[jamiejazz]

Has anyone got much experience of these? Are they noticeably different from the normal recent Meyers or are they just the equivalent of having somebody else pick a good one for you?

Would I notice a difference from my own, 1980's Meyer 5 & 6?

Best,
Jamie

 

[A Greene]

I have a Tenney 6M for sale in the Marketplace just in case you're looking for one.

I notice both the Limited Edition and Tenney Customs have tons of BODY or mid-range to the sound with the normal POP associated with the Meyer alto pieces. I only play a couple alto gigs a year and my Stock 6M is fine for that application.

 

[retread]

Doc Tenney selects good modern Meyers from the Babbitt plant, then blueprints them to precise measurements--like blueprinting an auto engine. Will you notice a difference? That depends on how good your current Meyer pieces are. The Tenney Meyers are good at not getting in the way of your playing.

corrected typo.

 

[jamiejazz]

Ok, I got one of these-a Doc Tenney Meyer 6M.

To start with I was confused as it was hard to find the right point to place the reed. The table has been filed so that it is wider than the reed. There was a slight bump in the table where the facing had been engraved. In fact, it was hard to get the reed tip to meet the tip of the mouthpiece. I've learned to go by the tip, not the rails for the best response. He also seems to have done something to the baffle (it needs more air low down).

The differences between Meyer type pieces are small. I've recently tried a Barone NY6, A GW5 and a Pillinger NY6. The resin Pillinger stood out in terms of response & is my favourite. Apart from that one, I can't hear differences on recordings between these different pieces.

The sound of the Tenney is essentially just that of a Meyer-there are no quirks and the tuning is fine. I tend to use one mouthpiece for Jazz & classical studies (practising anyway) and so far, this seems good for that. I can get all the overtones and get my low notes with & without my tongue. In a way, there's nothing exciting and that's the way it should be.

It does have that 'new' mouthpiece sound about it, but 10 years of playing it should sort that out. I believe that playing these things does change their feel; like the wood of a violin.

I'd be interested to know what other players have thought.

Jamie O'D.

 

[MojoBari]

It is unusual that the reed table is wider than typical reeds. One of the easier tasks in refacing is to trim the table width if it is too wide. Perhaps someone worked on this MP after Doc did (?).

 

[jamiejazz]

That's possible, I didn't buy it directly but the seller didn't mention it-I don't think it had been worked on. I assumed the table had just been flattened. I showed it to a re-facer friend in London and he said it was a nice job but saw it the way I explained.

Mojo, the mouthpiece does occasionally 'squark' on left hand notes. Do you think it would improve if I had the table trimmed as you said?

I had a sneeky go on my well-played HR Link today and I do miss the soul of playing the older mouthpiece. Not sure where 'home' is right now.

Jamie

 

[MojoBari]

No, trimming the table width only helps to center the reed. There may be a ligature effect too if it is left wide. But I doubt that would cause a squeak. I have a FAQ answer on my site about squeaks in general.