What mouthpieces do you guys use...pros/cons?

[Lyaeus]

I think I am going to go more in depth with my bari sax mouthpiece quest... Any thoughts? What do you guys play on? What do you like about them? Hate about them?

[Merlin]

For big band and jazz playing, I use a Vandoren B75. It's not quite stock; I removed part of the baffle and smoothed the contour of the baffle/chamber transition. I play Vandoren/Legere/Alexander Classique #3's with it.

I use a Vandoren bass sax m/p to play classical/concert band on bari, with Vandoren #3.5 bari reeds.

[jmarshall83]

in order to truly get a decent sound on baritone sax, you really should get away from closed classical -type mouthpieces. I am a student of gary smulyans' and ronnie cubers' and they both play open metal mouthpieces. A link 10* and a Francois Louis 8* respectively. One need not get a lot of baffle or a small chambered m-piece because these can be loud but also sound thin and ugly (e.g. Doc Kupka) but an open chamber that can both scream and play pretty is most desirable. I play a Metal Link 10 which was refaced by John Thomas and had a small baffle put in.

[Bootman]

Lamberson 8DD on the Conn Tranny or a Pillinger or Quantum on a Martin Magna low A.

[UMBari]

RPC .125, tweaked by Jon Van Wie, on a Yanagisawa 991 baritone. Been mulling over trying a Lamberson M, tho.

Bootman - thought you were using an RPC on the Martin...how does the Pillinger compare?

-Vee Popat

[Spencer]

I totally agree with the larger facings. I used a metal link 8* for years then made the mistake of moving to a smaller faced piece. I thought a smaller piece would give better projection although on tape the link was loud enough. I just couldn't hear all the sound it had while I was playing because it was so focused. So if it is edginess you need look into a Berg type mpc. I just picked up this Wolfe Tayne bari metal 8 on closeout new for less than a hundred. It rocks. Plays just like my tenor HR berg 120/0. It has the duckbill shape like the berg that is known as the duckbill.

[Wicked Good]

HR Berg 90/2 on a Buescher Big B Aristocrat bari.

[rcwjd]

I use a Runyon Jaguar #10 (tip ~.109) on my Mark VI Bari. I use it primarily for small combo straight ahead jazz. I don't have any trouble getting noticed with it, but the mpc can blend nicely too. I also have a Morgan HR 7J (tip ~.90) that I use for concert stuff and occasionally for big band. It has great intonation, blows easily, and has a more 'woody" sound than the Jaguar. If you are curious about the sound of the Jaguar, I have some clips on my website (Misty is cleanest for assessing the Jaguar) for how it sounds on my horn. Of course, anyone else would have a different sound, but you can get the idea I suppose.

[justbari]

Lawton 8B on a Keilwerth SX90 bari. Shakes the walls...

[T.S.]

RIA 10# HR on My Yani 880
RIA 10 metal on my 12M

[Tonehole]

Try an old Berg for a bit of a bark! I use a 130 hard rubber with lavoz Med / hard reeds.

[Sax_Pete]

Meyer 8M on a Martin Commitee II bari for Rock and Roll.
Otto Link 7* metal for Dixieland and jazz (same bari)

[super20dan]

ponzel custom for the king super20&rico metalite 7 for the conn12m

[Lyaeus]

What do you guys think of the RPC bari mouthpieces? Specifically, the .110 model...
Thanks.

[UMBari]

I prefer a bigger tip opening, and thus play an RPC .125. I actually own two of them, and I really dig 'em both. I find RPC's to be very flexible for the many different styles of music that I play, and the intonation has been dead on. Ron is a great guy, and he will work with you on what sound you are going for. Regardless of tip opening, I am sure that you will be satisfied.

-VP

[RS]

I like open pieces for Bari. I mostly use a hard rubber RIA 10* (.145" tip) with a stick-in baffle I got from Mojobari. This piece can cut through good for soloing and can get a nice mellow sound for section work. For a little more edge I'll use my metal RIA 10*.

