Intonation Mouthpiece too far up on neck, plays super sharp

[sh sax]

So I play baritone sax, and my rental mouthpieces are a C.W. Fobes Debut and im not sure what tip opening it is, and a Rico Metalite M5. Both of these pieces cover almost the entire cork and when I slide them up they become loose. Im wondering if there is something i can to do fix this or if i need a new cork. I had a Eugene Rosseau 4r that fit really well and played in tune, and it sat on the end of the cork.


People keep telling me to adjust my embouchure and that its not how far the mouthpiece is up on the neck thats the problem, but if thats true then i still would much rather have a mouthpiece that fits on the cork or some way to make the cork wider.

 

[MarkSax]

Change the cork to a thicker one or use teflon tape.

 

[nigeld]

Teflon tape, also known as Plumber's Tape, provides a good temporary fix.

 

[jonf]

Tw things you need to do.

1 Replace the cork, takes 15 minutes.
2 When someone says "adjust my embouchure and that its not how far the mouthpiece is up on the neck thats the problem" ignore them

 

[Guenne]

If you want to use a cork too thin for a specific MPC, you can also use a lighter and (carefully) heat the cork (mind the distance to the cork or you'll burn it 🙂)
It will get slightly "thicker", meaning it kind of swell up a bit.

Cheers, Guenne

 

[Dr G]

I, too, am a fan of plumber’s tape for a temporary fix. Once you commit to a mouthpiece, get the neck recorked to fit.

 

[Colin the Bear]

Self amalgamating tape works too as a stop gap fix.
However it's a very simple routine thing to change a neck cork.
Expensive but very easy to use is the self adhesive cork.
I have some neck cork tubes that are also very easy to apply.
If it don't play in tune...it don't play.

 

[ChartResources]

An even quicker fix is a piece of paper rolled around the cork. You'd probably have to discard and refit each time you remove the mouthpiece from the cork.

 

[thomsax]

A piece of sheet cork, straight tube corks or tapered tube corks? A neck cork should be thicker at the end of the neck. I have often seen neck corks that are sanding down in a wrong way. The should not follow the neck they should follow the shank of the mouthpiece and they are not tapered.

 

[thomsax]

The O,D. of the neckcork should a little bit thicker than the I.D of the mouthpiece shank (hole). The neckcork and the shank should be airtight all the way. I think the best way to get a neckcork back in shape is to place it the cork and neck in water. Just so it cover the cork. Steam and flame is drying out the cork and makes it fragile. And don't use too much corkgrease.

 

[thomsax]

A mouthpiece with a longer shank it's hard to sit right on the neck if the shape of the neckcork is wrong. It's just a few mm the connect the mouthpiece and the cork. You can't adjust the mouthpiece and see how the pitch is changing when you move the mouthpiece. A new neckcork can help. Some modern mouthpieces can be hard to play in tune on older (shorter) necks. I play small chamber mouthpieces (the chamber is smaller than the bore) this is also something to consider. These mouthpieces were not designed to work on saxes from the 20's. Some guys solder on an extension on the neck. Some guys buy or have new neck made. Some guys buy a modern designed saxophone that match the mouthpiece.