Mouthpieces Mouthpiece Size

[thomsax]

I guess it's the 8 we'll be hearing about.

Unless the player is not open up the mouthpice to be more like a 10! Yesterday I checked old charts (tip openings) and a Couf 9* was 0.085" and there were no 10. A very narrow 9*? This is my last reply on extreme tip opnings. Now I must practise.

 

[6441]

Now I must practise.

Same here!

 

[Nikki]

I just don't want anytone to judge a teacher, a player ..... because they prefer wide tip opnings. I can't say if he is a bad teacher .... I don't know him. But I don't like comments like .... " I think it’s irresponsible for a teacher to recommend something so outrageous".

That’s ok. You’re allowed to like or not like other members comments and opinions but I’m not changing my answer. . I didn’t agree with everything my teacher said either and he was a great teacher. I don’t know the O.P.’s teacher either but nobody was calling him a bad teacher. It’s a site for discussing and we aren’t all going to agree. I’m ok with that. I’m sorry you’re struggling with it.

 

[CliveMA]

Bottom line, no one cares what anyone else plays or likes, unless you're selling the stuff.

Or writing your last will and testament, especially if you own vintage Selmer Mark VI saxaphones.

 

[6441]

Or writing your last will and testament, especially if you own vintage Selmer Mark VI saxaphones.

You had to go there! You're out of mine for good

 

[CliveMA]

You had to go there! You're out of mine for good

I didn't know you owned a Mark VI?

You're safe as coloured mouthpieces are not for me.

 

[saxyjt]

I tend to find it quite irresponsible for a teacher to recommend such an extreme tip size.

I just don't want anytone to judge a teacher, a player ..... because they prefer wide tip opnings. I can't say if he is a bad teacher .... I don't know him. But I don't like comments like .... " I think it’s irresponsible for a teacher to recommend something so outrageous".

Guilty as charged!

But them you sorta proved the point yourself by explaining how hard it is to adapt to such wide tips.

Perhaps I missed something and the OP plays in a very loud band and MUST be heard, then I'd get it. Otherwise I can only find it at the very least a very strange recommendation for a rather young player...

But, eh that made a great discussion and we can't always agree.

 

[Colin the Bear]

You're safe as coloured mouthpieces are not for me.

Coloured mouthpieces matter.

 

[Nikki]

You're safe as coloured mouthpieces are not for me.

And to think I believed you when you said that you liked new mouthpieces as long as they were pretty.

 

[CliveMA]

And to think I believed you when you said that you liked new mouthpieces as long as they were pretty.

Pretty to me.
Except for the off-white one, SYOS colours are too in-your-face bold for my taste.

I like Theo Wanne Shiva for Alto:

 

[CliveMA]

And to think I believed you when you said that you liked new mouthpieces as long as they were pretty.

Or Rafael Navarro Maestro for Alto:

 

[CliveMA]

Lucky I don't have an Alto.
Theo Wanne Mindi Abair signature for alto

 

[6441]

You can "dial in your sound" for another $50 for the pressure plate!

 

[Nikki]

Lucky I don't have an Alto.
Theo Wanne Mindi Abair signature for alto
View attachment 15029

That’s what I was thinking. Didn’t you sell your alto and get a soprano and a tenor. Now you’re drooling over alto mouthpieces. Lol! I see a plan in action. If you bought one of these sweet MPs you’d have to get an alto to go with it. Sure I think you’re wife would go it.

 

[just saxes]

Ok that’s all fine and dandy but what if your other 6 mouthpieces fit perfectly just the way the cork currently is?

Not being a smarty: I think don't understand the question.

But if it's what I think it is: then you get to play the other 6 and wrap the cork for the other one. You can get the cork to swell back up a tiny bit (but not in a stable way) by wetting it and then hitting it with hot hair over and over, or (who knows) maybe there is some kind of sleeve you can slide on that I've not encountered, yet is available (there's your million dollar idea, saxophone gadget would-be manufacturer who hasn't thought of one yet). Otherwise the one that doesn't fit could be altered inside its own shank.

 

[Nikki]

Not being a smarty: I think don't understand the question.

But if it's what I think it is: then you get to play the other 6 and wrap the cork for the other one. You can get the cork to swell back up a tiny bit (but not in a stable way) by wetting it and then hitting it with hot hair over and over, or (who knows) maybe there is some kind of sleeve you can slide on that I've not encountered, yet is available (there's your million dollar idea, saxophone gadget would-be manufacturer who hasn't thought of one yet). Otherwise the one that doesn't fit could be altered inside its own shank.

No you got the question and that’s the answer I expected. This type of thing might work for you but I hate messing around with stuff. That fine tuning and adjustments I have to make would make me not want to play the mouthpiece and move on to the one that does fit. I do GET what you’re saying and agree that it would work; it just wouldn’t be my thing so if I find out some mouthpieces don’t exactly fit right, I’m not interested in the least. Especially if they are really pricey. Something worth a few hundred dollars should fit. That was ‘my’ original point but thank you for explaining all that.

