Links have changed many times over the years. Most baffle work on Links is done with the intent to make it sound like one of the vinatge Links. Florida Links are especially in demand but not always so available. A good refacer can take a new Link and work it over until it sounds something like the Florida Link, which had more baffle than today's Babbitt Links.

Also, today's popular saxophone sound is different from what it was in the '50s - '70s. Generally, players are going for a brighter sound these days which is accomplished by adding baffle. But having said that, the pendulum is starting to swing back to the dark side. So if you have a dark sounding Link, and like it, you may want to keep it as is.

 

Additionally, sometimes baffles are very small and in the form of almost "painting" the chamber walls, floor, or both and then doning some shaping to taste. This is in part because as mentioned, the vintage links had smaller chambers and were a bit brighter. I have done this to mine b/c a 54 is a dark horn and I wanted a little more edge. I started with a considerable baffle and filed it down over a few days to where it was where I wanted it. This allows one to tailor ones sound beyond reeds. A baffle also seens to add additional volume and projection if done properly.

 

Many players like the look, feel, and heritage of using a Link. Some approach me saying their Link is really close to what they want, but they wish it was less stuffy and dark. More projection without blowing their brains out.

Also, their are very few large chamber mouthpieces with significant baffles. This can be an interesting sound combination. The lows stay basically round and full. The mids and highs can be made to sound more brilliant. With some iterations, you can dial in a tone you like. You can do this by trying a bunch of different mouthpiece designs too. Their are pros/cons to each approach.

 

I find the Vandoren V16 metal tenors a little more "punchy" and responsive than modern metal Links - though not "edgy" like higher baffle pieces. A real joy to play. Anyone else care to share personal experience with the V16?

 

Many players like the look, feel, and heritage of using a Link. Some approach me saying their Link is really close to what they want, but they wish it was less stuffy and dark. More projection without blowing their brains out.

Also, their are very few large chamber mouthpieces with significant baffles. This can be an interesting sound combination. The lows stay basically round and full. The mids and highs can be made to sound more brilliant. With some iterations, you can dial in a tone you like. You can do this by trying a bunch of different mouthpiece designs too. Their are pros/cons to each approach.

yup. RPC seems to be doing this combo real well for tenor. I have a 110B that whispers and roars. still more edge to the sound than I'd want for all situations but it's a keeper.

now I wanna get a Link after a couple of years experimenting...but not to put a baffle in it. the old tried and true....you can never go wrong with a Link.

 

I find the Vandoren V16 metal tenors a little more "punchy" and responsive than modern metal Links - though not "edgy" like higher baffle pieces. A real joy to play. Anyone else care to share personal experience with the V16?

I tested the V16 T75 against a metal Link STM 7 and although the V16 was louder the tone was just Blah! throughout. A Link NY 7* gave more volume with nice dark lows and highs not too bright. The the best piece I have ever played

With respect to: " NOT GOING WRONG WITH A LINK" I purchased a second link NY and the inside was totally different in the way it was finished and was much brighter. due to a short step baffle! I feel the difference is a manufacturing screwup. I am going to send it to MOJO and have him fix it. I expect it to be better then the first one!

 

I'll put in my 2 cents... after blowing a bunch of money on various high-baffle pieces (purchasing a dukoff P, a dukoff S, a berg 0, berg 1, as well as countless trials of other pieces at stores, etc.) I never got the sound I was looking for... most were just too thin-sounding, with no warmth - just piercing. The closest was a mojo-tweaked dukoff d7, but it just wasn't opening up for me the way I wanted on my horn.

On a whim, I decided to try putting a baffle in my Link 7* for giggles, made out of hot glue so I could get it out easily. Wham! All of a sudden the whole top of the horn (a TH&C tenor) opened up, and it left the nice bottom end (mostly) intact. More powerful than any of the above pieces to boot. Still not quite getting the sound I hear in my head, but much closer than ever before - it's all up to me to get the rest of the way. I find it very versatile, from mellow jazz to funk... (I'm an intermediate-type player, a weekend warrior so to speak, so take everything with a grain of salt - a "real" player may be horrified by what I have created, but it works for me!)