[jmarshall83]

Hey RS,
you wanna get together and jam sometime?
What kinda horn do play.
I play a King super 20 with a metal Link 10 and a FL ligature an Lavoz MH reeds. Its nice to see a baritone player with enough sack to play
a RIA 10*. I live just outside of D.C. and often run the jam session Down at a club called HR-57 @ 1610 14th street NW on wed. and thr. nights .
I am also a student of Ronnie Cuber and Gary Smulyan.
Email me an lets hang. Jmarshall83@hotmail.com

[Tim Price]

I use a Selmer Bb Bari and Wood Lamberson 8dd mouthpiece with Alexander 4 DC reeds.Sometimes I clip them to make em' harder.
I still have a stash of old rico brown box-#5s in my stash drawer.
I've played bari with bands like Bill Doggett, Don Patterson thru bands like Tommy Dorsey and Ike Turner.
I've played gigs w/ Cecil Payne as double bill bari events.
My idea is..if the horn is cool & vibrating-then I'm THERE.
I've played killin' 6s of guys...and amazing Conns ( like my friend Rob has who plays with Huey Lewis)...Super20s are the bomb as well...IF you got THE PITCH in yah ear 8)
One of my fav Bari recordings is Tate Houston & Curtis Fuller on BlueNote called " Bone And Bari"...I'd love a CD copy of it.Anyone got one? When I played in Flordia w/Curtis we did a LOT of stuff like that in the 7Os. NICE COMBINATION....with the right cats.
One of my fav unsung bari players is MARIO RIVERA.He uses a open NY meyer.
This guy is amAzINg and soooooo soulful. He'd give ANY player a run for their money in ANY bag.
Charlie Ventura and Tony Scott wailed on bari.Not to mention my man Jerome Richardson. ( eg- Mingus Mingus Mingus)
Charles Davis just released a new CD that is terrific- and of couse that leads me to Pat Patrick with Ra.Another bad boy on Bari.
IF..Trevor Kohler would be alive today...he'd be into some cool stuff.
He played with Gil Evans( in a band with Billy Harper & Sanborn)
and some rock stuff with " Insect Trust"...with Elvin on some tracks as well...it was kinda jazz-rock but hip.Trevor and I used to jam in Hoboken
in the summer of 73'. He left a BIG impression on me. Killin' lines and altiss.
A large tip opening and harder reed is tried and true....cats did THAT for decades.
It works! :idea:

[Ritchie]

I'm using an Otto Link hard rubber #8 with plain Rico reeds. I agree to what was said about too small tip openings on bari, the sound usually becomes a little bit thin and harsh for my ears (comparisons are to a stainless steel Berg 110/2 and the Keilwerth 5* that came with the horn). The Link makes it easy for me to get a full and colourful sound, similar to a Jody Jazz with spoiler, but with more body and with about the same volume (which is: enough to play in a bigband without having to work too much).

[Big Nick]

For soul band and street band I use a plastic Quantum 12 (with spoiler) and Bari* medium reeds. Pretty harsh, but it cuts through.
For quieter stuff I use a Meyer 9 with LaVoz mediums. Lovely sound.
Both set ups dead easy to play on. I don't like to have to work too hard to get the sound I want.

[kevvieg]

I had a Link HR 10* that kicked, but I lost it during a trip to Nova Scotia. It fell out of my case into the trunk of the rental car I was using.

I now have three pieces on the go; a Berg 130/3 bullet chamber, a Rousseau JDX6, and a Phil Barone modified Link HR 8*. I kinda like the Rousseau, but it's too closed for me. The Berg is okay, depending on what horn I'm playing - I find the upper range and altissimo to be inconsistent in their response.

So far the Barone is the best I have played. There is no wedge; in fact he has flattened the table and opened up the chamber, but it absolutely wails!

I would love top try a Lawton B chamber or a Lamberson, but the price is too high. I've seent he RPC, but they appear to have quite a high baffle. I like some baffle, but not a drop-off type.

Phil's mouthpiece works best with Lavoz MH, the Berg works with RJS 3H, and I use Lavoz Hard with the Rousseau.

