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Last time I checked, Robb Stewart had a YM in his inventory--bell-front, though.

Robb Stewart does have a York Master, it now has an upright bell
Good Luck,
Dave Hayami

Bloke's right about the CC Marzan pitch, but if you use the upward facing tuning slide kinda like a trombone, and LISTEN, it's a wonderful sounding horn with the right mouthpiece. I played my CC rotary professionally for almost 20 years, and more than once I was rewarded by the tubists' dream of having the conductor stop a rehearsal and say, "Nice tuba sound".

Have you looked at a new King 2341? Its built very similar to the Getzen G50. A great BBb for the money. They can be had brand new for $3500, used ones seem to be rare, but pop up from time to time.

I agree that the King is a closer match to a Getzen G-50 than is the York Master or B&M 5500.

The B&M 5500 has the Marzan-inspired top-mounted main tuning slide. It also has the York-inspired fourth-valve wrap, rather than the (preferred, at least by me) open fourth valve wrap ono the back of the body.

All the YM/Marzan/5500 tubas are larger than the G-50/Conn 56J/King 2341 tubas. I would put them at a large 4/4 bordering on 5/4, while the others are on the small end of the 4/4 range.

They play wonderfully, of course. Lee Hipp played my YM and thought it a better instrument than my Holton.

A section-mate just came across a 5500 and stole it for an astoundingly good price. It has the fixed upright bell. I think these bells are a little better than the detachable bell of the YM. It was a lucky find.

But don't underestimate the King. A good one is outstanding, and will produce a bigger sound than its size would suggest. It's more than good enough for any gig that needs or wants a Bb tuba with an American sound. The other advantage to the King is that they are generally available--enough so that you can try several to find a really good one. Finding a YM or 5500 is a little more challenging and usually requires that you take what you get.

Rick "who would like to see more and better large 4/4 or 5/4 front piston BBb tubas on the market" Denney

Rick Denney wrote:But don't underestimate the King. A good one is outstanding, and will produce a bigger sound than its size would suggest. It's more than good enough for any gig that needs or wants a Bb tuba with an American sound. The other advantage to the King is that they are generally available--enough so that you can try several to find a really good one. Finding a YM or 5500 is a little more challenging and usually requires that you take what you get.

I agree! I tried the King at the NAMM Show a couple of months ago and it play wonderfully! Try to find one or two and take a test drive, you should be pleased.

Like others said earlier in this thread, Robb Stewart in Arcadia, CA has a BBb York Master for sale. It looks to be in decent condition and he took the flare off of the front facing bell and replaced the bent stack with a section of a Miraphone 186 bell to make it an upright 22" bell.

The was a very nice looking 4V BBb B&M tuba (with a one piece upright bell) for sale on eBay a couple of months ago that went way too cheap. So cheap I almost bid on it even though I don't need it.

Bandmaster wrote:

Rick Denney wrote:But don't underestimate the King. A good one is outstanding, and will produce a bigger sound than its size would suggest. It's more than good enough for any gig that needs or wants a Bb tuba with an American sound. The other advantage to the King is that they are generally available--enough so that you can try several to find a really good one. Finding a YM or 5500 is a little more challenging and usually requires that you take what you get.

I agree! I tried the King at the NAMM Show a couple of months ago and it play wonderfully! Try to find one or two and take a test drive, you should be pleased.

Add a third testimonial for the new, new King 2341. I'm not sure, but I think that playing mine (note: NOT listening to me play it) helped convince Rick that the top examples are very good.

But do heed the advice to try several. I'll add that it's wise to have a repair tech handy (where you buy it, or local to you) who knows a few tricks about how to get the max out of one. I suspect that most of these tricks involve work that SHOULD HAVE BEEN DONE AT THE FACTORY...but wasn't. I think this implies that even a "dog" 2341 can be re-habilitated by one visit to a good shop.

And...don't expect a piece of jewelry. Smooth out the INSIDE to make it play great - don't worry about the odd finishing flaws on the OUTSIDE.

Remember Bill Bell played various Kings, including some of the few rotary valves they made - all the same .687 bore.