Anonymous

huh? I'm lost.

Tootsall

OK, in clear language.... Zachary Music (of Zeus name) is now selling a mouthpiece called the "Aegis" which sure looks like a dead copy of a Kanstul copy of a Monette B-series. Now it is "claimed" to be specifically designed to match the Zeus horns.... Notwithstanding a) the claim and b) the fact that I am not from Missouri... you must "show me" before I'll believe THAT statement.



Edit: PS... Mike... congrats on the Pats win. Go for gold.

Anonymous

I've never seen a Zeus trumpet in my life. Sounds like alot of copying going on though..... Pats all the way! Thanks Tootsall

MUSICandCHARACTER

Look, Alex is the master of marketing. He probably picked the best M series mouthpiece that fits his horns and of course Kanstul makes them and stamps "Aegis" on it. They are "designed" to mach the Zeus horns like the Monette mouthpieces are designed to match the Monette horns. Only Monette mouthpieces work great in other horns, and so will the Kanstul M-series and the Aegis mouthpieces.

I told Alex a long time back one of the things that would make the ZeuS easier to sell was getting it its own mouthpiece. I think Mr. Oakes was brilliant in having put Curry mouthpieces in with Wild Thing horns. Who needs another 3C or 7C?

Anyway, it probably is basically the M-series. Alex is known for adding "touches" and Kanstul can make any mouthpiece. Maybe it has a slightly bigger throat or backbore or something similar. But you can bet it is basically the M-series.

Nothing to get worked up over. Alex has Kanstul build him a good horn, and I am sure the same could be said about the mouthpieces. ZeuS is not for everyone, but hey, those who own them sure do like them.

Jim

__________________
Dr. Jim Fox
Licensed Mental Health Therapist
Mouthpiece chart: www.ibowtie.com/tmptmpccharts.html

BflatAnklan

I would never buy from someone who makes a living stealing ideas from other people.

If I copied a Rembrandt painting and put my name on it to sell to someone as MY work I'd get laughed at (at least!)

There is NO art in copying. One can learn by copying or imitation for a while, but there comes a point where it turns into rediculousness.

__________________
Matthew Anklan

www.myspace.com/matthewanklan

Bear

Where's your trumpet then?


There is nothing new under the sun.

Heavens2kadonka

Look, this is aggravating. Most players dont have that kind of money to save up for a trumpet or mouthpiece. If a company can find a way to get essentially the same product out at a more affordable price, shouldnt they do it?

Are you telling me that since Monette created it, no one else should copy it? Thats silly.

Van

__________________
Stage 1 California Light
'94 Bach Strad 37
1900 Eb Cornet

LOUD Steve Patrick 10 1/2 C
LOUD LM93

MUSICandCHARACTER

Vincent Bach copied a German series of mouthpieces. Everyone copied Bach. Monette made a "more mass" mouthpiece, and Bach, even GR and Stork used the idea.

If you don't want to use a "copy" of something, well then the pickings are slim. I cannot think of a trumpet or cornet that did not use some of the innovations that came before it. I guess you could play a Rudy Muck mouthpiece or a Parduba -- they are pretty original in design. But a Bach mouthpiece is not.

You better not buy generic drugs either.

Or an American car that looks like a Japanese car. Or any SUV other than a Jeep. The list could go on forever. Did you know that GM patented the cruise control? To make life better for everyone, they never enforced that patent so that all cars would be better.

I think it was Toshiba that patented the "clam shell" design for notebook computers. Never enforced so that notebook computers could evolve.

Some corporations share their technology.

I don't suppose anyone today is buying an "IBM compatible" computer. They are not called that much anymore, but every Windoze computer is a clone of some kind.

Mouthpieces are not different enough from each other to be patented in most cases. Therefore, like generic drugs, some companies can make the same thing and sell it for less. Welcome to competition.



I'll step down now.

Jim

__________________
Dr. Jim Fox
Licensed Mental Health Therapist
Mouthpiece chart: www.ibowtie.com/tmptmpccharts.html

Manny Laureano

Van,

I believe that you're under the assumption that because something has an external appearance that is similar to something else, that makes it the same.

As I've said repeatedly, many people walk into my studio with a variety of clones of many things and they haven't held up in comparison to the original. When I was a kid, there were a million mouthpieces that looked like Bach mouthpieces but they were not as good in those days. The Bach always held up to the copies very favorably.

In the 80s evryone was going nuts with the geberic store brand food all saying "They're just as good and cheaper!"

No, they weren't.

All they were was cheaper and served as a way for the Average Joe to stick it to "the man". That's all it was: less expensive. I got over it fairly quickly when I looked up from my Mac and Cheese and said "Let's not buy this anymore... it's not as good as Kraft."

One thing I have also said repeatedly is that I have great respect for the Schilke company as their philosophy has endured insofar as the concept of sound and what it takes from them to deliver it. They are the only major company to stick to their own designs and not copy anyone else. You have to respect that, I think.

ML

Heavens2kadonka

Mr. Laureano,

I understand what you are getting at. When cost is not a real option, when there are no constrictions, there is a much better product as a result.

And Kraft DOES taste a whole lot better.

I hope this trumpet tour takes off soemtime soon. I wanna plan on some Monette equipment, dadgummit!

As a more out-of-left-field question, does anyone else put a pinch of sugar in their macaroni? I think it takes really good that way...

Van

__________________
Stage 1 California Light
'94 Bach Strad 37
1900 Eb Cornet

LOUD Steve Patrick 10 1/2 C
LOUD LM93