TubeNet

I have only seen one in my life, but the Vincent Bach 7 is the largest mouthpiece of its kind I have ever seen (Selmer calls it a "medium.")

TubaAlex wrote:A tuba buddy of mine asked me the other day which mouthpiece would be best for him and his large lips. He is currently playing on a Conn Helleberg and says he needs to open up his low register. I play on a helleberg as well and my low range is fine so I couldnt suggest any particular mouthpiece. The one that does come to mind is a PT- 88 or PT-48 but these are just guesses. Which mouthpieces would you recomend

Does a big mouthpiece help with the low register? Consider the that the biggest mouthpiece used by a bass trombone player would be a very small tuba mouthpiece--yet the chainsaw players don't seem to have much trouble gettting way down there.

I think that a wide cup might help articulation problems if you have large lips, however. Something like a Bruno Tilz M0 or maybe a Josef Klier T1 should be plenty big.

There are some different things going on here. Are the lips just thick, or are they protruding into the mouthpiece more?

I'm not sure that random or hit and miss recommendations will do. Even though the lips are thick, how are they at the corners? Do they retain the thickness or thin out? Do the lips protrude or stay relatively flat across the embouchure?

Instead of shooting off model numbers, it sounds like something with a moderate to moderately large cup diameter, say 32.5 to 33.5, depending on the actual width of the lips from corner to corner and the jaw structure, a rim that is moderate but has almost a ridge rather than being flat like a true Helleberg or a contour like a Bach or a Wick 1, or a wide rim, in order to get a good seal, and if the lips protrude, a deeper cup to still allow good room for buzzing, may be what is needed.

Try many. About the only thing that can be said for sure is that some of the more popular mouthpieces on the forum probably won't work.

OK, I will shoot off a model recommendation, but only after going through the process. How about a Mike Finn MF3? Moderate, but crowned rim will make a good seal, 33mm diameter, deep cup, moderate throat, and good heft to the mouthpiece.

LOUD and G&W also make good mouthpieces in this regard.

PT-38
CUP CHARACTERISTICS: 34 mm. diameter - Deep - Funnel-shaped - Moderately round at bottom
RIM CHARACTERISTICS: Width 7.5 mm. - Rounded inner and outer edges
THROAT BORE: 8.3 mm.
Model PT-38 is a further development of the highly successful Model PT-36. The cup is slightly wider at the top third of it's length; the rounded rim is very comfortable, even for long playing sessions. The mouthpiece has a similar sound to the Model PT-36 due to a slightly tighter backbore. This model is recommended for players with large lips who prefer a clear symphonic sound with great power and projection.

Even though this is just a cut and paste job from http://www.custommusiccorp.com, I have used this mpc for abt a year now and find it to be very well balanced (low register, dynamic extremes, consistent response, etc.). And yes, I have large lips

Hey Gravid: I'm not really familiar with the PT line past a couple of the more popular models. Great post.

LOUD LM-10 (33.5mm)..Tommy Johnson's mpc
LOUD LM-3 (33.5mm)
LOUD LM-12 with the LM-12L rim (33.7mm)
http://www.loudmouthpieces.com/tuba.php

G&W Bayamo or Caver (33.528mm)
http://www.king-cart.com/Giddingsandweb ... atch=exact

Dave
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Dr. David Rolf

I agree w/Bloke..... Satchmo http://a2.vox.com/6a00c22522e641549d00c ... 8fdb-500pi did alright with that little trumpet mouthpiece didn't he?

Dave
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Dr. David Rolf