Paul Sidey is a very trusting man, asking me for my opinions. Well, I've got enough of them, that's for sure. I initially thought I'd email Paul with results, but I decided I'd post my findings for all the junkies out there. Paul, I'll remove this if you so desire.
Got the mp today - 2 day service - great. Very nice looking piece. Took 5min. to unpack it - no chance of damage here with a great packing job.
Warmed up like always w/ my regular mp, and played some until I felt ready. I put the SSH in. First impression: Damn, a really centered, focused sound. Felt very good, like my G&W Taku and gold Laskey 30H. Penetrating tone. Attacks, slurs, and leaps were very smooth. The Laskey produced a little lighter and richer sound, but the SSH made a very resonant tone with plenty of highs. I will try it in a big room sometime - I believe the projection w/ the SSH will be tremendous because of the qualities I hear in the sound. I felt like the neighbors should be calling me to ease up when I stood on it with the SSH, since I felt like they should hear it. Very commanding tone. I played low, high, slow, fast, songs, etudes, and even knocked a little rust off the Vaughn Williams (damned F tuba fingerings kept creeping in ). The only limits were those of the player. I did notice that the intonation was much improved compared to the 30Ge. It wasn't bad, but it was darn near perfect. More time on the horn, then a comprehensive tuner-check.
Hard to make a call so soon, but initially I'd say this is one mp that funnel-fans need to look at. Worth a look for everyone, IMO. I'll post more as I go along.
I'll put a lot of time in on it this week. I'll try it next to a Laskey 30He, G&W Taku, Mirafone TU 29, and a Conn Helleberg. I'll play it on the job this weekend in a big hall and report my experience.
Overall first impression:
A+ A real contender.
More to come...
Doc
Do not argue with an idiot. He will drag you down to his level and beat you with experience.
I have always valued "Doc's" reviews of equipment as he always has been extremely thorough, and straight shooting. I appreciate his initial thoughts as I am pretty sure he will tell me where he sees room for improvement just as evenly as what he likes even though I consider him a good friend. We have different views on some favourite equipment and that is another reason I asked for his thoughts. I look foward to hearing more as he spends time with the mouthpiece and hope it will assist others in deciding if and if so, where the SSH might have a fit for them.
I am always happy to answer any questions that players might have but I am sure Doc and a few others who own or have tried the mouthpiece would be happy to give you thoughts to consder as well. A mouthpiece needs to fit you but it never hurts to research as much as possible and try as many as you can.
With that in mind, if you are in the Altlanta area there is a SSH available to trial along with the full lines of excellent mouthpieces from Mike Finn and Giddings & Webster through Bill Pritchard and Andy Smith's new Tuba Geek Nights.
One is scheduled for Saturday November 19th with others upcoming in the future. I know that they both have mentioned they would love to meet with other tubists happening about in the area to "talk shop" and jam at any time as well.
Laskey 30Ge - More colorful sound, yet doesn't seem to project as well as the SSH. The SSH seems to have more "core" (for lack of a better term). The SSH noticeably improved the intonation compared to the 30Ge. Articulation, attacks, slotting, etc. were all improved with the SSH. Rim/inner edge on 30Ge was not flat/sharp enough for me. The 30g handled lyrical and technical passages well, as did the SSH, although the SSH seemed to slot better.
Laskey 30He gold - Slightly more colorful, but not much. Similar feeling b/c of the gold. Didn't seem to project as well as the SSH (it's hard to tell from behind the horn), but I felt the neighbors ought to hear the SSH. Articulation, attacks, slotting, etc. were all slightly improved with the SSH. Rim/inner edge on 30He was not flat/sharp enough for me.
G&W Taku (a shank) - Not as colorful as the SSH. Low range would NOT break up, despite my incessant hammering (and nearly passing out) - solid as a rock. High range was good, but slightly less clarity than the SSH. Intonation was not different enough for me to really be concerned with. Articulation, attacks, slotting, etc. were very similar.
Mirafone TU-29 - Way too cushioned and soft for me. Tone was lacking. Articulation, attacks, slotting, etc. were quite improved with the SSH. Not a bad mp, but not one that would work for me.
Schilke Helleberg IIe - Slightly more colorful sound, although it was thin. Low range was more work than any other mp I tried. Intonation was a little better on SSH. Articulation, attacks, slotting, etc. were all improved with the SSH. Rim/inner edge on the Schilke seemed more round and cushioned.
I still came back to the SSH and the Laskey 30Ge. The 30Ge and SSH handled lyrical passages well. The SSH handled the slurring, etc. better, but the 30Ge seemed to have a slightly better "singing" tone. The SSH seemed the choice for technical stuff and excerpts. It had that kind of sound. Hmm... bowl for solo, funnel for ensemble... no surprise there.
Next: Trials on the job w/ Laskey 30Ge and SSH. I will also throw my Conn Helleberg into the mix.
Bis dann,
Doc
Do not argue with an idiot. He will drag you down to his level and beat you with experience.
Paul, what are the chances of you showing up at the Army conference this year? Would be nice to play that MP, get tanked, and talk shop. Maybe not in that order.
Doc? LV? Steve? Are you listening? Free up some bucks and get out here.
Cameron Gates wrote:Paul, what are the chances of you showing up at the Army conference this year? Would be nice to play that MP, get tanked, and talk shop. Maybe not in that order.
Doc? LV? Steve? Are you listening? Free up some bucks and get out here.
Cameron Gates
I have the best of intentions every year to attend the Army conference without success so far. Maybe this year...
I'd like to go to the conference, but it comes at a bad time at work, money is tight, and I'm saving to go back to school part time, as well as go to Germany this summer. We'll see how much of that I can actually pull off. In the mean time, I'm gonna have to sell some mp's so I can keep the SSH. Merry Christmas to ME!
Doc
Do not argue with an idiot. He will drag you down to his level and beat you with experience.
Any comparison tests to a standard Conn Helleburg yet? I would be interested in hearing some thoughts since the SSH is basically a stainless steel copy of the Conn, right? Thanks for the posts Doc.
I initially thought I'd email Paul with results, but I decided I'd post my findings for all the junkies out there. Paul, I'll remove this if you so desire.
). The only limits were those of the player. I did notice that the intonation was much improved compared to the 30Ge. It wasn't bad, but it was darn near perfect. More time on the horn, then a comprehensive tuner-check.
