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My local middle school band teacher has asked for advice. He has a huge Besson BBb and 2 small Yamahas (105's I think) and wants something in between. I thought of Conn 2J/5J, that sort of size. Valve type and configuration is not crucial, 4 valves preferred, but not a deal breaker. Don't forget, these horns are handled by 12-14 year old school kids, so they need to be a little robust.
I am not familiar enough with everything out there, but it looks like all the "3/4" sized horns are clones of the YBB 105 with the 16" bell and smallish bore. A King 2341 might be the right size but pretty heavy. Oh yeah, budget is under $3000 if possible. My advice is to look for a refurbished 5J or Olds . Whaddya think?

Wessex's entry-level BBbs would be the first place I'd look IMHO. I just like the personal touch they put on thier JinBao product. I had a recent good experience buying a horn from Jonathan. In terms of other reputable stencil-distributing vendors with showrooms you may want to visit, Mack is the closest drive to you, followed by Dillon, then... if you want a road trip... Tuba Exchange (in order of shortest to longest drives) if my mental geography is correct.

11j or 12J conns are a good size along with olds 99 series. Don't count the Yamaha 103 and 104 out if you can find them. Heavier than the new 105"S and can handle some abuse.

bloke wrote:The answer seems obvious, no...(??)

- Bide your time and find a good/used "new style" King 2341, or buy a new Eastman knock-off of this model.

I have a 'new?" 2341 for my kids. Works really well, good sound:easy for 13 year old to hold ratio.

the 12J or 5J are good options, there is also a King 1135 (I think) which is sort of a 7/8 sized horn with the 12J valve set. unfortunagtely these will be over the $3000 price range unless you can buy used.

Jupiter has a 7/8 sized horn too, with four valves, (432? now the JTU1010?), but again they are expensive.

the old Olds 99 is nice too but no one seems to make a horn like that right now.

Dillon Music has two horns that they stencil, a 1795 which is a small four rotor valve BBb (which is coincidentally $1795), and a 7/8 model which looks like a copy of the King 1140. these two are well within your friend's budget
kk

bloke wrote:The answer seems obvious, no...(??)

- Bide your time and find a good/used "new style" King 2341, or buy a new Eastman knock-off of this model.

+1.

bloke wrote:The answer seems obvious, no...(??)

- Bide your time and find a good/used "new style" King 2341, or buy a new Eastman knock-off of this model.

Agreed