Sax on the Web Forum banner

Review your Mouthpieces!!! (NO COMMENTS)

161K views 184 replies 128 participants last post by  DougMan 
#1 · (Edited)
Ok people!! THis is the thread for everyone to review their tenor mouthpieces.

Link to the alto thread
Link to the sop thread
LInk to the baritone thread

The rules:
No comments allowed, only reviews;
One mouthpiece per post;
Follow the outlined format.

The purpose of this thread is for everyone to see what people think of different mouthpieces. It is important not to make any comments other than reviews. Thanks.

Here is the format:

MOUTHPIECE TITLE (in capitals)

(then include a bit underneath the following headings)

First Impressions:

Reed friendliness:

Response:

Tonal/Dynamic Flexibility:

Other: (specify)

Conclusion:
 
See less See more
#134 ·
Vandoren TL5 classical tenor mouthpiece.

This is a new piece from Vandoren for classical players. I've had it for about 1 year. I have a TL4 also and found the tip opening just wasn't big enough even when I played med hard La Voz reeds. It has a big sound and is the easiest tenor piece I have ever played. Has just the right amount of resistance and highs as well as lows come out big and easy. I find it easy to control and highly recommend it. I use mainly La Voz medium hard reeds on this piece. It's important to note that a traditional ligature won't work right on this piece. I use Rovner metal platinum lig (they are about $45 USD). Edit: I occasionally get a couple hard reeds in a box of La Voz (for some reason they tend to vary from box to box in strength) and I use the TL4 on them. They probably are the equivalent of a La Voz hard reed.
 
#135 ·
Stock Otto Link STM 6* from the 80s (refaced to 7* by Kay Siebold)

First Impression: It came with an old Yamaha YTS-21 that I purchased some time ago. It played very well, especially the altissimo register was very easy to blow. So I decided to send it to Kay Siebold, Hamburg - to reface it to a 7*...

Second Impression (after refacing): Kay's work is immaculate (as usual)!

Reed friendliness: Works fine with all kind of natural reeds that I'm playing (mostly green and red Javas, Marca, LaVoz), but doesn't sound good with Legeres...

Response: Kay's work always has the right balance between a free blowing feeling and some light and natural resistance

Tonal / dynamic Flexibility: from ppp to fff, from Rock'n'Roll to soft Jazz Ballads - with this mpc (and of course with my 1932 Conn Tranny) I can whisper, purr, cry, play dirty or nice...

Other: I love to have that special "Link-core" in my sound

Conlusion: Flexibility and Versaltility, ease of playing, full sound! Sounds fat and warm in my 20s/30s swing dance band but also can roar and cry and cut through the guitar jungle in my R'n'B and Soul Bands!
 
#136 ·
10MFan "BOSS" 8

FIRST IMPRESSIONS:
Gorgeous - finish and rails are perfect. High baffle piece.

REED FRIENDLINESS:
So far it likes most everything I've thrown at it. For me, I use between a 2 1/2 and a 3, depending on brand, etc. The best working (so far) are a Vandoren Java red (3), and a Legere signature 2 3/4

RESPONSE:
Immediate. Subtone is beautiful, and speaks easily. Altissimo notes pop right out

TONE/DYNAMIC FLEXIBILITY:
FAT sound with lots of overtones...when you push it it gets brighter, but maintains a fat core sound. I can't over-push the piece - it just keeps going!

CONCLUSION:
The one mouthpiece I can bring to any gig - jazz combo to R&B horn section. Super flexible. I have mouthpieces with as much bite, but they don't keep the low end like this one does - GREAT all-around piece.
 
#140 ·
Phil-Tone Eclipse 7 (.100)

I'm now playing a Phil-tone on both alto and tenor.

First impressions: I like that Phil keeps it simple. It tells me that the $$$ I pay goes into making the piece great, instead of creating great marbling or finding exotic wood sources.

Reed Friendliness: It likes all brands so far. I'm largely an alto player, and 2.5 strength is what I'm using right now on tenor.

Response: Here's where Phil's mouthpieces shine for me. I just feel like there are no limitations. I used to like more resistant pieces, but Phil's mouthpieces have taught me that a mouthpiece can play easily and sound really great.

