The Yamaha Synthetic Reed is an excellent choice if you want a durable and easily playable reed. The material is made to feel like a natural reed and the tone also sounds like the tone youd get from a natural reed made of cane. Each reed is engraved with a number showing the strength. This makes it very easy to tell them apart if you use multiple sizes. These reeds are completely safe with no toxic substances in the material. They can be cleaned and disinfected with mouthpiece cleaner just like regular reeds. A big advantage of these synthetic reeds is that they are highly durable. Yamaha have tested these reeds for 320 hours of playing time with no changes in stiffness or shape. This is around 8 months of use if you play for 2 hours a day and 20 days per month. These reeds are more affordable than cane reeds as a result of this. The plastic packaging also can double as a case for your reeds so you can keep them safe while not using them. The paper is water resistant and wont soften or tear when a moist reed is put in. Specifications Instrument for: Alto saxophone Material: Synthetic Reed strength: 3.5