Army Band Conference tuba reviews...

[bort]

Go!

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Nice! Was the Miraphone Kaiser one of the ones you sold?

[Three Valves]

The Miraphone 496 won the “if money were no object” award again this year.

It felt more resonant and seemed easier to play than the 186 or 187. I prefer the 496 lead pipe and wrap.

The B&S GR51 is also a favorite. While the Eastman copy is very good, it sounded and felt dull playing them side by side.

While I consider myself a rotary convert, the Eastman King copy could win me back.

The new piston and rotary BBb (ZO) at Mack Brass were impressive, with the nod going to the rotary. The valves feel good right out of the box, while my 210 benefited from being worn in over time and a sonic cleaning.

The 3/4 BBb piston is a vast improvement over the narrow bore rotary he’s had for some time. A larger bell, bore, improved lower range and less barking.

I played the 200 finally, and while it seemed to have an improved low range over my 210, I still prefer the 210s shape, it is easier to hold and I like the bell not so far from my head.

Met up with the blokes, talked mouthpieces, bassoons and Outlander, much fun.

The bacon cheeseburger combo at the bowling ally did not disappoint...

[cjk]

Though I have never been to the Army Band tuba conference, I always find this annual thread interesting.

[Rick Denney]

Baltimore Brass brought a Rudy Meinl 5/4 Bb (4 valves) that was quite decent, and a classic big rotary tuba sound.

And they brought a rare, rare, rare Rudy 6/4, which is the biggest tuba any of us would ever consider intended for serious use. Given the massive bore and size of the branches, the expectation is a vacuum cleaner to suck the air right out of you. Not so—it’s so resonant it’s actually not difficult to play. Getting all it has to offer—that may be another story. But it’s just awesome in every dimension. Bring your checkbook—the current owner is not giving it away.

The Miraphone Firebird continues to impress me, as always.

The Wessex British F played really well, but I thought it likely to be mouthpiece sensitive. My usual F-tuba mouthpiece (a Sellmansberger Solo) sang beautifully on the staff, but I struggled with it a bit in the top octave, compared to my F tubas. Sound was clear and musical. With the right mouthpiece and the necessary 3+1 retraining, I could be happy with it.

The Adams 4/4 was the only C I played that would make me learn C. I think this one was a trial of some of Dave Fedderly’s suggestions, and I loved it.

I loved the Eastman EBB534 so much I bought one.

Rick “who’d like a side-by-side in a quiet room with the Wessex British F and my Yamaha 621” Denney

[Three Valves]

You mean the ebb534 piston??

[Rick Denney]

You mean the ebb534 piston??

I suppose. I find in my old age I’ve lost my automatic cataloging of model numbers. I kept calling it “that King copy” to people I talked to about it.

Rick “who’ll have to check the web page again” Denney

[sweaty]

I really liked the MACK 5/4 YorkaZo 5000 BBb. Great sound, response, and low range. And it looks like it's available with a 5th valve.

[kingrob76]

The 6/4 CC tubas from China are here to stay - Wessex, ZO (Mack) and Eastman all have respectable/very good products at price points that are hard to ignore (Mack was selling their 6/4 Thunderbirds at a conference special price of something like $7k). There's going to be a lot of them hitting the market the next few years. It's interesting how some of the other manufactures are choosing to NOT play in the 6/4 piston space (Miraphone, for example). I thought Wessex's CC Helicon was fun to play but definitely out of tune in spots (certain octaves did NOT align for me). Lee Stofer's re-imagined CB-50 was excellent. The 4/4 Rudy CC at Baltimore Brass was good but the 3/4 was special I thought.

Most things were as you'd expect, though, which isn't a bad thing.

[deputysgttuba]

There are so many more choices available now in the CC tuba realm since I bought my current PT-20P in 2009.
If I had 30K to drop on two new tubas and accessories, it would be the MW 3450 and Thor.
The two examples I played at the company’s booth were excellent for me.
The horn I kept coming back to over and over was the 4/4 Eastman CC at Buddy Roger’s? booth.
It played well and had just the right amount of “edge” for my taste.
The valve spacing fit my small hands better than any piston horn I have tried in years.
I could see using one in quintet or for other small to medium ensemble work. The Chinese horns have come a long way in the past several years.

[Three Valves]

You mean the ebb534 piston??

I suppose. I find in my old age I’ve lost my automatic cataloging of model numbers. I kept calling it “that King copy” to people I talked to about it.

Rick “who’ll have to check the web page again” Denney

No worries, I called it the Eastman King copy myself!!

Sorry I missed you,

[groth]

It's interesting how some of the other manufactures are choosing to NOT play in the 6/4 piston space (Miraphone, for example).

I think there's only 3 mandrels in the world currently that they use to create the 6/4 York copy bells and such (from what I am told). Maybe it's a logistics hardware problem? Or, man power and labor costs for anyone BUT a Chinese factory would be not feasible to create and keep the price point low enough. (Especially Miraphone)!

[MackBrass]

I really liked the MACK 5/4 YorkaZo 5000 BBb. Great sound, response, and low range. And it looks like it's available with a 5th valve.

You sir are correct, this is available with 5 valves and we have them on the way now. For me not playing a BBb as I play CC, this is my first choice tuba if I went back to BBb. Bore is the same as the 6/4 Thunderbird and 4/4+ CC in that is uses a bore as follows

1-3 is a .757
4th is a .797
5th is a .867 when added.

Pitch is great but what really makes this horn a stand out is the huge sound when needed and the softs are just as easy. When the low register of this horn comes out, just like the 4/4+ CC and the 6/4, it will rock your world.

All three model ZO piston tubas we carry use the same valve cluster.