I received this piece a few days ago from the guys at Mouthpiece Cafe(Brian and Eric). Everyone knows that I’m a big fan of Brian Powell’s work so when I heard they were coming out with their own line of mouthpieces I just had to try one. I really love this NYC mouthpiece. It has a great blend of a bright sound and a fat tone. Many mouthpieces that are brighter sounding can also be thin sounding. To me this one has a singing quality about it up high. The notes just sound beautiful.
It has the perfect amount of resistance for me. I feel like I’m blowing against something and the tone is shapeable. This one is a keeper for me. i wanted to do another clip recorded the way I recorded all my other clips so you could hear how it sounds in comparison to the other clips. I pretty sure that youtube compresses the audio when it uploads a video so here’s another audio clip for you to compare. I took down the youtube version just because I felt it didn’t show the true quality of the sound.
About Steve
Is this the Resin or HR version?
This is the Resin version. The HR wasn’t out yet when I tried this.
Steve,
Have you been able to try out the Espresso by any chance? How does it compare to the NYC Cafe?
No, not yet. They are planning on sending me one to review but I havn’t received it yet.
Steve is this Mouthpiece for sale
Sorry Colin. I sold this a while ago…………
Hello Steve. Can you tell me what reed and strength that you used on the NYC 6 please? I bought a great used one but I am having trouble finding the best reed combination. Thanks
Brian, I’m not sure as it was many years ago that I reviewed that one. (Probably about 10 years ago) I think back then I was using Vandoren Java 2 1/2 or 3 on all my alto mouthpieces as I think that was before I discovered Rigotti reeds. Steve
Thanks Steve. I wasn’t sure you would remember from that far back. Re: Rigotti reeds, do you find them to play harder than other brands of the same strengths? I have some 2 1/2 Rigotti reeds but they are hard to play on my NYC 6 mouthpiece.
Brian, Actually No. I find Rigottis to play easier than other brands of the same size. The one exception is Vandoren Java 2 1/2. Those play easier and feel softer. What size Rigotti did you try? They have 2 1/2 Light, 2 1/2 Medium and 2 1/2 Strong. I like them because each half size has three choices so I can fine tune what reed I use on each mouthpiece.
I will say that I think Rigottis have a thicker heart to the reed so I don’t prefer them on mouthpieces with a shorter facing curve. For example, on a tenor mouthpiece with a curve of 50+ the Rigottis are great. But when I try to play them on a mouthpiece with a curve of 48 they feel really stiff and have an edge and brittleness to the response I don’t like. I would guess the same would be true of an alto mouthpiece with a shorter facing curve also.
Thanks for your reply Steve. I appreciate your experience and comments. I have Rigotti Gold 2 1/2 mediums. I can play on them but there is a lot of resistance. They play easily on my other mouthpiece, a Selmer S80 with a tip opening of .067. The NYC opening is .077. I have no idea what the facing curve length is. I have never been able to find it on the internet. No matter, you were able to play this mouthpiece easily 10 years ago, and there are many great reviews on this mouthpiece . Mind you, I have only been playing for 5 years and I am now 76 years old. But I do play a lot, in 3 different bands. I’m just a bit disappointed that I’m not getting the best out of a great mouthpiece. I bought some 2 strength reeds to try. Maybe that’s where the sweet spot will be for me.
Anyway, I won’t bother you further with this issue. As I said before, I appreciate you spending time to reply to my questions. That did help me. I will let you know how this turns out.
I would try the Vandoren Java 2 1/2s or even the Rigotti Gold 2 1/2 Light then. Good luck! Let me know how it turns out. Steve