Mouthpieces Why (or why not) PPT mouthpieces?

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Who is using a PPT

  • I am using a PPT

  • I am using more than one PPT

  • I’m interested but would like to try one first

  • Not interested (please say why)

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My hesitation is, for both alto and tenor, I want a mouthpiece that can go dark, and play in a classical setting. my current setups allow some "crossover" and I can get a straight ahead jazz sound out of either. Can anyone using a PPT say whether they can produce this sound concept?
 
I tried one (on tenor) but although I really liked the sound, I found it hard to control. I think I ended up selling it in the yardsale. That was when I wasn't playing much tenor though - I'm a better tenor player now (hopefully) so would be tempted to try again if I wasn't so settled on my current piece (Klum London).

You could definitely twist my arm on an alto passaround though...
 
My interest has narrowed down to classical facings and sound in the soloist orbit. A PPT for soprano appears on my radar occasionally, but the samples I've heard (I haven't run into a variety) share a quality I detect in 'improved' soloist-inspired designs that seems both slightly defocused (a quality many like), and somehow 'pre-structured' if that makes any sense. I don't imagine I can figure out its possibilities from a recording, but so far I'm pretty happy with a Riffault and an older S80 I got recently. Maybe my next round of GAS.
 
The PPT tenor attracts me as it’s modelled with reference to the RPC that I play and I have the occasional fancy for something that will be a good alternative should it get damaged. The only other piece that appeals is a Klum HR london and maybe something that Wanne makes.

I won’t buy any without trying them and this would involve travel or buying on approval. The first obstacle is travelling all over the place to try each one, nobody has all of them in stock, the second is that, as Pete said, trying them out for either a few hours in a shop or for a week at home isn’t really enough, but I guess it’s as good as you get.

It took me a good month to get the RPC playing the way I wanted and now I’m as happy as the proverbial pig but it took time and commitment to get there. In the end if the thing is somewhere in the ballpark of what I want I expect I can make it work but I hate having useless stuff hanging around, I’ve got a drawer full already. So a pass round would be useful to at least get a sense although the differences between the tip openings described by Pete just left me more confused and I always end up buying nothing.
 
My PPT 9* metal tenor high baffle is right on the money for tone, volume, expression. I experiment with Morgan Fry on tenor for interest. And because they're also metal; and purdy; and he made the PPT

I have a powerful PPT 8* Hooligan for baritone which suits live playing in competition with other noisy musicians, but, just like @MMM, I have a Pillinger L which is easier to control (on my horn, with my embouchure)

Alto... I haven't splashed into PPT

Soprano... I have a PPT, bought here second hand. I know I will not be let down by the mouthpiece, so I can be confident that my poor sound control is down to my technique on my least played horn
 
Like a few others I have a drawerr full of mouthpieces, but they are for Tenor, alto, soprano and sopranino. I'm always open to experiencing different mouthpieces. Being in New Zealand means that most mouthpieces are not available to try at a "local shop". A pass around would be wonderful, but who is going to ship half way around the world, especially when mail can now take a month or more? I've been very disappointed with recent untried purchases of expensive mouthpieces (T. Wanne, 10Mfan), and found some of the printed mouthpieces better even though they are visually as appealing as dog turds. The PPT is likely to be a great fit with my tonal concepts, yet it would take a pass around for me to confirm that as I've had so many disappointments with recent purchases of supposedly "superior" mouthpieces. The price is not the problem, it's the disappointment at having been let down after making a commitment to marketing verbiage. My fault for living at the ass end of the world...OK. Also my fault for not trying first, but then there are so few choices here that one can honestly say you mind as well be playing a Yamy 4C.
 
I might not be the other side of the world but I feel exactly the same, I share your experience with a 10Mfan piece, but thankfully not the TW for which you have my sympathy. I think the situation is different in the US, things are a lot cheaper to start with, but the market is a lot more fluid, buying and selling etc. These pieces aren't necessary bad but they're not what you've been led to believe.

As you say the disappointment is the main thing and you feel like a fool for falling for it. I keep running through the same routine thinking this sounds like just the thing I want but these things aren't cheap when you've paid good money for a couple that turn out to be expensive junk for you. And the marketing is pretty high pressure from some of them, I might be thinking of 10Mfan and his perch on SOTW, and you end up having to take it on trust, which, as you've found isn't such a good idea.
 
