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Hey all, extremely long time no see. I probably don't know any of you anymore gah!

Anyway, sorry if this is a repost upon repost, but I am curious about the *mutes of today*. I am moving into an apartment with a preference of no musical instruments due to noise and a naggy senior lady a couple doors away but I figured a mute would do me great. What is my best bet these days? Is the Dennis Wick practice mute still the best way to go??? How is it comparable to the Silent Brass system, any suggestions? Also, how much do these practice mutes actually reduce volume seeing I have never actually used one and noise is the issue. Thanks a lot for your input and feel free to send me a message.

Thanks Again,



Kev

Anyone have any comment or comparison to that or the Dennis Wick??? An opinion on which would be better????? Thanks

..it is always a good idea to mute the euphoniums...

I had a chance to test the Best Brass euphonium mute several months ago and was disappointed with the tuning and response on it. Perhaps by now they have worked out the bugs on it, but my initial reaction was "HUH.....?"

The trumpet, horn and trombone versions are great, but I believe that the differences in bell flares among different brands of euphoniums can have an impact on how well it functions for each individual player.

Just MY $0.02

Peace.
Roger

I echo Roger's words above, on the Willson 2900 the mute is a semitone out in just one octave, with little room for adjustment of the rubbers.

Sue was hoping to use the bass tbn one for her Sovereign baritone, but that has the same problem.

The Wick is still the one to beat for us, but of course, it's not practicle to carry around on trips.

CB

If your sole purpose of a mute is for practicing "quietly", I would go with Yamaha's Silent Brass mute. It kills about 95% of the sound. Although the electronics portion is somewhat cumbersome (wires hanging and ear pieces), it does help with hearing yourself. You can set it for different effects, church, studio, auditorium, etc. The intonation is affected a bit on some partials however.

I have one and use it only when I'm visiting relatives (grandkids sleeping) or at a hotel.

Yes, I agree Rick, but the whole idea of the Best Brass mute is that it is amazingly light and fits flush inside the bell so it can be taken in the case.

Chas

I tried one at ITEC and bought it on the spot. It has previously been relatively useless for me to own a practice mute because I could not travel with it. But this little guy fits in my hard case! I have photos and a mini-review on my blog:

http://www.dwerden.com/blog3/display_bl ... 8571FEFC85

I have had one of the Best Brass mutes for euphonium for about 4 months now. It is not quite as quiet as the Silent Brass, but is plenty good enough in silencing the sound for practice without disturbing others in neighboring rooms. It is substantially more free blowing than the Silent Brass. In terms of intonation, I have not noticed it being any worse than the Silent Brass...they both effect intonation slightly here and there. The lighter weight coupled with the more freeblowing qualities has made the Best Brass my first line practice mute.

I'll go ahead and chime in one this one now that people have gotten a chance to speak. Here are my thoughts on the subject.

The Best Brass mute is wonderful, but there are a few problems that I've found with it.

1.) Speaking specifically to Charlie's thoughts - the model that he has (which he showed me at the ITEC) is a much smaller model, which Just For Brass does not carry. The mute is a half-step high, probably due to the size - anyway, this is not the same mute that is in the online catalog.

2.) Intonation on Bb2 is pretty out, but more upper-middle to upper range notes are pretty good. It's great for what it is.

3.) I have had only one instance of the mute not fitting, meaning that the throat of a euphonium was simply too open for it. A customer purchased this mute for either a Meinl Weston or a Miraphone euphonium and was complaining of it rattling against the instrument. Basically the mute was resting on the bell when he was playing. He sent it back, and I sent him a Denis Wick practice mute, which had the same problem. Sounds like a huge throat on that bell - no matter what! I'm not exactly sure of the model number, but Miraphone owners beware on that one.

Denis Wick mutes are great. They play pretty well, blow easily and are some of the best made mutes on the market. The advantage of the Best Brass is pretty obvious to any traveling performer: size, portability and most important - WEIGHT. For those who frequent the conferences in the past few years might have met Mr. Schlipf and his travel mutes - very cool stuff. I bought one a few years ago - awesome mute: great construction, great intonation - the only problem is that the thing makes your gig bag weigh like 20 pounds with a euphonium and that mute in it! I used it for a bit, but eventually it sat on the shelf. I use the Best Brass all the time. If anyone has a direct question, please feel free to send me a PM or an email to: pat(at)justforbrass.com

Thanks!

