It was great to meet some tubenet folks in person and try out some great horns.
My schedule had me there at 11 on Friday, trying to cram in all the exhibits before they closed at 4.
The first booth I came across (with horns!) was Willson. I have a Willson F that I've been pretty pleased with (although I wouldn't mind a second, smaller one, for things like Berlioz, etc.). In the past, I've thought the 3050 CC might be an option, but I wasn't that enthralled with the one they had there. But I reserve complete judgment, as I've noticed with some horns that the feedback you get from the room can really color my opinion about the horn; get it in a different space and it's a different horn.
Bad planning on the part of MidWest - putting Willson and Meinl Weston right next to each other. Too much tuba in not-a-great space.
Next stop, obviously, was the Meinl Weston booth. When I started playing, there was really only one choice for a horn if you were serious - Hirsbrunner. There was a world of difference between them and anyone else. (My first horn was an exceptional HB-2P...that I sold at one point when I thought I'd never be able to play again...
still kicking myself...
...really spoiled me.) It amazes me the choices available to someone looking for a good horn. The Thor lived up to the stories I'd heard. It amazed me just how easy it was to play soft, even pppp, with so little effort. Good intonation. Then I tried the handmade Baer. Holy crap. Really, just holy crap. If I find myself in a position to drop $20,000 on a horn, holy crap. It was great to meet Al Baer in person. He recommended trying the GW Baer MMVI on the horn, so I went and borrowed one. (Thank you to Ivan Giddings, who let me try one for an EXTENDED period of time.) It really fit the horn well. Very well. Great set-up. Uhh... I mean...um...nobody buy this horn....it wouldn't work for you at an audition...I would only get one to help out Roger Lewis, that's all...
Seaking of Roger Lewis, he's a great guy, also living up to all the rave reviews. If you're in the market for a MW horn, make the drive to Tubadome, or catch him at the other conferences he'll be attending. Great guy, knows the product cold.
My next stop was Tuba Exchange. I really wanted to try out the Grontiz PCK for all I'd heard about it. Not a great horn for me (5'8"). I felt like the horn, since it's kinda wide, was a lot of work to hold on to, and I'm not a fan of stands. I wasn't thrilled with the sound/response with a PT50 or (old generation) Perantucci 20 (which was supposedly the predecseeor of the PT50, but they are 2 distinctly different moutpieces). But when I tried the GW Baer MMVI in it, it was a different horn. In general, a number of horns about which I had mixed feelings I liked a lot more with the GW moutpiece in it. I might have to get me one of those. I did like the Gronitz F, though. Liked the response, liked the sound.
Biggest disappointment? Yamaha. No tubas to speak of, just a little 3-valve upright 3/4 (1/2) sized student horn sitting on its bell out of the way.
Biggest surprise? The Indian/Gemstone W. Nirschl BBb they had there (4 front-action pistons). I was impressed. I wasn't sure what to expect, but found a horn with pretty even response, decent-to-good intonation (at least as good as some horns costing a lot more), and pretty well made. From what I understood, they're looking to be in full production on that model by mid-year '08. The price was a little high, I thought. With a number of the top models now being $12,000+, I see where a few manufacturers figure they're going to target the "student" market, which now stands somewhere between $6,000 and $8,000 (I shudder at that, thinking how my brand new HB-2P was, what, $5,000? I guess that ages me...).
Also in the $6,800 level is the newer model carried by Tuba Exchange, the 4/4 CC by (...I forget now...) G&R? Something like that? Kalison-inspired (built?), it's a decent horn, but has some intonation issues to be worked out. A little inconsistent in response/feel, my recommendation was a lower price (listed at $6,795). At its current price, it simply makes the Miraphone 1291 look like a better buy.
Speaking of Miraphone, I liked the silver 1292 they had. But it really feels like a 4/4. For me, the sound broke up easily at louder dynamics (not a problem I usually have), and it seemed like it was too easy for the sound to get edgy (again, not usually an issue). I do like the consistency and feel of the horn otherwise. If you're looking for a big horn, you might be wise to explore other options, but at its price point, its probably the best option in the range. The 1291 was a pretty example, as well. Not too impressed with the Firebird F, though. For all I'd heard/read about it, I was expecting more. Their compensating Eb is a BIG horn (physically). At my average-5'8" size, I felt like I could barely get my left arm over to the 4th valve. I will not be recommending it as an option to my brass band. The B&S compensating Eb, will be an option, though.
The next stop was Custom Music. They had a great PT-6P there. And, again, I liked it better with the GW Baer MMVI than with the Per. 20 or PT-50. Their Walter Nirschl 4/4 CC is a really strong option. Most of those that I've played have been strong horns. I really like the response and feel of the horn. It's a different animal from the Besson CC that resembles it (those are WAY too inconsistent from one horn to another). It's nimble with smooth valves and a very consistent feel from low to high. (To me, a horn should feel pretty much the same at f below pedal C to C above middle C.) The best horn I played there, though, was a used Hirsbrunner HB-2P. Dang. I don't know if it just felt like "home" or what, but... dang. But it still felt small for what I'm hoping to find. But dang. If anyone's looking for a great used Hirsbrunner HB-2P (with rotor after the pistons), call Jeff Rideout today.
I also visited snorlax's booth for Garritan. What an impressive product. If you are a composer or arranger and use the most current versions of Finale or Sibelius, you would probably want this plug-in. Great sound samples. Jim played a couple samples of sound files he created from notation software that sounded about as close as you could get to "live performance" of a work without spending $10,000 to $15,000 on "better" sound sample files, or hiring a live group to record your work every time you needed it. Cost is around $250. Check out the site from the link in Jim's post that started this thread.
To sum up, if I were looking for:
a 4/4 CC -
Nirschl from Custom
or
Miraphone 1291 or 1292
something bigger -
MW Thor
MW Baer (handmade is definitely better than production model, but the production model is still darn good)
PT-6P ( so long as I had the opportunity to choose from a batch of at least 12)
a BBb horn
Gemstone Nirschl (for the price)
(provided they do a little better job of clean-up and polish/finish than the horn they had there, which I understood to still be prototype-although-this-is-pretty-much-it-although-we-won't-be-really-in-full-production-on-thi-until-next-year.)
(also keeping in mind that if I seriously wanted a BBb and money weren't an object, I'd probably head overseas and spend some time shopping there)
NB-limited horn dorn to follow...almost forgot that I had my camera with me, then realizing that while I had the camera, I forgot the SD card, so had limited space in the built-in memory.
I think that's about it for my albeit-haphazard report.
If you have questions about anything you think I may have omitted, let me know; I could be forgetting something.