Bright Alto MP suggestions

[Todd]

Hello all... I am looking for a good, bright Alto MP. I have a naturally dark sound and am looking for a rather bright one. I've tried some of the Dukoffs but I get a real harsh "buzzy" sound on them. Anybody have any suggestions on a piece that will give me a bright sound, but isn't to harsh and/or buzzy sounding?? I've read about Beechler Bellites, and I want to try one of them... what else should I try?? Thanks

[sessionsax]

The bellites to me are dark/narrow sounding pieces. I too have difficulties maintaining a bright sound.

Check out the ARBs metals offered by beecher, they aren't as expensive as Guardala and blow free and very bright. Check out Nelson Rangell for the sound of it.

If you have the cash and can find one, I recommend the Guardala King R&B's for alto and the freddie gregory metal pieces are great.

Check out Mark Douthit for the sound of both of these.

[ncm]

Guardala KCA (King Curtis Alto) bright yet flexible.

[Mike W]

Vandoren Jumbo Java

[sessionsax]

I second ncm on the King Curtis alto. If you can find one. It will cost big bucks though.

I also like the Jumbo Java, Warren Hill sounds pretty good on one, but I can't get over the purple/blue look of the piece. Some folks sound great on the though

[Thomas]

I just tried a piece made by Ron Coelho-RPC Mouthpieces. It was the brightest alto piece I've ever played. Beautifully made,comfortable to play,excellent control and intonation. There was absolutly nothing wrong with the piece I just prefer a darker sound on all horns so he's sending some other models to try. You won't find a better guy to deal with and he really listens to what you want and need. I use one of his tenor and soprano pieces and when I go to my great reward-I'm bringing them. Call Ron-you'll get what you're looking for.

[Andrew]

Lakey would be good. Isn't harsh, but it's nice and bright sounding.

[sessionsax]

Todd, I have a couple of lakeys, but I consider them to be on the darker side. I use the 7*3 and it works for me like a good meyer works for others. If you have a hard time maintaining a bright sound, it may be like this for you. But I have to admit, that the Lakey is the loudest piece I own.

[kindofblue]

Try a hard rubber Berg 0 or 1. Bright, yet not harsh, and easy to project.

[Frank D]

FWIW, the HR Beechlers can be bright as well.

[MM]

Sessionsax, if a Lakey is dark for you, what do you consider bright?

[mostly alto guy]

Try a Vandoren in the V5 line. I use an A28, and it's nicely bright but not edgy.

[Bill Gaulke]

Bright sound??? I use a Runyon jazz #6 on my alto and I'll tell you it's bright.. In fact it'll peel paint off the walls....I can lead any sax section with it....And it's a good solo piece too....easy blowing and quite flexible...I like it so much that I'm not even looking for a back-up mp....And I got a brand new rico metalite setting here too, but don't even use it.....Check out the Runyon's ,, they're great

[sessionsax]

MM, I use either a Guardala R&B or an ARB. The Guardala to me is a darker piece than the ARB.

I tend to use the ARB for R&B stuff and the Guardala for Jazz settings.

You have to understand that when I play on an ARB I sound more like Marienthal than Nelson Rangell. I am not sure why, I have just always had trouble maintain a bright/edgy tone. There always has to be one out there ya know :)

[Brian]

The Runyon Jaguar Jazz is a bright sounding piece with complex overtones and great response in all ranges. Add a baffle and make it scream ... a very fun and wild ride....
Good luck, Brian

[jd]

who sells arb besides the beechler factory? does anyone retail them? thanks

[singlereed]

Runyon metal quantum spoiler - I found it controllable with plenty of brightness when required.

[MS]

The Runyon XL is a good lead piece. Projects like crazy, the brightness is in the tone, not heard as separate buzz. It's really pretty versitile for alto. THe only louder mps I have is a Frank Wells high baffle mps.

The XL is a narrower sound than the Quantum for alto, but it is bright.

[super20dan]

i also recommend the runyon XL .is much eaiser to play than a dukoff and almost as bright. jumbo java good too.and a good lakey is also very bright .

[connman]

ARB mpcs are available at www.weinermusic.com

[oppai]

hey sessionsax, what facing ARB metal and with what reed are you playing?

[sessionsax]

The ARB that I am using is modified. It was originally an 8 tip opening, but its been opened a bit and its more like an 8* now. Also, I had the chamber opened a little bit to give it more body. The stock pieces can sound a little thin in a recording situation. Condensor mikes really brighten the sound up a good deal. I do have a stock ARB that I dig out sometimes that has an 8 facing and the stock chamber. I like using this on live gigs where I am being mike by an SM58 or SM57, because it cuts through the keys and drums better.

[oppai]

Thanks for the info. I'm trying out an ARB metal soon, probably a 7 first; 8-8* is most likely too large for me. I' want to make a switch from my Yanagisawa metal to a piece that can cut through guitars and keyboards when I am playing live, without having to try out a bunch of Dukoffs. Btw, what sort of reeds go well with an ARB metal?

Also noticed that very few, if any, plays an ARB on soprano. Drawing comparison from the alto version I'd expect it to play similarly, though. Have you tried one before?

[JimMetcalf]

The Selmer metal Jazz pieces are bright,well made and moderately expensive -app $200-The Lawton B and BB are also bright, but have a full, rich, more complex sound. The 7*B is med bright and the 7*BB is quite bright! These pieces are very well made, very :) user friendly and work well with Bari* Med reeds but are very expensive! $300+

[dolphyo]

a rovner deep v #8 can be heard in another zip code! and bright........

[EZ]

While I'm not terribly impressed with Selmer's metal classical pieces, their (Paris) metal jazz pieces are great on alto if you're looking for brightness without too much "buzz" or "edge" like Dukoffs create. So I use a Selmer metal C* when I need to project without too much "lead" and a Vandoren A55 JJ for when it's time to pack a little more heat.

[Dr_sax]

Well, I play an alto guardala king. I also have a vandoren jumbo java a55 with plays very similar on the lower oktave. The altissimo is better on the guardala. Sometimes I play a beechler bellite #8. On all I use vandoren v16 reeds. The beechler is a bit less bright than the king and has a magnificent altissimo.

[JimMetcalf]

The Selmer metal jazz D is bright and projects well on alto. A good, accurately made piece for the $$! The Lawton bronze 7*BB can be VERY bright and project VERY WELL. Lawton is a much more expensive piece, but offers a more complex tonal spectrum than the Selmer metal jazz. I use my Lawton 7*B for combo/lounge work and the 7*BB for big band lead alto playing. Lawtons are the best playing pieces I have found in 50+ playing years.

[Grey]

Try a standard Selmer D. I actually like the sound much better than any jazz mouthpieces. It's really bright. Oh sh*t, now the form will yell at me for suggesting this :(

If you like bright sounds, listen to recordings of sax players who have bright sounds. You may change your sound this way by trying to emulate them (or you may not)