Tone/dynamic flexibility: I was playing an HR V16 (T6 .098), and my big problem with it was that it was too sweet and soft. This piece can project, and I'm certain I haven't gone near its limits in that realm. I can go low and sub-toney, loud and growly, and high and bright. This is the mouthpiece I needed because I'm still figuring out my sound on tenor.

Conclusion: There was a thread sometime back that basically said, "stop all the mouthpiece searching and just buy a Phil-Tone." Best advice I've taken. I've already started worrying that if something happens to Phil, I won't have any back-ups, lol. The best thing about Phil is that he'll talk to you about what you're looking for and make recommendations based on that. This is really great for those of us amateurs who lack an extensive network of sax mouthpiece friends.
 
#141 ·
10mfan Robusto 7 (3-D printed)

First impressions:
Wow, this mouthpiece sure is heavy. Of course, this is the first 3-D printed mouthpiece I've ever played, but I wasn't quite expecting how dense and hefty the material is. The facing work is very nice, as I had expected. Interestingly enough, this piece failed the suction test, which had initially given me pause, but my concerns thankfully ended up being unfounded.
.
Reed Friendliness: I had three types of jazz reeds on me: Vandoren ZZ 3.5, Vandoren ZZ 3, and Vandoren Green Java 3s. The Robusto played well with all three, but the Javas sounded the best by far.

Response: Effortless. My Mark VII tenor needs a repad, as it's still on its original pads (in my defense, I bought it less than three months ago and the repair place I go to is backed up until Thanksgiving). That said, you'd never know it if you played the Robusto. I bought this to compare to the Early Babbitt Tone Edge that came with the horn, and the response is nearly identical (which is obviously a compliment), but with a little more stability in the spatula keys, which is always a plus.

Tone/dynamic flexibility:
Big, open, cavernous, spread. It has the kind of tone that makes you want to play it all night. The low end is huge on this mouthpiece. It brightens up a little around G2 into the palm keys, but still retains a nice balance of highs and lows with a pleasant buzziness that isn't overpowering. I kept switching between it and my Early Babbitt, and while the two sound very similar, the Robusto has a certain je n'ai c'est pas that made me keep coming back to it. The EB is more focused, I think, while the Robusto brings has a spread quality that makes the horn sound like something older and more American than a Selmer from the mid-1970s.

Conclusion:
I bought this piece because it was a way to play around with a mouthpiece I've wanted to try for a while at an affordable price. I didn't want a replacement for my EB, and I didn't expect to find one.

And yet...

I really, really like my EB Link. It plays beautifully, and it's not the sort of piece you part with easily. It's nice to own a classic mouthpiece- especially one that I stumbled into without having to pay extra for it- and it just sounds so nice. But the Robusto gives me pause. A lot of pause. After all, if I got all this from a 3-D printed mouthpiece, I can't imagine what the real hard rubber versions sound like- but boy, do I want to find out. I need more time to play around with both pieces to see if I really want to sell the EB to pay for a HR Robusto. But the more I think about the Robusto, the more I like it. Man, when 10mfan said he wanted to get people to leave their vintage pieces behind, he wasn't screwing around.

Thanks to almost halfway for the piece. And of course, thanks to 10mfan for making something magical.
 
#142 ·
JODY JAZZ HR* 7*



First Impressions: I has a great warm and centered tone. It is very flexible in the sense that you can get a wide verity of tones out of it.

Reed friendliness: I noticed personally that a reed that is a little harder can benefit in the control of the mouthpiece. I think that you could use just about any reed on this and be content with the tone that you would get.

Response: The response is amazing from top to bottom. The only thing that I have noticed is that it does require a bit of air to achieve a consistent lower register.

Tonal/Dynamic Flexibility: The flexibility of this mouthpiece is amazing. I have noticed that even when you play quite the tone is still centered and very controllable.

Conclusion: If you are looking for a dark tone this is the mouthpiece for you. It is similar to a Meyer, but I think that you can get a darker tone with this and a more wide verity of sounds out of it.
 
#144 ·
metal V16 T6 large chamber

First Impressions:
Gorgeous. That shine, those lines, all superb. High quality and heavy.

