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Thread: Mouthpieces most suitable for the Yamaha 642S

  1. #1

    Mouthpieces most suitable for the Yamaha 642S

    I recently made an inquiry to Wick about a mouthpiece recommendation and received a response from Denis Wick himself! He said: "the most important aspect of mouthpiece choice is that it must suit the instrument." I have not been giving that a lot of consideration but I am now. So can anyone tell me what mouthpieces are well suited for the Yamaha 642S (not Neo)? I am in the 4 to 5 cup range and prefer a darker rather than brighter sound. Thanks much!

    JP

  2. #2
    Back when I owned a 642S, I played a standard SM3 by wick and felt that it worked well.

    I also had played a 51D on it for quite some time, and it worked well also.

    In the 4-5 cup range, I would start with one of the wick SM4 series and go from there. (SM4, SM4U, SM4X).

    What have you been playing on?

    Mike

    Quote Originally Posted by JP View Post
    I recently made an inquiry to Wick about a mouthpiece recommendation and received a response from Denis Wick himself! He said: "the most important aspect of mouthpiece choice is that it must suit the instrument." I have not been giving that a lot of consideration but I am now. So can anyone tell me what mouthpieces are well suited for the Yamaha 642S (not Neo)? I am in the 4 to 5 cup range and prefer a darker rather than brighter sound. Thanks much!

    JP
    Mike Taylor

    Illinois Brass Band
    Fox Valley Brass Band

  3. JP,

    I don't know what you are playing now (mouthpiece wise), but I would suggest you wait until you have connected with your teacher to make a selection. He/she can be an objective listener.

    Doug
    Adams E3 0.60 Sterling bell - Prototype top sprung valves
    Concord Band
    Winchendon Winds
    Townsend Military Band

  4. #4
    Denis Wick is certainly correct about the mouthpiece matching the horn. That is partly why Adams makes the adjustable gap receiver standard equipment (so it can better mate the horn and mouthpiece combination).

    BUT there is also a match necessary between the human and the mouthpiece! That's where Doug's advice about getting your teacher's opinion comes into play.
    Dave Werden (ASCAP)
    Euphonium Soloist, U.S. Coast Guard Band, retired
    Adams Artist (Adams E3)
    Alliance Mouthpiece (DC3)
    YouTube: dwerden
    Facebook: davewerden
    Twitter: davewerden
    Instagram: davewerdeneuphonium

  5. #5
    The old 642 can be bright & loud. When I played one I found the original SM3 mitigated against those tendencies. Given your preferred cup width, I'd try the original SM4, might work.

    John

  6. #6
    Quote Originally Posted by miketeachesclass View Post
    What have you been playing on?

    Mike
    Thanks Mike. I'm primarily playing on a Bach 5G now, but also have the Conn CKB 5G, Yamaha 53SH, and SM4X.

    JP

  7. #7
    Quote Originally Posted by daruby View Post
    JP,

    I don't know what you are playing now (mouthpiece wise), but I would suggest you wait until you have connected with your teacher to make a selection. He/she can be an objective listener.

    Doug
    Doug and Dave,

    Thanks - good advice. That is what I shall do! I'm scheduled to hook up with her in early January.

    JP

  8. #8
    Quote Originally Posted by JTJ View Post
    The old 642 can be bright & loud. When I played one I found the original SM3 mitigated against those tendencies. Given your preferred cup width, I'd try the original SM4, might work.

    John
    Thanks John. I had an SM4 once. Probably should have kept it.

    JP

  9. #9
    Join Date
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    Quote Originally Posted by davewerden View Post
    BUT there is also a match necessary between the human and the mouthpiece!
    This is what really puzzled (shocked?) me about the statement that the fit of the mouthpiece to the instrument is the "most" important aspect. Sure, the shank has to fit into the receiver properly. And no, you definitely don't want to be using a contrabass trombone mouthpiece on a euphonium (at least for normal applications ) even if the shank fits. But this sort of "fit the instrument" criterion is what I tend to regard as a kind of "pre-condition" and wouldn't single out as the MOST important issue at all. And I don't think it provides any genuinely helpful guidance. It's a constraining condition concerning where to start with what mouthpieces to even consider. For any individual, a number of mouthpieces that satisfy THAT condition still won't be suitable, or at least certainly won't be "best".

    Way too many people (in just my own personal experience with tuba players and bass trombone players) choose a mouthpiece that they feel "fits the instrument" best -- and end up with a mouthpiece that's typically too large for them and inhibits both the quality of their sound and their range. In the bass trombone community now, there in fact seems to be a retreat from what were previously regarded as appropriate mouthpieces for bass trombonists in terms of size (and "fitting the instrument"), but are now -- and I love this -- being referred to as "toilet bowl mouthpieces". So I think that whatever Denis Wick meant, the interpretation of "fit the instrument" needs some serious thought and interpretation since at least on its face it appears to exclude the player from the equation -- or to minimize his or her individual attributes and capabilities.
    Last edited by ghmerrill; 12-11-2018 at 12:24 PM.
    Gary Merrill
    Wessex EEb Bass tuba (DW 3XL or 2XL)
    Mack Brass Compensating Euph (DE N106, Euph J, J9 euph)
    Amati Oval Euph (DE 104, Euph J, J6 euph)
    1924 Buescher 3-valve Eb tuba (with std US receiver), Kelly 25
    Schiller American Heritage 7B clone bass trombone (DE LB K/K10/112/14 Lexan, Brass Ark MV50R)
    1947 Olds "Standard" trombone (Olds #3)

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