Meyer 5 or 5M (alto)
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Birdman: I am not familiar with early Meyers but most of those sold commercially for the last 20 years or so were stamped with more than a mere number (like the "5" you describe).
I have several and they are marked with the tip-opening (the 5 in your case), then an S or M (and maybe an L, I don't know, which means short lay, medium lay, etc.); and lastly "Small Chamber" or "Medium Chamber" (I have them both ways).
Maybe yours is so marked and those markings have dimmed or been rubbed away. You may want to check it in good light with a glass.
My favorite for alto is a 6S-Medium Chamber. DAVE
I have several and they are marked with the tip-opening (the 5 in your case), then an S or M (and maybe an L, I don't know, which means short lay, medium lay, etc.); and lastly "Small Chamber" or "Medium Chamber" (I have them both ways).
Maybe yours is so marked and those markings have dimmed or been rubbed away. You may want to check it in good light with a glass.
My favorite for alto is a 6S-Medium Chamber. DAVE
Here's an article on Meyers - It's talks about tip openings, facing length etc.
http://www.dornpub.com/SaxjPDF/meyer.pdf
It was very helpful to me.
http://www.dornpub.com/SaxjPDF/meyer.pdf
It was very helpful to me.
Would you explain why the Yamaha 5C is considered a darker sound with more color than the Yamaha 4C mp: Baffle , chamber, tip relationship makes the difference BUT How? And do you use the same reed for both?
As long as I have been attempting to play, I am just now realizing that MP, and Neck make a huge difference in the quality of the sounds you can produce. So, I'm trying to make up for lost time, which there has been a few decades wasted. Sorry, but better late than never. This ole dog wants to learn some of those "new tricks" which he never was fortunate to learn.
Is there a difference in the volume of air produced between these two makes; between the 4 and 5? Does the 4 have a smaller throat than the 5C , therefore a brighter sound produced? I would like to understand the physics involved and why the 5C does what it does in relation to the std mp Yamaha sells with its new instruments.
I am also looking at a Meyer 6 or 7M as well as the YAS 5 or 4C. This is why I am asking what the actual physical differences are between these 2 mp. I am leaning toward a Yamaha mp since I now have a 1992 YAS 62 which I just purchased [no mp]. Help me if you would.
If the Meyer HR is the better way to go, please tell why. Not everyone witha YAS uses a YAS mp, and I don't yet know enough to afford going out and purchasing a $150 plus mp. I've read that the Meyer today does not produce the Tone, projection and control of the pre 70s mp......and therefore the high price on the meyer New Yorker $2K plus in some cases.. WHY? Is it that great a difference between the old and the new Meyer mps
Synopsis to my questions: for a HR mp under $100......isn't the Yamaha the best "set-up" for my horn? And if so, which one ---the 4 or the 5, without going in to a store out of town to buy. For some reason, it appears that Yamaha is not well represented in Portland. The Taiwanese and other Japanese manufacturers are, along with Selmer,being promoted in our town. Why is that, or am I mistaken over lack of Yamaha selections? Internet seems to be where the selectivity is really found.
I think there are others on this Board who would also be interested in what you have to say. If there is a place where these specific questions have been throughly discussed
Thank you.
johncr12
As long as I have been attempting to play, I am just now realizing that MP, and Neck make a huge difference in the quality of the sounds you can produce. So, I'm trying to make up for lost time, which there has been a few decades wasted. Sorry, but better late than never. This ole dog wants to learn some of those "new tricks" which he never was fortunate to learn.
Is there a difference in the volume of air produced between these two makes; between the 4 and 5? Does the 4 have a smaller throat than the 5C , therefore a brighter sound produced? I would like to understand the physics involved and why the 5C does what it does in relation to the std mp Yamaha sells with its new instruments.
I am also looking at a Meyer 6 or 7M as well as the YAS 5 or 4C. This is why I am asking what the actual physical differences are between these 2 mp. I am leaning toward a Yamaha mp since I now have a 1992 YAS 62 which I just purchased [no mp]. Help me if you would.
If the Meyer HR is the better way to go, please tell why. Not everyone witha YAS uses a YAS mp, and I don't yet know enough to afford going out and purchasing a $150 plus mp. I've read that the Meyer today does not produce the Tone, projection and control of the pre 70s mp......and therefore the high price on the meyer New Yorker $2K plus in some cases.. WHY? Is it that great a difference between the old and the new Meyer mps
Synopsis to my questions: for a HR mp under $100......isn't the Yamaha the best "set-up" for my horn? And if so, which one ---the 4 or the 5, without going in to a store out of town to buy. For some reason, it appears that Yamaha is not well represented in Portland. The Taiwanese and other Japanese manufacturers are, along with Selmer,being promoted in our town. Why is that, or am I mistaken over lack of Yamaha selections? Internet seems to be where the selectivity is really found.
I think there are others on this Board who would also be interested in what you have to say. If there is a place where these specific questions have been throughly discussed
Thank you.
johncr12
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14,671 Posts
John: There is NO best set-up for any horn. It is very personal - the player's embouchure, the particular horn's playing and tonal characteristics (almost every horn, even among the same models, have different tone), and the quality of the reed are all factors for us to consider when we choose a mouthpiece. Yes, the neck, too, but I caution against getting into the neck chase. Most manufacturers supply necks tested for the horns. True, in a few instances, they don't get it right the first time, but most do. I suspect many neck replacers are still convincing themselves it was the right thing to do. Maybe . . . maybe not.
Some players love the Yamaha 4C (I think that is their standard issue) while others can hardly get a sound out of it.