Reed Friendliness:
Vandoren Red 3 works best for me. As I've found with Vandoren pieces, they are all reed friendly especially to Vandoren reeds

Response:
For a large chamber, it's got some pop. It takes all the air you give it; definitely needs a lot of air. Left pinky keys need a full airstream to get full tone more than I have noticed with smaller chambers. Articulates cleanly as well

Tone/Dynamic Flexibility:
Tone makes the whole horn shake. It's got a full-bodied sound that is felt as much as it is heard. It has an edge I wasn't 100% expecting, but it is underscored by a fullness and warmth. It can roar without getting to edgy, but go into Ben Webster-like tone easily. Doesn't *quite* give the modern tenor sound, a bit of a throwback (that's also my personal sound and bias). Think Sonny, not Chris Potter or Ben Wendel

Conclusion:
A beautiful piece that has a flexibility to the tone, but a less modern sound. Also, for the price, you can't go wrong imo
 
#145 ·
THEO WANNE DURGA 2 7* (metal)

First Impressions: Great looking, gold with silver ring, silver ligature, and silver bite area. Heavy and solid feel. Excellent fit on the neck of my Yani TWO10, in tune halfway up the cork.

Reed friendliness: I play Forestone Hinoki M or Forestone Jazz unfiled M or MS. Never had issues. Reed placement is crucial, as Forestones are a bit slim.

Response: Fast, consistent in all registers, easy blowing. Overtones pop out easily. Intonation is excellent.

Tonal/Dynamic Flexibility: Basic tonal character is on the bright side with an unmistakable nice fat core and a touch of edginess. It can be easily pushed to very bright and very edgy, or mellowed to smooth ballad sound with subtle changes to embouchure and air flow. Equally for dynamic, it is on the louder side, but can be easily pushed even further or held back.

Other: Looking for a mpc that could keep up with electric guitars without being too shrill and thin in the higher register, but that can also play softly, I used the generous trial period of a European online dealer to test some 8 or 10 mpcs and kept the Durga. To me, it was the most versatile of the bunch, and was easiest to control. I felt comfortable with it in no time. In my rock band, the Durga allows me to blare out with the electric guitars, and the next minute accompany our singer in ballads.

Conclusion: Great flexibility, ease of playing, and the bright but still balanced sound make this mpc truly outstanding imo.
 
#146 ·
THEO WANNE AMBIKA 7* (metal)

First Impressions: Heavy looking, gold with "vintified", almost black ligature. Heavy and solid feel. No baffle and very large chamber.

Reed friendliness: I play Forestone Hinoki MS or Forestone Jazz unfiled MS, and also tried Forestone Traditional M. Never had issues.

Response: Noticeable resistance, takes lots of air (compared to my standard mpc, TW Durga). Intonation is excellent.

Tonal/Dynamic Flexibility: Basic tonal character is extremely dark, but not stuffed up. Push it, and some brightness leaks out. Push it more, and it may even sound edgy. With my normal embouchure, it is rather quiet and a bit smokey sounding, but it can be played very loud with easy adjustments.

Other: Wanted to complement my Durga with a dark, vintage sounding mpc, and found it from the same manufacturer. The Ambika is almost the exact opposite, dark and mysterious to begin with, but with enough flexibility to allow for dirtier sounds, as well. Control is somewhat harder than on the Durga, but quite manageable. It took me a while to "get it", but it now feels quite natural. I do play the Ambika with lighter reeds, though.

Conclusion: Nice darkness, great vintage sound.
 
#147 · (Edited)
Bought a Dukoff D8 Crystallite off Ebay, and it came in Saturday. I've owned a few of the crystallite in the past, but this is the first one in the D8, which I have liked the best of the bunch of Dukoff's I have owned(so far).

Here is a sound clip recorded last night in my family room. Edgy, but I think I like it. Very free blowing

https://clyp.it/cz2u0n5b

EDIT:sorry guys, just saw this was the Tenor section
 
#148 · (Edited)
Ted Klum Focustone Precision 7*

Not sure I will be adding anything new here. But I'm a Link player, who decided to take a chance on a used Focustone Precision 7* that became available on the Forum.

At first, the mouthpiece sounded very bright to me when I played the reeds I was using at that time with my hard rubber Drake SOS mouthpiece - Rico Jazz Select 3S. I wasn't sure what the big deal was with these pieces.

