Importance of a 5th valve

Chriss2760 · Post by **Chriss2760** » Tue May 15, 2007 1:44 am

I'm still shopping around for a 4/4 BBb tuba. How important is having a 5th valve? If I buy a 4 valve horn am I always going to regret not having that extra valve?

No.

Chriss2760 · Post by **Chriss2760** » Tue May 15, 2007 1:50 am

I'm still shopping around for a 4/4 BBb tuba. How important is having a 5th valve? If I buy a 4 valve horn am I always going to regret not having that extra valve?

Should have been, "No, BBb horns don't need a 5th valve. Period." (You're thinking about the whole thing too much. )

LoyalTubist · Post by **LoyalTubist** » Tue May 15, 2007 7:48 am

Is he still around?

Teubonium · Post by **Teubonium** » Wed May 16, 2007 1:15 pm

LoyalTubist wrote:

Is he still around?

His last visit was October 24, 2004

Lee Stofer · Post by **Lee Stofer** » Thu May 17, 2007 10:22 am

Just because of the vast differences in tubas available, some need more valves than others. Generally, the larger, older, and more conical a tuba is, the better the privileged tones. I have owned a Conn 21J BBb that had absolutely no need for a 4th valve, and a 6-valve F tuba that needed EVERY ONE. The Kanstul 5/4 BBb tuba has 4 valves, a tune-any-note main tuning slide trigger, and an upper 4th valve slide that has an approx. 14" pull, which makes a 1-2-3-4/ long 4th pull low B-natural a really nice, usable note. That horn has no need for a 5th, as it was intelligently designed to play everything well without it.