mouthpiece for my true tone

[trutone]

I recently just bought a true tone alto. Its from 1925, and my new mouthpiece which works great on my old sax doesnt workat all on my new horn. The mouthpiece is a claude lakey, i am planing on returning it and getting another mouthpiece. Does anyone have any suggestions on what mouthpiece will work well with my new horn? By the way i am only 16 and i am on a budget. I cant go over 70 and i dont need legurature.(im using my BG). Also i want a hard rubber, no metal.


thanks :)

[SuiZen]

Take a look at the vintage alto mpcs and Morgan mpcs.

http://www.junkdude.com/saxes/mouthpiecesindex.htm

You really need to try mpcs to find one that suits your playing style, though.

Bill

[paulwl]

At some point (not necessarily now) you really ought to check out the old school setup - a stock Buescher or Sigurd Rascher (Buescher copy), no-baffle barrel chambers, with a slightly harder reed than you're used to playing. Whatever you wind up using, there's nothing better for getting an idea of the baseline sound and personality of the old horn.

[Dave Dolson]

TruTone: Congrats on acquiring a quality vintage saxophone. They are the best, in my opinion.

My early '20's TT alto is my first choice among three vintage and one new alto in my battery. I have three mouthpieces that play well on it . . . a used Morgan/Bilger I recently picked up, a new Selmer Super Session F, and a new Selmer Soloist F; all hard-rubber pieces.

I am not one to believe certain horns require certain mouthpieces . . . if a mouthpiece plays well for me, it will play well on any horn I put it on. And, I am NOT especially recommending these pieces to you, only telling you MY experiences with them. You are the only one who can choose the mouthpiece.

If budget is a concern, you may want to explore some inexpensive mouthpieces from Dave Kessler Music in Las Vegas. Some of us on SOTW have tested them and achieved good results, especially for the price. Good luck. DAVE

[Bar-Ron]

TruTone: Congrats on acquiring a quality vintage saxophone. They are the best, in my opinion.

My early '20's TT alto is my first choice among three vintage and one new alto in my battery. I have three mouthpieces that play well on it . . . a used Morgan/Bilger I recently picked up, a new Selmer Super Session F, and a new Selmer Soloist F; all hard-rubber pieces.

I am not one to believe certain horns require certain mouthpieces . . . if a mouthpiece plays well for me, it will play well on any horn I put it on. And, I am NOT especially recommending these pieces to you, only telling you MY experiences with them. You are the only one who can choose the mouthpiece.

If budget is a concern, you may want to explore some inexpensive mouthpieces from Dave Kessler Music in Las Vegas. Some of us on SOTW
have tested them and achieved good results, especially for the price. Good luck. DAVE

Dave I have a friend who is struggling to play a 1925 true one with any consistency (Community Band). I tried it with a caravan and it warbbles at low C, a Selmer C* sound stuffy on some notes, a Meyer sounds pretty good, a Hite sounds best, and a Runyon Finesse actually plays well.

Only the Hite and the Meyer didn't sound stuffy on certain notes.

Is it common for Bueschers of that year to play with some resistance as My Conn New Wonder has much more power and ease of playabilty.

I leak lighted it and found nothing to be a problem and it appears to have snap ins still on a recent repad.

[Chris]

i like the original buescher big chamber mpc on my 235xxx alto.
It sounds very round.

[Bar-Ron]

I just tried my Bundy II neck on it and it cured most woes.

I think its a stuffy neck.

Now I'll have to keep my eyes open for a Aristocrat neck or a Gloger.
Otherwise the Buescher has a sweet dark sound.

[Grumps]

I just tried my Bundy II neck on it and it cured most woes.
It probably made the upper range a bit less sharp as well, as a Bundy neck should be similar to an Aristocrat neck.

My '28 True Tone is incredibly mouthpiece friendly and doesn't have a problem note throughout its entire range. As the original poster is a student, I'd suggest looking into a Vandoren hard rubber piece. They're very well made and within the stated budget.

[betelsax]

The venerable Meyer 5 (hard rubber) has always worked for me.
But, like everyone says, you gotta go through a number of pieces to see what works best for you. The pursuit of the perfect mouthpiece is one of the main sources of GAS (http://www.saxontheweb.net/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=35081&highlight=GAS), but you certainly have to try a few before you can choose one to grow with.

[Dave Dolson]

Bar-Ron: Responding to your directed question . . . that post you quoted from me was four years old. My opinions about mouthpiece compatability have not changed, but my choices of gigging altos has. I still have that early '20's TT alto, and when I get it out of the closet and give it a few notes, it still plays with maybe the best tone of any of my altos.

Still, I use other altos now - the TT IS a bit too resistant for my tastes these days. I'm not prepared to claim all TT altos are too resistant (even resistant at all), just that mine needs more push than I care to give it. That could well be the set-up and not the neck or the horn in general. I haven't bothered to have it examined.

I still prefer the TT over any Conn I've owned or played. My TT has power alright - every bit as much as a '25 New Wonder Conn I recently owned for a while. The altos I bounce among are a Selmer Ref 54, a Big B, and a TH&C. DAVE

[Bar-Ron]

Bar-Ron: Responding to your directed question . . . that post you quoted from me was four years old. My opinions about mouthpiece compatability have not changed, but my choices of gigging altos has. I still have that early '20's TT alto, and when I get it out of the closet and give it a few notes, it still plays with maybe the best tone of any of my altos.

Still, I use other altos now - the TT IS a bit too resistant for my tastes these days. I'm not prepared to claim all TT altos are too resistant (even resistant at all), just that mine needs more push than I care to give it. That could well be the set-up and not the neck or the horn in general. I haven't bothered to have it examined.

I still prefer the TT over any Conn I've owned or played. My TT has power alright - every bit as much as a '25 New Wonder Conn I recently owned for a while. The altos I bounce among are a Selmer Ref 54, a Big B, and a TH&C. DAVE

I used the search function to try to find a relevant post, who new it was ancient.

Actually I have to agree in some aspects of the Buescher tonal quality. I love it. This horn in particular is like pushing notes through a straw tho.

I was pleasantly surprised with the Bundy neck.

There is something a little untamed about the Conns that I like, tho Bueschers are sweeeeet.

Some day I may get a few of them too. I only have one Buescher versus 4 Conns

[Pinnman]

I would stick to HR, as you say, trutone. Morgans are very good, also Barone. Friends use Selmer Soloist (vintage) or Selmer S80 C* to good effect, although they are not to my taste.

Keep looking on SOTW or Ebay for a second hand mpc to stay within budget.

[Bar-Ron]

Should any one be curious I think I have worked out the Buescher woes.

One gets used to the slight resistance the horn has after some play time.
The Hite, Meyer and Runyon all played well because their facings were sound.
The Caravan needed its facing curve elongated a few thousandths and now it plays Sweeeet. Still sharp on palm keys like a Selmer. Easy throat adjustment with Caravan once I got used to it.

Intonation is otherwise pretty consistent.
I can see the admiration for these.

I can't explain the C* though it could just be a facing thing there but it works on other horns well but not so much on Bundy II, Conn and Buescher. Maybe the C* is a little too square for such a round warm horns.:D

[AG]

I just ordered a Morgan vintage alto piece for my 140 Aristocrat, but that might be a tad over your budget, not by much though if you don't find anything else. I decided to go with the large round chamber for a more original sound or at least a similar one.