1st impressions of my Kanstul Eb

[pwhitaker]

I bought Walter Webb's Kanstul 66S E-Flat last week and am very pleased with it. My previous experience with E-Flats was
in the 80's and 90's with the Yamaha 321S, 381S and the Besson 3+1 compensated. These horns were excellent all around horns.
The Kanstul is superior in intonation, timbre and flexibility, although the Besson was a very close second.

The 7th partial B, C and Db above the staff are dead on (1st valve for B, 2nd valve for C, open for Db). All the upper notes
slot very cleanly up to the Bb in the middle of the treble clef. The 2 and 4 valve notes as well as all of the 5th partials are also
spot on. The low Ab down to the low F can be played either with just the 4th valve combinations, or the 5th valve fingerings.
The low E is all 5 and is also dead on. I have not had to pull any slides when playing after the initial tweaking pulls. The first
valve slide is accessible and moves easily if needed.

The pedals and the false tones are very crisp and centered, although with the 5th valve (flat whole step) the false tones
are superfluous. Unlike the Yamaha 381S the 5th valve on the Kanstul is independent which opens up many alternate fingerings.

The Cello suites sit very nicely on this horn. I used it yesterday in a long Trad Jazz gig (funeral and reception) and received
some very positive comments from the audience and fellow musicians. This horn has a very clear rich mellow tone and is a lot of
fun to play. I'm going to miss my 6/4 Holton BBb, but not too much (it's too damned heavy!).

I'm still trying various mouthpieces but am coming to the conclusion that either Blokes' Grand Orchestral mpc or the LOUD LM3 seems to
give me the sound I'm trying for. I prefer a darker tone and the deeper cups do that for me. The Hauser Deck 3 also works pretty well
despite the large (9.3 mm) backbore and it really adds a little punch to the lower end of the horn.

If you are looking for an general purpose horn the Kanstul is certainly one to consider.

Pictures: viewtopic.php?f=4&t=56753" target="_blank

[opus37]

I too own a Kanstul Eb. I agree with all your comments. As for mouthpieces, consider the Sellsmanberger Symphony. I found that the best for me. I've also had good success with a Stofer Gieb as a second choice.

[thattubaguy]

Agreed

[Walter Webb]

Ever sell an instrument and have pangs of regret? Well, I am sticking to BBb for the next few years, but I will always miss this Kanstul 66S.

Thanks be to Greyhound Priority Xpress. Kinda slow, but reliable, and no monkey men throwing the box around.