what type of mouthpiece is better

tubabuddha · Post by **tubabuddha** » Sat Nov 19, 2005 3:14 pm

i am a high school kid who wants to go into performance and also marches dci. I kinda have been looking at the pt-44 or pt-88 but wondering if there was another one that would suite me for an all around mp?

tubabuddha · Post by **tubabuddha** » Sat Nov 19, 2005 8:44 pm

I am playing on my schools B&S concert tuba and right now i have a holton mp that was one of the first designs of it from the 60's or 70's (and it is awesome and heavy)and a bach size 12. i'm looking into getting a meinl weston cc 2145 and my instructor is a bass trombone player who doesn't know a whole lot on tuba mp's and niether does my band director

Lee Stofer · Post by **Lee Stofer** » Sun Nov 20, 2005 11:05 pm

My three favorite mouthpieces for contrabass tuba are 1) a Rudolf Meinl RM-9 (The non-Perantucci Bruno Tilz mouthpiece with rim and inner dimensions the same as a PT-88, but with the classic, slimmer outside shape), 2) an antique Gebruedern Hablowitz kaiser tuba mouthpiece (36mm inner rim diameter, huge volume bowl, covers entire embouchure), and 3) the Kellyberg lexan mouthpiece. The Kelly is my choice for any outdoor playing commitment, almost any long, grueling indoor commitment (playing 3 hours of serious dixieland, 4-hour polka gigs, etc.), and most anywhere that I do not need to have a metallic edge on my sound. Since the Kelly is not metal, at higher volumes the mouthpiece will not develop the metallic "ring" that most metal mouthpieces do, so the overall impression is of a large, dark sound, even at higher volumes. And, one of the best things about using my Kelly mouthpiece is that it requres less energy to make it respond, and therefore it is less tiring to play than a metal mouthpiece. There are some occasions that I want a particular sound and go with a metal mouthpiece, but not nearly all the time.
If you get a Kelly and a PT-88, you'll have two tried-and-true mouthpieces that should give you great service for years.

ai698 · Post by **ai698** » Sun Nov 20, 2005 11:28 pm

1) a Rudolf Meinl RM-9 (The non-Perantucci Bruno Tilz mouthpiece with rim and inner dimensions the same as a PT-88, but with the classic, slimmer outside shape),

I thought the Tilz RM10 was the predecessor of the PT88. The RM9 is closer to a PT64. The RM10 you sold me a few years ago is my go-to mouthpiece when I haven't played my Rudy for a while.