Thoughts on miraphone 1292?

[Aidanc97]

I'm a high school student looking to buy a cc tuba to use my senior year and take to college. I'm currently looking at a miraphone 1292. What are your opinions on this tuba?

[bort]

I think they are great tubas, and I wish I would have had one in college. Typical intonation stuff, but overall very solid. The low range is huge and easy, and the upper range is nice, but takes a little work. Sometimes the sound is a little too dark, so try different mouthpieces to see what you like.

If you're looking at new tubas, I would suggest trying the 1291 and 1292 side by side. I've done this several times, and it varies horn to horn, if I like the 1291 or 1292 better. Both are great.

If you're looking at used tubas, clearly just take whatever is the best combination of price and tuba you like.

[Phil Dawson]

Why don't you check out the 1293. It is the newest horn in that line. It has a removable leadpipe and comes with both the 1291 and 1292 pipes. You can also have a pipe made up with the small receiver and the smaller pipe which works very well for some people. The 1293 has a larger diameter 5th valve rotor and a larger bell. It is about the same price. I would at least check it out. Good luck, Phil

[Bill Troiano]

I've had my 1292 for about 2 months now. Years ago, I never would've wanted a tuba this large. I always played on medium size equipment. I also, was never in a large orchestra. Any good paying gigs I ever got on Long Island, were in medium sized orchestras, concert bands and brass ensembles (as far as large ensemble gigs.) So, a medium 4/4 CC was plenty for me. Now in Texas, I'm mostly playing in some community groups, as there seems to be no market here for "classical" music that pays. So much for the music capitol of the world. But in community groups, where pay isn't an issue, they can bring in a lot of musicians, so the ensembles can be quite large. Plus, it's Texas. Isn't everything supposed to be bigger here? So, I felt the need, or desire for something bigger than I was used to playing. I wasn't about to go out and purchase a 6/4 tuba. I've always liked the 129X series of tubas and I came across this 1292. I don't know if it's a 4/4 or 5/4 and I really don't care. It's probably the largest tuba I've owned. It does the job and I agree with everything Bort says about it. Plus, it's easy for me to hold. It doesn't have the large valve cluster and being only 5'9" tall (and probably shrinking at this stage of my life), I find it very comfortable to hold and play. It's not an air hog either - very efficient tuba. I'm very happy with my 1292. Plus, it says New Yorker on the bell. Duh-uh!!