TubeNet

I play in a bigband. Usualy I play the 4th trombone part, sometimes there is a tuba part.

I am playing with a German (probably from Amati/Cerveny factory but no name) F tuba, 4 rotors.

Why I am looking for another tuba: The one I play now has a weak sound in the low range. Poor resonance mainly around the low C. The intonation is bad but I was starting to get it right. Rotors are very heavy. Tuba is very old and looks very old.

Major problems: low budget.

What I am looking for: a second hand nice F tuba with at least 5 valves (I prefer rotative) with a good resonance in low register. Easy to play in tune.

Or, something completely diferent: a new, low budget (chinese?), f tuba, if possible with the same caracteristics as the above.

Budget: around 3000 EUR.

Can you give me some advice?

kind regards.

Antero.

I don´t know how many tuba places are around where you live.
If there are, ask them for used horns they may have traded in for new ones lately.
Both my horns were bought used and in good condition right at Melton´s in Geretsried. Both of them were in your price range, and the MW46 fits pretty well what you´re looking for.
That particular horn had been used as a "Backup-tuba" for people needing an emergency-repair that won´t be finished in time for a gig. (Or so they said).

The range around "low" C needed some work back when I bought it, but I got it just fine within about half a year (having been without a teacher until about a year later)

Anterux wrote:What I am looking for: a second hand nice F tuba with at least 5 valves (I prefer rotative) with a good resonance in low register. Easy to play in tune.

Your best bet is an old B&S Symphonie with five valves, perhaps under one of the stencil labels such as Weltklang. They won't do as well at making easy sounds in the low register as a Willson or a Yamaha, but those options are a lot more expensive. One possible exception is a used Yamaha 621, which you MIGHT find in your price range. It's small, but you might be able to mike it. Plus, it can really go trombone-like when necessary.

Rick "who paid less than your budget (barely) for each a 621 and a Symphonie" Denney

Antero,

I also play Bass Bone in a couple big bands. I use a Mirafone 184 BBb. I have found that this horn has enough bottom to give a good tuba sound without overpowering the bones but blends well with the bones when you have to play with them up in and above the staff. Because of how nice this horn works in this situation, I have no intention too ever sell the 184. My tenor bones, euph, and my Eb tuba will go before the Mirafone.

Get a BBb tuba. It will sound much better in the low register and will cost much less.

I know you did not mention Eb tuba as an option. But I have played many rotor valved F tubas, and they all take some practice to play the low C. But almost all Eb tubas I have played (except the Cerveny 641) were very good in the low register. Also, Eb tubas tend to cost less than F tubas, typically.

Good luck,

Thank you all for your good advices.

A contrabass tuba is out of the question. I have a Jupiter 582 and it is good for the comunity philharmonic and for the symphonic windband, where we play basslines and rarely a solo.
In the Jazz Big Band I need a bass tuba.

An Eb tuba... I'll think about it. Here in Azores almost all Eb tubas are 3 piston upright Amatis. Maybe because of that they have a bad fame... I think a good Eb tuba would suit my needs.

I would have to deal with new fingerings or, as we often do here, transpose the music to the instrument's key, and in trebble clef, as trumpets. At this moment I can play F tuba finguerings reading bass clef. I didnt want to loose that achievement But I'll thing about it. Eb is very easy because of the clef trick: read bass clef as treble clef adding 3 sharps... I'll think about it...

Thank you all.

Antero.

Regarding Eb tubas. Remember there are plenty of good second hand Eb's for sale in the UK which I guess would not cost too much to ship to Portugal.

A good condition 4 valve compensated Imperial usually sale for about 1500 EUR, while a good Sovereign 981 or 982 could be bought with your 3000 EUR budget.

More to ponder...

Neptune wrote:Regarding Eb tubas. Remember there are plenty of good second hand Eb's for sale in the UK which I guess would not cost too much to ship to Portugal.

A good condition 4 valve compensated Imperial usually sale for about 1500 EUR, while a good Sovereign 981 or 982 could be bought with your 3000 EUR budget.

More to ponder...

Sorry to hijack this thread, but I'm thinking about getting a 2nd hand comper from the U.K. myself in the future. What are the addresses in the U.K. where you have the best chances of finding a good selection of good/cheap* 2nd hand instruments?

*preferably both

Corbasse,
your post is welcome.

Neptune,
I would prefer a front action tuba.

By the way, I tryed, for some minutes only, a Yamaha YEB123, Upright, 4 valves, and I wasn't very well impressed. But it could be that particular one.

kind regards.

corbasse wrote:Sorry to hijack this thread, but I'm thinking about getting a 2nd hand comper from the U.K. myself in the future. What are the addresses in the U.K. where you have the best chances of finding a good selection of good/cheap* 2nd hand instruments?

*preferably both

Mr. Tuba (http://www.mrtuba.com) probably keeps the best selection of tubas in the UK.
Other dealers that come to mind to try are
Rosehills (http://www.rosehillinstruments.co.uk), Phil Parkers (http://www.philparker.co.uk) and Normans (http://www.normans.co.uk). Other UK members can probably add to the list. Unfortunately it does not seem the practice over here to list second hand instruments for sale on the website, so you will need to contact them to find out what they have.

It is also worth keeping a look out on eBay as Imperial and Sovereign tubas come up fairly regularly.

Dillons has a really nice BBb 3-valve comp right now, as well as some other Bessons. I believe it's $1395 WITH CASE, and that just can't be beat.