TubeNet

Why do you choose to play one over the other ?

Not looking for a discussion of one being better than another ...ie. silver better than lacquer . It seems to me that there is no real eveidence that silver sounds better or brighter.
That has been done here many times already. I would like know what the other reasons might be for YOUR choice of covering for your horn.

Lacquer.

Reason: personal preference. The gold/brass/yellow color just seems warmer to me while silver just seems colder. I have nothing against silver. Instruments look good and if I could only buy what I wanted in silver, I guesss I would. It's just what I feel better holding. Nothing else.

oldbandnerd wrote:It seems to me that there is no real eveidence that silver sounds better or brighter.

I think you are correct; but it does seem like all the pros use silver euphoniums.

How about a compromise?



ATR213Z Stardust Matt Metallic Silver Lacquer Finish with Brass and Silver Plated Accents.

Anyone noticed that Amati's now marketing under the "Bohland &Fuchs" and "Stowasser" brands too? Darned shame, that.

I'm not sure how to answer... my euphonium isn't either...
What can I say? I just like gold! And they really knew how to build them back in the day...

I played on gold euphoniums from the ages of nine to seventeen - eight years. When then time came to buy my own horn, of course I wanted a silver one!

- Jamie

I prefer silver. It's a more durable finish. Just wipe off the finger prints when you're through.

Years ago I used to think that a silver euph produced a different tone than a lacquered one, but now I think there's very little -- if any difference.

Whatever - I'm just glad to own a nice horn. It happens to be lacquer.

My new euph is silver, I think silver looks better.

The silver seems to require more care, I'm constantly wiping the finger/hand prints to prevent tarnish. With laquer I don't see the finger/hand prints and never worried about wiping the horn after playing.

The silver seems to require more care, I'm constantly wiping the finger/hand prints to prevent tarnish. With laquer I don't see the finger/hand prints and never worried about wiping the horn after playing.

This comment goes to the hart of why I put up this post. I too spent a lot of time caring for the finish of my silver euph. I wanted to know if any others had this problem

I would be very particular of this horn even if it was lacquer simply because it will most likely be the only one I will ever own. But I find I have to literally wash it down every week or two. It seems the fingerprints and bodyoils I leave on it don't really wipe off they just smear and the finish gets cloudy looking. I use a soft microfiber cloth that is kept clean and not used for anything else .

A couple of others had said that their silver horns were easy to keep clean. I always thought that lacquer was easier to maintain.

I don't have much trouble keeping my silver euph clean of fingerprints. I also use one of those 'micro-fiber' cloths (forget the full name, but says it's finer than silk). All the prints wipe off pretty easily.

I try not to polish the horn too often -- maybe once every 4 months. I use the Hagerty's gloves which work really well. Hagerty's polish contains an additive that gives some protection against future tarnish. My euph is a Yamaha-641S and about 14 years old.

My complaint with lacquer is that after a few years, the lacquer starts to wear off where ever you touch it.

"My complaint with lacquer is that after a few years, the lacquer starts to wear off where ever you touch it."

The same happens with silver, the plating wears off where you touch it. It has on the Yamaha 642 and Besson 765 that sit next to me. I'm not sure how many years of use it takes to wear the silver plating.

My silver care philosophy:
-always carry a clean microfiber cloth, wipe the obvious stuff everytime you play before you put it away
-once a week, just prior to a performance or rehearsal, wipe the horn with a treated silver polishing cloth (mine is Bach)
-every few months, at bath time, use 3M Tarni-shield or Hagerty silver polish
-never use anything more abrasive than Hagerty