ABSTRACT:
I have a 3/4 Rudolf Meinl C tuba for sale in Columbus, OH for $5500 firm. I'm not willing to ship (sorry!). It is unlacquered, has just a few small dents, and includes an old Alteri gig bag.
I'll start with images. Then, I'll walk you through what I know about the instrument's condition. I'll then tell you how I think it plays, and why I'm selling.
IMAGES:
For higher quality pics, and close-ups of the small dents I've found, check out the following album. http://imgur.com/a/55TWf
CONDITION AND ORIGINS:
I bought this tuba from an estate sale. The previous owner appears to have taken great care of the instrument. It has no serial number, but my repair guy estimates that it was made in the 70's. It was chem cleaned before I obtained it, and my repair guy did a bit of detail work to take out a few dents and tighten up the action of the linkages. I was pleasantly surprised by the aforementioned s linkages, as they're quite quiet!
The instrument has only one modification that I could find. The previous owner seems to have installed a trumpet's third valve slide stopper on the first vale slide to prevent you from accidentally pulling it out.
PLAYING CHARACTERISTICS:
WOW! This is the horn that I wish I had as an undergrad (as opposed to my big B&S)! It's incredibly responsive and easy to play in all registers. It works really well for the kind of stuff that you have to do as a music major (solo, quintet, brass ensemble, wind ensemble). Super versatile!
As far as intonation goes, I find the G, Gb, and F in the staff to be spot on (a problem in some Rudys), and the E, Eb, and D in the staff to be low, requiring me to use 1-2, 2-3, and 1-3 as alternates. Of course, I advise you to try before you buy and make your own judgement!
This horn responds really well to mouthpiece changes. With big ones, it sounds like a big tuba, and with small ones, it's not hard to imitate an 'F' tuba kind of sound.
For big ensemble stuff, I really like a (boring) Conn Helleberg for this horn. Lots of fun in the low register! For quintets and solo work, I have an old PT-7 (the modern equivalent is a PT-68 I think) that adds a bit of 'fire' to the sound without compromising the low register much. This horn can do it all!
WHY I'M SELLING:
I bought it for somewhat sappy reasons. My teacher used to regret selling his way back in the 90s, and when I had to opportunity to get one myself, I really couldn't resist! But as a hobbyist who has a small apartment, it's hard to justify having two C tubas!
Especially when one isn't used very often. I've been doing a lot of large orchestra playing recently, so even though I consider the Rudy to be a better all around tuba, I slightly prefer my 5/4 ish B&S for the playing opportunities I have right now.
CONCLUSION:
The price is $5500 firm. This horn rocks. Please don't hesitate to PM me with questions!
Daniel
