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As a lot of you know, I've been looking for an F tuba for a long time now. Today, I got my first F tuba in the mail, a used Cerveny 653 from Dillon music. It's a keeper. I spent about the last 3 hours playing it, here are my thoughts:

-- Whoa! What an easy tuba to play and it sounds great! And just like everyone says, it plays WAY bigger than it looks (that is, when you want it to play big). Intonation is good, and it's very much a point-and-shoot tuba. I'm really impressed.

-- This is a used tuba, but I can't imagine it's more than a year or two old. A few scratches and pings, but almost in new condition. Built solid, valves are smooth and silent, and all around, looks great.

-- The dreaded "low C" (and Bb and B) isn't a big deal at all on this tuba at all. Play it twice, learn what to do, and get on with it. Very cool.

-- I tried both a Baer F mpc and PT-65 mpc on it. Liked them both, slight edge to the PT. Too early to tell.

-- Holy cow, that's a LONG throw on the 5th valve (RH). Kind of an awkward reach, seems big for my hands, though I'll give it a try. Has anyone else needed to get this fixed on theirs?

-- Time to pay my dues and learn the F fingerings. Planning to pull out the books and play the stuff I'm most familiar with first...

This is a great tuba for the price, and regardless of the price, it's a great tuba. I wish it wasn't so late, I want to play more.

Pictures to come tomorrow or over the weekend.

Congrats! I can't wait until I have the money for an f.

Happy new tuba! Enjoy.

Here's a quick picture of it...

Bort, that is a pretty picture. The lighting is nice and I really like the wood flooring. Oh yeah....and the tuba is cool too. I haven't owned an F tuba (Yamaha 822) since 2003. I would imagine the next one I would buy would be the Cerveny.

TubaTodd wrote:Bort, that is a pretty picture. The lighting is nice and I really like the wood flooring. Oh yeah....and the tuba is cool too. I haven't owned an F tuba (Yamaha 822) since 2003. I would imagine the next one I would buy would be the Cerveny.

Thanks, Todd! I remember reading around here once before that taking pictures in direct sunlight is best. Seems to work for me! I'll try to get a family portrait of the Cerveny and Marzan side-by-side.

My only complaint is not buying one of these sooner.

Just chop a few inches off that crazy long 5th trigger, and solder a quarter on the end. Should solve the throw length issue.

FWIW, you may want to try one of the Blokepiece solo models on the horn - they really kick open the door to the low register on bass tubas.

CONGRATS! It really is an excellent horn. Enjoy playing that thing!

I don't have a problem with the 5th lever. But I don't use the tip of my thumb, I use a lot of it...but still...doesn't bother me. It helps that I play it without a thumb ring.

MartyNeilan wrote:Just chop a few inches off that crazy long 5th trigger, and solder a quarter on the end. Should solve the throw length issue.

FWIW, you may want to try one of the Blokepiece solo models on the horn - they really kick open the door to the low register on bass tubas.

Your REALLY have no worry with low register on this horn. With almost no effort everything pops right out.

For bort,

I use a PT 65.....it makes the intonation a little "tougher" at some spots, BUT it gives it the best round sound.

bort wrote: I remember reading around here once before that taking pictures in direct sunlight is best. Seems to work for me!

Yes, it did come off pretty well, but direct sunlight can put so much contrast into a scene that you can't make it work - parts will be too dark to make out what's going on, or washed out from glare. Sunlight is the best light there is, but direct vs. indirect is more of a judgement call.

I hope they can make this model fast enough to satisfy the demand!

Brooke,

Totally agree with both points -- the PT-65 seems so far to give me "the sound" I have in my ear. The Baer F is also good, but is a little heavier than I'm liking right now. The PT-65 is working very nicely for me...and yes, the low range is the least of my concerns right now.

