This is a Vandoren VK1 (synthetic reed) size 4.0 soft. I'm selling it because I bought the wrong size. 4.0 is about the same hardness as a Vandoren cane reed size 3 (blue box/silver box) (according to the Vandoren official chart). I'm also listing a 4.5, so please comment if you'd like to purchase both. Retail price is ¥7,370 (including tax). Instant purchase is OK! Thank you. Quoted from the following site: The synthetic reed "VK" is made of a new composite fiber created by Vandoren after 7 years of research. This new composite fiber does not simply imitate the structure of cane. It reproduces the essential physical properties of cane to achieve the same acoustics as cane reeds.