TromboneChat

Hi all.

I'm wondering if anyone's come across the UMI 5G mouthpiece and your thoughts on it. I bought a Conn 88H back in 2000-2001 and the UMI came with it, from the outside it looks similar to a Denis Wick.

In my experience it gives a notably darker sound than the Bach 5G, while somewhat surprisingly being easier in the high range... on the UMI I can really punch out high E flats (Symphony Fantastique) and Fs while on the Bach it's like walking on thin ice and if I happen to force it the rim bites me and it's best I leave the horn for the rest of the day. It can also take a lot more air than the Bach. The downside to the UMI is it hinders my flexibility passed a point I can accept for solo work.

The Griego 5 NY gives me a sound that's closer to the UMI but more of the flexibility along the lines of the Bach, however while having a comfortable rim it gives me the most difficult upper register of the three.

So to recap, any thoughts on the UMI? Since it looks discontinued and I could barely find a few mentions of it on the internet it probably isn't in high regards in general albeit MP's being pretty subjective. And maybe some suggestions on what to look for next? From my sound and air comments it looks like I want something with a larger throat than the Bach and a more comfortable rim/bite... So maybe UMI throat, Griego rim and Bach or UMI cup? I don't have cup depth measurements but visually the Griego looks the deepest.

First of all, I've learned that mouthpiece preferences are really too personal, making it near impossible to give you a concrete recommendation.

Second, re the UMI 5G:
I haven't played a piece with this nomenclature, but I suspect it is identical to two pieces I have –
marked CKG 5G, and King 5G – both produced (probably) in the late 1980s-early 2000s.
These pieces are indeed different than the Bach 5G. The cup is larger and deeper, and the throat is larger. Here are my measurements:
Bach 5G: Cup I.D. 25.50mm; Throat 7.00mm
CKG / King 5G: Cup I.D. ~26.00mm; Throat ~7.40mm

Finally (in spite of my initial caution), I'll give you a few suggestions for readily available pieces in that size range, even though they may not be to your taste.
Schilke 51: Cup I.D. 25.63mm; Throat 7.04mm
Schilke D5.2 "Symphony": Cup I.D. ~25.78mm; Throat 7.14mm
Giddings & Webster "Kadja": Cup I.D. 25.75mm; Throat 7.40mm
Josef Klier 6AL: Cup I.D. 25.75mm; Throat 7.20mm

I play a UMI/CKB/King 5G mp on my large bore and on my euphonium and like them very much-- I have one of each and yes they are identical. I also keep one in my bass bone case for that emergency time when I need to play tenor parts and only have my bass bone.

I stumbled onto one used, and later bought a couple of NOS from Mouthpiece Express who was selling them for very cheap on EBay. They seemed to have quite a few of them, so possibly some of them are still floating around even though they are no longer offering them on Ebay.

They have comfortable rims, from my POV, and are indeed deeper and bigger than a Bach 5G. I touted them on Dave Werden's euphonium forum while they were available from MEx, but not too many picked up on them for euphonium except for a friend of mine who uses it on his Kanstul euphonium in community band and agrees that it's a great euphonium mp.

I use both it and my Marcinckiewicz 3 on my large bore, depending on what I'm playing, but I can highly recommend the UMI/CKB/King 5G.