Hey Neal,
Thanks for these messages. Can I ask you for advice re upgrading my mouthpiece for my alto sax. I currently use the plastic mouthpiece that was supplied with my sax when I bought it. I think my playing would benefit from an upgrade and I fancy changing to a metal mouthpiece. My plastic one is a size 4C. What would be the equivalent size in metal, when Ive looked on the internet they refer to size  eg 5 lay, or 6 or 7, I’m confused. Could you give me some pointers to look for when upgrading? Thanks,
Damian

Hey Damian,
You’re welcome.  Changing your mouthpiece can definitely help your sound a lot.  More so than changing the actual saxophone in my opinion.

You say that you would like a metal piece, my advice would be to try a few of them out.  Metal gives a ‘brighter’ sound- meaning there’s more top to the sound and less bottom.  It cuts through and gives you more volume.  It’s also harder to control and especially harder to play softly.  Metal pieces work well in some situations, but they’re not as versatile as hard rubber.

Also, you could get an equivalent tip opening, but you don’t necessarily have to.  When I got a metal mouthpiece, I got a wider tip opening.  You’ll be able to control the wider tip better after a few years of playing compared to when you just started.  So it’s not necessarily about getting the same setting as your first mouthpiece, it’s more about trying out different mouthpieces and seeing what you like and are comfortable with.  In general you want a bit softer reed with a more open tip and a bit harder reed with a more closed tip.  The same reed on two different mouthpieces may work quite differently.

Different mouthpiece companies use different systems.  The numbers system is the one I’m familiar with, it’s used with many mouthpieces.  I think the number/letter is used for more ‘classical’ mouthpieces, which is not the style of music I play as much as others.  You can find charts that list equivalencies of distances and tip openings if you would like.

The best thing to do when looking for your next sax mouthpiece is to try out several and bring someone to listen.

Personally, I have been happy with my Vandoren V16 mouthpieces on tenor and alto, but that’s my preference.

-Neal