However, I continued to experiment with reeds and also continued to play more with the piece. As I got more used to it, I came to the following conclusions:

1. While Links are known for that "core" in their sound, the Klum Focustone has even more of a solid core that is clearly present regardless of the reed being played.
2. The mouthpiece is "reed friendly." Every brand of reed (I've tried Marca, Rico/D'Addario Jazz Select, Vandoren, Alexander and Gonzalez 627s) plays reasonably well on the mouthpiece. I've also had a high percentage of reeds work with this mouthpiece.
3. The mouthpiece can change character dramatically with changes in reed. The range of sound - from classic 50s bop tenor to Brecker-like focus - is quite accessible just by changing up the brand/type of reed.
4. Despite the smaller footprint and smaller chamber of the mouthpiece (technically a medium chamber) this mouthpiece sounds big. It also delivers a rich, complex tone.

I find that the more I play it, the more it reveals to me. This is truly a marvelous piece. Like many forum members, I too am afflicted by GAS and have owned many "high end" mouthpieces. But thus far, the Klum is 6 for 6 matching up against every other mouthpiece I have recently owned. For reference, some of the recent pieces I have had an opportunity to compare the Klum with are the Phil-Tone Tribute, the Robusto metal, a Florida Link, Drake EB Bergonzi, Drake SOS and the Sakshama TM.
 
#149 ·
NAVARRO MAESTRA HR 8 TENOR(no metal on the shank)

First Impressions: This is a piece of art. Everything here looks great from table, rails... It has a pretty traditional shape, so no need to find a custom size ligature and it feels great if you are coming from a Link. It's got a big traditional chamber and a medium low roll-over baffle. It looks to me like a variation or a mix between and EB Link and a Florida Slant but with something else and extra well done.

Reed friendliness: It works great with everything I have tried so far, but I prefer DaddarioSJ and Rigotti gold on it.

Response: It responds really well from top to bottom, even altissimo is great and there is like a round quality to it. The intonation is exceptional. The sound is focused but not thin at all. There is a bit of healthy resistance to blow against to keep things like tone color and intonation under your control. I particularly love the articulation here.

Tonal/Dynamic Flexibility: It leans naturally towards the Otto Link tonal color but it's far more than that. The sounds is medium dark but really rich and easy to shape towards a brighter/darker concept. Super projection won't be your FIRST idea of this piece, but once you get used to it it will really project if you want to. The part of its tonal palette that will be there from the first note is its DEPTH. This piece is flexible enough to play several music styles but it won't peel the paint, so it can cover a lot of ground for a Jazz musician and for someone who needs to play several styles but I would end up really tired if I had to "Exclusively" battle electric guitars with it. I could do it but It wouldn't be the right tool for that super loud sort of environment.

Other: I haven't found a bad thing about this piece. The only thing is to keep in mind that this is the kind of mouthpiece you need to grow into to get the serious amount of volume it can deliver.

Conclusion: A plus recommended for anyone looking for a jazz traditional MP to achieve any(I am mean any) sound from Stan getz, Dexter, Joshua Redman, Chris potter. It's got the flexibility of a great link but with more than that to the whole picture.
 
#150 ·
Here is an other one ;)

PHIL TONE/TWANNE MOSAIC 7*

First Impressions: This piece has an aesthetically pleasing design, simple but it's got the right look. It comes with the Theo Wanne enlightened ligature which is great for me although I am not picky about ligatures. If this lig doesn't please you it won't be a problem since you can put anything on it that fits a regular metal LINK. The chamber looks HUGE and the baffle is a medium low roll-over. Everything in there looks great. Tips rails have the right thickness, not too thin, not to thick and everything looks really even.

Reed friendliness: This is a difficult one to explain. All my mouthpieces (on my signature) are reed friendly but I have preference for certain reeds, because of the response, sound...Well in this Mosaic EVERYTHING works and more than just response you can completely change the tonal character of this MP by changing reeds.

Response: The response is great especially at the bottom end. The altissimo response is great as I didn't expect from such a big chamber. Really good intonation and articulation. The sound is really full in the whole register. This piece has a gorgeous subtone. It's free blowing but a healthy amount of resistance to let you be in control.

Tonal/Dynamic Flexibility: The immediate tone I would say is traditional medium dark very rich in overtones and pretty well balanced. It's more spread than a link but the sound is not diffuse and disperse. There is a strong core to the sound but just a wider core. The projection is great like my other pieces and you certainly can play anything with it even funk but as I said about the Maestra I wouldn't use it to exclusively battle electric guitars and it wasn't made for that either. It can be versatile but it really shines in more traditional contexts, especially playing ballads it sounds KILLAH!!! :)

Other: I strongly recommend trying this piece with different reeds before saying NO to it. It's so sensitive to reeds(in a good way) that just with a little change it can sound like a whole different piece.


