Re: Big BBb tubas?


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Posted by Jim Andrada on October 08, 2003 at 15:23:37:

In Reply to: Big BBb tubas? posted by Doug Fowler on October 07, 2003 at 18:52:31:

I think a big Martin would be a good idea - if you can find one. I think there might be one at Dillons, and every now and again one surfaces on XXbay.

I have a 3V Martin and a 4V Conn and they look remarkably similar, although I think the Martin is physically a tad larger. Also feels lighter - less like sitting with a set of governor Schwazenegger's barbells in your lap

But despite looking the same, they don't play the same. I was really surprised by the differences. I bought the Conn primmarily to use as a "lap Sousaphone" for outside concerts. It's great rousing fun to play and certainly adds "bottom" to the band, and our director really likes it. But it does sort of feel like steering a battle tank through traffic while trying not to run over anything.

The Martin on the other hand feels more like a concert tuba. Intonation I believe is better than the Conn, and it speaks easily and controllably at any dynamic level. It's a thoroughly nice horn to play and I can see why they were popular with jazz groups in the "old days".

I believe that the taper is quite different with the Martin being smaller diameter through the valve section than the Conn, and then tapering more quickly to what I think might be a slightly bigger throat, although I haven't had the time to lay them side by side and take enough measurements to be sure that I know what I'm talking about.

The one that I have definitely needs work, but it plays so nicely that I'm considering having a complete restoration job done on it. The one I have is a "Handcraft" model and I've been told that they really were hand made. You sometimes see one that doesn't have the "Handcraft" wording on the bell, and whether there would be any differences in sound or not I'm not qualified to say.


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