I'm so happy with what I have kludged together, I may go all the way and send it in to a real refacer to clean up the rest of the piece and make the baffle permanent (and maybe perfect it a bit since they probably actually know what they are doing as opposed to the bumbling hackings of yours truly). Or, maybe I'll buy a new one from mouthpiece heaven and save my current frankenstein as a backup... I could easily pay for it by selling my drawerfull of "failed" pieces.

Pete

 

I tested the V16 T75 against a metal Link STM 7 and although the V16 was louder the tone was just Blah! throughout. A Link NY 7* gave more volume with nice dark lows and highs not too bright. The the best piece I have ever played

With respect to: " NOT GOING WRONG WITH A LINK" I purchased a second link NY and the inside was totally different in the way it was finished and was much brighter. due to a short step baffle! I feel the difference is a manufacturing screwup. I am going to send it to MOJO and have him fix it. I expect it to be better then the first one!

you're right....I didn't mean in terms of the quality control issues....I meant if you get a good one that plays well for you you should be able to do just about anything on it. good luck with getting that worked out, although from what I hear of Mojo's work, luck won't have anything to do with it...

 

To hear what you're playing...........

 

I've been playing a link stm 7 for some time on tenor. I play around with different temp baffles. I had a very high baffle that was also very long (1") which made it very bright in the high end but completely killed my low end.

So I cut the length in about half. Now I got all my low end back but still get nice bright high end. (Maybe too bright/buzzy??)

I may post some pics of the baffle along with some samples of the piece with and with out the baffle for comparison. I thought It might make an interesting thread if other people do the same so we can see and hear the different effects people are getting with different baffle types. Hopefully I can get something up tonight.

 

My link has a slight rollover baffle, which I've noticed that most of my friends' Links do not have at all, or theirs are much less visible. This may be a fluke, but my Link blows bright enough for rock/funk when I want it to, but I can tone it down when I need to get that dark, old sound. My biggest problem is switching "modes" from bright to dark, but that isn't the mouthpiece's fault. When I want bright, I just start blowing hard, but when I want dark, I have to get in the mood by listening to Ben Webster or Coleman Hawkins or one of those guys. I need to work on that.

 

There is huge variety in Links these days...they are so many different mouthpieces. Some have short step baffles, they all have different amounts of hollowing in the ramp area, different taper/finish of the window bottom. These all affect the interior volume and sound production. I just recently got a STM NY that had been excessively faced, the tip ended in a knife edge that was both dangerous and incredibly fragile, leaving extremely little material for a reface. It was new, though, and I returned it.

 

After Babbitt took over the Link manufacturing, as the line went on, for some inexplicable reason, the slight roll over baffle that made the Florida's (when they were good), so great, was partially removed..or if you will, lessened. It greatly affects the sound. My Theo Wanne #10, before it was worked on by Theo, had to be one of the stuffiest pieces I'd ever played. With his small baffle added and balancing, it is relatively close in response to my 1972 Florida. Nice and fat with just enough edge if you need it.
I believe you probably see far more baffle mods on Later Babbitt pieces than the Florida's.

 

T.S. - I'm curious about the type of baffle Theo added to your Link. Did he do the bullet baffle as in his Custom Links, or did he add a baffle that is structurally similar to the slight roll-over you describe. I'd love to see a picture, if you have it.

Bob

 

It is his custom Link...It's a NY model (large chamber), the baffle is not really a bullet, but more like a shallow step with a slight curve...it basically gives the same kind of sound that that shallow roll over did on the Florida's with a tad more edge.

 

"A dead thing can go with the stream, but only a living thing can go against it."
That's too cool!..........

 

Wersax -

I wish I could take credit, but it's G.K. Chesterton!

Bob M