Question:
WHOOPIE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! BBQ'S AE HERE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Finally after over a years work, experimentation, test trials. design decisions, manufacturing and hand crafting THE BBQ'S HAVE ARRIVED!!!!!!!!!!!
I received the first batch of them via UPS today, December 24th. It was a very nice Christmas gift to me. It has been a long road to a finished product but I believe well worth it for we have a mouthpiece that plays, to me , like no other piece and I have made many friends among you who have helped in this design by approving it.
Whether it is a piece for you that will be for you to decide but for me it is the ultimate piece.
I wish to thank all of you that participated in the test playing era of this mouthpiece. I considered all of your suggestions and used those that I thought were more in line with my concept in its design. It was your positive reactions to the piece that kept me going in spite of some serious illness, on this project.
I wanted to finish it as I had started it and wanted the satisfaction of knowing that at least I have put something out there, just as I did with the Gig Dust and Crud Patches, that many players will desire and a piece that will satisfy the needs of many players for years to come.
I don't have 100's of pieces available as they are hand crafted and hand played in thus take much time and tenderly loving care in their design and finish. They are not spit out of a molding machine or poured in a mold. They are basically hand made from an original rough blank of Belgian Bell METAL, THE MOST SONOROUS OF METALS THAT I KNOW OF ON THIS PLANET!
I am sorry that it took so long to offer them to you but I wanted them right. I will personally guarantee that these pieces have the potential and will play when you place the reed on them and play properly in all registers.
Any Piece has to have the proper tip opening and reed strength to fit the individual player to be a perfect piece for that player. Unfortunately we are not all made the same but we are not thus the mouthpiece characteristics for different players has to be different. However I guarantee that with these two considerations of tip opening and reed strength properly selected along with proper reed placement on the mouthpiece, (read my reed placement article on the site), this mouthpiece to play and perform as well as any piece on the market and better than many, with ease from the lower register thru the altissimo. It has no dead spots from low Bb to the altissimo range.
Its construction could not be done with more care and the plating is a very heavy gold that will resist wear for some time. I have this guarantee from the platers.
Check out my site for further details. We have to make the entries on the site and Christmas has caught us momentarily so it will be a few days before all is entereed there. I will have pricing and further information on the site soon as well as pictures of the piece exterior and interior(baffle).
I will list the pricing, return policy, and available tip openings for pieces that are now available. I will have a second batch ready shortly after the first of the year.
Again I thank you who have been beneficial with your suggestions and those who have tried and endorsed the BBQ. It is comforting to know that there are people out there that are willing to be helpful in this enterprise.
I particularly want to thank Jody Espino for his encouragement and support. Jody has a wonderful mouthpiece and was very helpful and supportive to me. Without his support I might have given up quite a while back. He has been very unselfish and kind in his assistance to me.
It has been quite an undertaking, much more than I thought on the very front end but hopefully well worth the effort for you players.
Again thank you and have a nice holiday season.
Charlie A.

Answer:
Hey Charlie, GREAT NEWS!!!!!!!!! :)
I'm so happy for you!!! :)
Although I have my own mpc. by JGerber w/a quicker drop-off of the baffle and larger chamber for a slightly darker sound than the BBQ, I have to say that the BBQ is THE PERFECT mouthpiece for Rock n' Roll.
It will work very well w/horn sections, in big bands, etc. - it's pure and intense. You're right, there are no dead spots. The sound is very even.
If I were a high school band director, I definitely WOULDN'T want a BBQ in my concert band sax section however!!! LOL Need to emphasize that this mouthpiece is the screamiest mpc. EVER!!! I really liked the way the BBQ played w/o the spoiler though. A little too much edge for me when it's in (but amazingly, it still played amazingly well w/the wedge of the spoiler insterted!!! that brought the baffle so close to the reed that it's scary!!!).
I wish you much success w/the BBQ Charlie! It's really been a long road, and I remember the great E-mails and phone conversation when I was in Atlanta :) You're a very special person and you'll reap what you've sewed. :)
Merry Christmas & God Bless,
Aaron ><>
p.s., could U E-mail me some pics of the mpc? Thanx :) Just curious how the final product looks :)

Answer:
Thanks Aaron!
Thanks so much Aaron! This piece is not for everyone. As you stated, having played one, it is a "screamer" and designed for that purpose. It truly is not a concert mouthpiece but for marching band-------Jackson State, one of the nations greatest showbands in the nation from Mississippi did tse a similar mouthpiece for their wonderful marching band so the woodwinds could be heard.This piece is that sort of piece powerful and penetrating. You can tell the amplified guitar sections to move over the BBQ is here!
Thanks and I hope that you are doing well after your surgeries. Have a great holiday season and next year you will be playing those holiday gigs.
Regards and we will be saying a prayer for you.
Charlie A.

