't hesitate to invest in this quality instrument.

See the price

The THTH 3.0 promises you the essentials to get started on the xylophone and compose beautiful, warm, clean sounds on a practical instrument at a mini price. It will delight beginner xylophonists with its high quality wooden blades, 3 octave pitch and range from C5 to C8. Brilliantly designed, the THTH 3.0 features a wooden frame that provides good resonance throughout the structure of the instrument for clear sounds. If you decide to invest in this xylophone, you'll get a case with backpack straps and a mallet holder. This is a ready-to-play, beautifully finished instrument that will last you for many years as you progress in your musical education.

Buying guide • November 2023

Best xylophone

Any specific needs?

The best xylophone in 2021

The best entry-level xylophone

The best high-end xylophone

The best instrument for the whole family

Your guide : Samuel

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Comparison table of the best xylophones

TOP OF THE TOP CHEAP TOP OF THE LINE ALTERNATIVE
Adams XS2LV35 Solist Xylophone A=442 5
8/10
Ammoon Glockenspiel 30 Note Xylophone Foldable 6
8/10
Adams XSLD Xylo Table Model A=442 7
9/10
Ammoon Glockenspiel 30 Note Xylophone Foldable 8
8/10
OUR SELECTION
Adams XS2LV35 Solist Xylophone A=442
Ammoon Glockenspiel 30 Note Xylophone Foldable
Adams XSLD Xylo Table Model A=442
Ammoon Glockenspiel 30 Note Xylophone Foldable
This is a beautiful 3.5 octave xylophone with rosewood sound bars that is expensive, but worth every penny. It's worth every penny, thanks to the bright, clear sounds it makes and its unfailing sturdiness that stands the test of time.
If you need a high quality, durable musical instrument with an excellent sound, this xylophone is for you. For family use, don't hesitate to invest in this quality instrument.
Take advantage of the expertise of the great Adams brand through this high-end xylophone. With the XSLD35 Xylo, the company guarantees a well-designed, comfortable and enjoyable musical experience for young percussionists and beginners.
If you need a high quality, durable musical instrument with an excellent sound, this xylophone is for you. For family use, don't hesitate to invest in this quality instrument.
Octaves/number of notes
3.5
3
3.5
3
Material
Palissander
Natural wood
Palissander
Natural wood
Tessitura
From F4 to C8
From C5 to C8
From F4 to C8
From C5 to C8
Weight
32 kg
-
-
-
For whom?
Beginners and experts
Beginners and intermediate xylophonists
Beginners and experts
Beginners and intermediate xylophonists

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Buying guide - xylophone

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How to choose your xylophone

For a pleasant musical experience and a successful investment, here are the points not to neglect when choosing a xylophone.

#1 - Removable or non-removable bars

Removable bars have many advantages. You can easily replace the existing ones with completely different notes to change the tone of the instrument. Also, if you want to learn how to adjust the bars yourself, it will be easier to remove and replace them without the need for special tools or an expert. On the other hand, if you're not interested in replacing the bars or learning to tune a xylophone, consider a xylophone with fixed bars. This will prevent you from accidentally losing a bar.

#2 - Mallets

Mallets are long sticks with round heads that are used to strike the bars of a percussion instrument including the xylophone or even the marimba. Quality mallets provide an impeccable sound. So choose a xylophone that comes with mallets. Soft-tipped mallets are best for wooden bars, alto and bass xylophones, and harmony parts.

#3 - The material of the bars

Opt for a xylophone made with metal bars if you want a sharper, cleaner sound. The metal versions make a great instrument for solos accompanied by other instruments. Wooden bar xylophones have a warmer, rounder sound. In addition to the fact that they can also be used as a solo, wood bar xylophones offer a sound that blends well with other xylophones of the same type.

Important

Do not use metal mallets on wooden tone plates. This may damage the plates or worse, break them.

#4 - The number of notes

For

introductory use, turn to a single-row xylophone. However, for use as a musical instrument, it is best to choose a double-row model with at least thirty notes.

Tuning a wooden xylophone

Wood is a natural material that will always change depending on the humidity and temperature of the room or space it is in. As a result, the setting of your xylophone may change slightly. As a general rule, you can tell that dry air raises the tones and high humidity lowers them.

When children are playing with this type of instrument, this little concern won't bother even if some of the tones are a little too high or low, but if you really need a perfect tone for some reason, especially when playing music on other well-tuned instruments or playing with several xylophones together, it's important that your instrument is fine-tuned.

Therefore, to adjust the sounds of your instrument, here's how to do it:

  • To lower the pitch

Sand the lower part in the middle of the bar, where the bar is thinnest. Please do this very carefully step by step to avoid going too far.

  • To raise the tone

Make the tone bar a little shorter (the same at both ends) with a piece of sandpaper. Please do this very carefully step by step to avoid going too far. For your information, you should know that there are also various digital applications on the market to get the exact tuning of each tone.

Good to know

Individual music therapy using color-coded notation to play the xylophone is sometimes used to alleviate physical discomfort by improving breathing, lowering blood pressure, improving cardiac output, reducing heart rate, and releasing muscle tension. For mental health, this form of therapy is ideal for reducing common negative side effects of stress, such as emotional and behavioral problems.

