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Saxgourmet Neck Enhancer

40K views 84 replies 39 participants last post by  craigmultireedguy 
#1 ·
Has anyone had any experience with the enhancer? If so, would you mind sharing your impressions?

Thanks so much.​
 
#3 ·
#5 ·
Don't be sorry for asking.

I was just giving a quick history lesson so you wouldn't think "WHAT THE......" when your thread got dragged down an already traveled rocky road.

SG has an interesting history around here if you poke around a bit.
 
#12 ·
Well, perhaps we have to admit that we are experts only in our own minds. ;)

I was going to learn more about the Saxgourmet Neck Enhancer, and found this video on Steve Goodson´s "Nation of Music".

At about 2:00 Steve Goodson start to talk about SOTW, that he call "the saxophone misinformation site" 2:22

ps.
Was there a big difference in sound with and without the Neck Enhancer :?
 
#13 ·
Was there a big difference in sound with and without the Neck Enhancer :?
I can't believe I just watched that video. It sounds like he just played more from his diaphragm in the "after" demo. In the "before" demo he was playing thin and having difficulty getting his horn to speak in parts. Sadly, I'm sure this was done on purpose. It's kind of like asking O.J. to try on the glove.

So I guess you could save the money and just put more air through your horn by pushing from your diaphragm. Thanks, Steve Goodson!

Buck
 
#14 ·
As quoted by acdgraphics (5 months ago) on Steve Goodsons BS:

"the mentioned forum is also rife with sax snobs. I have come to the conclusion that setups, equipment, tastes are all as individual as the physical make up of the player, so why not try one? Heck, I love Plasticovers, but they're supposedly inferior ;-p
Thanks so much!!! Yankee innovation, Love it!
Ava "

Some of what has been said about him and his products, have come from other sax "designers", mouthpiece designers, and the like. I completely forgot about the Unison fiasco (I exchanged some words with him during that time as well) until someone else brought it up.

Every forum has a certain amount of here-say and "mis-information". So, everything should be taken with a grain of salt. But, it's a great place to gather information, learn some tricks, trade and sell gear, and meet like-minded sax players. But, I'm just preachin to the sax choir now!
 
#20 ·
Here is my review of the neck enhancer:

1. It makes a slight difference, in a positive way.
2. Low notes speak easily
3. Makes the sound slightly (very slightly) brighter on my DuKoff mouthiece.
4. Gives horns a "free-er" air stream, particularly noticed in the middle range. As a raspy rock and roll sax player, I found I could more easily crack and growl my notes.

Remember, that which is closer to the mouth makes a bigger difference, and this definatally improves the air flow. You can feel the difference. For $50.00, a great price, totally worth it. Improves playing ease.
 
#22 ·
1. It makes a slight difference, in a positive way.
2. Low notes speak easily
3. Makes the sound slightly (very slightly) brighter on my DuKoff mouthiece.
4. Gives horns a "free-er" air stream, particularly noticed in the middle range. As a raspy rock and roll sax player, I found I could more easily crack and growl my notes........
Good for you man! I would appreciate a with/without audio-file.
I couldn't hear any detectable difference in the SG demo on you tube, would you ask also someone to do a blind test for you listening to you playing without knowing if the booster is on or not and possibly handing down the assembled neck to you for the recodings without telling you whether the enhancer is on yes or not? Cheers
 
#23 ·
Seems to me this is essentially an alternative to putting a baffle in your mouthpiece. I guess if you wanted to hot rod your Link, this would do the
trick. More money than poster puddy though. Although I guess you wouldn't have to worry about it falling out. Hmmm, I'd like to try one out.
 
#24 ·
Seems to me this is essentially an alternative to putting a baffle in your mouthpiece.
It seems to me like it narrows the cone as it nears the mouthpiece, which might provide better intonation with small-chambered and/or high-baffle pieces. In theory, the volume of the mouthpiece should equal the volume of the cone that would extend from the neck if it went all the way to a point. This could well reduce the necessary volume to complete the cone.

I would like to hear what pieces it works well with, and what pieces it does not get along with. I'm sure there are cases of both.

Unlike finishes and metals, this HAS to do something. It could be good, bad, or just different, but it changes the bore dimensions for well over an inch of the length of the horn.

The glasses! They do nothing!
 
#25 ·
I don't discard SG products " a priori" in fact, I quite like his saxophones!

.......and yet........ this is the video........ it starts with SG advertising and consequently go into some SOTW bashing..........then at approximately 4:00 SG starts playing and then (and only then) we get to a 1 min demo with and without the gizmo.



The recording quality is poor but remember this video is a demo of the product in question so, I guess, at least in the intentions, it should be demonstrative of the qualities of this object.

I never designed mouthpieces or necks or saxophones and I might even not know as much as SG knows about what to do with a saxophone...but I buy horns ( I am one known in the trade as a potential customer! the ones that vote with their wallet!) and accessories too! :twisted: and based on this video I couldn't reach the conclusion that I was going to pay (only 50$ !) for this piece of hi-tech hydraulic, well......plumbing, technology



So I too thought it would do something to the sound, but I still didn't HEAR anything significant.
I would seriously appreciate someone else's attempt to make some high resolution recordings to give me a better idea of the qualities of this thing!

