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I'm looking at possibly buying a used CC horn soon and was hoping to get some opinions. I would like to get a 5/4 but I don't think that is probable with my $5000 budget.

I have played the Eastman before and I like everything except the notes below C2. I felt like I had to really work hard to get the horn to respond and it just didn't resonate for me.

I'm really interested in the MW 2145. I have not played one yet but I found someone who i selling close to me that is going to let me try it out soon.

I'm looking for a tuba to primarily use for Graduate School auditions, teaching lessons, and playing in a brass quintet. I'd also like to be able to take an audition with it if something came up.

Any info on these horns or suggestions of other horns I should look at?

Thanks!

It has been a long time since I played one, but I really enjoyed the 2145 as an "all around horn." I have not played the Eastman tuba, but I do like their trombones.

Contact Matt Walters, the Eastman Tuba are AMAZING

I'm an artists for Eastman, so I'm biased,
but I love their 632CC.
Bill

The Eastman CC is really a great horn. I would recommend contacting Matt Walters about the instrument.

There are some alignment issues that the horns seem to have straight from the factory (not positive on specifics). I played one that didn't pass through Matt, and then ended up buying a different one that Matt serviced first. There was a noticeable difference between the two, especially in the low register. I have no idea what he did to it specifically, but if you are at all interested in that horn it would be wise to play one that Matt has serviced before dismissing it.

Since most of the sentiment here is leaning in Eastman's direction, I'll say a word for the 2145. It is a compact tuba, but it will do almost anything most players are likely to need to do. A large orchestra would be hard to support with it. Short of that it is very flexible. It will both whisper and roar. The low register is wide open. It's an easy tuba to hold (at least for me, easier ergonomically than the tuba I replaced it with). Some of them have given the model a reputation for being dull-sounding, but the one I owned (now owned by another Tubenetter) sounded colorful and alive.

All FWIW.

I've played one 2145, years ago, but really liked it. Easy to play, nice sound, try one before you buy to see if it fits you, 1st slide was too long for D in the staff.

I haven't played an Eastman but I did play a 56J for a few years. That had all sorts of problems- inconsistent response, sharp C in the staff, super hyper low C (fun, but didn't match anything else; if the whole horn sounded like that and the slide was setup wasn't so funky then it'd be super wow!),...

I still like all of the 1291/191 family best. Fun to play, great sound (incredible on the 191, what a kicking low F on that too), good intonation, great ergos and slide layout,... The 1291 C, to me, plays more evenly than the same in Bb but I like the Bb's sound more. And it's a super cool looking horn!

I agree with the comments on the M-W 2145 CC: easy to play, nice sound, in-tune, etc. Smaller bell & body than the Eastman CC, but a larger valve bore. Great all-around tuba.

I haven't played the Eastman CC, but it seems like a "CC version done right" of the King 2341 BBb, which is a good thing.

You may also look into a used Getzen G-50 "Canadian Brass" CC tuba, if you can find one for sale. Another great all-around tuba

I played on a small valve 2145 for years. I loved that tuba! It was good at everything and could also produce a huge amount of sound for such a small instrument. I kind of regret selling it, but the current owner is playing it professionally in a brass quintet. I've used it in almost every setting imaginable and it worked for all but the most extreme stuff. Everything was easy to play on it and I only pulled the 4th slide for a few notes in the pedal range. It was like driving a go-kart.

I highly recommend getting one. You can find them for cheaper than $5,000. I think I sold mine for less, actually.

southtubist wrote:I played on a small valve 2145 for years. I loved that tuba!

I had a chance to buy one a whole bunch of years ago at the USABTEC conference. It was amazing, I should have bought it.

Not only was it the small valve version, but also the smaller 16.5" bell. Although I also really like the BBC model 2145, it's definitely the result of size creep, and it's got bigger valves and a bigger bell.

I haven't played an Eastman, but I've heard great things. It's Chinese though, so Bort won't be buying one, even if he understands why other people will wait in line for one!

southtubist wrote:I played on a small valve 2145 for years. I loved that tuba! It was good at everything and could also produce a huge amount of sound for such a small instrument. I kind of regret selling it, but the current owner is playing it professionally in a brass quintet. I've used it in almost every setting imaginable and it worked for all but the most extreme stuff. Everything was easy to play on it and I only pulled the 4th slide for a few notes in the pedal range. It was like driving a go-kart.

I highly recommend getting one. You can find them for cheaper than $5,000. I think I sold mine for less, actually.

I had a small vale 2145 too. It was awesome and everything I would say is quoted above. I ended up selling mine for $4,500 five years ago.

Frank

I'll second the CB-50/G-50. They are great all-around horns and one of the best quintet horns you could get. I also use it for solos that are more suitable for contrabass. If you replace the factory leadpipe with a new one to correct the taper into the 5th valve, they can play like a small 5/4. If you look hard enough, you could probably find one in your budget. I got mine for 6,000, but it also has nearly 100% of the plating intact.

The 2145 is a fantastic Eb tuba... that happens to be in CC.

I love it, but it's not a loud tuba. I'd grab the Eastman between the two... intonation on the Eastman is grand as well.