The first time I played the new Otto Link FL STM, I ran a double time ii-V7-I pattern and a single word came to mind; that word was checkmate. In chess, checkmate ends the game. There are no more moves to consider, no alternatives to evaluate, no better options waiting to be found. That is precisely what the new FL STM does to the search for the finest tenor saxophone STM. The game is over.
Under the leadership and vision of Steve Rorie, and in partnership with Theo Wanne, Matt Ambrose, and JJB player experts Chris French and Mike Smith, JJ Babbitt (JJB) has reintroduced the finest tenor saxophone Super Tone Master (STM) ever produced, the late Florida “Double Ring” Super Tone Master. The new Otto Link FL STM is not an approximation of that standard. It is that standard, executed with a level of precision and consistency the original hand-finished pieces could never guarantee.
The Most Desirable STM Ever Made
The late Florida “Double Ring” STM is generally considered the finest tenor saxophone STM ever produced. That consensus is not casual. It reflects decades of playing experience, collector knowledge, and secondary market behavior. Surviving examples in playable condition command several thousand dollars, and even then the buyer accepts the inherent inconsistency of a hand-finished piece made sixty to seventy years ago. The baffle might be exactly right, or it might not. The facing might be original, or it might have been worked. There is no way to know with certainty, and that uncertainty is priced into every transaction.
To understand why the Florida “Double Ring” occupies that position, a brief account of the STM lineage is necessary. The “Double Ring” designation refers to the two lines cut into the brass at the top of the shank. Otto Link introduced the design in New York, where it remained in production until the mid to late 1950s, when operations moved to Pompano Beach, Florida. Ben Harrod subsequently acquired the company and continued production there. The Florida “Double Ring” continued in production for a brief period before Link transitioned to the single line models that most players associate with the Florida era. It is the late Florida “Double Ring,” produced in Pompano Beach, that commands the reverence and the prices the market assigns to it today.
What JJB and Theo Wanne Have Done
The new Otto Link FL STM is not a tribute to the late Florida “Double Ring.” It is not a copy, an homage, or an interpretation. JJB does not need to copy this mouthpiece. They are its custodian, and the new FL STM is its reintroduction at the highest level of precision and consistency ever achieved in the Otto Link line.
The distinction matters. When a third party attempts to capture the character of the Florida “Double Ring,” however sincerely and skillfully, they are working from the outside. They are studying an object they did not create, inferring its geometry, and producing something in its spirit. JJB, in partnership with Theo Wanne and Matt Ambrose, faces no such constraint. They hold the original design. Theo came to this project with a precise and unambiguous design vision from day one, and he and Matt were meticulous in its execution. What they have done is return to that design and execute it with manufacturing technology and methods that were not available to the craftsmen who finished those pieces by hand in Pompano Beach sixty to seventy years ago.
The result is perfect design, perfect machining, perfect finishing, and perfect execution. Those are not promotional claims. They are the most accurate description of what arrives when you open the box.
The Baffle
The vintage Florida “Double Ring” STM features a gentle rollover baffle. The new FL STM features a slight step. That distinction is small in physical terms and significant in acoustic ones. It is worth noting that hand-finishing across individual vintage Florida “Double Ring” pieces produced a spectrum of baffle geometries, ranging from pure rollover to subtle hybrid forms that approached a step. The new FL STM effectively standardizes the best of that spectrum. What the hand-finishing process achieved occasionally and by chance, controlled manufacturing precision now delivers consistently and by design.
A rollover baffle transitions the bore geometry gradually downstream of the reed. The pressure wave encounters a smooth impedance change, upper partials are not selectively reinforced, and the tonal output is warm, even, and diffuse across the harmonic spectrum. It is the geometry that defines the classic Florida “Double Ring” character.
A step baffle introduces a more abrupt discontinuity at the same location. That discontinuity reflects a portion of the outgoing pressure wave back toward the reed, reinforcing certain higher frequency components of the reed’s vibration cycle. The result is a modest elevation of upper partials, which the player perceives as increased brightness and focus. The step also produces a momentary reduction in cross-sectional area, increasing air velocity and contributing to a sense of added projection and cut.
The step in the new FL STM is slight. It does not depart fundamentally from the character of the Florida “Double Ring.” What it does is refine that character in a specific and defensible direction, adding a degree of focus and projection that the rollover geometry does not provide. This is not a departure from the original design. It is an improvement upon it.
The Verdict
The late Florida “Double Ring” STM is the most desirable tenor saxophone STM ever made. The new Otto Link FL STM is that mouthpiece, returned to the market by its custodian and executed with a level of manufacturing precision the original craftsmen could not have achieved. Vintage examples in playable condition command several thousand dollars on the secondary market, and even at that price the buyer accepts uncertainty about the consistency of the facing, the baffle, and the finish. The new FL STM eliminates that uncertainty entirely. What arrives in the box is perfect every time.
This is not a mouthpiece that approximates the Florida “Double Ring” experience. It is the Florida “Double Ring” experience, delivered with a degree of focus and projection the original rollover baffle could not consistently provide. For the player who has spent years searching for a vintage Florida “Double Ring” in reliable playing condition, or who has spent considerable money on copies and tributes in pursuit of that character, the search is over. JJB and Theo Wanne have returned the finest STM ever made to the market, and they have done it right.
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