Junkdude, Saxquest, WWBW or check the For Sale here at SOTW (and get to know some of the community better).

 

I think ProWinds usually carries those as well. I know there has been some controversy here lately regarding them but I have always had great experiences with ProWinds.

 

I like WWBW because of their trial policy. When I ordered a Vandoren V5 for soprano, I ordered three of them simultaneously. Two were very close, but the third had some kind of problem (can't remember what it was, but it didn't sound very good). Even though Vandoren is one of the most consistent manufacturers, it's still nice to be able to try several different pieces and pick the one that is best for you.

 

I pay the extra money when I buy a stock mouthpiece and always order 3 and send two back. To me it's worth it to get the best one. I can't tell you how many times I find one that stands out from the rest or i find one of the 3 that is a complete dog.

 

Anywhere but 1stopclarinet.

 

in the uk,saxophones.co.uk are fine as are howarths, ive dealt with both these companies and they are good, i haven,t tried to purchase more than one, and im not sure on the return policy with regards to trial playing/money refunds etc..

 

I only buy stuff from Weiner Music. They have a trial policy better than WWBW. You can get 6 pieces. You pay for all of them and they reimburse you for the ones you send back. I'vew had nothing but great transactions with them.

 

How is that different than just buying them and returning the ones that you don't like?

 

"Better than wwbw"? With wwbw you are only charged for the most expensive of the four you receive, while they are out on consignment to you. When using Weiners, if you've got enough money to have the full price of six charged against your account, maybe that's OK. You're also paying interest on all six on your credit card while you are trying them out. Paying both the interest and having six mpcs charged against us, well some of us don't have that kind of money, especially if one is trying out four botique mpcs. wwbw works better for me in that regard.

 

Any online retailer would be fine, but WWBW's trial would probably be best to get the most satisfying results.

 

I've had decent luck with WWBW, although some minor frustrations where the web site says an item is in stock and I order it, only to get a note two days later telling me the item is backordered. If my local store stocks it, I will buy it there - they are a bit more expensive than internet, but still somewhat of a discount, and I want them to stick around.

 

With a large dealer like WWBW, I've often suspected that you might be sent six pieces that have made the rounds a dozen times, and been rejected. I'd rather use a smaller vendor, ProWinds or SaxQuest, and at least have some hope that the mouthpieces are not the ones that have sunk to the bottom of the barrel.

 

WWBW now has "used" and "new" mouthpieces listed for just about every single one in stock. I don't know this for sure, but I suspect that the ones that have sunk to the bottom of the barrel are the "used" ones and the "new" ones are now, in fact, new. I don't know this for sure, but I doubt that they had trade-ins on every single mouthpiece in stock to build up the used stock.

 

I have had great dealings with Music 123 over the last 12 months especially. They always offer me a more competivie price when i ask them (which is for EVERY sale) and their customer service team is first rate. I would personally recommend them.