Answer:
NAMM Show
Hey charlie, will you and the BBQ be at the NAMM show next month in LA? If so I'll make sure to stop by and try it out!

Answer:
REPLY TO SAXYNATE
I'm sorry but I won't. It would be nice as I haven't attended a NAMM show for a couple of years but circumstances prevent that. It would be a great thing for my mouthpiece's introduction.
Thanks for asking!
Charlie

Answer:
Charlie:
Any pics??
Also-how is this compared to a Runyon Quantum Metal??

Answer:
HOW DOES THIS COMPARE TO THE QUANTUM?
The Quantum is a very fine mouthpiece and I sell a lot of them. I also play one on occasions when a synthetic mouthpiece is desired but the best way I know how to make a comparison is that the BBQ is "OVERWHELMING"!
The BBQ is a powerhouse and will put out all of the sound that you can manage to put in it with the correct reed/tip opening set up.
It has several sides to it---one is power---one is normal----one is a soft side as well. It can be subtoned too. It can be a good section mouthpiece too as it will blend with other instruments but will overcome others when desired.
No dead spots in this mouthpiece with the right tip opening and reed strength from the lower range through the altissimo.
The wedge makes it have as much edge as you could ask for as well as power.
Pictures and additional info will be on my site this week----HOPEFULLY!!!!!!
Charlie

Answer:
That's what I thought.
I'm already considered "too loud" w/ my Quantum metal w/ Spoiler & Fibracell 2.5 reed, I'm afraid I'd need earplugs with the BBQ!!!
That won't stop me from buying one of course....

Answer:
With respect to Runyon's Quantum (which I've played on thenor for a short while - can be seen in my reed video on my website), the BBQ feels more comfortable to play for me, and the tonal range is more "expanded" I suppose on the BBQ than the Quantum. You can still play softly with the BBQ, it produces great subtones. Charlie did his homework!!! :)
God Bless,
Aaron ><>


Answer:
And the BBQ will YAK!!!
Congrats, Charlie!!!

Answer:
Gotta admit, I like the looks of it.

Answer:
Am I right? From the pictures I see it doesn´t have a biteplate. How does it compare to a guardala brecker and what opening would compare to it?

Answer:
You did it right!
Hi Charlie,
I am very impressed with your presentation of the BBQ on your web site. The M.P. is presented perfectly with detailed thought and insight. You know whats going on in a sax players head and that translated into a very unique mouthpiece. Your addition of "The Piece Pouch" for added protection for those golden beauties provides a safe place for the BBQ to cool down after a gig and the "red hot" color you selected shows your detailed attention to all aspects of the BBQ. Lets just say you did it right!
Best of luck in 2005,
Rick Incollingo


Answer:
Reply to Dr___Sax
Hi!
Thank you for the inquiry. I assume by "bite plate" that you mean the "teeth saver" that is inserted into a milled slot on top of the mouthpiece. Bite plate is a proper name for it.
I chose not to use an inserted "bite plate" as plastic doesn't vibrate as much as metal and by inserting such a "teeth saver" milled into the teeth portion of the mouthpiece I believe that you are adding a sort of BUFFER that adds a degree of non resonance that could possibly affect some overtone production which I did not want to delete. Plastic "stick on" teeth savers will protect your piece and last a long time without harming your gold plating or deadning overtones.
I furnish a Runyon Clear teeth saver on the mouthpiece and they are not expensive and last quite a while. There are two kinds available. One is the Black thicker saver and the other is the thinner Clear saver. They are effective and do not in any way dampen the BBQ's vibration allowing for production of all it's overtones. These are always available on my gigdust site.
Another reason for not including the hard rubber (plastic) insert on the piece is that a friend of mine that has one of the best selling mouthpieces out there has had problems with the plating coming loose at the juncture where the metal and the plastic meet.
I'm glad that you like the looks of the mouthpiece and you would be very comfortable with the way it performs as well.
Thanks and regards,
Charlie

Answer:
HOW DOES IT COMPARE?
I'm sorry but I forgot to reply to this. I would have to know the piece and tip opening your are referring to.
This piece is different, due to it's chamber design and base metal from other pieces. It is powerful and brite, but with good overtone character if you know what I mean. As to exactly how it compares to many other pieces I cannot say except to say that it is designed for it's purpose, (you can read about this on my site, ), and will perform here better I believe than other pieces.
Thanks,
~C

Answer:
Dr_Sax, the BBQ's got more of a baffle than the MB I and II. Tip opening's the same, if you order a .125" opening. The BBQ reminds me of the early Brecker sound. Hope this helps :)
God Bless,
Aaron ><>


Answer:
Thanks alot Aaron. This was exactly the info I needed. Best wishes for 2005
Boris aka Dr. Sax

Answer:
i am glad to see there will be an alto version! i couldnt convince jody espina that there was a market for one. some of us do play rock alto