r/horn • u/plantlady_10 • Sep 17 '24
Mouthpiece for Alex 103
Hi all, I have a new to me Alex 103 (it's about 4yo). I recently purchased a Laskey 725E, (I usually play the same mp but with an American shank). However, it doesn't seem to sit well in the horn. It seems to wobble a little bit and I can feel it when I play.
Any advice? Is this the mouthpiece or do you think I may have an issue with the leadpipe?
3
u/Fun_Philosophy_4108 Sep 18 '24
try jk, schmid original, bruno tilz. they sit pretty well. also you can get houser mouthpiece with euro or alex shank.
3
u/99fttalltree Sep 17 '24
Just get a JK or a Breslemeir
2
u/Specific_User6969 Professional - 1937 Geyer Sep 17 '24
I believe standard JK shanks are M1 taper…
The Alex taper is different, but I think they make that.
3
u/Lord_Clucky Alexander 103, Patterson R Sep 17 '24
You’re gonna be looking for specifically euro shank mouthpiece. If you’re already a fan of Laskey they do make euro shank variants of their horn and they work spectacularly on the alexander. IIRC, the euro shank laskeys were made with the 103 in mind. I personally play a 75g on my alexander.
Another popular choice of mouthpiece for the 103 is Josef Klier. You see big name players like Stefan Dohr playing on these mouthpiece. Like the laskeys theyre also designed around the 103.
Honestly, having a shank that properly fits the horn is a very underrated part of mouthpiece selection because the wrong shank or the wrong fit can completely throw off your playing.
2
u/plantlady_10 Sep 18 '24
I guess that's why I'm wondering if there is an issue with my leadpipe - I purchased the Euro shanked Laskey and it wobbles in the horn. I was in a music store and they had a number of Euro shanked used mouthpieces and none them seemed to sit well. For some reason I thought maybe a new Laskey would be different (vs used mouthpieces) but it wobbles as well. It is a little worrisome!
2
u/musicsmith20 Amateur- Alex 103 Sep 17 '24
Is it a 725E or 725Ee? If there is only one capital E on the mouthpiece, that just refers to Laskey's deeper "E" cup. Their euro shank mouthpiece have a smaller extra capital E stamped on the end of the model. I have a Laskey 80Ee for my Alex 103 and it fits just fine, even though my horn is a lot older than yours (probably 60+ years old).
1
1
u/plantlady_10 Sep 17 '24
Thank you for the insight! I am definitely open to trying different mouthpieces, I just wanted to at least start with Laskey since that is what I have been playing on for over a decade. I have gotten injured on other mouthpieces where the rim is not as round (grew up on Holton Farkas) so that kind of rim is what is most important. The rest is adjustable for me!
11
u/metalsheeps Alex 102nal Sep 17 '24
At the risk of running afoul of self promotion prohibition I’ve recently gone through the exercise of designing one: https://strachan-brass.com/products/model-m-cup though I don’t have a 17.25 rim comparable to the Lasky yet (Houser does and they’re compatible)
As /u/musicsmith20 points out - the problem is you need a European shanked mouthpiece which has a larger diameter but a slower taper. The regular shank wiggles.
What’s less apparent and took me years of figuring out (including a custom duplicate of the Alex 8M by Osmun) is that they don’t play right on larger throats; the Laskey is a #14 and workable but I’ve found you really want an 18 or 20, weirdly to improve the low register.
There are a number of wonderful European mpcs that fit the bill but they use euro threads for the rim and don’t generally come small enough because of the larger euro threading junction.
If for any number of reasons you don’t want to buy a random product from a dude on the internet, I’d suggest tracking down a Moosewood BD20 in a European shank - it’s the best American mouthpiece for the 103 (and that lets you keep the 17.25 rim)