By the way it should be easy to do blind experiments because , unless the player uses a transparent piece he won't be aware of the presence of the gizmo or not, so this is very easy to test.
 
#26 ·
I just ordered one and got it today (for alto, I figured it was worth a shot). It doesn't fit. At least not snugly. I tried a tenor neck, thinking maybe I got the wrong one, but no, it just falls off and goes loose inside the mouthpiece. I was excited to try it, and then blah, I can't even get my mouthpiece on because the darn thing is too big and won't even go inside my mouthpiece shank (it's a Meyer 7M on a Mk VI, pretty standard equipment). I'm going to have to send him an email to figure this out. His thumb rest, on the other hand, is working pretty well so far. I say every single sax player that does marching band should go and get one of them immediately; it makes your horn manuals infinitely easier.
 
#27 ·
since this thing has a O ring you can change it to a thinner one (was it not supplied with several O rings .....I would have expected so!)
http://www.nationofmusic.com/orders/sgoods/assets/products/353w.jpg
if you put in a different O-ring in it could be made to fit your neck. Maybe need to put some grease or silicone around the O-ring to act as a sealant.

If you manage to mount the enhancer , would you please be so king to perform a blind test .

Have someone hand you the saxophone with the mouthpiece mounted and the enhancer inside, or not, without you knowing it (make sure that the thing is not rattling so that you are really not aware of the presence of the gizmo). I think we would all appreciate some sound-clips . Of course the person who's mounting the enhancer for you would make a note of which takes were made with or without in a random sequence. Take several takes with or without. Play at least a chromatic scale for bottom to top and the other way around.
 
#29 ·
I own and use the SG Neck Enhancer but cannot back up any of my opinions with a published paper funded by a National Science Foundation grant explaining the physics of this accessory or corroborating the validity of any of my claims. I can only speak to what I (think I) hear and feel when I use it.

When I first tried it, I found the difference (for me) was significant and immediately noticeable—when used with hard rubber mpcs. I did not find it very effective with my metal mpcs. I believe that this is a function of the geometry of the chamber not allowing the neck enhancer to be properly positioned. The neck enhancer should be pushed all the way into the mouthpiece and then the mouthpiece installed on the neck—positioning it as you normally would for tuning. The proper “O”-ring size is essential to get a good snug seal in the mouthpiece. The enhancer is not intended to be positioned on the neck first and then have the mouthpiece put on. (See additional comments herein about Saxgourmet necks with the enhancer preinstalled.)

What do I believe it does? I feel that I get richer, darker-sounding notes in the lower register—especially when played at low volume. This accessory allows me to avoid some of the “breathiness” that I can get with large chambered “vintage-style” HR mouthpieces played at low volumes. For these same mouthpieces, it also makes the upper and altissimo registers more even-sounding and easier to play. Combinations that the enhancer has worked well with (tenors) are; copper Keilwerth CX-90 and Morgan Jazz HR-L, Ponzol and Barone “Vintage” HR mpcs and Barone Classic, Selmer MK VII, Conn NW I, Conn NW II, and Conn 10M “Nakit” (Boston accent) Lady horns. The “stuffiness” of the original Conn tenor necks is significantly improved with this accessory (i.e. clearer and more focused without losing that great, dark Conn sound).

Steve also sells these neck enhancers preinstalled on some of his Saxgourmet necks. I sometimes use his neck on my vintage Conns—with very good results. Unlike the separate neck enhancer, these are mounted directly to the end of the neck and do not come with an “O”-ring. Although I liked the results that I got with the neck, I spoke with Steve over the phone about potential modifications. He very graciously spent more than 15 minutes making some recommendations—the simplest being installing an “O”-ring that is a good fit for the mouthpiece. I still get very good results even if the enhancer doesn’t extend all the way to the chamber opening.

The unexpected benefit of using this neck enhancer has to do with the lack of a standardized bore size for the mpc shanks.. I have mouthpieces so snug that they smash the neck cork. When I use a differnt mpc with a wider bore, they often don’t seal well around the cork. Using a neck enhancer with a snug-fitting “O”-ring provides the great seal that the compressed cork can’t.
 
#30 ·
again, it should be rather easy to perform a blind test on this implement ...........If you believe so much in it ( And I say this without any attempt t make fun of your beliefs in prophet SG) make some effort to corroborate your beliefs with some recordings, in other words make us hear what you " think" you hear , that's why of the need of the blind test, because you might think that you hear something that is actually not there and not because of dishonesty but just because the human nature is such.

Again If you care to read and study a bit of the plethora of topics on the influence of materials on sound and the influence of other implements on sound you will find useful description of the scientific testing method. Until someone does that I am afraid that the claims are absolutely void of any factuality.
As it stands we are in the realm of " red cars are faster" :)
 
#31 ·
For $45 bucks, why don't you just take a gamble and buy one yourself. I really doubt that I'm going to spend my time doing a blind test to satify anyone.
Better yet, if it's such a priority for you, why don't you buy one, set up set up your own test and share it with the forum. You can consider it your contribution to mankind.
I'm not interested in selling the things or proving their viability. If it doesn't meet your standards, I really don't care.
 
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