Pat Stuckemeyer

For those who have found the Best Brass to either work or not work, it might be helpful to say what make and model of instrument they play, since it seems to be a fit issue.

MA

I tried the Best Brass briefly with a Besson 967 and it worked well. I have been using it for the past several months with a Willson 2900 and it also works well with a perfect fit. My Yamaha Silent Brass worked equally well in both horns as well.

Thanks again for the multiple replies and discussion and bringing the consideration of another mute to my attention. I have noticed many of you give props to the Best Brass mute for its size and ease of transport. Though this is obviously nice, it is one of the last of my concerns. The purpose of my mute would be restricted to practicing in my apartment (and sometimes at home). If I am travelling with my horn, it is most likely to be heard (performances, lessons etc.) . Does this change opinions in the toss up???? Also, any others out there who have tried the Dennis Wick VS the Best Brass???? ....Because of the complex "equipment" with the Silent Brass, it pushes me away from it because wires and ear phones are a pet peave for me, though this system is the most available to me in my area of course. My goal is not to be completely silent, just quiet enough that the neighbouring apartments cant say "oh hes playing his instrument again"..................therefore no louder than my television or other general household duties including laundry. Realistic response and tuning are mostly what I am looking for, obviously with the previously described dampening of volume. Thanks again for the input,


Kev

XtremeEuph wrote:Because of the complex "equipment" with the Silent Brass, it pushes me away from it because wires and ear phones are a pet peave for me

[spelling police]
"Peeve."
(Sorry, but misspelling "peeve" is a pet peeve of mine.)
[/spelling police]

Anyhoo ...the Silent Brass works just fine without the sound module and ear phones. You can hear yourself plenty well without disturbing folks in the next room.

IMO, I think the electronics are a waste of money. On my Sterling, the mic sit about 10" below the rim of the bell, which gives a completely distorted sense of the sound coming out of the bell, because the sound never has a chance to develop and resonate. Plus, the mic picks up mechanical and performer sounds (valves, trigger, spring buzzing, breathing, tonguing, and even the infamous "Wick fuzz") that can't be heard by the audience. I've made recordings with the SB, with a mics clipped to the rim of the bell, and with mics placed 3' from the rim, and even non-musicians can tell them apart. YMMV.

Just to mirror what sungfw said, you can definitely use the Silent Brass without the electronics. So don't let that be a deciding factor. For your purposes, it doesn't sound like you can go wrong with either the Silent Brass or Best Brass. Both will get you plenty quiet for what you want it for...far softer than an average TV sound output. If you needed extreme quiet, the edge would go to the Silent Brass. I rarely need that kind of sound reduction, and the Best Brass superior weight and freeblowing properties gets the call 99 times out of 100 for me. I've never played a Wick so I can't comment on that one.

XtremeEuph wrote:If I am traveling with my horn, it is most likely to be heard (performances, lessons etc.)

Just one further thought on packability. I went to ITEC to be heard, but I also found it handy to be able to practice or warm up in my hotel room. Also, many performance venues do not have well-isolated green rooms, so you can't warm up on the open horn when a performance is under way on stage. I may even use it at church, where my only available room for warm-up could let my sound leak out enough to be a problem. When I played with the Minnesota Orchestra earlier this year it would have been nice to have it. As it was I had to walk quite a way to find a room far enough from the stage so I could warm up safely. Etc.

That being said, when I was in the Coast Guard Band we had Denis Wick practice mutes. I recall they worked nicely - they were certainly better than the Humes & Berg practice mute I owned. The Wicks responded OK at quieted the horn really well. My memory tells me that the Just for Brass mute is every bit as effective in quieting the horn as the Wick mute. The Wick is heavier, which makes it much worse for practicing standing up.

Alright folks, perfect. From your comments and what I have heard for others, the Denis Wick practice mute and the Silent Brass come to a close fix, with each their own pros and cons as with any other comparison. For my purpose and for the prices I have seen, it seems to me the Denis Wick is the best way to go for me for consistency. If not, I will also contact Yamaha in the city and see what they have available for the mutes ONLY as I see they are sold that way online sometimes (WWBW for ex.). Thanks again for all the input and influence