Practicality of switching to 5V Eb

[DouglasJB]

After switching to one horn I found I miss having a CC, most of the playing I do is in chamber music where having an F tuba works beautifully, but from time to time I would like to be able to play in a community band or community orchestra. For those who have used a 5V Eb tuba such as Willson 3400, PT22, MW2141 or the BMB Eb, do you feel comfortable using the horn as a "do it all" horn? For average groups do you ever find you are lacking on the low end?

[DouglasJB]

That's kinda what I'm thinking, leaning towards a willson

[MaryAnn]

I find I can do anything on my Norwegian Star. Someone bigger than I am would be able to carry the low part; it is not very stuffy down low and has the advantage that it can play pedal D, and Db a whole lot less stuffy than a CC would. Really with this tuba all you have to do is blow.

[DouglasJB]

I agree Mark, the 6/4 Eb Wessex has mentioned would be great, I'm excited.

I find myself playing bass tuba more because it feels more comfortable, the low range us easier to play (pedals) but the lack the weight that a contrabass has

[jpwell]

I play a mw2141. Play it in all settings pretty much works in all settings. Low G under the staff is good, low F way down there is a little bit of a chore. I finger 1345 lots of tube to fill. Pedal notes come out easy. High range easy too. There are days I think of selling my contra. It’s an easy blow too. My 2 cents

[Levaix]

Is there a practical reason you can't pick up a cheaper BBb or CC? When I got my Eb that's the tuba I played in community band, but to be honest the novelty is starting to wear off. A contrabass tuba (IN GENERAL) just feels better in that setting. That being said if I owned a PT-22p I think the novelty may have lasted considerably longer.

[swillafew]

My F tuba strategy is now to use the big mouthpiece on it. I aim to be F only very soon. I won't be as loud as some, but I wasn't on a big horn either.

[Phil Dawson]

I use a Besson 983 4 valve compensating and it will hold its own in almost any setting. I do have a Miraphone 1293 when it doesn't quite get the job done. Phil

[marccromme]

I play a mw2141. Play it in all settings pretty much works in all settings. Low G under the staff is good, low F way down there is a little bit of a chore. I finger 1345 lots of tube to fill. Pedal notes come out easy. High range easy too. There are days I think of selling my contra. It’s an easy blow too. My 2 cents

^^^ This!!! My MW2141 works very well in community and brass band. And solo stuff. Just and even intonation in entire range, nice bite and core to the sound. It likes more cup-shaped mouthpieces, I use a DW Ultra 4 and 2 (The 3 number is also OK).

Only disadvantage over a 4+1 compensating horn is the fingering in the low range, which is less intuitive. The big advantage over most 19'' bell Eb 4+1 I have tried is better core and high register, and better intonation.

This horn really sings!

[DouglasJB]

Is there a practical reason you can't pick up a cheaper BBb or CC? When I got my Eb that's the tuba I played in community band, but to be honest the novelty is starting to wear off. A contrabass tuba (IN GENERAL) just feels better in that setting. That being said if I owned a PT-22p I think the novelty may have lasted considerably longer.

I've used CC, Eb and F, and have always gone to the smaller horn when playing on ensembles, my CC sat for months before I sold it, I just feel more comfortable on Bass tuba. I know it's odd, but for the playing I do (community band, brass ensemble, teaching HS students, both tuba and euph) bass tuba works better. Just trying to find the right horn.

[Patrase]

If you could add a 6th valve to the 5 valve Eb tuba that would help fill in the intonation gaps in the low register. Would be pretty easy to hunt around for a used 2nd valve, in the right bore, off a rotary Bb tuba - then get a tech to plumb that into the 4th valve circuit as a dependent valve. I am very tempted to do that to my 5v Eb. But the cheap side of me says learn Bb fingerings ( I can only read treble clef on the Bb tuba I own).

[oedipoes]

Norwegian star with big enough mouthpiece should work... (I would use the Tilz WH-B1)
However, I would prefer my besson comp. Eb or better even my Rudi BBb for larger groups...

[Donn]

I play a 5v Eb in a community band, but there are 2 or three others with BBb tubas. In that context, it's fine. If I was by myself and all I had was an Eb, I'd want it to be a really big Eb

I have a really big Eb, and while I guarantee it's not the one you'd want, of my two Ebs it would be the one that I'd take if all I could have was an Eb. I've played my little Italian Eb a little during a band practice, and it was kind of buried, while the big one could hold its own. But that doesn't mean I'd be providing the same kind of low end weight that I would with a 4/4 BBb. Better in combination with a BBb.

[DouglasJB]

Life changed and getting married and starting a family I found I needed to downsize and go to one tuba. The Eb made sense to keep because I could use it for more stuff that CC tuba was just too big for some things at least with me trying to play it.

This is the thinking I have on it, as far as using Eb as the only tuba in a concert band, I completely understand it's not ideal, and NORMALLY there is atleast 1 more player. Aside from the Willson 3400 and MW2141 are there any other Eb's (4P 1R) you guys have used successfully as a "do it all" horn?

[GC]

For some of us it becomes a matter of mental flexibility. I will fully admit that I still have BBb moments galore when sight-reading even though I moved to Eb exclusively about a decade ago. I play a 4-valve Conn monster, and below low A the 4th valve fingerings have to be shifted a half step down; Ab is 124 through 1234 for low F (very sharp) and there is no E just above the pedal Eb. Ab, G, and Gb are easy to adjust into pitch, but the F is difficult. If the music is moving quickly in that register, the change in fingerings slows me down a lot, and even more in treble clef. My normal solution, false tones, does not work well on this instrument.

In my case switching to a 5-valve horn would only add to the confusion, though it would definitely help intonation issues. Instead, I plan to switch over to a compensating horn soon, even if it has its own set of intonation quirks, just to simplify the fingering issues.

[Steginkt]

If only we could split the difference and have a tuba in D

[DouglasJB]

Im trying to split the difference between F and CC, Eb is about as close as I can get. Haha

[GC]

If only we could split the difference and have a tuba in D

Didn't Roger Bobo have tubas built in D and G?

[opus37]

I ve been playing an Eb for the last 30 years. I did start out on a BBb, but after a 10 year sabbatical, I found an Eb at an auction for a very attractive price and just started playing it. I have had a lot of Eb horns over the years. The one that I prefer to play is a Miraphone EEb 383. It is an older one similar to a Norwegian Star. I also have a Kanstul 66T. I find the Miraphone does everything, but I like the more mellow sound on the Kanstul for band. The Miraphone is great for solo and brass quintet. If I had to downsize to only one horn, it would be the Miraphone.

[greatk82]

I had no problem supporting a 30 piece community band today on my Eb Frankentuba. The tritone 5th calve seems to help.