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Which metal mp?

SAXPA

Senior Member
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Wakefield,West Yorkshire
Hi all
Having played alto for the last 2 years I have recently bought a yts25 tenor and am loving it, had it set up by Stuart at Woodwind exchange in Bradford,where I tried various mpc's the sound I was looking for was a dark smooth tone so ended up with a Vandoren TL3 ebonite and i must say I am more than pleased with it,it give's me just what I was looking for.But now I am also considering a second mp to give me a brighter sound which is also easy to blow, my set up with the Vandoren is a Rovner dark lig and Hemke no 2 reed. Q, Would you recommend just changing lig and reed set up or going the whole hog and changing mp as well and if so what are your thoughts on the Selmer c** metal,one on e,bay i'm watching .:confused::confused::confused:

Thanks Mick.
 
Mick,

You don't necessarily need a metal mouthpiece to sound bright, or brighter. You play a classical mouthpiece so your setup is as dark as you can make it - mind you, you play a very bright sax.

The metal Selmer will be brighter and is of similar tip opening so it should work, though I wouldn't think of any Selmer mouthpiece as being particularly bright.

Loads of options to choose from - including the other ebonite Vandorens, like V16s or Javas.

Just changing lig and reed will help getting a brighter sound, but only by a small increment. The big difference comes from "thinking bright" when you play, and the mouthpiece.
 
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Thanks for the advice Baritonesax ,think i will try a different lig and reed first and as you say think Bright that could be a first for me lol... I must admit i do like ebonite mp's but i have always been curios about the metal ones.
Cheers Mick
 
Metal mouthpieces are slightly smaller in the mouth, colder at first, especially in winter. Personally I don't like them, I've a MF Link which plays superbly, but the gold plating's a bit thin and the nickel underneath irritates my mouth. I tried a Selmer London brass piece a while ago. Played nicely. No nickel on that one and pretty dark...

I much prefer my PPT, but they're not for everyone. You might also consider a Berg Larssen.
 
When I first started with a Tenor (YTS23) I chose a vandoren V16 T7 based on bits I had read on here, I loved it but in the search for a brighter sound changed to a Yanagisawa metal 8, Now I cant get on with the ebonite piece at all, so much so that I've changed to a metal link on Alto too. Problem though, I've just changed my Tenor to a YTS 82 and don't like the Yani on it, its too bright so I'm about to change to a metal link, as soon as it comes home from Morgan that is. I like the link so much on the Alto :)
 
what are your thoughts on the Selmer c** metal,

I had one for a while, although for sop, not tenor. Tiny tip opening, very conservative design. I really, really didn't like it. No flexibility, no zing. I suppose it'd be OK if you wanted to hide away in an orchestra playing dull classical music, but no way for a rocker. Yuck. Still, I sold it for a healthy profit on eBay.

Maybe just me, you might love it, and bear in mind I'm a lover of wide tip openings and massive baffles. In fact, I think I'll stop typing this drivel and give the tenor a blast (Otto Link STM 10, with huge added baffle - click on the pic to get an idea).

P1010280.jpg
 
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I had one for a while, although for sop, not tenor. Tiny tip opening, very conservative design. I really, really didn't like it. No flexibility, no zing. I suppose it'd be OK if you wanted to hide away in an orchestra playing dull classical music, but no way for a rocker. Yuck. Still, I sold it for a healthy profit on eBay.

Maybe just me, you might love it, and bear in mind I'm a lover of wide tip openings and massive baffles. In fact, I think I'll stop typing this drivel and give the tenor a blast (Otto Link STM 10, with huge added baffle - click on the pic to get an idea).

View attachment 1390

Topic diversion....

Ahem... Baroque excitement or for some heavy metal from the German Romantic school try this (music starts just after 1.00 minute in)

... Return to topic
 
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Going back to the OP's question about wanting a metal piece that's bright and easy to blow, well you wont go far wrong with a Guardala MB11, you could get a WWBW version for around £200 i think they are, a PMS version which is a bit more but not quite as popular, or my favorite, a Sakshama Guardala, i got mine last year from Sak and haven't looked back, it's a fantastic piece!

Avoid going the Berg route though, there something completely different, and although reasonably bright not the easiest blow and quite stuffy.....i tried one once and hated it...
 
Topic diversion....

Ahem... Baroque excitement or for some heavy metal from the German Romantic school try this (music starts just after 1.00 minute in)

... Return to topic
I don't notice anyone hiding away in this "dull" piece either.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NgQt5HTPnIg
Played the Eb clarinet part in this once. cuts right through all the other mayhem --- great fun. Rock music, on the other hand, bores me to death. It's all a matter of taste.
 
Mick why don't you go back and see Stuart!!! take your sax have a chat and spend some time playing around with some mouthpieces that way you will be able to make an informed choice. Based on how you hear and how the metel piece feels to you..

Chris..
 
Topic diversion....

Ahem... Baroque excitement or for some heavy metal from the German Romantic school try this (music starts just after 1.00 minute in)

... Return to topic

Nope, just left me cold, particularly the Monteverdi. I can recognise both as well crafted music, played to a superlatively high level (and better than I could manage - incidentally, I was classically taught on clarinet) but neither stirred my soul. Still, wide and varied taste in society is a good thing. I'd hate the idea of everyone liking the same sort of stuff in the arts, and with music in particular, I'd guess the majority on this forum would really dislike most of what I listen to. You can get a feel for it if you look at my posts on the 'What are you listening to' thread started by Jules.

Now, my turn to get back on topic. Fraser comments about Bergs being not the easiest to blow and stuffy. I'm sure that's right about the one he tried, but they are very variable, and some of the ones I've had, notably a 120/0 Duckbill were great. If Mick wants a brighter mouthpiece he may well find a Berg grained ebonite with a 2 chamber gives him what he wants. Just be prepared to sit down with a load of them and try them al to see which (if any) suits.
 
I doubt whether your current set up will produce a bright enough sound, but it all depends on how bright is bright. The internal structure is what makes the difference on a mouthpiece, much less the material - which explodes a common urban myth - xyz mouthpiece sounds like a metal one even though made of ebonite etc. If you just want to give brightness a try the why not invest in a Rico Royal B3 (bright) or C3 (brighter) for £13.61 inc shipping from http://www.rapidreeds.com/ligatures-caps-and-mouthpieces-rico-royal-alto-saxophone-mouthpiece. They are both in stock and may be worth an investment. A metal lig would also help and some American/Jazz Cut reeds, rather than French Cut. Rico Orange or Rico Jazz Select would be right on the money.

Beyond this things can get complicated so would suggest you more narrowly define "brighter" - as that can mean different things. My two senses of brighter either means with a bright jazzy sound - Meyer type New York sound, or bright, more contemporary sound - for rock and funk etc. which often involves some form of step baffle etc.
 
Thanks for all comments and advice,have decided to go down the reed/ lig route before looking for mpc's,intresting Tom suggests a rico b3 have got one but only tried it with the hemke reeds and rovner dark lig, so it looks like will have to order a metal lig and some new reeds, certainly a lot cheaper than getting into the minefield of new mpc's lol...:thumb:
 
If you want a really bright sounding reed try a Fibracell Premier in either a 2 or a 2.5, they are brighter than bright!
 
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