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enigma wrote:Personally I'm looking for a colorful straight, and best quality practice mute. Opinions?

Well, this is colorful and pretty straight:

I use a Humes & Berg large straight mute on my Willson. I would think it would work well with a 2165. I wanted an all metal mute to get the sound I wanted, and surprisingly this mute is less expensive than other types of wooden mutes, or combinations of materials. Several companies sell these mutes for a little over $100.

the tennessee tech. tuba ensemble has a little thing going on that i just haphazardly discovered one day in my many searches of tuba. they sell very inexpensive mutes to aide in the "fight for cheaper tuba equipment." it is well worth checking out for a $70 straight mute.

http://orgs.tntech.edu/tuba/mutes.htm

My favorite mute? The one on the far right.

_________________________________
Joe Baker, who's NEVER used a tuba mute.

enigma wrote:I'll be in a small apartment soon so expect to do lots of practice mute playing!!

I've tried a lot of different mutes, and for me, the Yamaha Silent Brass is the only practice mute I've found which comes close to working on a tuba without completely changing (i.e. screwing up) my production technique. Granted, it stops responding very well above a middle C, but that's workable. Also, I don't bother with the headphones; I just use mine as a mute.

As for straight mutes, I've tried the Tenn Tech mutes, but I'm afraid that in my opinion they're not very good, even if they are relatively inexpensive. They affect they pitch on my tubas inconsistently (i.e. some notes go sharp, some go flat) and just don't sound very good to my ears.

If you've paid around $10,000 for a tuba, and another $100 - $200 for a mouthpiece, I would think you'd want the best mute you can get, regardless of the cost. After all, at the most you'll only save about $150.

Just my opinion.

***

Hi, me again.

I've got a Humes & Berg Stonelined straight mute - the aluminum one in the larger size. I've never had much success with it in my HB-2P, but I tried it out today in my Yorkbrunner and it worked very well indeed. If you've got a 2165 ( I believe that's what you said) maybe you should try one of these.

For a 2165? I can't say, so my post might not be worth a whole lot...

I've got an NP Griffith straight mute that I like in my VMI 3302. Good buzzy rattle when it's played up to volume.

I'll second the vote for the Silent Brass as a practice mute, judging from the hour or so that I got to mess with one. I don't have a need for it, but I'd probably own one if I had to.

As far as what can be purchased at any price, I like the Tennessee Tech mute (I used one while I was a student at the University of Miami and liked it). I have tried many mutes and in my opinion most muffle the sound but do not impart a zip (feeble attempt to explain term: bright somewhat raspy sound). I also like the intonation with the Tennessee Tech mute. However, I now play a homemade mute that has a great sound but some really strange notes, it works.

I have a Humes & Berg practice mute that works (I have used this mute for many years). The intonation is not too strange and the feel of the tuba is ok. This mute allows me to practice and not get the neighbors angry, but there must be something better manufactured now.

good luck,
Mark