The standard King BBb sousas have a .687" valve bore, I believe. But I agree they are great; especially the old H.N.White models. My high school and first college had them.GregTuba79 wrote:King 2350's are the gold standard for high school and college marching bands IMO...my high school had roughly 30 of them since the late 70's til the present (some minor work done) but they for the most part lasted many years with low maintenance and 1 billion miles of parade and field shows across all continents of Earth. They are .656 bore i believe and super easy to blow and project on for anyone.
[Elkhart] Conn sousas are nice, but don't excite me a whole lot -- I find them overall too dark/tubby and not as in-tune as the Kings, or even the Yamahas.
King sousas have a 'sweet' sound at low-medium volumes and have a "kick-***/aggressive" 'growling' sound with overtones at loud volume levels. They are very in-tune, easy to play, and well-made (esp. older models).
As for current-made,modern sousas, I pick the brass Yamahas. IMO, they play nearly as in-tune as the Kings, and are very well-made and easy to play. The Yamahas have a brighter sound than the Kings and Conns (with the Conns being midnight-dark in tone), but the sound is thick/full, with overtones and 'bite' at louder dynamic levels, and excellent projection.
