I emailed back and forth with Phil a few weeks ago and discussed a mouthpiece to upgrade to, at his suggestion I chose a second hand Link NY. It arrived yesterday and I have to say I'm impressed.
Sound
I can't say I fully understand how to describe sax tone, but let me tell you I sound better with this mouthpiece. I wasn't even expecting much in the way of tone, I just wanted something that was more comfortable and easier to play than my Rico B7 but this has gone well above my expectations. I'd found the low notes too spread, the mid range stuffy and the high notes shrill and sharp but none of that is the case now. I'm getting a rich but focused and controlled sound on the whole of the standard range, the low notes slide out easily at any volume and the top notes have a lot more depth and support. It's brightish I suppose, but darker than I got with the rico and definitely not a contemporary or rock'n'roll sound. I told Phil I wanted to sound like Dexter Gordon. I'll need a lot of practice but I have to say it got me closer than I expected. I thought I might have just been imagining it but I had an ensemble rehearsal earlier today and the conductor told me a few times that I'd made a big improvement and sounded really good before he even noticed I'd changed mouthpieces.
Playability
This is where it really shines. Admittedly part of it is probably the fact that I've switched down to a specified .095" opening from a .105" (although I haven't measured), which I think I was having trouble giving enough breath support for due to childhood asthma.
Anyway, this plays great. As I said before, all the notes in the standard range speak easily and with great response. I used to squeak on high G all the time and I haven't done it once on this piece, my middle D is bright and free when it used to sound like I had a pillowcase in the bell and I can play just as fast below low D as my fingers will move - and probably a lot faster. Apart from all that it has just the right amount of resistance for me, which is to say that it will take as much air as I can put through it but it still plays pretty loud and projects well without requiring me to blow too hard to be comfortable. I love the feel of it too, it's a lot smaller in my embouchure than the Rico which I find more comfortable and I prefer the feel of metal on my lips than rubber or graftonite.
I didn't get to try it before the refacing, but I tried a friend's Link NY and have to say mine sounds and plays much better - whether it's because of Phil's work or just general inconsistencies I can't say, although I know where I'd put my money.
Appearance
What can I say? It's a metal Link, it looks like a metal Link - the best looking mouthpiece ever, in my opinion at least. The work looks good too, the rails are very smooth and flat and all the interior work is even and polished; admittedly I don't really know what mouthpiece refacing involves but as far as I can tell it's been done well.
Service
Phil was good to deal with. I found him a little curt, bordering on rude at first but he was forthcoming with information and replied to all my inquiries quickly. He was extremely apologetic in an email he sent when he realised that some kind of business error (he didn't specify) meant that my mouthpiece was posted a few days later than he indicated, and apologised again when I let him know it had arrived. Adding to this, due to the time difference I think it was actually about six o'clock on a Sunday morning when I first emailed him and he replied within fifteen minutes so all is forgiven.
Negatives
I was always taught to look at both sides of an argument so here's basically everything I can think of that's wrong with it: there are some minor tuning issues that I didn't have with the Rico and really can't explain; middle B and low C# and E are noticeably flat, and I think a couple of notes tend to play sharp although I forget what. I squeak occasionally on middle D which is something I'd never done before and my altissimo, which in fairness I'd just started working on in the past month, is completely back to square one. That said, these points - the second two especially - quite likely relate to reed choice. So far I'm still using the same Rico #3s I used on the wider tip and I should probably shift up half a size at least.
Overall, I'm really pleased with this purchase. It was priced pretty reasonably because of the second hand blank and it plays and sounds great, as I said. The stock ligature isn't so great and slips easily, as a lot of modern Link players have mentioned, but as long as I'm careful not to knock it on anything it keeps the reed in place perfectly well, and I'll probably change it soon anyway.
If anyone has anything to ask please feel free!
Sound
I can't say I fully understand how to describe sax tone, but let me tell you I sound better with this mouthpiece. I wasn't even expecting much in the way of tone, I just wanted something that was more comfortable and easier to play than my Rico B7 but this has gone well above my expectations. I'd found the low notes too spread, the mid range stuffy and the high notes shrill and sharp but none of that is the case now. I'm getting a rich but focused and controlled sound on the whole of the standard range, the low notes slide out easily at any volume and the top notes have a lot more depth and support. It's brightish I suppose, but darker than I got with the rico and definitely not a contemporary or rock'n'roll sound. I told Phil I wanted to sound like Dexter Gordon. I'll need a lot of practice but I have to say it got me closer than I expected. I thought I might have just been imagining it but I had an ensemble rehearsal earlier today and the conductor told me a few times that I'd made a big improvement and sounded really good before he even noticed I'd changed mouthpieces.
Playability
This is where it really shines. Admittedly part of it is probably the fact that I've switched down to a specified .095" opening from a .105" (although I haven't measured), which I think I was having trouble giving enough breath support for due to childhood asthma.
Anyway, this plays great. As I said before, all the notes in the standard range speak easily and with great response. I used to squeak on high G all the time and I haven't done it once on this piece, my middle D is bright and free when it used to sound like I had a pillowcase in the bell and I can play just as fast below low D as my fingers will move - and probably a lot faster. Apart from all that it has just the right amount of resistance for me, which is to say that it will take as much air as I can put through it but it still plays pretty loud and projects well without requiring me to blow too hard to be comfortable. I love the feel of it too, it's a lot smaller in my embouchure than the Rico which I find more comfortable and I prefer the feel of metal on my lips than rubber or graftonite.
I didn't get to try it before the refacing, but I tried a friend's Link NY and have to say mine sounds and plays much better - whether it's because of Phil's work or just general inconsistencies I can't say, although I know where I'd put my money.
Appearance
What can I say? It's a metal Link, it looks like a metal Link - the best looking mouthpiece ever, in my opinion at least. The work looks good too, the rails are very smooth and flat and all the interior work is even and polished; admittedly I don't really know what mouthpiece refacing involves but as far as I can tell it's been done well.
Service
Phil was good to deal with. I found him a little curt, bordering on rude at first but he was forthcoming with information and replied to all my inquiries quickly. He was extremely apologetic in an email he sent when he realised that some kind of business error (he didn't specify) meant that my mouthpiece was posted a few days later than he indicated, and apologised again when I let him know it had arrived. Adding to this, due to the time difference I think it was actually about six o'clock on a Sunday morning when I first emailed him and he replied within fifteen minutes so all is forgiven.
Negatives
I was always taught to look at both sides of an argument so here's basically everything I can think of that's wrong with it: there are some minor tuning issues that I didn't have with the Rico and really can't explain; middle B and low C# and E are noticeably flat, and I think a couple of notes tend to play sharp although I forget what. I squeak occasionally on middle D which is something I'd never done before and my altissimo, which in fairness I'd just started working on in the past month, is completely back to square one. That said, these points - the second two especially - quite likely relate to reed choice. So far I'm still using the same Rico #3s I used on the wider tip and I should probably shift up half a size at least.
Overall, I'm really pleased with this purchase. It was priced pretty reasonably because of the second hand blank and it plays and sounds great, as I said. The stock ligature isn't so great and slips easily, as a lot of modern Link players have mentioned, but as long as I'm careful not to knock it on anything it keeps the reed in place perfectly well, and I'll probably change it soon anyway.
If anyone has anything to ask please feel free!