In many cases, horn makers and sellers assume the buyer will play a different mouthpiece than the one offered. I know I do.
For me, the increase in tip opening almost always provides more warmth and ease of playing. For others that isn't the case. Others may prefer a more closed tip (and a stiffer reed). Again, there are no rules - we are all different.
I believe the Meyers are more preferred over stock Yamaha pieces by some players because of the overall interior designs, and not just one or two factors (like tip openings and baffle, or whatever). Still, it is an individual choice and no one can tell you which is better for you. That's YOUR decision.
As to the physics of it, I can understand your interest in it - and if you ever come to grips with it all, please explain it to me. DAVE
Some players love the Yamaha 4C (I think that is their standard issue) while others can hardly get a sound out of it.
In many cases, horn makers and sellers assume the buyer will play a different mouthpiece than the one offered. I know I do.
For me, the increase in tip opening almost always provides more warmth and ease of playing. For others that isn't the case. Others may prefer a more closed tip (and a stiffer reed). Again, there are no rules - we are all different.
I believe the Meyers are more preferred over stock Yamaha pieces by some players because of the overall interior designs, and not just one or two factors (like tip openings and baffle, or whatever). Still, it is an individual choice and no one can tell you which is better for you. That's YOUR decision.
As to the physics of it, I can understand your interest in it - and if you ever come to grips with it all, please explain it to me. DAVE
Thanks Dave ! That makes sense. What do you know about the various types of ligatures. Rovner seems to be msst preferred, but which one. TThere's one which is suppose to provide 6 different tones, but how? What do you use and why?
Hope you don't mind. I'm doing a lot of Catching up on the music ed I missed out on. Ligatures don't make sense, because I can not see how one is more able to effect the reed better tah another. They just hold down the reed to the MP. So how can a ligature make 6 different tonenal changes in the sound?
I'll thank you now! I know I have asked MORE than my share. I don't want to make it a practice to be a greedy "little bird". But the gourmet is so gooooood!
Hope you don't mind. I'm doing a lot of Catching up on the music ed I missed out on. Ligatures don't make sense, because I can not see how one is more able to effect the reed better tah another. They just hold down the reed to the MP. So how can a ligature make 6 different tonenal changes in the sound?
I'll thank you now! I know I have asked MORE than my share. I don't want to make it a practice to be a greedy "little bird".
But the gourmet is so gooooood!
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No limit on questions, John.
Ligatures are kinda personal, too. Everyone hears what they want to hear (or feels, in response, what they want to feel). Some ligs tend to deaden the sound (take out the brightness, I suppose) while at the same time providing improved response . . . or so they say.
I have a bunch of different ligs and have had even more but gave them away.
MY preference is the stock metal Selmer ligs, but admit to occasionally using the various Rovners. Much depends on the reed quality (there is that reed-quality again) and the room in which I'm playing. Frankly, I don't believe most of the claims made by the various ligature-makers. Like I always say, beware of marketing hype. DAVE
Ligatures are kinda personal, too. Everyone hears what they want to hear (or feels, in response, what they want to feel). Some ligs tend to deaden the sound (take out the brightness, I suppose) while at the same time providing improved response . . . or so they say.
I have a bunch of different ligs and have had even more but gave them away.
MY preference is the stock metal Selmer ligs, but admit to occasionally using the various Rovners. Much depends on the reed quality (there is that reed-quality again) and the room in which I'm playing. Frankly, I don't believe most of the claims made by the various ligature-makers. Like I always say, beware of marketing hype. DAVE
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Bzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzt!
Time to hit the Search function, John. There is a glut of info on the ligs you are asking about.
FWIW, I keep a few Rovners in the bottom of my gig bag but I play Francois Louis Optimum ligs.
Time to hit the Search function, John. There is a glut of info on the ligs you are asking about.
FWIW, I keep a few Rovners in the bottom of my gig bag but I play Francois Louis Optimum ligs.
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14,671 Posts
John: No, I haven't tried the Oleg lig (or any of his products, even though he is located in my city - or at least WAS when I last heard).
But I've owned a bunch of different ligs and they all hold the reed on the mouthpiece, alright.
While I'm always up for some whiz-bang new device, I'm equally suspicious about their value. I imagine that anyone making musicians' gear thinks that to compete, they must cover the whole field with their products - horns, reeds, mouthpieces, ligs, straps, cases, you-name-it.
So they struggle to change an item's time-tested premise by changing the material, the finish, the screw locations - whatever, and come up with a device that looks a little different but does the same job.
Next, they have to market the thing and here comes the marketing MBA's working to convince us, the players, that this latest device is better than anything else on the market. Just read through the Woodwind & Brasswind seasonal catalog, you'll see what I mean. If we all believed the hype, we'd be on center stage!!!
I'll stick to my Selmer metal and Rovner EDII ligs. DAVE
But I've owned a bunch of different ligs and they all hold the reed on the mouthpiece, alright.
While I'm always up for some whiz-bang new device, I'm equally suspicious about their value. I imagine that anyone making musicians' gear thinks that to compete, they must cover the whole field with their products - horns, reeds, mouthpieces, ligs, straps, cases, you-name-it.
So they struggle to change an item's time-tested premise by changing the material, the finish, the screw locations - whatever, and come up with a device that looks a little different but does the same job.
Next, they have to market the thing and here comes the marketing MBA's working to convince us, the players, that this latest device is better than anything else on the market. Just read through the Woodwind & Brasswind seasonal catalog, you'll see what I mean. If we all believed the hype, we'd be on center stage!!!
I'll stick to my Selmer metal and Rovner EDII ligs. DAVE
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