Some of you may know that I have been looking for "the mouthpiece" for quite a while. Since 2008, I have owned at least 20 different pieces trying to find the one that would help me get my tone closest to what I heard in my head. A friend of mine, who endorses RS Berkeley, had received a Chris Potter piece from Les to try out and I asked him if I could give it a go.
Guys, let me tell you, this thing is legit. It gets me exactly where I want to be, tonally. It's dark, but it projects enough; it can get an edge when I need it; it subtones like no one's business; I can whisper low Bb and the high notes are big and round. Most importantly, for me, it has the classic tenor "hollow" tone that I've been dying for. Intonation is effortless, across the entire range of the horn. I'm not going to say it's "freeblowing" because it's not, it has that "good" resistance that everyone talks about, but it's not stuffy in the least. It's very easy to play, but not "freeblowing" if that makes any sense.
From what I understand, this is an exact copy of Chris's mouthpiece, so in effect, it's an exact copy of a VERY GOOD EXAMPLE of a FL Link. So, if you are like me and you've been looking for the classic tenor sound, ala Dexter even, or just want a VERY GOOD FL LINK without rolling the dice on one you can't play first for $600+, I would definitely consider dropping $450 for one of these. Les told my friend that this model is his best selling Legends piece, and if you notice, I think there has only been 1 come up for sale here on SOTW...
Even my wife, who never does this, opened up the door to my practice room to ask me what I was playing because it sounded so good. I told her that I'll never have to buy another mouthpiece ever again, and that made her day. Please, if you ever see me looking to buy something else, point me toward this post so I can slap myself in the face. My search is over.
Guys, let me tell you, this thing is legit. It gets me exactly where I want to be, tonally. It's dark, but it projects enough; it can get an edge when I need it; it subtones like no one's business; I can whisper low Bb and the high notes are big and round. Most importantly, for me, it has the classic tenor "hollow" tone that I've been dying for. Intonation is effortless, across the entire range of the horn. I'm not going to say it's "freeblowing" because it's not, it has that "good" resistance that everyone talks about, but it's not stuffy in the least. It's very easy to play, but not "freeblowing" if that makes any sense.
From what I understand, this is an exact copy of Chris's mouthpiece, so in effect, it's an exact copy of a VERY GOOD EXAMPLE of a FL Link. So, if you are like me and you've been looking for the classic tenor sound, ala Dexter even, or just want a VERY GOOD FL LINK without rolling the dice on one you can't play first for $600+, I would definitely consider dropping $450 for one of these. Les told my friend that this model is his best selling Legends piece, and if you notice, I think there has only been 1 come up for sale here on SOTW...
Even my wife, who never does this, opened up the door to my practice room to ask me what I was playing because it sounded so good. I told her that I'll never have to buy another mouthpiece ever again, and that made her day. Please, if you ever see me looking to buy something else, point me toward this post so I can slap myself in the face. My search is over.