Kanstul 90

[jrobba]

I am thinking about buying a Kanstul 90. I played Steve Ferguson's for a little while at The Horn Guys last week and to say the least, I was very impressed by it.

I am coming off of a 6/4 York, and I'm trying to downsize to something that will better suite my playing needs in a brass quintet, and in a concert band tuba section with two other players.

Has anybody played one of these horns yet?

[bort]

No... but if you're on the fence about it, I'd say just buy it. At the worst, you'd end up wanting to sell it, and could recover nearly 100% of the money you spent with people lining up for the chance.

[Bob Kolada]

It is a very nice horn with a great low range. One of the Kanstul guys told me it sounds like his big contrabass in an auditorium. An interesting aside, you can pull the 3rd and 4th slides most of the way to get a low F with all 5 valves.
I like the Miraphone 1281 a bit more but both are great horns.

---wrong horn, sorry!---

[Ferguson]

(Bob's thinking of the 80 F, rather than the 90 CC.)

Bob, did you try the CC?

Ferguson

[Bob Kolada]

(Bob's thinking of the 80 F, rather than the 90 CC.)
Bob, did you try the CC?
Ferguson

Damnit! Sorry I was indeed thinking of the F (thought -that- was the 90).

[jrobba]

I'm going to have to try the F out now too!

[EdFirth]

I played the C and the F here in Orlando and they are both superb.I didn't find any unfriendly notes in any register and everything blows consistantly. But the big deal to me is the sound. These things sound fantastic. To me, playing it and to me listening to it being played. I've not heard any other horn except old Yorks that have this warm colorful sound. And you can really push them without the sound getting wierd. Good Luck, Ed

[Frank Ortega]

One of my students bought one, and she sounds fantastic.
The interesting thing about the American "Monster" tuba design, is that in the audience, they sound much bigger than they are.

However, be sure you go over the entire horn with a tuner. After purchasing, we found some unusual quirks. Not sure if that's common with this line.

My two cents,
Frank Ortega

[bort]

This tuba seems pretty short, meaning that the bell would be pretty close to your head/ears (like the Getzen G50). I've spent only a very small amount of time on the Getzen, but trying one (and playing alongside one a few times), I also remember that sounding bigger than I thought it would out front.

I see that as neither positive nor negative, but something that requires careful attention, practice, and feedback. Any time I end up with a new/different tuba, I can't wait for the chance to hear a recording of it in a group for that sort of "if I play like this, it sounds like this" kind of feedback. Trials are funny like that -- within minutes, I seem to know if I want to buy a tuba or not. But then it takes a few months of really putting it through the ringer (practice, rehearsal, and performance) to decide if I want to *keep* it.

[Bill Troiano]

For those of you who have played the Kanstul CC and have also played one of Sam Gnagey's tubas, are they comparable? Both have the same bore size and many of Sam's tubas have a York bell.

[bort]

Good question!

[bort]

Another interesting note -- looks like Baltimore Brass is a dealer for these, too. Cool!

[UTSAtuba]

From those who own the new Kanstul CC, or have owned similar horns, what is your take on the small bore/large bell combination?

From what I've read, owners of these similar horns dislike the way the sound gets "up front" or to the audience, but love the way it sounds up close. Agree or Disagree?

Joseph

[Ferguson]

A cart of tuba bows at the Kanstul factory:

[Bill Troiano]

I heard a prominent tubist play The Planets with a big orchestra in NYC, using a Conn 54J. His sound was very present from where I was sitting. On my Gnagey tuba, I've had 2 conductors tell me they could use more tuba sound, yet people in the audience said the sound was present and well balanced. What does it mean? I dunno. Bore size? Bell size? Horn? Player? Hall? I play a horn that is easy to deal with and sounds good to me from my chair!

[jrobba]

Thank you all for you're invaluable input. I will be purchasing one of these bad boys in silver plate soon!

[jrobba]

From those who own the new Kanstul CC, or have owned similar horns, what is your take on the small bore/large bell combination?

With this being said, I am wondering what a good mouthpiece "pairing" would be with this tuba. I usually play on bowl mpcs with tight backbores on contrabass tubas to get the sound that I desire.

This horn has a smaller initial bore than I'm used to. Any thoughts on a good mouthpiece "paring?"

[Lee Stofer]

I have been able to play several of the new Kanstul model 90 CC tubas, and have played two or three of Sam Gnagey's creations, as well as several Getzen G-50 tubas and original Yorks. All of the above play well, but only the Kanstuls have really tight valves, so they have a certain edge because of that.

I was impressed enough by the Kanstul model 90 that I fully intend to get one for my personal instrument this year. It is not a 6/4 instrument, but it projects more sound into the hall than I could have anticipated. The agility of the instrument, combined with a sound not available in a new instrument for many years, makes this instrument very desirable to me.

Mr. Kanstul keeps on developing the instrument, too. The last one to arrive at my shop has a receiver with three different-sized threaded receivers, so that just about any mouthpiece shank can achieve a great fit.

The Kanstul 18 is a good mouthpiece, but I have been pairing my Geib mouthpiece with the CC's as the deep bowl and medium backbore allows for a gorgeous sound that is very manageable. Do not be deceived by an apparently small bore size. One customer that play-tested the tuba in December said that it felt more like an .800" bore than .656". The instrument is free-blowing, but does not respond very well to "forcing". Playing relaxed is the key to a York-style instrument.

[jrobba]

I'll have to test play a kanstul 18.

Despite their cost, I am also looking into a monette 95 or 97.

Does anybody distribute monettes in southern california?

[Carson McTeer]

Lee Stofer pretty much hit the nail on the head with his description of the 90. I've been playing on one for the past 8 months or so and I absolutely love it. Originally, I'd anticipated it being exclusively my quintet horn but found that it really sounded fantastic with the Orchestra as well (It's not my primary orchestral horn for large orchestrations, but it can get by on just about anything). It has a VERY nice blend with the trombones and is a joy to play. Like Lee said, I find the Stofer Geib to be a perfect fit on this horn.

I think anyone looking to purchase a tuba right now should give this thing a shot, it's an opportunity to get a great tuba at a great price and buy American as well.