White Leather -'Roo'
A white leather pad is the industry standard clarinet pad in Germany and the stock pad on many newer Selmer clarinets. There are many good reasons for choosing a leather pad. One being, they will never "kazoo" like the "bladder skin" pad and will also outlast that pad, probably having double the life. The pad I keep in stock has a firm felt, takes a nice light seat (fast response). This newer pad also features kangaroo leather (extremely durable) and is remarkably air tight.
White Synthetic - Valentino 'Greenback'
These pads are an excellent choice for the person who is playing constantly or who appreciates a very quiet key mechanism. The pad is quite durable, extremely waterproof and are pretty free of the tendency to stick to the tone hole. I've used this pad a number of years now on many, many clarinets, and have been very pleased with the results.
Tan Synthetic - Valentino 'Masters'
The Masters pad takes what is good about the Greenback and goes a few steps farther. The first thing noticed is that it is a fair amount firmer. The advantage here is a shallower pad seat allowing faster response. Another nice feature is its cardboard back which keeps the pad from warping due to the heat during seating, which is higher if you use stick shellac as an adhesive. I think the firmer layers may also help the pad's durability, which as a Greenback was already equal to the leather or cork pad.
The Cork Pad
A very accurate and long lasting pad. These pads are hand made to fit the specific key they are being applied to. They make a little more noise when they touch the tone hole but take a very light seat and are very fast to respond, making them a great choice for the throat keys and places where water collects. My cork pads are produced using high quality cross grain cork, not stamped out of shive cut cork, and hand made on a watchmaker's lathe. The face of the pad is machined which makes it very smooth and airtight.