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CC to BBb

Posted: Fri Oct 12, 2018 12:40 am
by IsaacTuba
Just out of curiosity, I’d never actually try to do it. Is it possible to covert a CC tuba to BBb by adding tubes and piping? It’d be an interesting project to try and figure out.

Re: CC to BBb

Posted: Fri Oct 12, 2018 8:57 am
by iiipopes
The problem is the ratio of cylindrical to straight tubing. That can foul up overtone series intonation.

Re: CC to BBb

Posted: Fri Oct 12, 2018 11:32 pm
by Art Hovey
Mirafone used to sell a double-loop tuning slide for converting their CC tuba into BBb. Back in the mid-1960s one of their advertising photos showed someone using one. In the early 1970s the flat-whole-step 5th valves started appearing, so anybody with such a horn could switch it to sort of a BBb tuba just by holding down the 5th and pulling some slides. But the result was never satisfactory as a BBb tuba.

Re: CC to BBb

Posted: Sat Oct 13, 2018 11:28 pm
by DouglasJB
I believe the B&S Neptune is set where the stop arm on the 5th can be turned (engaged when valve is not depressed) and a slightly shorter 5rh valve (to put the horn with 5th in BBb). I believe this was done for the German market, but I could be mistaken.

Re: CC to BBb

Posted: Sun Oct 14, 2018 7:36 am
by Tabor
If you used a cc tuba that was based on a B-flat tuba design you may be able to (re) introduce different (like the original design) parts that taper more slowly.

Re: CC to BBb

Posted: Sun Oct 14, 2018 9:51 am
by Three Valves
DouglasJB wrote:I believe the B&S Neptune is set where the stop arm on the 5th can be turned (engaged when valve is not depressed) and a slightly shorter 5rh valve (to put the horn with 5th in BBb). I believe this was done for the German market, but I could be mistaken.
Can an Eb be played as a BBb successfully the way??

Re: CC to BBb

Posted: Sun Oct 14, 2018 10:23 am
by roweenie
Three Valves wrote:
DouglasJB wrote:I believe the B&S Neptune is set where the stop arm on the 5th can be turned (engaged when valve is not depressed) and a slightly shorter 5rh valve (to put the horn with 5th in BBb). I believe this was done for the German market, but I could be mistaken.
Can an Eb be played as a BBb successfully the way??
Isn't it tuba folklore that AJ got into Curtis by taping the 4th valve down on an E flat tuba, making it a de facto BB flat horn?

Re: CC to BBb

Posted: Sun Oct 14, 2018 10:32 am
by Art Hovey
I met a tubist from the Salvation Army New York Staff band back in the 1960s who said he studied with Bill Bell using his compensating four-valve Eb tuba. He said he used it as a BBb tuba for par of his lessons by clamping down the 4th valve. But I do know that it would be pretty awful on a non-compensating tuba.

Re: CC to BBb

Posted: Sun Oct 14, 2018 11:44 am
by Radar
It would probably be easier and you would get better results trying to find someone with a similar horn in BBb who wanted to switch to CC and be willing to trade horns. Put the word out there on here, and other Tuba related sites on FB etc.

Re: CC to BBb

Posted: Tue Oct 16, 2018 3:04 am
by Ken Herrick
Yes to the Jake story.

I often used his Holton CC for lessons. By using a rubber band to hold the 5th valve and pulling slides it made a pretty good BBb.

That was certainly a lot easier than lugging my King back and forth by "L", train and a fair walk from the station to his house.

For that matter is beat hauling a tuba up and down the steep, narrow steps to his studio in the basement.