Xylophone or marimba

Xylophone

The xylophone is a musical instrument made of blades that are struck with small mallets. Originally, the blades were made of wood, but today most xylophones on the market have metal blades. The instrument has a higher range and a brighter, harder and more piercing sound than the marimba. Apart from that, the xylophone is available in a toy version to introduce toddlers to the instrument. In terms of tuning, xylophones and marimbas also use different tuning systems. Xylophones use the fifth tuning, which consists of tuning the fundamental and the 3rd harmonic.

Marimba

The marimba is the largest instrument in the mallet family. It is in fact an African xylophone with one or more resonators like pipes. Its range can cover more than five octaves, with a dark, full sound and soft tones. In terms of tuning, marimbas use octave tuning, which consists of tuning the root and the 4th harmonic. The marimba has a harmonic structure similar to that of wind and string instruments. It's a pity that there is no toy version for the little ones.

Verdict

In short, the marimba has a harmonic structure similar to that of wind and string instruments, while the xylophone is distinguished by its use of the fifth chord. When the marimba is played with an orchestra, the notes blend together, whereas the xylophone's notes stand out clearly, because the tuning method is different. The choice between the two instruments then depends on the arrangement and the style of music you want to create.

Did you know that...

The "real" xylophone can have up to 35 notes over 3 octaves for a fuller playing range with a diatonic scale from G to C.

Tips

Proper care of a xylophone

To ensure the integrity of your xylophone at all times, store it in a cool, dry place away from extreme heat and cold. Your xylophone bars should also not be cleaned with chemicals.

Cleaning the xylophone bars

To

do this, use a soft cloth dampened with soap and warm water to wipe down each bar on your instrument. Be sure to dry them thoroughly before reassembling the xylophone. Similarly, warm soapy water can be used to wipe down the frame components. Get a special cleaner from a specialty store if there are sticky areas or adhesive residue on the frame of your xylophone.

Adjusting the height of a resonator pipe

With

xylophones that have resonator pipes, the pitch decreases as the pipe opening gets closer to the tone plates. As a result, moving the pipes further away from the tone plates increases the pitch. When the room temperature is high, you should place the resonator pipes in a high position closer to the tone plates, and when the temperature is low enough, place them in a lower position away from the tone plates.

Keep the inside of the resonator clean

If

you notice that the sound your xylophone is making seems somewhat strange, look inside the resonator. If you see something similar to a ping-pong ball or an eraser stuck inside trapped inside, from time to time, turn the resonator over and clean the inside!

In case of buzzing bars

If

your instrument "buzzes" while percussing, move the buzzing bar to another location in the resonator box. If the bar still buzzes in its new location, the bar may need to be replaced. If the humming bar does not hum in its new location, the seams of the resonator box may have dried out. To solve this problem, run a bead of wood glue along the seams of the box and let it sit until it is dry. When the seams are dry, return the bar to its original position and try it out.

FAQ

What is the best xylophone?

The best xylophone depends on your needs and budget. Read our buying guide for the best products available.

What is so special about the sound of the xylophone?

Hard, woody, bright, rattling, incisive, penetrating, sharp, accentuated, precise, piercing, breaking, dry, bubbling, drop-shaped, high, hollow, ticking, transparent, clear, the sound of the xylophone is distinguished by its lack of resonance and the impression of precision that it creates

How many octaves does a xylophone have?

Some can be as small as 2.5 octaves, but concert xylophones are usually 3.5 or 4 octaves long. Like the glockenspiel, the xylophone is a transposing instrument: its parts are written an octave below the sounding notes.

What to do if a tone plate is damaged?

The cutting of the wood fibers while the wooden tone plates are being struck gradually decreases the note produced. If the tone is off, the bar is broken, the surface has peeled off or the tone plate is damaged, replace the bar.

Sources

Note: Below are some of the sources we have consulted in writing this article. Links to other sites are not continuously updated. It is therefore possible that a link may not be found. Please use a search engine to find the desired information.
  1. , jazz-mulhouse.fr
  2. , musiclic.com
  3. , resta-percussions.com
  4. , flipjuke.fr
  5. , consoglobe.com
  6. , schelpenman.com
  7. , instrumentsdumonde.fr
  8. , montremoicomment.com
  9. , vsl.co.at
  10. , fr.wikipedia.org
  11. , amazon.co.uk
  12. , bergerault-webstore.com
  13. , woodbrass.com
  14. , thomann.de
  15. , thomann.de
  16. , renardguitare.com
  17. , instrumentdemusique.org
  18. , dictionnaire.lerobert.com
  19. , amazon.co.uk
  20. , universalis.fr
  21. , fr.vikidia.org
  22. , xn--conjugu-hya.com
  23. , en.wikipedia.org
  24. , gear4music.fr
  25. , larousse.fr
  26. , instrumentsdumonde.fr
  27. , daftlimmy.github.io
  28. , cnrtl.fr
  29. , laredoute.fr
  30. , woodbrass.com
  31. , bauermusique.com
See more

Updates

March 2022 : Translation of this buying guide from our partner meilleurtest.fr

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Our selection
Adams XS2LV35 Solist Xylophone A=442 9
Adams XS2LV35 Solist Xylophone A=442
Ammoon Glockenspiel 30 Note Xylophone Foldable 10
Ammoon Glockenspiel 30 Note Xylophone Foldable
Adams XSLD Xylo Table Model A=442 11
Adams XSLD Xylo Table Model A=442
Ammoon Glockenspiel 30 Note Xylophone Foldable 12
Ammoon Glockenspiel 30 Note Xylophone Foldable

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