Posted by Chris B on September 24, 2003 at 19:10:34:
In Reply to: Re: Re: Laskey 28 C or G question posted by Mary Ann on September 24, 2003 at 10:03:26:
First off, I play a Miraphone 1291 so my comments are in part a result of experiments with this horn. I own a 30H and a 30G and have tried Tony E's 28H and 28G. There is a real difference in the quality of sound between these mouthpieces on my horn. The best is the 30G. This is consistent with what Scott Laskey told me to expect when I asked about the 30G. WIth a larger piston horn, the Geib cup mouthpieces seem to work better, while the Helleberg cups often sound best with the rotary horns. I did not notice such a difference in range that I would give up the sound of the 30G for a 28G. It is easier to go a bit higher with the 28G but then the pedal register suffers a bit.
I have never played the C models, as I don't generally like the "solo" sound, unless in the hands of the masters. I need all the help I can get to get a quality sound in general :)
Tony E just bought a Miraphone 182 and it sounds great with the 28G, so there goes the theory that the 28H should have been the right mouthpiece because it is a rotary horn.
So after Tony and I pooled our approximately 20 mouthpieces, I came away with the 30G as my favorite. I think Tony is still wavering between the 28 and th 30 for his newly renovated Holton 345. He also was testing a 1271 and it again had a different sound but the Schilke Helleberg (not Helleberg II) seemed to sound the best with it, although the 28G sounded OK. What I have learned from all this is that it really does make a difference which horn you are playing. Blanket statements that mouthpiece XYZ is the best are hard to substantiate when we played different horns with differing results. No matter what you do, you have to make compromises. For years I played a Schilke 66 and didn't care what I put it in. The subtle differences between horn/mouthpiece combinations really call for experimentation to determine the best combination. After that, it's just a matter of gearing your chops up to do the job. That's a lot easier said than done. For me, tone quality is what it's all about and my job is to adjust to the mouthpiefce that produces the best sound, period.