Conclusion: I recommend this piece to someone looking for a rich sounding traditional metal mouthpiece. If you don't like Vandoren reeds you will like them here. For anyone who favors the big tenor sound (traditional or modern)this piece is a keeper. It's easy to get it to sound in the direction of Dexter, Gene Ammons, Getz, Griffin, Potter, Joshua redman (now on the new metal piece), Steve Grossman, Eric alexander... and if you need to get a more pop, rock sound for certain gigs it could easily get in that Kirk Whalum sound vibe.
 
#151 ·
Lawton 8*B ICON (even if it is not written on the side), special bronze. Sometimes I feel I have to change mp but I always come back to it; my favourite and first mouthpiece on tenor since 2014. Power, FAT bottom, presence, highs/mid/lows well mixed, even mouthpiece from bottom to top and futher up. I tested a Guardala MB I last summer and it did not have such power and depth to the sound that my Lawton has. You can play many genres of music. Does anybody have played Icons, also BB (I read they are even more powerful :O )
 
#152 ·
SELMER-PARIS D SILVER PLATED METAL SCROLL SHANK TENOR

First Impressions: Doesn't sound like a 'Metal' mouthpiece. Produces a very dark tone much more similar to the Selmer-Paris D hard rubber mouthpiece. However, it does have more power behind it.

Reed friendliness: Works well with 3-3.5 Vandoren blue box

Response: Great response, especially for softer dynamics and the lower register. I haven't tested it out on altissimo

Tonal/Dynamic Flexibility: Not as much as other metal mouthpieces. It lacks the punch of a Berg, but makes up for it with smoother tone and ease of play

Conclusion: My favorite mouthpiece to date. I also played a C** version of this piece and was similarly impressed. Great workmanship, and the silver plating makes it look awesome.
 
#153 ·
Matt Marantz Slant Legacy 7* and Matt Marantz Florida Legacy 7*

I wanted to share my impressions on Matt's work, which I believe is top notch. I hope that these few lines will be understandable as English is not my mother tongue.

I discovered its refacing job in 2015 when I bought a vintage Zimberoff Hollywood he worked on. This mouthpiece was perfected in a sense that it has its original tip opening (5*) and it plays very well, like I espected for an old Dukoff mouthpiece (big warm sound and powerful enough to cut).

Every since, I was very curious about its own line of mouthpieces. I have the chance to play his slant legacy (HR 7* bought used) and florida legacy (metal 7* bought new) since few weeks and I can confidently say that I really love his work. They are (in my opinion) beautiful mouthpieces that give me everything that I was looking for.

I propose to review them both at the same time as I feel that they share a lot of the same characteristics/qualities.

First Impressions :

More than impressed and I feel that they are both perfectly crafted. They are beautiful to watch, and more importantly gorgeous to play. They are for me of the highest quality.

Reed Friendliness :

Both are very reed friendly thanks to a very very efficient facing. I play them with a Lavoz MH reeds and love the result (warm, full even in the higher register, easy altissimo, large low register, …).

Response :

They have a great response and a healty resistance to build your tone. I find them easy to play (I am coming from small tip openings and was at first afraid that 7* could be too open for me). They have an excellent articulation which is very important to me. They can take a lot of air and can be powerful without too much overblow.

Tone/Dynamic Flexibility :

Tone is their best attribute ! This is a personal thing but I am more than impressed. They are full, warm, class and classic. They can be brighter if pushed and then they produce a fairly modern sound.

I really believe they can do all, after you know them better.

Conclusion :

Beautiful pieces that can do it all. They are not on the cheap side, but they definitely worth it.

I wanted also to point out that Matt's communication is excellent and that I love his playing !
 
#154 ·
Jody Jazz DV 7 tenor

NOTE: My review is going to sound like I'm a salesman for Jody Jazz...I promise I'm not.

First Impressions:
A beautiful mouthpiece - it just looks nice. The facing features a "double window" that extends down most of the length of the reed. It's an interesting design.
After 10 minutes of playing this mouthpiece it had won me over completely. I was genuinely blown away.

