I'm doing this to help out some of the beginning classical players, and I thought it might be useful for some others. This is a comparison and a list of the qualities of the classical mouthpieces I have tried. I kept a notebook of these from when I worked on a project at the University of Arizona in 1995 and I've added some more notes on many of these recently (as I looked for a new piece for my new horn.) All of these were played on either a Yamaha YAS-875 (If they were produced before 2000) or on my Grassi 2000 Professional (which you can think of as a Mark VI. It's a carbon copy of a Mark VI, right down to the composition of the brass alloy.) All were tested with a Vandoren 3 Traditional reed, and Rovner lig. (They didn't have the Optimum back then, and I still had a Rovner, so when I tested the new stuff, I tried to stay consistent.)
French style mouthpieces:
Selmer S-80 (C*) - Medium chamber, medium rollover baffle, square chamber. Produces, not surprisingly, a medium dark sound. Facings tend to be fairly inconsistent between pieces of the same facing. Probably the most popular mouthpiece in the world. Square chamber darkens the sound, but also has the effect of making it more "spread". Square chamber also helps to increase response, but tends to encourage poor breath support if you get lazy. Available for all saxophones, including sopranino and bass. Players using this piece are too numerous to list, but include Harvey Pittel, Fred Hemke (metal version), and others.
Selmer S-90 (180) - Same as S-80 but with a larger chamber. Slightly darker sound with more resistence. Available for SATB. The only player of note that I know using this is John Sampen.
Selmer LT (Larry Teal) - Medium round chamber, flat baffle with a very slight rollover. Slightly brighter and more focused sound than the S-80. Only comes in one facing, equivalent to a C*, but with a longer curve. Less immediate response, but encourages better breath support. Available in alto and tenor only. Players using this include Don Sinta and Michael Hester.
E. Rousseau New Classic (NC4) - Long rollover baffle, arched chamber with straight sidewalls, medium chamber. Very bright for a classical piece. Very good response, easy overtones and altissimo. MUST HAVE GOOD BREATH SUPPORT! Available for SAT. Not a good beginner's piece because it takes a while to "tame". Very smooth and even once it is "tamed" though. Works very well with Yamaha horns. Players using this include Eugene Rousseau and Kenneth Tse.
Vandoren V5 (A27) - Flat baffle, smaller round chamber. Very long facing. Tried three, very consistent facings. Bright sound and kind of breathy. Poor low end response. Need a lot of air for this one. Available for SATB. Most notable player using it is Claude Delangle.
Hite Classic (M64) - Shorter rollover baffle, round "squeeze" chamber, built-in bite plate. Very consistent facing, only available in one facing. Excellent response across all registers, slight edge to the tone that may make it unsuitable for classical playing. Slimmer mouthpiece that may be difficult to find ligatures to fit. Very well made piece. Available in SATB. I don't know of any players using them currently.
Vandoren Optimum (AL3) - Very slight rollover, slightly larger chamber than V5, round chamber. Very consistent response, very consistent facings (tried 3). Very free blowing with a bit of resistence. Medium bright sound, similar to S-80. Great altissimo! Available in SATB. Only player that I know is using it is Otis Murphy, but I expect that to change.
Morgan Symphonic (3C) - Long rollover baffle, round chamber, larger chamber (nearly as big as a Rascher piece). Excellent response, down to the lower end, very dark sound. Appears to be modeled on a Selmer Table C*. Very free blowing, with some resistence. Very good altissimo, although not as good as the Optimum. Available in SATB. Used by James Houlik on tenor. (Houlik uses a Bilger-Morgan piece on tenor, not a 3C),
Selmer Soloist (modern C*) - Medium rollover baffle, "horseshoe" style chamber. Good response, brighter than the S-80. Slight "reedy" sound, but very warm. Rubber is harder and shinier than any vintage Soloist I've ever seen. Available in alto and tenor only. (Could account for the difference in tone quality) Don't know of anyone using this piece right now.
Bari Symphonic (C*) - Short rollover baffle, piece is very similar to a Meyer. Too much edge for classical work.
