Pickett Mouthpieces

jaysonr · Posted: Tue Mar 08, 2016 5:22 pm Post subject: Pickett Mouthpieces

Two words: Awesome Service!

I just saw this today: My order is now at plating.
I'm super excited, and I can't wait to get them. I'll post an update after spending some time with them.

I have two mouthpieces coming

1.5SO
#1 Backbore
25 Throat

1.5C
10-2 Backbore
25 Throat

_________________
Isaiah 40:8
3 John 2

acritzer · Posted: Tue Mar 08, 2016 5:49 pm Post subject:

Been using them for a couple years now. They are amazing! Customer service is the best I've ever seen.

jadickson · Posted: Tue Mar 08, 2016 6:16 pm Post subject:

You think these will beat your Curry 1 pieces?

jaysonr · Posted: Tue Mar 08, 2016 6:31 pm Post subject:

jaysonr · Posted: Fri Mar 18, 2016 7:24 am Post subject:

They will be delivered today. I am beyond excited!

_________________
Isaiah 40:8
3 John 2

Matthew Anklan · Posted: Fri Mar 18, 2016 8:57 am Post subject:

Peter is a wonderful guy, and makes seriously good mouthpieces! Congrats, and enjoy!!
_________________
Matthew Anklan
www.matthewanklan.com
Patrick Mouthpieces Artist

jaysonr · Posted: Fri Mar 18, 2016 10:18 am Post subject:

jaysonr · Posted: Sat Mar 19, 2016 9:11 am Post subject:

Here are some initial thoughts:

The mouthpieces arrived very late yesterday -- my mail carrier was a bit behind schedule. I could only spend a little time w/ the silent brass just getting to know the rims a bit.

Today, I took my horn to a practice room for about 3 hours. This is normal for me on Saturday, and I alternate between trumpet and piano to give my chops a break.

tldr; These are the best mouthpieces I've ever played. Great sound; comfortable rim. Just right.

Long version:
First, my instinct was correct to order both a SO cup and a C cup.

The SO cup is a perfect match for me with my C trumpet. It's a bit deeper than I expected -- at first glance, I thought "man, this is going to be too much cup for me." By my eyeball perspective (and sticking my finger in) it seems a hair deeper even than a 1X -- maybe more like a Monette 1-1 cup. I could be wrong. The deal is, it doesn't matter. It still blows like a very efficient piece. I am astonished by how easy it is to color the sound -- I can go from a very sweet sound to a brilliant sound that just has core leaking onto the ground. It's beautiful at any dynamic...and my extremes have widened a bit with this piece -- I can play both softer and louder with a good sound.

Likewise, the C cup was a hair shallower than I expected. It seems a bit like a 1-1/4C cup (or a Yamaha 17B4 cup). Also, there doesn't seem to be much of a 2nd cup leading into the throat. Again, it's hard to tell small details like this just eyeballing it, especially on a brand new shiny piece (BTW their plating is gorgeous). In my Bb, the C cup really rings, and sounds like I would expect a very good "C" cup mouthpiece to sound on it. Like the SO cup on the C trumpet, I'm amazed at how I can color the sound. Beautiful, brilliant (but not 'bright'), and loads of core.

Flipping things around, the SO cup on the Bb horn is a little too dark for all-around playing, however I could see that sound being useful, and it could also be useful if I really need a lot of volume out of the Bb for some reason. It doesn't sound "tubby" by any means, but it wouldn't be my 1st choice for that horn. Likewise with the C cup on the C trumpet, but less so. I could use the C cup on my C trumpet, and I would have been happy with the 1.5C with both horns if I hadn't tried the SO. The SO is just so much (see what I did there) better on the C in some ways. However, the C cup on the C has a nice brilliant ring with a lot of core. It is also a bit easier to play, so I could see it getting use for a piece that spent a lot of time in the upper register, or perhaps some situations where I needed more brilliance at lower dynamic levels.

In sum, both pieces will be very useful, even across horns.

It's also worth noting that I do have two different backbores -- the SO has their #1 backbore and the C has a 10-2. Both pieces have a nice blow, and just the right amount of resistance. Perhaps the 10-2 feels a little tighter, but definitely feels more open than a Bach 10. The #1 doesn't feel quite as bit or as hard to control as a Bach 24. They both sound bigger than they feel (which is good).

I have NEVER felt my C trumpet come alive in my hands like it did to day with at SO cup in it. I could almost hear some resonant rings out of the horn after a note was played. It was that alive.

Now for the rim, which is obviously the same on both pieces. The rim is what first sent me on a safari a few months ago. At first I thought I needed a new rim because of a tooth causing an abrasion on my inner lower lip, however that actually resolved myself when I started working with my current teacher and removed a lot of tension from my playing. Then, I began to realize that the Curry "1" pieces I liked were just too big for me. I liked the rim though. I just didn't like the rim on a Bach 1-1/2, or especially not a 1-1/4. I sort of liked the feel of the older Laskey 75 rim, but honestly, I tried a 75C, stock 75MD and a 75MD 24/75, and I instantly sounded worse on all of these pieces, and just couldn't get past it. I had a thin, airy sound on all 3. I was really disappointed in that experiment. I also tried a Stork 2B+25C -- I absolutely loved the sound I produced on that piece, but I think I disliked that rim more than any other rim I've tried. I also tried a GR67C-T and it was close...very close, I just couldn't get the right sound out of it. It didn't have any ring...or core for me. It didn't sound bad (like the Laskey pieces), but I just couldn't make it sound good. No matter what I always came back to the "too big" Curry 1B/C/BC/TC pieces I had.

