I have been looking for a good playing mouthpiece for a long time. Stuck for 20 years with a Bobby Duckoff 5* and a Vandoren jumbo java (bad mouthpiece, screamy bad), I no longer enjoyed playing saxophone. After some research I found that one of my favorite saxophonists Art Porter Jr. played on Claude Lakey. So I thought maybe this is what I need. After much research into which opening, lots of youtube and reviews I went for a 7*3 opening. My advice, take a thin reed, 1.5 or 2. (which many saxophone grandmasters play from thickness) and try, a 2.5 may already be to heavy The mouthpiece gives a lot of margin from soft to loud, amazing. The reed determines the sound, so experiment with different ones. The mouthpiece is not heavy to blow. Your jaw has to do the work, a little practice you will get there. You don't need any other brand!