Selmer Metal Classic (C*) - Rollover baffle, small chamber. Good response, very similar to the Optimum, but not as warm. Very easy altissimo, and good control. Low end response isn't as good as more modern pieces. Available in SATB. Used by Marcel Mule (!).
I'll add the Rascher School pieces later...(Yes I did try them!)...
French style mouthpieces:
Selmer S-80 (C*) - Medium chamber, medium rollover baffle, square chamber. Produces, not surprisingly, a medium dark sound. Facings tend to be fairly inconsistent between pieces of the same facing. Probably the most popular mouthpiece in the world. Square chamber darkens the sound, but also has the effect of making it more "spread". Square chamber also helps to increase response, but tends to encourage poor breath support if you get lazy. Available for all saxophones, including sopranino and bass. Players using this piece are too numerous to list, but include Harvey Pittel, Fred Hemke (metal version), and others.
Selmer S-90 (180) - Same as S-80 but with a larger chamber. Slightly darker sound with more resistence. Available for SATB. The only player of note that I know using this is John Sampen.
Selmer LT (Larry Teal) - Medium round chamber, flat baffle with a very slight rollover. Slightly brighter and more focused sound than the S-80. Only comes in one facing, equivalent to a C*, but with a longer curve. Less immediate response, but encourages better breath support. Available in alto and tenor only. Players using this include Don Sinta and Michael Hester.
E. Rousseau New Classic (NC4) - Long rollover baffle, arched chamber with straight sidewalls, medium chamber. Very bright for a classical piece. Very good response, easy overtones and altissimo. MUST HAVE GOOD BREATH SUPPORT! Available for SAT. Not a good beginner's piece because it takes a while to "tame". Very smooth and even once it is "tamed" though. Works very well with Yamaha horns. Players using this include Eugene Rousseau and Kenneth Tse.
Vandoren V5 (A27) - Flat baffle, smaller round chamber. Very long facing. Tried three, very consistent facings. Bright sound and kind of breathy. Poor low end response. Need a lot of air for this one. Available for SATB. Most notable player using it is Claude Delangle.
Hite Classic (M64) - Shorter rollover baffle, round "squeeze" chamber, built-in bite plate. Very consistent facing, only available in one facing. Excellent response across all registers, slight edge to the tone that may make it unsuitable for classical playing. Slimmer mouthpiece that may be difficult to find ligatures to fit. Very well made piece. Available in SATB. I don't know of any players using them currently.
Vandoren Optimum (AL3) - Very slight rollover, slightly larger chamber than V5, round chamber. Very consistent response, very consistent facings (tried 3). Very free blowing with a bit of resistence. Medium bright sound, similar to S-80. Great altissimo! Available in SATB. Only player that I know is using it is Otis Murphy, but I expect that to change.
Morgan Symphonic (3C) - Long rollover baffle, round chamber, larger chamber (nearly as big as a Rascher piece). Excellent response, down to the lower end, very dark sound. Appears to be modeled on a Selmer Table C*. Very free blowing, with some resistence. Very good altissimo, although not as good as the Optimum. Available in SATB. Used by James Houlik on tenor. (Houlik uses a Bilger-Morgan piece on tenor, not a 3C),
Selmer Soloist (modern C*) - Medium rollover baffle, "horseshoe" style chamber. Good response, brighter than the S-80. Slight "reedy" sound, but very warm. Rubber is harder and shinier than any vintage Soloist I've ever seen. Available in alto and tenor only. (Could account for the difference in tone quality) Don't know of anyone using this piece right now.
Bari Symphonic (C*) - Short rollover baffle, piece is very similar to a Meyer. Too much edge for classical work.
Selmer Metal Classic (C*) - Rollover baffle, small chamber. Good response, very similar to the Optimum, but not as warm. Very easy altissimo, and good control. Low end response isn't as good as more modern pieces. Available in SATB. Used by Marcel Mule (!).
I'll add the Rascher School pieces later...(Yes I did try them!)...