Reed Friendliness:
I've played it with plain old Ricos, Legere synthetics, Vandoren Javas, and Harry Hartmann carbon fiber. I've played various strengths. It always sounds at least good and usually great. This mouthpiece accommodates the widest range of reeds I've ever experienced.

Response:
Crazy good. In fact it's so responsive and easy to play that I started to worry that I was fooling myself and that it wasn't providing adequate resistance to maintain my embouchure and air control. But that's just not the case. I can still switch to another mouthpiece or my alto without any problems. This mouthpiece also has the best responsiveness across the full range of dynamics of any piece I've ever played. Everything from subtones to full blast feels easy to control. Also has amazing responsiveness in altisimmo.

Tone/Dynamic Flexibility:
Regarding tone, this is both the best sounding tenor mouthpiece I've ever played and also the most versatile. It has a very pleasing buzzy edge throughout the entire range of the horn, but it's not shrill at all. It provides a perfect balance of crispness and huskiness, which is especially nice in the mid-range and high end/altisimmo. It's so responsive to changes in emouchure and airflow that I use it comfortably for everything from playing Basie charts to playing with a R&B band and everything in between. It also sounds really great through a mic/PA as well as all by itself.

Conclusion:
This is the best tenor mouthpiece I've ever played. I've been playing tenor for 30 years and this one takes the prize. Over the years I had drifted more towards being an alto player, but this mouthpiece reinvigorated my interest and enjoyment in playing tenor. Now I primarily play tenor and this mouthpiece is the reason.
Let's put it this way...when the bass player in the R&B band I've played with for 10 years, who has never commented one way or another on my playing, made a point of coming up to me after a gig to ask what I was doing differently because he thought I sounded better than ever before and the only thing that's new was the Jody Jazz DV mouthpiece, I knew it was a good mouthpiece.
 
#155 · (Edited)
MAC SAX FJ IV
Tenor 8*

First Impressions :

Physically beautiful, great look, logo, shape, nice ligature and carrying case. Very well made.

Reed Friendliness :

Has worked well with Fibracell, Legere, Van Doren

Response :

Excellent, up and down the horn. Big, free-blowing, easy altissimo and low-end.

Tone/Dynamic Flexibility :

Best sound I've ever produced. Big, bold, beautiful sound that's reasonably full. Probably more for contemporary jazz, etc. players- edgy, but not too much. An all-round winner.

Conclusion :

I love this mouthpiece. I've tried the FJ III and FJ V, Otto Link STMs, Ponzol M2, Berg Larsen 115/1 steel, Mojo Vortex, Jody Jazz DV, and nothing else comes close. My only issue was that it was a tad too bright on a Yamaha Custom Z, an already bright horn. It's about perfect on a new Trevor James Signature Custom RAW, which is a good deal darker horn.
 
#158 ·
Phil Barone Vintage 7

PHIL BARONE VINTAGE 7
If I have my mouthpiece vernacular correct, it's a large, round chamber piece with a pretty small rollover baffle. Phil uses the Otto Link tip openings for his numbers AFAIK, so a 7 is .100. I've only played it for about 2 months, but before I bought it I noticed that this is the piece you'll probably end up with if you order one of Phil's horns, yet there are next to no reviews on it, so I figured something was better than nothing.

All of the playing is done on the Phil Barone Classic I bought at the same time (as good as advertised btw)

First Impressions
It came with a plastic cap that didn't fit the ligature it came with overly well (generic 2 screw thing), but it's workable and does its job. I'm unsure if the ligature is something that you would get if you just bought the mouthpiece, but if you're getting it with one of his saxes, it'll come with it. Visually it's nothing special. It looks like a hard rubber piece with a standard beak with some gold to make the minimal engraving easier to reed. No obvious tooling marks, though I didn't look for that very closely either.

Reed Friendlieness
I haven't tried too many reeds on it yet, but I have yet to find a brand that it doesn't like. Java's work, jazz selects work, blue box works, and I could conceivably play anything from a 2.5 to a 3.5 (java hardness scale).

Response
Excellent. Incredibly free blowing. That's free blowing in general, not free blowing for a small baffle large chamber piece. No problems with articulations. I can do everything I could possibly want to do on that front.

Altissimo
I'm not so sure if this is more the horn or the mouthpiece, but excellent. Not step baffle small chamber levels of excellent, but it's still very easy.

