Saxophones I need more punch! (on baritone)

[jthole]

Currently I have two baritone mouthpieces; a Yanagisawa HR with an enlarged chamber (modified by Erik Greiffenhagen), and a Meyer HR piece. Both with 0.105" tip openings.

The Yanagisawa is a perfect match with my Martin; good intonation, good sound, and a lot of presence in the low notes. Exactly what I need in a bigband section. However, intonation of my other baritone (a Grassi) is not really great with this mouthpiece. I guess it's simply too large. Yes, it does work, but it takes more effort.

The Meyer matches very well with the Grassi, in terms of intonation. However, the sound is much too gentleman-like. Great for a small combo, or a quartet, but not enough punch for a bigband. The Yanagisawa works better in the low notes, but the Meyer is better in the middle and high registers. It seems the Yanagisawa just is much happier when sitting on my Martin ;}

Yes, I know that my Italian probably is much more a gentleman than my American ;} but I am looking for a mouthpiece that will make the low register a bit wilder, when I need that. Not a high baffle piece; I am not looking for the sound of a chainsaw ;}

I am definitely going to try an Otto Link Tone Edge, and a Berg Larsen, but do you have any other suggestions? Not a high baffle piece, but capable of delivering a nice rumble in the low register

Thanks!

 

[Jules]

I'd highly recommend metal yanagisawas...... very versatile and extremelly well made...

 

[jthole]

I'd highly recommend metal yanagisawas...... very versatile and extremelly well made...

Thanks! I probably should have added that I prefer hard rubber mouthpieces. The Yanagisawa HR pieces are very well made too, btw.

 

[milandro]

How about trying a Berg Larsen (grained ebonite, for kicks , it's very nice looking! Nicer than the black ones!) despite their rather bad press on the quality of the stainless steel models I think that the ebonite ones are way better and are appreciated by some baritone players for their rather more punchy sound. With the usual caveat of " try before you buy" you can find them at places like Harry Bakker for example, they are priced around the 230€. Alternatively, and probably better but more difficult to find, an ebonite Lawton. They are definitely better finished than the Berg Larsen but I doubt that you can fnd one in Holland to try out so you would have to buy without trying.......not something that I would recommend, Sax.co.uk had them for 220£.

 

[Nordbo]

I'm happy with my Vandoren V16 for big band work. For even more punch, try a Rosseau JDX.

Regards Bo

 

[Taz]

I know you say you prefer hard rubber, but I'm certainly getting some mileage from this Runyon Smoothbore. I love it. It's smooth, gentle and rich when you want it, and then, just as your audience is slipping softly into a coma, it'll bight back with a real bark!
Lovely.

 

[jthole]

I know you say you prefer hard rubber, but I'm certainly getting some mileage from this Runyon Smoothbore. I love it. It's smooth, gentle and rich when you want it, and then, just as your audience is slipping softly into a coma, it'll bight back with a real bark!
Lovely.

That sounds exactly like what I want ;}

My Martin is like that ... it can whisper, sound sweet, and growl ... it's just missing that low A.

 

[rhysonsax]

When I had my 'The Martin' low Bb baritone, the perfect mouthpiece for it was a Brilhart Level-Air. That was the old style by Arnold Brilhart, not the new one of the same name, marketed by Selmer but I think made by Runyon. The new one has interchangeable plastic inserts.

Now my Level Air is exactly what you say you don't want - high baffle (it's got an extreme step down into the chamber) and metal. But despite the look of the thing, it has a surprisingly flexible sound with a lot of character and an ability to bark as well as purr.

The Level Air certainly had problems with E2 and F2 tuning on The Martin, but I sorted them out with crescents in the toneholes. Wish I had never sold that bari as it was very special. Nicer than my Conn 12M and with something my Selmer hasn't got, although the Selmer is a better all-round horn.

Rhys

 

[jthole]

Hi Rhys,

Thanks ... I have found the perfect mouthpiece match for my Martin already though. And yes, the Martin is a great bari, even if intonation is more work than on most modern baritone saxes.

My Grassi works very well with the Meyer in my saxophone quartet, or in a small acoustic combo. But I need something that can growl indeed for bigband work ... the Grassi didn't come with the built-in roar of the Martin

To be fair, I haven't played a low A bari yet that can compare to my Martin in the low register.

 

[jonf]

I know you say you prefer hard rubber, but I'm certainly getting some mileage from this Runyon Smoothbore. I love it. It's smooth, gentle and rich when you want it, and then, just as your audience is slipping softly into a coma, it'll bight back with a real bark!
Lovely.

Agree 100% I've got one as well (bought it off Jules with his old bari, since departed, and somewhat missed, despite the presence of a Bauhaus Walstein bari). It's a great, great mouthpiece, so much so that I've never suffered from mouthpiece GAS with bari.

 

[jthole]

How about trying a Berg Larsen (grained ebonite, for kicks , it's very nice looking! Nicer than the black ones!) despite their rather bad press on the quality of the stainless steel models I think that the ebonite ones are way better and are appreciated by some baritone players for their rather more punchy sound.

Well, punchy sound indeed ... I tried a HR berg with a bullet chamber, and it's a bit too much for my taste ;}

I'll go looking for a "OL Tone Edge" style mouthpiece first. I like that one very much on my tenor.

 

[milandro]

Well, punchy sound indeed ... I tried a HR berg with a bullet chamber, and it's a bit too much for my taste ;}

I'll go looking for a "OL Tone Edge" style mouthpiece first. I like that one very much on my tenor.

a different punch then!

 

[jthole]

Well, I am back with the Yanagisawa on the Grassi ;}

The intonation is good enough really in any practical situations, and it sounds so much better than the Meyer. I am going to stick with what I got, for now.

Still; just like the Yani is a perfect match for the Martin, there must be a perfect match for the Grassi as well ... somewhere ;}

 

[milandro]

different reed?

 

[jthole]

different reed?

Meyer HR on steroids ;}

 

[jthole]

Meyer HR on steroids ;}

I went with the posterputty route for now ;-)

 

[milandro]

I went with the posterputty route for now ;-)

 

[Paul Warner]

The putty experiment should resolve a few things. I`ve grown to prefer ebonite m/p`s over the last couple of years. However, when I was playing regularly in a fairly loud seven piece, on baritone, I used metal 8* Yani m/p`s and could cut through anything. I`ve got recordings showing wallpaper flying off the wall! Sounds like the way to go.

 

[milandro]

one other thing that the baffle will probably do will be to influence intonation because it reduces the internal volume of the mouthpiece.

 

[milandro]

.......I`ve got recordings showing wallpaper flying off the wall!......

of course the blue tack was used in the mouthpiece and there was nothing more holding it!