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I'd love to hear some stories about those of us whom choose to play on smaller (ie 3/4 size or less) tubas.

Why did you choose a small tuba?
What does it do better than a 4/4
What does it do worse etc.

I play on a second hand YCB621. I play trad jazz in a small 4 piece.there were no tubas around so I had to buy sight unseen and the 621 seemed like a good bet.the other reason for buying was Bob Stewart plays one and i wanted to play like him. (Still working on that )

It's plenty loud enough for our acoustic gigs, and certainly louder than the bass sax I was playing before that. If we play big venues i mike it up.

I like the 3/4 horn because it is smaller and lighter and easier to hold than a larger instrument. I play in small groups which do not need the potential power of a 4/4+ instrument. I have owned a Mira 186 and a King 2340 which were both fine instruments but I prefer the Olds 099-4 I'm using now. Plenty of bottom end, fantastic valves after an Oberloh valve job and every group I have played in thought it fit in well. I did have a Conn 20J for a few weeks and just didn't enjoy the weight and the lumbering nature of the sound. It was filled with dents and an aspiring repair tech advertised for "something with a few dents in it" and, since I didn't really like it, I sold it. The fella did take it apart, remove the dents and got it back together. Good for him because most guys do a great job on the taking apart but a poor job of the putting back together...

I second the Olds O99-4. I've owned several bigger tubas in both BBb and CC. Now I wouldn't trade my Olds for anything. It's perfect for all my playing and teaching needs.

Define small. I have had a travel tuba for which I found a lot of applications. The small portable size is a real advantage. I look forward to the Bubbie Mark 5 coming out this summer.

I'm a fan.

Since I don't do any orchestral/large ensemble playing, it only makes sense.

I believe that recent technology has made it such that smaller tubas sound better than they used to. I've got a YCB-621 myself, which does all I need it to do--and I'm thinking of moving to a Wessex Mighty Gnome--even better on the back. Heck, I can always mic it if I need to.

Borrowed a friends 184 CC 5v years back for come chamber gigs. Loved it, still trying to buy it from them. As long as you do not need a real big "symphonic" sound (for the lack of a better word) it is a very fine instrument especially for doing some acrobatic playing. A good mp (fairly deep with some volume) will help beef the sound up a bit.

One friend mentioned he thought of it as his "F tuba" only in CC.

Yep big fan here. My Conn 10J 3/4 is my everyday horn. It's really my all purpose use tuba. I'm not playing in any big group right now and I love being able to throw it in the truck and go. Perfect for quintet, solos, and for standing up while playing. Just recently let a friend borrow it to play in a fairly large community band and it held it's own against the 4/4+ tubas. It can sound pretty nice and big with a helleburg mouthpiece. (Has a .695 bore) It's definitely my favorite small horn. Just wish it had a fourth valve but three is just fine for my needs on that horn.

I'm moving toward a smaller tuba, mostly because physically it is easier to carry and handle.

I bought a Meinl Weston 182 about a year ago. I expect it to be my last horn, and that it will keep me playing years after I'm too old to haul around a horn twice the size. It has already been employed where the bigger horn couldn't fit.

I play a 182 as well. It's the most versatile F that I've played. I have it for that reason.

I have played it in a full sized orchestra, brass quintet, for solo literature, to cover euphonium parts, to play jazz/blues gigs, oom-pah in a 3 to 12 piece polka band, and to cover cimbasso and sackbut parts. I also use it for my teaching horn, since I can make the rounds of tuba and euphonium students with just the one horn. No one has ever complained that it is too big or too small.

I have a PT6 for when I need a big sound. I don't need a full sized F tuba to...also make a big sound. I have the 3/4 F for a do-everything-else-that-doesn't-require-a-huge-sound horn.

My "go to" instrument has always been my CC Piggy. Big bore, compact wrap. Nimble, but can hold its own. I also had a MW 182 F. I wish I had never sold it, for all the reasons mentioned above. By the way, both the Piggy and the 182 are very well-made instruments.

I love my Walter Sear piggy. Great horn!

Roger

For small club, indoor gigs or streetwalking jazz I like 3/4 horns. My Yamaha YBC-621 converted to BBb works very well in a lot of situations, but I have larger horns - tuba, helicon, and Sousaphone available when needed. I know this is not typical for some tuba players, but with careful shopping you can find a mix of used horns to fit the possible situations.

If I had to own only one horn, without amplification, it would be a 4 valve brass BBb Sousaphone. Not exactly pretty or most comfortable for some jobs, but for what I do it works the best for sound projection and gig-ability.

I also play in small acoustic ensembles, sometimes simply playing bass for a guitarist friend, blues and trad. jazz and I love small horns.

After looking (buying, trying, selling) for a couple of years and being not thrilled with the 0-99's; 1140's, Yamaha student models, etc. I lucked into an old German four valve 3/4 and it is just perfect for me. It plays effortlessly in tune and has a beautiful full voice. It can be louder than a string bass but when playing outdoors without amplification I will usually use one of my 4/4 Kings.

I also own an original BBb Cerveny tornister but rarely play it in performance as it doesn't have the low end presence.

Wow--you don't see horns like those everyday! I love the authenticity of the s linkages on the valves. I have them on my Piggy as original equipment. They work great, and I have never been a fan of replacing them.
Both of those horns in the picture look like they have avoided major damage, too. Really cool!

I am not sure how tubas are divided into 3/4, 7/8, 15/16, 4/4 etc. Weight? Height? Bore? Combination? Consensus opinion? Arbitrary?

I assume "smaller tuba" means less than 4/4? (The 15/16 is meant humorously, though I'm not positive that there isn't such a critter.)

Or is this one of those questions you don't ask ... you either know it intuitively or you just don't get it?

I have a Conn 5J and would guess it is a 4/4 but it might be 3/4? It has an 18" bell and stands about 36" high, I believe.

Tom Coffey wrote:Wow--you don't see horns like those everyday! I love the authenticity of the s linkages on the valves. I have them on my Piggy as original equipment. They work great, and I have never been a fan of replacing them.
Both of those horns in the picture look like they have avoided major damage, too. Really cool!

I love both of these and RE: Tuben below feel fortunate to own them.

The Schuster is all original excepting:
1. The cap was missing from the screw holding the 4th valve's stop arm. I purchased an appropriate period five pfennig piece on ebay, counterbored it and soldered it on.

2. The 4th valve slide is something that I fabricated. The original matches the 3rd slide in length and makes the 4th valve 2+3. Being used to 1+3 4th valve, this slide works better even though it looks a bit weird.

The Cerveny seems unusually near mint except:
1. I think that the 2nd valve slide is not original (they usually had the "thermometer bulb" slide and the color looks wrong.

2, The MTS has a curly queue that I think was added to drop it to modern pitch.

Given that I know of only one other functional BBb Cerveny tornister I can live with those unoriginal bits, especially since it is quite playable.

Loving the 3/4 tuba.

How much tuba does one need to get their lip back and play the second part at Tuba Christmas??

The Schuster and the Cerveny have that old-world mojo phenomenon happening, in multiples! There is something reassuring about history being carried forward in a living way like this. Congratulations on finding and maintaining those horns!