Posted by Steve Inman on January 16, 2004 at 07:25:15:
I'm interested in opinions of the 63*2* Yamaha compensating Eb, in comparison to the Willson Eb or the Besson 981 Eb. When originally hunting for Eb (and buying/using a 983 for several years) I tried the Yamaha 63*1* Eb and didn't like the low regiser. I actually thought the 983 I bought had the most open, compesating low reg. of the samples available for me to try of various compensators.
I believe the Yamaha 631 had a .689 bore for 1-3 and a .728 bore for 4. I just noticed that the 632 is listed as a .768 bore for all 4 valves (25% more area if I remember how to use my calculator).
So, I'm curious to know things like:
Is the newer Yamaha noticeably more open in the 1/2 octave above the pedal Eb than the other compensating Ebs?
(From the Fletcher strings below): if you're hunting for a weighty contrabass sound with bass tuba flexibility, how does the Yamaha work? Or is the Willson Eb better in this regard (maybe due to a slightly smaller bell with a more focused sound, perhaps)?
Other comparisons/contrasts welcome.
Thanks,
Steve Inman
Kokomo, IN