Amati Kraslice

[pjdicris]

I have a chance to purchase a 4 rotor Amati Kraslice BBb (date unknown, but an older model) from a friend's uncle for college (music education major) use. I have not tried it out yet, but I am curious about how well these tubas tend to play and how it compares (sound, ease of playing, etc.) to a 186. From what I'm aware of, this horn get frequently touched up by repair shops. I am curious about general opinions about this horn.

[Lee Stofer]

I have worked on several of these, and they can be a good tuba. They generally are not quite what a good Mirafone is, but for the price they were a good, less-expensive alternate. The fit-and-finish, particularly of the valves and linkage, is less than perfect, and I'd suspect that the 2-3 Ab at the top of the staff might be squirrelly, but it should work well for your purposes.

[tbn.al]

Lee worked on an old Amati for me years ago. It then belonged to a member of this board who just recently sold it. His sales posts might give you some insight if these are the same vintage. He is a very good player and an honest joe.

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[PaulTkachenko]

The rotors on my Amati helicon needed some serious sorting out and I'm now in the process of replacing the linkages as well.

Then it should be fine - but I have thrown a lot of money at it ...

It's not an amazing instrument, but it kind of works.

[Alex C]

I played a small Amati CC for a year or two. I used it in quintet and small group gigs.

I really thought it was a pretty good tuba but when I picked up another horn (a 3J I think) I found I was working a lot less to get a lot better results. The BBb Amati's that I have played reminded me of that and I don't recommend them.

Bottom line, these are okay tubas for some circumstances. If you're majoring in music ed and need a horn to get you through college it might work but if you are a serious performance major this isn't the horn you're looking for. I'd be surprised if you get a ringing endorsement on this purchase.

Buy it cheap in any case. You can find a used 186 in decent condition in the low $2000's if you have time to spend looking.

[bort]

What is the asking price? That might help the freak jury (myself included) give you some advice if it's worth it or if there are better options for the money.

[Bondejohnson]

I have owned a couple of both the Amati 4v's and Mirafone 186's. All from the 1970's. To draw an automotive analogy...as we are dealing with large chunks of metal here....in my opinion, the Amati is like a mid/low end family sedan in fit and finish, the Mirafone/Miraphone 186 like a lower end luxury sedan in fit and finish. - When you shut the door the Mirafone feels more solid. - The Amati's I have owned and/or played were just okay. A bit clunky linkage wise. The Mirafones were certainly several steps up the chain - quieter/better linkages and superior finishes. Having owned and played both, I would find a decent used Mirafone over the Amati if your budget allows. My 2 cents. Good luck!

[jeopardymaster]

As I recall, one of the significant drawbacks of at least one of the CC models is extremely awkward and short pulls on slides 3 and 4. That goes back to 1970s/1980s vintage instruments. Not sure whether that has been addressed. Problem was fixable but kind of a pain in the butt to do - lots of rerouting of pipes. That said, I have found that the horns play very nicely for the money, not as stellar as the Hradec Kralove (???) horns can be (when you find a really good one) but more consistent.

[pjdicris]

As I'm playing through this horn, it sounds very good. Relavtively in tune, good open tone, responds to dynamic increases well. Anyway, there seems to be a serial numer: 01154. Does anyone have any info about this specific kind (make/model/year)?

[sailn2ba]

This looks like it could be one of the really good ones! I have an Amati BBb 4rv (C681) that's a lovely horn. . . easily speaks, in tune, works great for small and large ensembles.
I DID put a set of monster weights onto the valves. . . IMO and that of my conductor, those tamed the growl on fff passages. Some folks say that the relatively thin brass promotes resonance. Maybe so. . . but I have no problem with assertion when I need it.
BTW, I also have a Miraphone 185, and I like it, too. . . but it has only 3 valves (with the old "S" linkages). It IS a bit more "solid (heavier brass, slower valves)" .
All I can say is. . . play it and see if you like it!!

[toobagrowl]

If it helps, amati rotor tubas are the same a cerveny tubas, and some of the older of those horns can be very good to great horns

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