[tomobari]

Hi,

I got a metal Berg Larsen 110 / 3 today. Needed quite some adjustment from my ebonite mpc and I presume there is a lot of experimenting ahead.

However, the ebonite I play is also very 'Jazzy' and has a lot of opening so it is not that big a difference. BTW, maybe someone out there knows what mpc was standard issue for a Keilwerth Toneking Baritone, sn 807xx. There is no name on the mpc....

I play a fairly light reed. I've tried a Rico Royal 2.5 and a Vandoren 2 in combination with the Berg Larsen so far, both work well. I tend to the Vandoren though.

How come most of you guys seem to use a 3 or even thicker?
I would have to xeno-transplant some horse's lungs when using these reeds I guess :D

Contrary to common experience, this 'new' combination gives me a 'fuller' sound than the ebonite mpc! It's not as 'loud' either but I like it. More of a smooth or cool Jazz sound.

Just my EUR 0,02
Marc

[Razzy]

Open mouthpieces are better for bari but it also depends on the kind of music you want to play. Most of the recommendations above are very well-suited to jazz and rock; few to classical and concert band. I play a Rousseau Jazz JDX 5 with Rico jazz select 3M and get a very jazzy, almost rock/fusion sound. I wouldn't even think to use that sort of setup in a quartet or concert band/wind ensemble setting. For that I use my Selmer cs80 E.

[Stretch]

I don't agree with the statement that big tip openings necessarily translate into a big sound, bari or any other sax. It depends on the player. It is entirely possible to have a big sound that projects and is musical on a medium tip opening. I know a number of players with killer sounds that are perfect examples of this. It is too easy to get hung up on numbers. My experience has been to find a mouthpiece that works with the right reed on a good horn and practice.

[Merlin26]

I'm interested if anyone has tried the Runyon Spoiler Custom Series. I've heard a guy playing one on a King Zephyr Bari and it had a nice edge to the sound. How do I figure out what size I should get ???? I don't really have the option of trying them out unfortunately

Any Opinions

Thanks Merlin26

[Helen]

I was using a Berg Larson 100/2 H/R piece on a low Bb Mark VI. It had a lot of bark, and was able to cut through really well against electric guitars, but it tended to "break" if pushed too hard. Someone then suggested a try the Rico Royal Granftonite. I have a B5, and it has a great sound, for very little $. Best part, it has more projection and cuts through like the Berg did, but without the "breaking" if pushed too hard. For reeds I use Fibracells.

[RS]

The Runyon pieces are worth a look. The Custom plays similarly to a Meyer but with more edge (especially with the spoiler). The Quantum has more edge than the the Custom but has a very narrow beak profile. Some players like this but I prefer a more traditionally shaped beak.

[1saxman]

Tonehole; I'm with you! I play a Berg HR 130/1 on a The Martin bari (1956) with a Rico Plasticover #3. Just a really good mouthpiece. It's a 'mid-period' example (blue box) from late '60s or early '70s. Got lucky on it, as it blew great as-is. I like a Rovner standard ligature on it (standard for HR tenor sax, that is - the Berg is slim).

[manofsteel]

I was playing a HR vintage Berg 115/sms. Nice warm sound, but a little quiet. Easy to play up and down however.

Moved to a Ria 7* metal. Very similar to the shape and sound of the Berg but more edge.

Then I met Jody of JazzJody mpc at the NAMM show this past year and I tried and bought one of his pieces, the "Q" with a 10 tip opening....

The sound that I think a bari should have is now coming outta my horn! I completely concur with Jason. The wide open pieces are what makes the bari come alive. I use Alexander DC 2-1/2s or Hemke 2s. It is a gritty sound to be sure, and I use it without the spoiler.

TP ~ How the hell do you and all the other bad a** mutha's play bari with big mpcs and stiff-as-hell reeds? I just can't get a good sound in the lower register...and if I try to hit a lower note less than mf, more often than not, no sound comes out!

