Mouthpieces Yamaha 4C don't knock it...

[Zugzwang]

This message should be sponsored by the makers of PTFE tape, without whom I could not currently play,
So my mp is gone for a check up and I don't have a usual alternative, so I turned to a 4C which had come with a sax.
It's been three days now, and I've got over myself and am into a phase of respect that I thought I should memorialise. The intonation is great (it is on a Yamaha sax, so no surprise I guess). And you can play it whisper quiet and you never, ever need to inhale - one big breath at the beginning of a practice session will do you. And overtones are an absolute piece of cake, I'm not big on altissimo, but I bet it's also a doddle. Why are people so keen to move on?
( I played a black plastic mp once upon a time, though I'm not even sure 4Cs had been invented, all a bit of a blur now, doctor, is that the time? where's me teeth?)

 

[Nikki]

From everything I’ve read about Yamaha 4C mouthpiece, it’s become legendary for being the least expensive GREAT mouthpiece. Even professional players say they still go back to using it and that they will never sell theirs.

I think people change mouthpieces for a change and different experience and there’s certainly nothing wrong with that.

My used Yamaha didn’t come with a Yamaha 4C so I bought one a couple of weeks ago.Having said that, I like my different mouthpieces. I like variety.

 

[Juju_Birdie]

Well, my sax is a 'no brand' one so to speak and came with a 'no brand' mouthpiece so I recently upgraded to a Yamaha 4C as it was available and affordable. I noticed a difference immediately.It will suit me for a while yet I think .

 

[Tenor Viol]

They are good mpcs.

 

[nigeld]

I’ve never liked them myself, but they are very good value for money.

 

[ChampagneBears]

I play one too, because it came with my YAS26 rental. I wanted to spend a couple hundred dollars on a Selmer C* or Meyer 5M but got the impression that it wouldn’t make me sound any better, just different, but not better, so I’m still using the Yam 4C!

 

[JayeNM]

I would hardly call it "great"...so, sorry to interrupt the Love Fest.

It's user-friendly. It is pretty consistent in fabrication, meaning it's reliable and one is gonna be a hella lot like another, which of course has its positives....

Why are people so keen to move on?

Because:

1) a 4C tip opening is quite closed, and most players 'move on' from such a closed tip

2) the tonality a 4C (or 5C) is gonna produce is really not exactly...colorful...shall we say. So it significantly limits the intrinsic tonality of most horns. Most players, on the other hand, would prefer finding a mouthpiece which allows the intrinsic tonality of their instrument to shine through.
(*For those who are tempted to chime in with the "it's NOT the horn - it's 90% the player" nonsense....knock yerself out. If anyone believes horn body specs do not significantly contribute to a model's tonality - there's nothing I can say on any forum which is gonna dissolve such an erroneous belief).

So, IMHO, there DO exist other cheap mouthpieces of equal quality & user-friendliness...which actually sound nicer, and make your horn sound nicer - fuller, wider, richer, more harmonics boosted, etc.

Bari Esprit, Fobes Debut being 2 examples off the top of my head. I'd argue a Brilhart Ebolin also does this, although its harmonic range is a bit narrower than the first two.

So, when folks ask me about a 4C or 5C, this is how I usually answer, and I try steering 'em towards one of the aforementioned.

Nothing against a 4C...I just think, as I often do with 'default suggestion' gear....if one does a bit of homework and experimenting, they can find something better within the same price point....

 

[Colin the Bear]

Here we go. If it was the gear that made the sound...nobody would need to practice and we'd all sound the same.

 

[ChampagneBears]

@JayeNM , you might be (probably are) right, but the fact is, Yamaha 4C’s are easily accessible. Everyone stocks them! The 3 you mentioned, I did a quick Google search, but found that no local shop stocks them (although Amazon.ca does). As humans, I guess we like easy.

I’m only discovering different brands now and honestly there are a lot of smaller, more obscure brands out there that I cannot purchase easily. Don’t even talk about trying them out first. It is just a sad fact that our market is small and those smaller brands are not distributed here.

 

[Phil]

I dont knock them for what they are. Aside from my obvious bias I dont play one....but I did a million years ago. Colin is right, if gear made the sound there would be no need to practice. On the other hand, if gear made no difference there would not be a market for anything else.

Ive listened to very good players on them and on "Professional" pieces. They sounded good on the 4c but they sounded better on better pieces.

 

[Colin the Bear]

Mouthpiece is the interface between one's individual physiognomy and the reed. It lets you be you. Some let more of you out and some let you be you with the least effort. However...you'll always be you.

 

[Zugzwang]

I doubt if my post is going to shake the economic foundations of the mouthpiece industry … with that said, I feel it was an observation worth making, considering how much time can be spent on kit over graft