Is It My Imagination.....

The Big Ben · Post by **The Big Ben** » Mon Jan 21, 2008 11:15 am

I think people put Miraphone in the same category as York. Dan is right, though- all parts can be purchased from Miraphone. Some repair guy is going to have a pretty easy payday.

Funny thing is, a MW 25 when for just over $1500 on Saturday. It was a nice one- new series (slides in front, miniballs) good shape (Minor scratches, bell had been crunched and not fixed really well) came with a hard case. It was at $1300 until the last minute when I bid $1500 with 5 sec left and got sniped by $50. I should have gone all out and bid higher but... Live and learn.

Jeff "MW 25 for less than a 186 knockoff- there's a deal!" Benedict

The Big Ben · Post by **The Big Ben** » Mon Jan 21, 2008 11:26 am

Tubaryan12 wrote: This is a good point, but it brings out another. A new 186 cost $5900 at WWBW. Would this one be as good as new with,....say $4ooo of total investment? The new owner may save a few hundred bucks and have a really cool story to tell as well about how this horn came back from the dead.

Would a 186 assembled by Matt Walters, Dan Oberloh, Joe S., Da n S., (yer favorite horn jockey) be better than a factory job? Might be. You could have the mouth pipe put exactly where you want it and any other little fetishes you desire at the same time. You could have it satin silvered and have Oberloh engrave a picture of Pamela Anderson on the bell if you really wanted to. That way, when someone made a comment about the 'boobs in the back row' you would know they weren't talking about the tuba players. Anything is possible with money.

WakinAZ · Post by **WakinAZ** » Mon Jan 21, 2008 2:13 pm

The Big Ben wrote:...Funny thing is, a MW 25 when for just over $1500 on Saturday. It was a nice one...

I thought I read in some old posts that the "Getzen" era of M-W 25s was not the best run of these horns. Maybe you're luckier than you realize, Jeff. I am also always a little wary of people who sell a lot of horns, but profess to know little about them.

Eric

The Big Ben · Post by **The Big Ben** » Mon Jan 21, 2008 5:17 pm

WakinAZ wrote:
The Big Ben wrote:...Funny thing is, a MW 25 when for just over $1500 on Saturday. It was a nice one...
I thought I read in some old posts that the "Getzen" era of M-W 25s was not the best run of these horns. Maybe you're luckier than you realize, Jeff. I am also always a little wary of people who sell a lot of horns, but profess to know little about them.

You could be right. It certainly wasn't marketed well. If a buyer didn't know what a MW25 actually looked like, one wouldn't have known what it was. It did have all of the slides up front and had miniball linkages for the valves so it wasn't an old one. If I had won it, I wasn't going to keep it for a long time because I want a different type of horn but it would have been an upgrade for me and, possibly, at that price I might have made a little dough when I sold it.

A few weeks ago, someone asked about MW25s and received positive input. I asked if they were comparable to a 186 except for personal preference and people agreed while making comments about the sound. Seems the 25 is supposed to have a 'darker' sound than a 186 but, otherwise, a very similar horn.

Jeff "Comparing Red Delicious to Granny Smith Apples" Benedict

Dan Schultz · Post by **Dan Schultz** » Mon Jan 21, 2008 7:21 pm

WakinAZ wrote:
The Big Ben wrote:...Funny thing is, a MW 25 when for just over $1500 on Saturday. It was a nice one...
... Eric

I'm not real sure about the differences between the Meinl 20 and Meinl 25 tubas. Also... whether if they were marketed by Getzen made a difference in the quality or not. One thing at a time:

1) In my research, the Meinl 25 was the same as the Meinl 20 except the bottom bow and the bell on the Meinl 25 was larger. The valveset was the same. I'm not sure when the change to move the 4th valve slide to the front came about but I'm not sure it was that way on the 25 only.
2) Getzen was the sole agent in the US for Meinl tubas for quite a while. I don't think there was any difference in quality between the horns because of this. The only thing that was different was the inscription on the bell.

This is about all I've been able to turn up on the Meinl-Getzen tubas. Don't bother to call DEG (Getzen) about serial numbers and such. I've been told that no records exist. Getzen also market the Marzan tubas. Same thing... no serial number or production records.

Maybe someone else can shed a little light on the Meinl 20 vs the Meinl 25 tubas.

windshieldbug · Post by **windshieldbug** » Mon Jan 21, 2008 10:17 pm

TubaTinker wrote:Getzen also market[ed] the Marzan tubas. Same thing... no serial number or production records.

Wouldn't matter... my Marzan doesn't have a serial number, anyway!