[Bootman]

Big mpc and stiff reeds isn't hard to play on Bari, it is purely about focusing the air, and hearing the sound. If you're using a 3 1/2 or 4 reed on a lamberson *DD, it doesn't feel that extreme. A 5 reed on an RPC 130 does hurt but a 3 1/2 or 4 is very responsive. It is purely and simply all about air support and focussing the air. If you play in electric settings or loud acoustic environments, you need to have a big, thick fat sound in order to carry throughout the ensemble. Anything less and you may as well not be there.

[Big Nick]

Quite so. I'm now on a Bari* hard on my Quantum 12. I'm beginning to be able to hear it.

[DocRocket]

I have been using Bari medium reeds for quite some time, but switched from a Link 6* to a JodyJazz Q 12 mouthpiece about 6 months ago. What a difference! I keep the spoiler in for Big Band and the acid jazz/funk, and take it out for classical quartet gigs...each configuration gives me a completely different sound, which is very appropriate for each type of gig.

[MojoBari]

I think bari is more forgiving in allowing you to closd large tip openings with your embouchure. This allows you to play soft on them while using hard reeds. The facings are long and your bottom lip has a lot of leverage so the force does not feel like your teeth are digging in as they would on a small sax.

But there are plenty of good players using soft reeds too.

[mark_m]

1saxman, how's the intonation on your The Martin with the Berg? How far out do you need to hang the mouthpiece for it to play in tune?

[OnyxSax]

I play a vintage HR Berg 105/1 on my Conn Chu. I like it a lot. It has a warm sound and a surprising amount of power. The only downside is that it is pretty unforgiving once your reed starts going bad. If you don't switch reeds, you wind up in chirp city.

[jmarshall83]

I will go ahead and admit that some of the reason behind some of us using Big open pieces with hard reeds is simple youthful exuberence whether it is literal or cultivated after the fact. for example I am 20 years old so mine is literal but anyone who as met gary smulyan or ronnie cuber know that they are both sparksplugs once you get to know them. especially gary.
Alot of it is mind over matter
long live super 20 baris


FYI Metal Link 10 + FL Gold Ligature and Lavoz MH reeds

[Subtone Sam]

Lawton brass 7*B with LaVoz mediums,RPC .125 with Rico Royal 3s.

[Subtone Sam]

UMBari,what reeds do you use on your RPC .125 ?

[JIB]

what is a mouthpiece's baffle?

[CodaceousBari]

JIB, the baffle of the mpc is the opening opposite to the reed, basically its the underside of the top of the mouthpeice where you put your mouth

also what I've read, how would an Otto Link 7* or 8 be on a Yamaha pro low A bari and a selmer mark VI? i'll be using it in my high school's jazz band tha primarily plays all around music, from loud to soft i can really blow too so if there are any other suggestions that would be great too. Thanks!

[ehopper1]

I'm using a Dukoff M7 with Rico Royal reeds on my vintage Keilwerth Toneking Low A.
The sound is powerful so it´s enough to play in a big band without having to work too much.

[Bob Garner]

I'm also very happy with my 0.125 RPC. I usually use a 3 Soft Rico Jazz Select. I sometimes use a 2.5 Vandoren traditional reed. Intonation is excellent. When I want a more classical sound I use an old Soloist C* with 3 or 4 Vandorens. I wish it were more open, but I have too many mouthpieces already.

[singlereed]

I just bought a second-hand HR Berg Larsen 110/2 SMS and have been very pleased with it. I don't use high baffle pieces on the other horns, but with bari I find I can still get a soft round sound as well, when I need it. As a really cheap option, the Rico Royal mouthpiece is amazing value, giving similar results to the Berg.

[PugetSound]

Thanks to Ron! He put in the baffle for me and the piece does what I want!

It's an RPC 125, we spent a couple of hours one day tweaking. Ron really does listen to what you want not what he thinks you should like.

I am currently using some Guardala reeds that I found at a supply house, bought the remaining stock. My luck!

BUT, most importantly, your sound is what you educate yourself to sound like. It is the concept that is in your head. A mouthpiece is a tool to help you achieve what you hear in your head. Brings to mind the part in Karate Kid when the boy is learning how to prune Bonsai trees...

Visualize/Audiolize! If you hear it, the sound will come...

Thank you, please forgive my ramblings...

