straightforward PT6-P question

[Onebaplayer]

I dont feel I have enough info to base an opinion on clarity on the piston horn. I played them when i bought my rotary, but I think my not liking them is probably due to my being used to all the rotary horns I've played before. One thing I can confirm about the piston version as compared to the rotary is also the scale. My PT-6 is the most in tune horn I've ever played. This was made more apparent when I played the piston, which had some noticeable pitch tendencies.

Again though, I have primarily been a rotary player, so this may all be in my head and habits.

I made an exception for the Gronitz F though, which has the valves you spoke of.

[Henry Gertcher]

Bloke,

I owned a PT6P for some time and found it to be quite good. I also had the opportunity to play a PT6 while studying with one of my teachers. My only gripe about the rotary version is that the low register for me was a little difficult. I admit that I was very used to playing a smaller, piston horn during the time that I played the rotary version. I think that it was mainly due to my playing and not the horn.

I think the greatest advantage that the piston version had was the ability to slot the notes easily. I did feel that the sound produced was a little bright but with different mouthpieces I was able to produce different sounds.

Overall I think both horns are very good and would not limit a player. It all comes down to personal preference for me.

So I guess to answer your original question, no I do not think that the piston version is that much better than the rotary version.

Henry Gertcher

[Gorilla Tuba]

I play at rotary PT6. I bought it because I wanted a bigger horn than my Miraphone 186. Also, it was cheap (used from Dillon). I have played several other peoples PT6s and PT6Ps and believe mine to be far uglier, but much better playing than theirs. I believe that is because I have a bad case of "the grass in never greener" over there syndrome.

But alas, you don't want to hear me wax poetically about how great I think my horn is. I do want to point out that, like others have said, mouthpieces don't make that much difference on the horn. But the right mouthpiece does seem to counteract the traits that some people have observed as negative on the rotary PT6.

Specifically, A Perantucci PT50+ (The heaveyweight version), does give the horn more "bite." Normally I use a Mike Finn 3 because I prefer the warm and mellow "Alexanderesque" sound for do in and day out.

Since people seem to care, my horns are:

PT6 rotary CC
Meinl Weston 45S (not slp) rotary F
Miraphone compensating euphonium

[ahowle]

You might like to check out the pistons on the Gronitz I just sold to my out-of-town student...It's pretty easy to forget that the valves are even there. "no brag...just fact" - Walter Brennan (portraying Will Sonnett)

Yes, indeed. Those valves are incredible.

I more-or-less agree with "james" about the comparison of the PT-6 to the PT-6p. However, I haven't played very many of the rotary PT-6 model (maybe two or three of them that friends of mine have owned). I once picked a PT-6p for someone else by play testing about 10 of them at custom music. I found them to be fairly inconsistent from horn to horn, however I really liked the one I picked.

If I had to buy one, it would probably be the PT-6p.

[tubathig]

I don't know whether or not one is better than the other, but I have played both models and they each seem to have a different blow to me, but that is just me

[ArnoldGottlieb]

As far as the piston valves on PT tubas in general; Matt Walters did a fix on my valves where he filed out the channels a bit, he said that it seems to be a normal fix with these valves. I'm sure he could comment on the fix, suffice it to say, I have to remind myself to oil the valves since Matt has done the work, as they never seem to need it.
Peace.
ASG