Tone Quality
Phil markets it as a piece that will help make you sound like Joe Henderson or Stan Getz, and I would agree with that. I personally sound a lot more like Joe than Getz on it, but those two are definitely in the ball park. It's a bit spread for my tastes when I use reeds that don't make me work hard, but slapping on something a tad bit harder helps focus the tone in my experience.

Dynamic Flexibility
It's not the easiest mouthpiece to play softly, especially low on the horn, but man, it gets LOUD. One time I decided to see how loud I could possibly make it go, and I made my ears ring. The actual tone quality makes it not ideal for your generic "I need a screamer" gigs, but when it comes to pure decibels, I can't imagine why you would ever want more than what this piece can give you. You could easily play acoustically at a small venue with it.

Tonal Flexibility
I can't imagine this piece ever getting terribly bright, but slap on a hard classical reed, use a classical embouchure, and I think you could pretty easily use it in a concert band. Slap on a bright reed and you can get a hint of buzz with some decent brightness.

Ligature Fitting
As far as I can tell, it will take standard tenor ligatures. I bought a vandoren M|O lig for it that is a slightly tight fit, but it works regardless.

Conclusion
It's a lot of mouthpiece for $250. It's clearly a boutique piece for a not boutique price. It's more or less exactly what Phil's website says it is, except it's more free blowing than what you'd probably expect from a piece with that kind of character.
 
#173 ·
Re: Phil Barone Vintage 7

PHIL BARONE VINTAGE 7
If I have my mouthpiece vernacular correct, it's a large, round chamber piece with a pretty small rollover baffle. Phil uses the Otto Link tip openings for his numbers AFAIK, so a 7 is .100. I've only played it for about 2 months, but before I bought it I noticed that this is the piece you'll probably end up with if you order one of Phil's horns, yet there are next to no reviews on it, so I figured something was better than nothing.

All of the playing is done on the Phil Barone Classic I bought at the same time (as good as advertised btw)

First Impressions
It came with a plastic cap that didn't fit the ligature it came with overly well (generic 2 screw thing), but it's workable and does its job. I'm unsure if the ligature is something that you would get if you just bought the mouthpiece, but if you're getting it with one of his saxes, it'll come with it. Visually it's nothing special. It looks like a hard rubber piece with a standard beak with some gold to make the minimal engraving easier to reed. No obvious tooling marks, though I didn't look for that very closely either.

Reed Friendlieness
I haven't tried too many reeds on it yet, but I have yet to find a brand that it doesn't like. Java's work, jazz selects work, blue box works, and I could conceivably play anything from a 2.5 to a 3.5 (java hardness scale).

Response
Excellent. Incredibly free blowing. That's free blowing in general, not free blowing for a small baffle large chamber piece. No problems with articulations. I can do everything I could possibly want to do on that front.

Altissimo
I'm not so sure if this is more the horn or the mouthpiece, but excellent. Not step baffle small chamber levels of excellent, but it's still very easy.

Tone Quality
Phil markets it as a piece that will help make you sound like Joe Henderson or Stan Getz, and I would agree with that. I personally sound a lot more like Joe than Getz on it, but those two are definitely in the ball park. It's a bit spread for my tastes when I use reeds that don't make me work hard, but slapping on something a tad bit harder helps focus the tone in my experience.

Dynamic Flexibility
It's not the easiest mouthpiece to play softly, especially low on the horn, but man, it gets LOUD. One time I decided to see how loud I could possibly make it go, and I made my ears ring. The actual tone quality makes it not ideal for your generic "I need a screamer" gigs, but when it comes to pure decibels, I can't imagine why you would ever want more than what this piece can give you. You could easily play acoustically at a small venue with it.

Tonal Flexibility
I can't imagine this piece ever getting terribly bright, but slap on a hard classical reed, use a classical embouchure, and I think you could pretty easily use it in a concert band. Slap on a bright reed and you can get a hint of buzz with some decent brightness.

Ligature Fitting
As far as I can tell, it will take standard tenor ligatures. I bought a vandoren M|O lig for it that is a slightly tight fit, but it works regardless.

Conclusion
It's a lot of mouthpiece for $250. It's clearly a boutique piece for a not boutique price. It's more or less exactly what Phil's website says it is, except it's more free blowing than what you'd probably expect from a piece with that kind of character.
Prívate message

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Top