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Otto Wanne has the following description: "They have a dark mellow sound."

That can be said about quite a few makes and models. Some seem to swear by these. I am curious - not skeptical - what makes them so special?

Thanks.

 

[14470]

Thanks for the replies.

Ben Wendel as well. I think that these are like the ToneMaster of the rubber world. People saw the cover of Blue Train and want to sound just like that. Then they buy an original piece or even get one worked on and it's not bright like that.

I wrote an article about Reso Chambers a few years ago because so many think they can sound like that just by blowing into the mouthpiece. Some setups just go from the start, but if you aren't voicing the same way someone like Seamus or Ben Wendel are, they will feel deader than they'd hoped. Keeping these small or playing original with the hardest reed that still feels responsive and playing along with these guys helps I find.

What people like about these is the chunkiness to the sound I find. If you can learn to brighten them up, there is no comparison. Slant Tone Edges for instance will feel tighter, brighter and thinner if you get into the Reso thing. Most people will gravitate to a Slant type piece for this sound because it starts brighter. This is a generalization of course but I have played dozens of these and worked on quite a few. I really like them around modern 5*-6*. You can really push a piece like this and it never gets too bright.

Interesting. Good way of putting sound into words for my comprehension. What about resistance?

I was also curious in what characterizes them in terms of specs. Very little baffle and large chamber I presume, but what about the facing, length, curve, etc?

 

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I am not necessarily looking to buy a new mouthpiece, and I don't buy hard rubber pieces anyway, irrespective of the level of sympathy I have for those who manufacture them. I think I have some basic understanding of common mouthpiece designs, but the Reso Chamber appears to be rather distinct from other Links, and just about any other mouthpiece out there. The replies in this thread help to reduce the mystique somewhat, and I appreciate them irrespectively of underlying intent if any.

A few years ago, I would indeed just have bought a piece to figure out what it was all about, but those days are gone. It yielded a pile of mouthpieces that were hard to sell, certainly with my - approaching zero - level of salesmanship.

My reasons for starting this thread were (a) curiosity and (b) an everlasting struggle with trying to figure out whether to embrace or fight what appears to be my inherently darkish tone on tenor. The latter is hardly of general interest.