Brancher mouthpiece or Syos mouthpiece?

Brancher mouthpieces & Syos mouthpieces main characteristics

Brancher mouthpieces are entirely machined with CNC, without any injection molding. The great precision of machining is great for making thin shapes with a good ease of playing. Brancher uses three different materials: metal, wood and hard rubber.

The metal line has three different chamber options:

1. The B chamber « Bright » for Brancher soprano, alto and tenor saxophone mouthpieces, very good for rock or american pop.

2. The E Chamber « Equilibrium » for Brancher tenor and baritone saxophone mouthpieces, very good for playing Electro, Latino, R&B or Big Band music.

3. The J chamber « Jazz » for Brancher soprano, alto and tenor saxophone, more adapted for traditionnal jazz music.

The hard rubber line is only available for the L chamber « Large » for Brancher soprano, alto, tenor and baritone saxophone mouthpieces. It is more suitable for Be-bop, Bossa or Smooth Jazz musicians.

The ebony line is only available for the L chamber « Large » for Brancher soprano, alto, tenor and baritone saxophone mouthpieces.

Brancher mouthpieces are sold in a wooden chest with a leather ligature and a cap. The metal ligature can be obtained for an additional fee.

Syos mouthpieces are crafted with additive manufacturing (= 3D printing). Syos uses a brand new technology to make custom mouthpieces. Its expertise is based on many years of research in acoustics done by the two founders. Syos work in partnership with several scientific laboratories specialized in research on sound & music technology (IRCAM, LAUM, MDW...). Thanks to 3D printing, the mouthpiece shape is crafted with a 1/100th millimeter precision.. For the material, Syos chose SCAL3D which is resistant, durable, non-toxic for the user, and which can be colored. The musician can have the mouthpiece in any of the 10 colors Syos proposes. Syos also makes ligatures, caps and mouthpiece cushions. Syos alto and tenor ligatures are compatible with most of the standard hard rubber mouthpieces (Meyer, Vandoren, Selmer). Syos soprano and baritone ligatures are compatible with Syos saxophone mouthpieces only. Last but not least, if your favorite saxophonist is a Syos artist, you can order his signature mouthpiece model on Syos website.

Most popular Brancher mouthpieces & Syos alternatives

Here are the most popular Brancher mouthpieces and their Syos equivalent:

Most popular Brancher mouthpieces ar for tenor saxophone, and they have a tip opening of 2,7 or 2,9 mm, which correspond to 8 or 8* in the Otto link opening scale. Among the three materials used by the brand, metal seems to be the most appreciated by musicians.

With Syos, there are no real mouthpieces "models" since all the products are 100% custom-made by 3D printed (or are signed copies of Syos artist custom mouthpieces). Each design is made according to the need of the musician. Also, there is only one material, the SCAL3D. It is the best choice regarding the resistance, comfort and non-toxicity. Syos approach is very simple. First, you have to answer some questions in a form on the website: what is your type of saxophone? What musical genres are you playing? What kind of tone do you like? If you don't know how to explain your need, or to describe a tone with words, an acoustic expert can help you to answer the form. when receive the custom mouthpiece, you have 30 days to try it. During this period, if you need an adjustment on the mouthpiece shape to get it even closer to the sound you want, you can ask Syos to do it. So with Syos, you don't buy a standardized mouthpiece, you buy a custom product, 100% adapted to what you want, and safe for the health. A good way to end the eternal compromise between comfort / toxicity / acoustic qualities in choosing your mouthpiece material.

Otto Link mouthpieces or Syos mouthpieces: how to choose?

The choice depends on each musician preferences, and especially on the sound he's looking for. In order to choose the best saxophone mouthpiece, you have to consider several parameters. The main parameters are the table length, the chamber size, the tip opening and the baffle shape. Brancher proposes several models with a range of tip openings from 1,5 mm (15) to 3,1 mm (31). The most popular openings are 21, 23, 25, 27, 29 and 31. A smaller tip opening gives a more classical and softer sound, and also more ease of playing in the high register. A bigger tip opening gives more depth in the tone, more volume and more ease to play in the low register. There are three main kind of chambers: small, medium or big which have a strong impact on the sound (especially the brightness). Syos products are more flexible because the musician first describe the sound he wants, and based on that Syos determines which exact parameters will give a mouthpiece perfectly adapted for him.

The sound quality of Brancher and Syos mouthpieces is the same. So between the traditionnel expensive metal mouthpiece brand and the new 100% custom saxophone mouthpiece brand, it's up to you!