TubeNet

The used Yamaha YEB-321S I just recieved came with a Denis Wick 5L mp. I stuck it in and was pleased at how well I was able to get the tuba to play clearly and in tune. Once I got down towards the bottom though, the notes did peter out a bit. Some of that was due to may lack of familiarity with the fingerings, which will require some work on my part.

Regardless,as expected from any member of TubeNet, my thoughts runed to what other mps might work well with this particular tuba. I notice that the Wick site recommends the used of the 3 and 4 mps with Ebs (L or not L). My search of TuneNet recalled some discussions suggesting that the 3L being based on the Bach 24AW and widely used in the UK by Eb players.

So, for those of you that play the Yamaha Eb (321, 381, or 632), what do you use? What do you other Eb players use on your Bessons or MWs or ? . I think Yamaha shiped these with their 66D4 and do not know what that mp is equal to. I have not had much success with the 2L, finding it hard to center (for me). Maybe a 3L or 4L? or???

This is more for future reference. Right now, I think I'll continue using the 5L until I get my Eb skills up to snuff as it seems to give me a pretty clear center of the pitch.

As always, thanks.

Two common mouthpieces are the Wick 3L and the Bach 24AW.

How about a Sellmansberger Imperial? ^Joe^ does offer a trial period.

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I've always liked my Bach 18 on Eb's.

I like the Bloke Imperial for my Martin Eb. I tried the Denis wick #3 and #2 and found them o.k. but the Imperial made the horn. I like the brightness and easy blowing characteristics. The Wick bore is too open for my taste.

I have the same horn. I've originally used a Lasky 28H but the mp I'm using now is a Blokepiece Symphony with a #2 rim for ensemble stuff and the Solo piece with the same rim. I'm sold on these mp's. I've recently started trying the Imperial but haven't had it long enough to offer a really valid opinion.The Symphony let's me put out a really "fat" sound even at fairly loud volumes and the Solo I've used for just that. It allows me to produce a very focused and clear sound that cuts through.
PWP

I've had good luck on those horns with variations on the original Helleberg: the Canadian Brass Dallenbach, the Laskey 28H, etc.

I currently play mine on a Blokepiece/Sellmansberger Solo #1.

Let us know what you settle on.

--T. J.

Since we seem to have a lot of variety here, I guess I'll add a bit more. When I had a 381 I was quite happy using a PT-72 with it.

i use a pt-72 with my yamaha yeb 321s. its great

Just a shot at stating the obvious, I use Yamaha 64 and 65 on Bass tubas and like the effect. Many Yamaha Tubas come with 67C4 mouthpieces but I find these too shallow to get the most out of the horns, especailly the low end. A Wick 4 (don't think I'd use the "L" version) and a Yamaha 64 are about the same diameter and a 65 is a little larger. Did one of these mouthpieces (64, 65) come with the horn, by chance?

Laskey 28C and G&W Churada Depends on material. Laskey is the go to for my YEB 321S

bill wrote:Just a shot at stating the obvious, I use Yamaha 64 and 65 on Bass tubas and like the effect. Many Yamaha Tubas come with 67C4 mouthpieces but I find these too shallow to get the most out of the horns, especailly the low end. A Wick 4 (don't think I'd use the "L" version) and a Yamaha 64 are about the same diameter and a 65 is a little larger. Did one of these mouthpieces (64, 65) come with the horn, by chance?

Your posting once again makes me aware of at least two main approaches in tuba mouthpiece designs. The pieces you mention are of the narrow aperture & deep cup type to paint a sharp picture (even if there are several modifications within the main types). Another approach rather has a wide aperture and a less deep cup (at least as long as we talk bass tuba pieces).

Having played the French horn I expected the narrow/deep type working for me on my smallest bass tubas. They didn’t, as I felt my embouchure constrained and my dynamic span disappeared. I got better results with wider/shallower mouthpieces, especially if they have the reverse throat taper like seem with Mike Finn’s models and with the blokepieces.

Klaus

Strangely, when I owned a 321, I found that a Kellyburg plastic mouthpiece worked much better than the shallow mp recommended by the manufacturer. I suspect, though, that it has as much to do with the player as the instrument, so this might not work for you. Of course if you have many outside gigs, especially in chilly weather, a plastic mouthpiece is just good sense.

I've used a Doug Elliot shallow cup with a 126 rim on my 321S; it was one of his old "L" series setups. I don't know his modern equivalents.
Lately I switched to a Mike Finn "H" and love the bigger, darker & fuller sound I get from it.

If you want a fairly bright tone that still has some depth, you might consider the Rudolf Meinl 9. It has a cup in between the Bach 24 and 18 in diameter, and it's a medium-shallow bowl. It's available in .78 and .80 throats. Lee Stofer sells them.

I use a Wick 3L on my Besson Sovereign EEb. I use the same mp on my Yamaha 321 EEb. After years of experimenting with a range of mps on both horns, I have finally settled on the said Wick. On the Sov, the Wick 3L gives me the biggest and warmest orchestral sound of all many pieces I have tried. It does the same on the 321, and being a smaller bore/bell horn than the Besson, it needs all the help it can get in that regard. I also use a Wick 5L for a while on occasions when I have concentrated soley on euphonium for an extended period, and find the 3L an uncomfortable step up from my Wick SM4 euph mp. I will use the 5L only as a transition mp long enough for my chops to relax into a tuba embouchure, then step up to the 3L. The 5L produces a reasonable sound on the 321, although a little "harder" than the 3L. It also is not as comfortable in the lower register as you have found, but it is an easy mp to center, and therefore an excellent item to get back into shape. But move up when you feel ready.