Posted by Rick Denney on March 06, 2003 at 11:22:21:
In Reply to: Re: Re: Re: what mp on 2165 posted by TRVTH on March 06, 2003 at 03:18:49:
I'm not sure I can agree, though I disagree with Joe on something like this with some fear.
The difference in tone production between my PT-48 and, say, my Elliott T6 is about the same on the Holton as it is on the York Master. The PT-48 is brazen and bold, with lots of harmonic character including even a bit of edge. The T6 (which is deeper and which has a much bigger throat), is darker and less colorful. The only distinction is that the PT-48 adds something to the big-horn sound and prevents any hint of woofiness, while it is too bright and edgy on the YM. The T6 is woofy on the Holton, but just right on the YM.
I do agree that a bigger mouthpiece doesn't create a bigger sound on the Holton in the way that it does on the York Master. The T6 sounds no bigger than the R4 (which is Helleberg-sized) on the Holton, but the difference is dramatic on the York Master. But on the Miraphone, the differences are not significant. So, I think each horn/player combination has a limiting mouthpiece size, beyond which the sound gets wider and loses focus rather than getting bigger. In my collection, the Miraphone is perhaps least sensitive to mouthpiece choices, and the York Master is perhaps most sensitive. The Holton is somewhere in the middle.
I agree that four players on BATs will sound more similar than four players on F's. This is the whole point behind the "old man's tuba" concept. The big horn is an equalizer. That's why I like it so much, heh, heh. But I'm not sure that is so much related to the mouthpiece. I think you can still change the timbre of the instrument with mouthpiece choices, and, of course, different mouthpieces have different trade-offs of sound, clarity, flexibility, and responsiveness.
Rick "sensitive to these issues lately" Denney