Mute for VMI Neptune

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gslindstrom
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Mute for VMI Neptune

Post by gslindstrom »

Hello All!

I purchased a (used) VMI Neptune last year (CC, 5-rotary valves) to play in some larger ensembles and absolutely love it. I have a chart calling for straight mute and the one I bought (from Tennessee Tech) for my Mirafone 186 CC is not up to the task. A friend has lent me a Dennis Wick "Precision" mute -- I can't find any other model/style information -- which is much larger but still sits on the bell when inserted into the Neptune. The Wick mute has foam rubber pads near the top and cork below.

As an aside, the first "mute" I used way back in high school (1970's) was an American football with rope tied around it lengthwise! I wish I had a picture of it.

Questions:

1. Is there a mute designed for the Neptune or is it common in our world to adapt a mute to fit a particular horn?

2. Where can I find varying thicknesses of the foam and cork? How do I apply them to the mute?

3. Where should the mute sit on the horn? That is, how high off the bell should the "rim" of the mute sit? Or, do I play with the position until I find the sound and tuning that works best?

Thanks for any constructive comment you can provide.

--greg
Ed Jones
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Re: Mute for VMI Neptune

Post by Ed Jones »

I did this with my large Humes and Berg mute and it work fine in my Neptune. I would suppose it would work on a Dennis Wick mute as well.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Wk2k4aTjK0
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