Otto Link STM and Saxophone Brand

[freddysilk]

I've used an Otto Link STM 6* in the past and have had no problems with it other than the tone being quiet and uninspiring. I was advised by an instructor that if I wanted more volume to try the 7 or even the 7* piece. On the Cannonball, the tone was full, rounded, and lush but when I put the same piece on my sax, it was stuffy and still on the quiet side with very little volume. Is this mouthpiece very picky when it comes to the sax you play?

BTW, I'm playing an Antigua Winds ALQ520 Alto. In the end, I ended up selling my Beechler Ebonite (too brash) for a Berg Larsen (Ebonite) which gives me a full bodied, lush tone with little effort to play. What makes the Cannonball Big Bell different than my horn that the Otto Link plays like a dream and like garbage on my horn?

P.S. The Berg Larsen isn't that cheap but when I played it, I can see where that extra money went and couldn't be happier.

 

[Linky Lee]

There is hundreds of little things that could be contributing from reed set-up and ligature strength to different acoustics and expectations.

It's probably just the resistance of the horn making it a bit of a harder blow. Maybe the bore is a slightly smaller diameter and it needs a slightly faster airstream than the cannonball. Maybe the key heights are too low on your antigua or maybe you have some slight leaks.

But you do need to remember that the most probable reason is the gemstone set into the crook on the cannonball.

 

[Moz]

I wonder sometimes if the sax players of days gone by in the twenties and thirties had these apparent problems with reeds, setup, sax type, neck, ligature that we seem to be obsessed with these days. Did they just get on with it and change the way they played to match the equipment they had?

Not a criticism here, just day-dreaming a thought.

Cheers

Moz

 

[TomMapfumo]

yes, they probably did just get on with it, but they also ended up taking lots of drugs, maybe to help them cope with the inherent frustration of making do.
There does seem to be a general view that equipment was better crafted in those days, but many sax players did experiment with/make their own ligatures out of string and trim their own reeds and draw on the expertise of their various techs etc.
Since using my Rovner Evo-5 ligature I have cut down on my drug use to a great extent

Regards
Tom

 

[saxismyaxe]

I have years of experience with my MP of choice in all it's variants, the STM and can confirm that the tenor versions really liven up once you get to the larger tip openings, especially 8 to 8* (8* being my preference). That is if you can comfortably handle it.


Links DO require more air and chops to bring out their best, but when you master them, they produce results like no other.