 

[just saxes]

No you got the question and that’s the answer I expected. This type of thing might work for you but I hate messing around with stuff. That fine tuning and adjustments I have to make would make me not want to play the mouthpiece and move on to the one that does fit. I do GET what you’re saying and agree that it would work; it just wouldn’t be my thing so if I find out some mouthpieces don’t exactly fit right, I’m not interested in the least. Especially if they are really pricey. Something worth a few hundred dollars should fit. That was ‘my’ original point but thank you for explaining all that.

Ah, OK. You're most welcome.

Some maybe useful background, as far as how all that works (this topic actually affects me, in an everyday way because I prepare my own lines' corks for clients as part of set-up, and they're rarely buying my horns with much concern for the stock mouthpiece):

You would think that there would be some consistency between which mouthpieces have a larger or smaller shank diameter depending on intended user, price range, chamber design or any number of things. In my experience that doesn't hold. Yes: some large chamber pieces over mpc history have larger shanks (e.g. the large body metal Links that were made for a short time), but you will also find some cheapo (for example the stock pieces for my discontinued Crescent 1 alto line) that have an unusually large shank diameter. It doesn't get much "cheaper" than the Crescent 1 alto line's mpc pieces (they actually usually play better, fwiw, than most stock pieces of yore, but the facings look horrifying and the chamber looks like something designed by a kid that still plays with Legos).

The inconsistency is in the mpcs, though, and the cork just has to be sized to the piece you like best, not the other way around. Eventually you will have to come around to this view if you get into really exploring which mouthpiece matches you best. You can learn to play anything, and try to get it to adapt to your goals (as an artist/player), but there IS a piece out there that will be the most natural to you when your technique and concept evolve. That piece may or may not match your cork. But the cork's physical state is only an expression of how the tech sanded it to accomodate the piece(s) you wanted to use at the time.

That would indeed be great if there was a standardized diameter for all mouthpieces, for everybody except the mouthpiece makers if part of their choice is actually to encourage/force brand loyalty.

But I don't think (i.e. I could be wrong) that there is any conspiracy in place, here. There's just, in practice, never been any fully consistent relation between which pieces are hoity-toitier and shank diameter. If there were a standardized shanks diameter for each pitching, we might see some neato things develop in terms of how the mouthpiece and neck conjoin (e.g. that O-ring system that came out some time back).

I would like that, too.

 

[Nikki]

@just saxes

See, I would have expected there to be some sort of consistent measurements for mouthpieces for all sax sizes. I’m actually really surprised there isn’t but now I know.
Thanks again. That’s certainly something to keep in mind when considering a new mouthpiece. I’ve got a Yamaha 4C on its way right now but it wasn’t too pricey in case it doesn’t fit but I’m pretty certain it will. I can’t see a company that large and famous messing that part up.

Is there a standard cork thickness size?

 

[Jazzaferri]

Before Covid I was playing an 11* PPT. with a 2.75 Signature. Great flexibility in tonal palette AND intonation. Without lipping can go almost a minor third on the bell key notes. Yes, if one can put a lot of air though it, can keep up with amplified guitars. Definitely not for intermediate players.

I wonder about a teacher that would make such a recommendation.

now that I only play at home, use an 8 10mfan with 2.5 Signatures. Easier.

 

[just saxes]

@just saxes

See, I would have expected there to be some sort of consistent measurements for mouthpieces for all sax sizes. I’m actually really surprised there isn’t but now I know.
Thanks again. That’s certainly something to keep in mind when considering a new mouthpiece. I’ve got a Yamaha 4C on its way right now but it wasn’t too pricey in case it doesn’t fit but I’m pretty certain it will. I can’t see a company that large and famous messing that part up.

Is there a standard cork thickness size?

There are generalized differences between soprano/alto/tenor/baritone that are quite pronounced, but I've seen pieces that you can't distinguish as tenor or baritone (for example) by the mouthpiece's body size or shank diameter, because that piece could be very large for tenor or very small (shank diameter) for baritone. There is a generalized range for each pitching, but a small variation is quite a bit because when your cork gets good use it is almost going to be like a smooth/hard surface, functionally (it will not swell and shrink very much, between plays, after a while, but it will ideally seal all the way down to the neckpipe tip when in the sweet spot (this latter thing is topic somewhat unto itself).

It's crucial that you have at least an airtight seal between the cork and shank, and a small variation in diameter can prevent that, as I'm sure you've already discovered. The ranges between tenor and baritone for example -- within the shanks for each pitching -- are much smaller than the mean ranges for pitching vs pitching, so there are loosely standardized different sizings for each, but the small variations between shanks for the same pitching are large enough to cause problems (as is the root of most of what you're wishing for in terms of lesser variation).