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i just wanted to know what the forum's favorite tubas are, any tuba, sousaphone, contra, concert, bugle, etc
mine - miraphone 186
whats yours?

The wonderful thing about bloke honing his skills in brain surgery only using a power drill and a chisel is that he only experiments on his own upper panhandle. There are other drawbacks, however.

K

For me to play: 1974 Blokerized Olds 4vp O-99 7/8 Bbb
For me to have had: 1912? Beilefelder 4vr 3/4 BBb
For me to wish for: 2011 MW HoJo FA 4vp Bbb

Miraphone 188 in gold brass

Excellent horn, really everything that I want in a tuba. Plus I think it's one of the coolest *looking* tubas ever made... I dunno, the proportions of the thing are just especially easy to look at in my eyes. The yellow brass 188's are nice too, but I love the sweeter sound of a gold brass tuba.

My favorite tuba:

Alexander 163 (gold brass)

Mark

NO question: Hirsbrunner HB-2. Nothing even close!

No surprise, my handmade goldbrass Neptune! Its sound is magic and it's the most beautiful tuba ever in my eyes.



Jonathan "feels very luck to have got his dream tuba before the money run out"

I like my Olds 099-4v a lot. It's small and light but has a nice lower end. I'm not in a large group so a big horn isn't necessary for my uses.

Rudolf Meinl 3/4... Quite simply, the perfect tuba for me. Or maybe a Nirschl York, but I don't own one. Or perhaps a PT-6, but I don't own one.

Early 20th Century King BBb SN 8094.

Turn of the century small SHORT short bell Conn Eb- Godlyesque sound, good intonation (good 5th, sharp 6th). My "medium" H. N. White/King Eb is almost there; it's a shame about the intonation...
Miraphone 191/1291Bb - I would absolutely love to play a lightweight one. As it is they still sound great, make huge noises, and have an awesome low register. I like the sound of the 191 a bit more than the 1291, but the 1291 plays a bit more evenly and is easier for me to play.
King 2280- Huge, clear sound. It is what most compensated euphoniums try to be. Fat low register and good intonation. I want one flipped to 6 front valves- quintet horn for the win!!!
Miraphone 1281- Some small ergonomic issues (leans to the left a -bit-, not the best valve angle for me) and a bit lean for me (constant left pedal player) but a hell of a player with a great low register.
Cerveny 653 F- Big fat sound, great low register, reasonably priced.
MW 182 F- Fun little horn! Easy to play, big sound, solid low register. I wish I'd played one years ago so I coulda grabbed the one that went for $2000 on here.

If I gotta play a big horn and a small horn, give me a 1291 Bb, a 1281 (possibly a 653), and some sort of cylindrical beast and I'd be set for life. I'd probably actually be fine with just another of those small Conn Eb's; I played one as my only horn (with a euph and bass trombone) for a few years and never seriously felt outgunned or unhappy with it. Those things can play! I have a clean one with rebuilt valves in my sights. It's a bit more than I want to play but I probably should just go for it.

I could make a boringly long list of my LEAST favorite horns and why they suck...

Hey Joe,
Are you serious about the Deprins? I have 3 of them one is the 2nd best tuba I have ever played My Martin edges it out. AND I played Jake s york

Miraphone 1291 BBb tubas are weirdly easy to play and they sound great. I'd also like to get ahold of a cheap fiberglass King sousaphone, hopefully one with decent intonation so I could pimp it out mardis-gras style. Simple needs for now!

Sorry, I didn't really answer the OP question, I'm just talking about what I want!

My Martin Mammoth 3 valve top banger. Best sound and easiest to play.Ed

My current 20J.

PT-6.

I second the 1291. I have one that I bought new and it is the best tuba so far I have played. Now, I just need a smaller horn and I will be set. I do have a PT-1, but after getting used to pistons again, I am going to sell the PT-1.

My Marzan slant rotor I got from the village tinker

The Yorkbrunner for filling the hall.
The Bruckner for filling the microphone.
The little Yamaha F tuba for making people say, "I had know idea a tuba could do that!"

My current Mirafone 186.