Posted by Tired Old Advice on June 30, 2003 at 13:01:21:
In Reply to: Itching to buy a horn!! posted by Chris on June 30, 2003 at 12:34:15:
Your best bet is to go to one (or more) of the big stores and try as many different horns as you can. You can read all day long about how people love their MW or HB or whatever, but you have to find a horn that matches YOU and is reasonably within an amount you can afford.
If you are on or near the east coast, I highly recommend a trip to Dillons and Baltimore Brass. Matt Walters at Dillons and Dave Fedderly and Mike Russo at BBC are true gentlemen who will help you find the right instrument. They also are at large stores with a ton of selection, both new and used. On the west coast, head for Tony Clements store, Low Brass Works... and in the midwest, of course, Roger Lewis is at the Woodwind and Brasswind.
You can also call these guys, or listen to random advice from us, but it's really just best to put the different horns through their paces and see which one works for you.
Good Luck