[michaelbaird]

I'm using a Dukoff D8 with a Rico 2 on a Buescher 400 Bari. It works for me.

[FireRescueFL]

I'm using an HR Otto Link 8 right now but I'll be switching to a Phil Barone Traditional/Contemporary once I get my Guardala Brecker model sold.

---Chris

[Subtone Sam]

BUT, most importantly, your sound is what you educate yourself to sound like. It is the concept that is in your head. A mouthpiece is a tool to help you achieve what you hear in your head.
Visualize/Audiolize! If you hear it, the sound will come...

Indeed.Mouthpiece is an important tool though.I've been practising bari for couple of weeks now,3-5 h per day because I was not happy with the sound I was getting,wanted more clear,strong,projective and brighter sound.I went through all my mpcs many times with different reeds.The problem was that I had no real high-baffle mpc (Runyon Q is the closest) so,I put an epoxy baffle to a Metalite 11 I had no use for as is.That made the difference,higher baffle gave me the sound I was looking for.It is not perfect but much closer what I'm looking for.What I'm saying is that with a wrong mouthpiece there will be no real results,no matter how hard you try.

[barisaxplayer]

I play on a 5* otto link for jazz band and either my original yamaha mouthpiece which is hard plastic(also now has a big dent from where my teeth sat for so long) or my new van doren b35 for classical. They're all pretty well open and I get can a nice tone on any, altho the metal really adds a lot of edge if I don't focus on dropping it.

the yamaha has great tone for a plastic and I got in to all state on that, it's just uncomfortable to play on now due to years of use and that I sat the exact same place all the time. The vandoren rubber one has nice tone, a bit deeper and more mellow. Great for classical. just feels like my mouth is gonna slide off the moutpiece because of the smooth rubber.

[shmuelyosef]

You can use a mouthpiece patch to 'tame' the slip/sliding away. I use the Vandoren pieces as they are thin and pretty hard, but you can get thick soft ones too if that is your thing.

[Biff]

i use a rico royal bari mouthpiece, with a rovner ligature, and suprisingly, it's better than the selmer AND the yamaha i used to play put together. it helps me get a Huge sound out of my horn, and i've never gotten the left palm notes easier.


Biff

[ksbarigirl]

I also use a Rico Royal mpc, one of my band directors encouraged me to try it lat spring, and I've really enjoyed, except it doesn't work well with my Selmer bari! I've got major pitch problems (see Intonation Issues). I use LaVoz Med. Hard reeds, and I've always liked those once I get them broken in

[Knight Ender]

I recently purchased a HR Link 7, and it's awesome. Also a Rovner lig and plasticover 3 1/2.

[FunkyIntern]

RPC, Ron Coelho's 125 that he tweaked for me. He's very easy to communicate with and he'll do the job for you. Can't say enough about this man...

[kennyj]

It is an intersting topic for me, mouthpieces.... On my other saxes, sop, alto, and tenor, since the 1970's I've always had a battle. I've since settled that fight, I think, for good with Morgans on all of them.

But on baritone, the search ended in 1978. While on the road, I found a New York Meyer Brothers 6M in a pawn shop in the Bronx. I've been in love with it ever since. The sound is huge, the intonation is right-on, and I really enjoy playing on it.

ii-V-I
Kenny J

[OnyxSax]

I use a very old hard rubber Berg Larsen 105/1 to drive my Conn Chu (M204,xxx). Even though this is a very mild facing for such a big horn, I am quite surprised by how much power it puts out.

It's been about a year since it came back from its magnificent restoration at VintageSax. The horn was a smoker in its battered pre-restoration form. It's simply unbelievable now that it is 100% perfect.

[1saxman]

mark_m; Intonation issues with The Martin Baritone are what caused me to try the Ebonite Berg in the first place, and it worked to help tame the Martin. I'm playing it about a little over halfway on the cork, and I had to adjust the key opening heights on the palm keys. The best mouthpiece for intonation on a Martin is an original Level Air, and it will also yield the biggest bottom end. I found that it ran out of steam in the mid and upper ranges, so I looked until I found a better compromise. I tried many mouthpieces, but had no luck except for the Berg and the Runyon Custom. The Runyon was very good hn all areas, and I probably will revisit that and try a few of them just for grins. The Amber-colored one looked great on the Martin!

