G Black AL series

[Bach5G]

I’ve been playing my Bach Corp. 6 1/2 AL on my .525 a lot these days.


Now I’m looking at Greg Black’s AL series. Has anyone compared the Bach and Black 6 1/2 AL mouthpieces?

[Rusty]

I’m currently playing on a nice Corp. 6 1/2AL too, and have also used a MV 6.5A, and have had a couple of GB 6 1/2AL pieces along the way. My horn is a Shires MD+, .508 but borders on a .525 if you need it to.

The GB 6 1/2AL has a great sound, nice weighty attacks that speak easily, a dense core, projecting and plenty of character. I didn’t love the rim of the first one I had, but the second more recent one I picked up was more comfy for me and played better all round.

Compared to the Corp. 6 1/2, the GB rim diameter feels a little smaller and the rim profile a little narrower and less comfy for me, without it being ‘uncomfortable’. The Corp. probably plays a little warmer and wider and with a slightly lighter sound you can light up more easily. Keep in mind the two GB versions I owned were regular weight and a decent amount heavier than a typical Bach piece, I’d be keen to try the L blank, I think it would improve the general playability even more and probably make it more versatile and easy to colour, at the expense of some core and projection.

Definitely worth a shot if you can try one!

[Jbklyn]

I’ve enjoyed playing on a GB New York 3 AL small shank mouthpiece that I had made using the GB “Legend” blank. That blank is V-shaped and based on the old Giardenelli-style mouthpiece. The NY Legend blank comes in one weight, I understand, which is lighter than the U-shaped GB pieces.

When I asked about the difference between their NY AL and regular AL models, I was told, “The NY 3AL and the standard 3AL differ only in rim shape/thickness and backbore shape. The NY 3AL has a rounder overall contour, a softer inner edge, and a slightly tighter, more efficient backbore.”

[DAx]

Yes, I needed to replace an older Bach 6.5 AL on my .525 horn, as it was scratched and worn. I've got 5 or 6 Bachs 6.5's, going back to the 70's, and they all play differently, (and aren't in the greatest condition!). Since I live within a reasonable drive to Greg Blacks' shop, so I got an appointment and went over. I tried a lot of different mouthpieces, on my small bore .508 horn as well as my .525. It was a great experience. They listened to what I said, made suggestions, and even made a piece on the lathe to let me try one that wasn't in the demo box. I ended up liking their 6.5AL for my .525. They measured my Bach 6.5AL (from the early 2000's?), and said it spec'd out a little smaller then the GB, but I didn't get the specifics. The first thing I noticed on the GB's is the rim felt like it had a sharper break into the cup, (on all the sizes) than the Bachs. Once I got used to that, I thought they all were pretty good, and seemed to slot into the note better (differently?) than my Bach MPs. To me, the GB;s sounded better than my Bach MP's, but it's only been like 2 months with the GB's , and I haven't played enough concerts or been recorded enough to make a final verdict...but so far, I really enjoy playing them, and I think my sound is more refined. Time will tell. One thing I like about GB is that if I want to change something down the line, I'll be able to talk to them about it, and get what I need, as opposed to ordering a Bach with a size I'm not sure of (MP roulette!), then ordering another, etc., etc. The GB 6.5AL I got has more metal on it than the Bach, (I think it's their heavyweight?). and when you set them both on the table, the GB is about 1/8 inch taller. I'm not sure what that means, but I thought it was interesting. Time will tell as I get into more live playing situations this fall, but so far I'm really happy with my GB pieces, and visiting the shop was a really great experience (check out the cup size on that Tommy Dorsey mouthpiece, super shallow!). Personally I don't think you can go wrong with GB.

[Matt K]

I've been playing on approximately that depth but with larger rims for awhile now. I've had a GB 6.5AL threaded, in addition to many of the myriad copies... Shires 6.5AL, Harry Watters Giddings model, Bach 6.5AL, Peter Sullivan (iirc closer to a 5GS), and bunch of DE combos and... a few others I'm forgetting at this point.

Obviously, I can't comment on the rim, but as far as the underpart goes, the GB works very well. I'm mostly talking about small shank here. I don't think I've had a large shank 6.5AL with GB. In any case, the main limitation on large shank is that faithful copies are basically a small bore mouthpiece with a thick converter built into it which makes them not wholly optimal. I've also largely given up on pursuing large shank setups as I have a 525/547 that I've settled on and had Doug make me a shank for that size that fits me like a glove.

On the small side, most of the copies feel pretty similar to me. I'd personally not go for a new Bach with so many great options on the market. I've also done a pretty significant amount of small variations and have basically settled on an Elliott XT D+ / D+3, 3.5, or 4.5 depending on what horn I'm using. Slightly shallowre than the AL depth, but by tweaking the shank for the horn I'm using gives me enough depth of sound but retains a lot of the brilliance. The Shires 6.5AL copy I has is also excellent, but lacks a little bit of the extra sparkle I get from my Elliott setup. However, mine is pre-Eastman and IIRC even pre-Pickett so I don't know to what extent things are different on mine vs what you may be able to get now.