Balanced Mouthpiece

[Robindubois]

Maybe somebody here can help.
I have heard several moutpiece dealers talking about mouthpieces being well balanced and I wonder what it means exactly.
Has it something to do with weight placement or is it the inner rim diameter that matches the throat size?
Does that mean that for a given rim you should not exceed a predetermined throat size?
Until now I thought that good or bad mouthpieces were only a matter of personnal taste and music style.
Hope the question is not too stupid.

[sirisobhakya]

Balance in mouthpiece normally involves rim diameter, throat size, and also cup depth. Also the instrument itself: a mouthpiece that is good and well-balanced for euphonium (like Schilke 51D) may be too deep for trombone, for example.

[Robindubois]

Thanks.
So dimensions for well balanced mouthpieces are known. Is there somewhere a table of what well balanced means for each instrument?

There are so many different mouthpieces on the market. For example trombone mouthpieces with a 25mm inner rim (Bach 7c-ish) have throat size that vary between 5,6 and 6,8 mm. They all claim a C cup or medium. Does that mean that they actually have different cups? Or that some are not well balanced.
Is there a benefit or special sound effect of playing a non balanced mouthpiece?

Maybe that balanced thing is just a commercial argument to make us feel that they are serious.

I guess I miss some basic informations about mouthpieces. Does somebody know a good book about it?

[BGuttman]

A key part of the "well balanced" equation is the player. We don't know enough to predict how any physiology will work with any mouthpiece, let alone how a particular player will work with it.

Mouthpiece families have different rim sizes and cup sizes. Bach mouthpiecs range from A (deepest) to E (shallowest) on small shank versions. Not all cup depths are available for all classes. Schilke mouthpieces range from A (shallowest) to E (deepest) just to confuse you. Other brands have different cup sizes and rim specifications.

Its all so chaotic that your best bet is to just test a few. See what you can beg or borrow and find what comes close to working and go from there.

[CharlieB]

Google up "Yamaha Guide to Brass Mouthpieces." (The info is in four parts.)
Good information about effects of various mouthpiece dimensions/shapes.
There is no set ratio of dimensions (balance) that would optimize a mouthpiece for all players.

[Robindubois]

I've read yamaha s guide it's simple and clear but I feel Bruce is right I just have to test and see what's best for me. I need to find a store with mouthpieces for rent

But why do they keep advertising mouthpieces as balanced?!... Nevermind

[CharlieB]

Yup.
Sorta like a woman.
Dimensions are no predictor of personality.

[JohnL]

But why do they keep advertising mouthpieces as balanced?!... Nevermind

When a mouthpiece maker uses the term "balanced", they're usually indicating that the mouthpiece is "middle of the road" in most or all aspects. They'll work reasonably well for most people in most situations - and are often a good starting point. It's kinda like cooking - if you're preparing a big batch of something for a crowd, you try to come up with something that they'll all be OK with, even though maybe not a single one of them will be thrilled with it. OTOH, if you're just cooking for one, you can throw in a few ghost peppers if that's what that one person likes.

[Doug Elliott]

Yup.
Sorta like a woman.
Dimensions are no predictor of personality.