And the 5th valve paddle is still a little odd, but I'll get over it soon enough. Like you, if I approach it with more of my thumb on the trigger, it's more comfortable. Still might get the linkage changed in the future, I really like the Miraphone-style valve linkage. But that's low on the list right now.

It's been fun to learn F fingerings too, and not too bad after the first 2 days (which I know, is like nothing so far). I love this little tuba, and I really feel like F tuba "fits" me. Tough to explain, but it just feels natural and the sound coming out the bell is the sound in my head. And perhaps most importantly, this is a hell of a lot of fun... which is why we do this anyway, right?

I'm very impressed. If the Cerveny CC's play anything like this, I might have to give them a serious look!

Congratulations on the new 653. I have the 654 which is very similar except for the sixth valve/quint valve, I love the horn and have been extremely happy with it I tried several mouthpieces (Schilke 66, 69c4 , Conn 7b, Bach 24AW ) and found that I like both the PT 65 and PT 80 the best. Right now I have been using the PT 80 for large ensemble (it seems to be a little darker) and the PT 65 for everything else.

zoobie wrote:Congratulations on the new 653. I have the 654 which is very similar except for the sixth valve/quint valve, I love the horn and have been extremely happy with it I tried several mouthpieces (Schilke 66, 69c4 , Conn 7b, Bach 24AW ) and found that I like both the PT 65 and PT 80 the best. Right now I have been using the PT 80 for large ensemble (it seems to be a little darker) and the PT 65 for everything else.

Thanks! Glad you like yours as much as I like mine! Funny thing is, I got the PT-65 as part of a mouthpiece trade, not knowing what I'd use it for. Plugged it into my Cerveny and "ding", perfect match!

Here's a "family portrait" of the Cerveny and my Marzan. The Marzan feels like a giant compared to the Cerveny!

bort wrote:Here's a "family portrait" of the Cerveny and my Marzan. The Marzan feels like a giant compared to the Cerveny!

That is a great looking pair! (of tubas )
Hope you have fun with them; I've been wanting to play on one of those little cerveny Fs for a while now.

zoobie wrote:I have the 654 which is very similar except for the sixth valve/quint valve, I love the horn and have been extremely happy with it I tried several mouthpieces (Schilke 66, 69c4 , Conn 7b, Bach 24AW ) and found that I like both the PT 65 and PT 80 the best. Right now I have been using the PT 80 for large ensemble (it seems to be a little darker) and the PT 65 for everything else.

F tubas aren't so great for large ensemble work...
If that 654 is in raw brass with a modified main tuning slide, would you like to trade for a Conn 2J?

No thanks on the trade I love this horn. I have a MW37 and a big old Besson New Standard BBb when I need something larger. My 654 is fairly new and has not been modified, I purchased it used from Dillon about 3 month's ago and use it mainly for a seven piece German band.

Was it this horn? I remember looking at it every day...

That's my baby ! Isn't she cute ?

zoobie wrote:No thanks on the trade I love this horn. I have a MW37 and a big old Besson New Standard BBb when I need something larger. My 654 is fairly new and has not been modified, I purchased it used from Dillon about 3 month's ago and use it mainly for a seven piece German band.

I was half joking; I use to own a 654 and loved the sweet sound I got out of it. Still hate that I had to get rid of it Hope you enjoy it as much as I did mine

k001k47 wrote:

bort wrote:Here's a "family portrait" of the Cerveny and my Marzan. The Marzan feels like a giant compared to the Cerveny!

That is a great looking pair! (of tubas )
Hope you have fun with them; I've been wanting to play on one of those little cerveny Fs for a while now.

Thanks! I've got to say...this tuba is reminding me just how MUCH I like rotary tubas. The Marzan is a great, great tuba. And definitely an American sound. But I think the German rotary sound is just what works best for me, and what my brain seems wired for. I'm seriously reconsidering what I want to do now. If I could ADD a rotary CC to my stable (like a Miraphone 188), that would be great. But no way I can have 3 tubas right now.

Shoot, I dunno...