Now for the Pickett rim. I felt like Goldilocks... it wasn't too wide, or too narrow, too sharp or too soft -- it was just right. I played much more in my 3 hour session than I normally do on Saturdays (less piano). It too me longer to start to feel a little tired, and if I did, I could go to the piano for a minute and come back -- my recovery time was much better. It gave me the impression than in a real-life performance scenario where I don't have the horn to my face all the time anyway, it'll be perfect, If I get tired during a long passage, a short time with the horn off my face even for a few beats would be more beneficial than what I've seen with other rims I've tried.

Also, for the diameter, it does feel a bit bigger on my face than a 1-1/2C (which is actually good). I feel like I can get the right amount of lip inside the rim and the improvement in endurance is what I was going for in my move from Curry 1 pieces anyway. It is smaller than a Bach/Curry 1 -- I'd say it's between a Bach/Curry 1-1/4 and a Bach/Curry 1-1/2. Overall the rim contour feels somewhat similar to the Curry 1 (which is based on a Mt. Vernon 1C), but a hair wider, and I think the bite is about the same, but it is less noticeable on the Pickett. In other words, I think it's further down from the high point of the rim. I still feel the improved accuracy and clarity of articulation I would expect from a rim with a sharper bite, however I don't necessarily "feel" the sharpness of the bite as much as on the Curry 1.

I hope this helps anyone else who has considered or is considering Pickett mouthpieces.

Take care,
Jayson
_________________
Isaiah 40:8
3 John 2

jaysonr · Posted: Sun Mar 20, 2016 4:19 pm Post subject:

After spending a couple of hours with these in the practice room yesterday, and using them today: first in a normal Sunday morning church service and then tonight in a concert our church was giving for Palm Sunday (which was a pretty good blow, honestly) I can say 2 things for certain about these pieces: 1.) The Pickett 1.5 rim is the absolute best rim I've ever used. It has fixed everything that was wrong with every other mouthpiece I've tried in the past few months. 2.) These things make me sound better than I am...or I guess I should say, they enable me to sound the best I can. Either way, I'm sold.
_________________
Isaiah 40:8
3 John 2

razeontherock · Posted: Sun Mar 20, 2016 8:34 pm Post subject:

Congrats! Always cool to find something we like. I did a bit of experimenting with some size 1 Curry in Church today too.

Interesting that Pickett measures his 1.5 as .670" and you say it is smaller than Curry 1. Good to know

jaysonr · Posted: Mon Mar 21, 2016 4:46 am Post subject:

jhahntpt · Posted: Mon Mar 21, 2016 5:07 am Post subject:

How long did it take to go from "order in shop" to at plating/delivered? I ordered two pieces a couple of weeks ago and I'm anxious.
_________________
Bb: Yamaha 9335NY Gen3
Bb: Yamaha 8310Z
C: Shires 4S/W1B
Piccolo: Yamaha 9830
Flugel: Yamaha 8315G
Cornet: York Eminence

TKSop · Posted: Mon Mar 21, 2016 5:18 am Post subject:

jaysonr · Posted: Mon Mar 21, 2016 5:25 am Post subject:

jhahntpt · Posted: Mon Mar 21, 2016 5:46 am Post subject:

Thank you! I guess I can wait it out a bit! I hate the anticipation of waiting on something new that I've ordered...heck the 2 day shipping on Amazon Prime seems slow some times.
_________________
Bb: Yamaha 9335NY Gen3
Bb: Yamaha 8310Z
C: Shires 4S/W1B
Piccolo: Yamaha 9830
Flugel: Yamaha 8315G
Cornet: York Eminence

jaysonr · Posted: Mon Mar 21, 2016 6:09 am Post subject:

Gottfried Reiche · Veteran Member Joined: 27 Nov 2013 Posts: 184

$20 says you'll be looking for a new one in less than a year...

jaysonr · Posted: Mon Mar 21, 2016 3:47 pm Post subject:

bwoodard · Posted: Wed Mar 23, 2016 10:07 am Post subject:

Great write up Jayson. I too have made the switch to Pickett MPs. I tried one and fell in love with the comfort of the rim. I have his 1 piece heavy blank in a 5 C/D cup with a 26 throat.

As an aside, his website is run the way they should be run. You always know where your MP is in the manufacturing process. Top notch service all the way around. I play on gold plated pieces and they are beautiful.
_________________
Veteran comebacker!
Bob

2015 Harrelson Summit 4/10
2014 Getzen 4895 Flugelhorn
2014 Getzen 3850
2010 Callet Sima Bb
2010 Callet Sima C
73 Getzen Eterna Severinsen
48 Conn 80A Victor Cornet

trumanjazzguy · Posted: Wed Mar 23, 2016 6:00 pm Post subject:

I played a Pickett 4C for about a year. Eventually, once i started playing many hours a day (too many), the sharpness of the rim began to cut into my top lip. After a while, I had a deep scar, and could no longer play. After taking 8 weeks off, I downsized, and now play a Marcinkiewics E8 R. Baptist. It is WAY more comfortable, even on my scar, and the depth and 28 throat make playing extended high and loud passages easy. I'll never go back to C or deeper depth cups. I don't like "muscling" notes that big, deep mouthpieces require.
_________________
TPT: Nova LA
CRN: Getzen 1950’s W/5.5in bell
FL: Jupiter 1100R
‘Pieces:
TPT: 34-throat shallow double-cup, Chet Baker’s Custom Schilke, Bach Corp 3, Bach Mt. Vernon 6C, Ken Titmus BF Custom(s).
CRN: NY Giardinelli 7SV.
FL: Yamaha Bobby Shew