When selecting a mouthpiece, there are a number of factors to consider:

1 Tip Opening

The tip opening is the distance between the tip of the reed and the tip of the mouthpiece, measured in thousands of an inch. Generally speaking, the wider the tip opening, the softer the reed that may be used. For most beginners a narrower tip opening will result in a clearer tone and more consistent intonation.

The tip openings available are shown in the green section of the table below, with the most popular ones shown in the red typeface.

	Mouthpiece Type				Tip Opening
Instrument	Black Ebonite	Stainless Steel	Gold Series Grained Ebonite	Gold Series Bronze	Close	Medium Close		Medium		Medium Open		Open
Bb Soprano Sax					40	45	50	55	60	65	70	75	80 and more
Eb Alto Sax					70	75	80	85	90	95	100	105	110 and more
Bb Tenor Sax					90	95	100	105	110	115	120	125	130 and more
Eb Baritone Sax					90	95	100	105	110	115	120	125	130 and more

2 Tone Chamber

The degree of edge or brightness the player obtains is dictated by the size of the tone chamber. Referring to the diagram above, the more 'baffle' that is built into the tone chamber, the more edge the tone will have. A '0' tone chamber will have the most edge and a '3' will have a more mellow tone.

Tone Chambers: '0' - BRILLIANT, '1' - BRIGHT, '2' - ROUND, '3' - MELLOW.

3 Length of facing

The term 'SMS' or 'M' indicates the choice of facing. The SMS, or French facing is usually shorter with a steeper curve. The 'M' or American facing is slightly longer with a flatter type curve. These facing term is only to indicate the facing curve length and in no way affects the actual sound of the mouthpiece.

Example

The designation 100/0SMS for a tenor sax mouthpiece indicates a medium-close tip opening, a brilliant tone chamber and a short facing length.