To be fair I do have one TW mouthpiece that's brilliant for it's very specialized niche. It's his Tenor Shiva. That along with my Lamberson DD are superb for loud cutting situations. The others were Gaia(s) where I wanted dark but flexible tone. The 10Mfan was a Black Widow that again was supposedly dark and flexible. Both are meticulously made/finished, but lacking the only ingredient that's necessary...the right tone (for my taste).
 
Wade Cornell said:
To be fair I do have one TW mouthpiece that's brilliant for it's very specialized niche. It's his Tenor Shiva. That along with my Lamberson DD are superb for loud cutting situations. The others were Gaia(s) where I wanted dark but flexible tone. The 10Mfan was a Black Widow that again was supposedly dark and flexible. Both are meticulously made/finished, but lacking the only ingredient that's necessary...the right tone (for my taste).
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Same problem too with the Gaia...its a great piece for rock but niche..worked better on the raw than the yam...hr shiva fantastic with a hansons series v111..I genuinely thought about how good a mpce library would be...
 
I have one of the early PPT's on tenor, it's a blue 7* 105 tip opening which covers most of what I play on tenor also used it on my C Mel.
If I need a darker sound also have a Vandoren metal V16 40s large chambered piece also in 105, happy with both of those.
On alto I tried the PPT on the last pass around and liked it and it may well be on my radar in the future but I like alto pieces to be in the 85 to 90 tip range but that means ordering a custom piece (not talking about the Hooligan) which would be a bit riskier, but we will see, for now I am happy with my TW Mindi Abair.
 
Wonko said:
Still wondering what the W stand for.
I had hoped that @Pete Thomas could enlighten me ....
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I'm sure Pete would, but since I also do, here's the enlightenment...
'W' in Ed Pillinger's pieces stands for 'Wanne' as in Theo Wanne. Some time ago Ed made some pieces for Theo on which he stipulated a long facing for the American market, where players are tending to put much more of the mouthpiece in, allowing the reed to vibrate on a very long arc so-to-speak.

(I have played a few 'W' facings and my personal take is that it can occasionally cause reed problems if you prefer to put less mouthpiece in (the very long facing can tend to choke if the reed flattens onto the facing at the table-end, effectively making it a 'short' facing). I had Ed reface one of the two NYT 7*Ws that I got second-hand to his 7*I (very slightly closer and a bit shorter) and I prefer the playability of the 7*I, but it has made the tone brighter and a tad less resonant, which is sort of to be expected.
I also asked Ed to re-face an NYTHB I got second-hand, and he put his TNY275 (a 7**) onto it and tamed the baffle a little. This piece is really great and the extra tip opening seems to clear any resonance problems entirely. But the relationships between tip, facing length, baffle, chamber, bore, beak thickness etc etc etc are all critical to the end result, ask any mouthpiece maker.)
 
I clicked not interested.

I am not interested on Soprano because my impression from sound samples is PPT is pretty much the opposite of the vintage colourful dark tone I prefer (at the moment). The clear classical tone is not for me (at the moment).

I mainly play an Aizen LS 7 and sometimes a GAIA 7. The GAIA is more consistently vintage and the Aizen is more versatile (for me) able to play a range of colourful tones on command. This is on my 82Z. On my curved Yani I sometimes play a Yani 9 for dark tone but mainly the Aizen.

A key test for me is my wife's reaction to A2+. Too bright is a fail. The GAIA fails on the 82Z but passes on the curved Yani. The Aizen passes on both but only with red java reeds on the 82Z.

On Tenor, I have never been attracted to PPT. I am very happy with vintage link Slant copies from GetaSax (I have tipsizes from 5* to 8*) and D'Addario select jazz mouthpieces (all tips). I don't think I have ever listened to sound samples of PPT or if I did I've forgotten. I happily use different tipsize/reed combos for different songs as preferred by my wife.

There are other reasons. I like pretty mouthpieces and I don't like the look of PPT mouthpieces. I prefer to travel my own path and too many here use and recommend PPT. I dislike conformance. :sax:
 
CliveMA said:
There are other reasons. I like pretty mouthpieces and I don't like the look of PPT mouthpieces. I prefer to travel my own path and too many here use and recommend PPT. I dislike conformance.
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A mouthpiece that is pretty is way down on my priority list.
I too like to follow my own path but wouldn't ignore a piece of gear just because every other player used it.
 

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