Is a 500$ Mouthpiece REALLY Better Than a 50$ Mouthpiece?

[@ThomasHaehnlein]

Hey guys, I'm happy to announce the release of my ebook "Jazz Improvisation for Beginners: Improvising with the Blues Scale". If you're new to improvising, this might be something for you! :) You can find more information here: www.thomashaehnlein.com/shop

[@w2tty]

I do not believe I am able to cast opinion on all of your points because some of these criteria are things you feel as the player. Compared to me, as a real amateur, you make both mouthpieces sound good. Thank you for this video and comparison. The best things you mentioned were the reasons why beginners should not just jump to a high end mouthpiece. I made this mistake and struggled with the mouthpiece until I put it away in a drawer and considered it a bad investment for now. Hopefully someday it will be a good investment. My hope was it would help me sound better. It did not. Struggling with a pro mouthpiece is not where I need to be right now. There is a lot to learn first.

[@ThomasHaehnlein]

Thanks for your comment Paul! You have a great point mentioning that you shouldn’t switch to a mouthpiece with a wider tip opening too early. Hope you’ll feel comfortable to change to the more advanced mouthpiece at some point :)

[@jontonkin6291]

ive been using a 7c yamy tenor mouthpiece forever...sounds and plays good...

[@ed.z.]

I agree with you 100%.I have the Marantz Legacy but keep going back to my V16 T7 for some reason I don’t understand.

[@ThomasHaehnlein]

Let me know if you agree with how I rated the mouthpieces! Suggestions for saxophone mouthpiece-brands between 100 - 250$: Meyer, Otto Link, Vandoren, D'Addario and, most of all: Pillinger (they're hand finished but very cheap!) Suggestions for saxophone mouthpiece-brands from 400$ and up: Ted Klum, Matt Marantz, Boston Sax Shop

[@BsktImp]

At the extremes: are you aware of a player having mouthpieces individually crafted for them or is that not really a thing, and do you know of any professionals who play with sub-$100 mouthpieces?

[@ThomasHaehnlein]

There are definitely the cases were well- known saxophonists work together with a brand to create their signature mouthpieces (f.e. Drake mouthpieces). It’s also very common to go to a refacer and work with them on a mouthpiece until it suits exactly what you’re going for, this many professionals do. About pro’s playing cheaper mouthpieces: The 100$ limit might be a bit low cause most mouthpieces cost more these days. But there are many pro‘s playing mouthpieces that cost between 100-200$. Hope that answers your question!

[@juwonnnnn]

👍

[@waynejohnson3714]

Beginner playing a 3? I thought they play 2

[@ThomasHaehnlein]

Yeah you probably wouldn't start out on a tenor 3 reed (or alto 2,5). But after a few weeks / months, it's already ok to switch to a 3 tenor reed. It's not a lot of resistance paired with a Yamaha 4C