TUbajohn20J wrote:iiipopes owns a 38K and hopefully he will chime in about the "dead on" false tones of those horns...
In my opinion, you should definitely go with that 38K/40K horn you played because those were just EXCELLENT horns, huge sound, great in all registers and volumes. They hold a higher value also. It would be great if you could post a pic of that horn. Anyway, hope this helped. - John
Yes, the @1930 38K I play is an absolute beast, even with the bugle having its share of damage from normal, rough football field use over the past 80 years, a couple of patches here and there, worn plating in the expected spots; but the bell is perfect and all my numbers match.
Intonation up the scale is good. The fifth partials are not noticably flat. When I play something like "The Thunderer," "Them Basses," or "E Pluribus Unum," with jumps to the top of the staff and has the runs, I am as much or moreso secure playing them on the 38K than any other horn I've ever played them on.
The false pedals are, indeed, superlative. You truly do not need a 4th valve. The false pedals are round, precise, and sound better than all of the conventionally valved and played tubas I have played for the near-pedal range. I routinely use them as much as I can, especially on cadential notes to put the broadest foundation as possible under the band.
The 38K is the only souzy I have ever been able to get a true pedal BBb out of, again, with tone, not just the buzzsaw rasp of many other tubas.
I have the 24 inch bell version, which I find has just as large a tone, but much easier to navigate both indoors, through doors and outdoors, as the 26 inch. But for the fact it does weigh 35 pounds, I would play it more.
And like all Conn conventional .734 souzy valve sets, I have the upper loop of the 1st valve slide converted to a movable slide so all the 1+ valve combinations can ride throttle and fine tune. It really makes a difference on the C and low F.
And all this with worn valves, loose slides, and damage to the bugle that would stifle almost nearly all other merely mortal souzys, and the 38K plays through them with no stuffiness, intonation problems, or muted or fluffed notes.
The best mouthpiece I have found for the 38K and 40K is the PT82, which they advertise as matching the GR51/PT605 tuba with it also having a large bell throat. The 38K just really sings with definition and authority, as well as broad but focused tone, with that mouthpiece. It's good if a little ragged at the edges with a Kelly 18. But every other mouthpiece I've tried on it, (mind you, when I try a mouthpiece, I try it on all of my instruments to get a good sense of performance characteristics, and through purchase, selling, trading, borrowing, or outright tryout from the case, I've probably tried about 30 mouthpieces on it) lacks one or more aspects of what is needed for good souzy tone, intonation, support and projection.