[Bar-Ron]

I was using a Morgan 1C that had the tip opened a bit for quartet and concert band work. Before that and depending on the horn I was using a Rousseau 6R that I altered to probably a 7R. I just bought a Berg 110/3 and I may have just found the most flexible dynamic mouthpiece yet.
Can whisper and thunder. Works on the Martin and the Taiwan imitation of the real thing. Still the Morgan uses the least air for the punch and is quite friendly to use with a #4 Hemke.

[JimMetcalf]

Lawton 8B SS

This piece will trip the neighbors car alarm! Big, full sound throughout!
Bari* hard reeds make this one roar.

[Paul Coats]

Yes, I use the Runyon Custom 8, with Fibracell Med Soft reeds. I have used this for many years, and it serves for 90% of my bari playing, from sax quartet to concert band, classical to big band. Stick in the spoiler and ready to rock.

My son has used a Custom 7 from Junior High and now almost through High School. He has made plenty of 1st chairs in various honor bands with this mouthpiece. No one has ever complained of his tone or intonation.

The great Harry Carney (Ellington) and Charlie Fowlkes (Lionel Hampton and Basie), as well as Manny Thaler (Tex Beneke Orch) used the Custom and appeared in the first few ads for Runyon in Downbeat Magazine in 1939. This mouthpiece has been around a while, a proven piece.

[sinkdraiN]

I play a RR M7 on a Superba I Bari.

I bought that mouthpiece as just a temporary piece when I started playing bari in a jazz group. I still have it because I havent played anyting I like better. The Ponzol Customs look like they will be similar to the RR pieces so I am looking forward to trying one of those.

[BayviewSax]

Being concerned for my fragile, middle-aged lungs, I started out with Rico Royal B series mouthpieces on my bari. Don't. I play a Link 8* on tenor and alto, and a Rico Royal metallite M11 on soprano. I lucked out and picked up a barely played Berg Larsen 110/0. It's a lung buster, but it's worth every shred of life being stolen from my lungs. I'd like to try a Link on bari, I'm just deathly afraid of creating a mouthpiece crisis that I won't be able to solve.

[retread]

Modern HR Link 7 perfected by Doc Tenney. It's rich and full, and very easy to play pp to fff. I tried a Runyon Custom and a Hite, but the Tenney Link wins on sound and playability.

[robbieg]

I use a Wolfe Tayne 5 with Rico Royal 3's.

[David Spiegelthal]

A stainless steel Brilhart Level-Air which I refaced, making the tip more open and facing much longer and with a different curve than the original (horrible) facing. Now the best-sounding, most versatile and most comfortable bari piece I've ever played. I've done the same to the tenor version and play it regularly also. Can't play classical/legit orchestra or concert band on these, but anything else is do-able, from trad jazz to modern big band to R&B to modern jazz.

[BbWally]

I have had a trip recently trying different mps's. The most recent has been two Lawton's A B7 and a 6*. The B7 was too hard to control with a #2 Lavoz and the 6*was Just right. Smooth and Mellow. Combo sound with potential to blow the walls out when needed. Easy attack from low A to high F#. InEasy to keep in tune and augment tonal character. I had various comments from other band members that like and disliked the 6* Comments were that it did not have good projection for section work, to great for combo but not suited for big band gig work. I decided to revert back to my Vandoren B75 with #2 LaVoz. I got immediate responses from band members that I sounded "HOT" and "Really There." Just the right amount of Buzz available when needed too. Obviously, other forum members feel the same about the B75. It happens to be an Excellent Bari Mpc. (and 1/2 the price)
Good Luck,
BbWally :D

[BbWally]

I notice that the Lawton does NOT take much effort to play. I do not understand the reason, but, the amount of effort needed to play the lawton is much less than the B75 Vandoren. By effort, I mean the quantity of breath and the exerted effort to produce the sound. :oops:
BbWally