Posted by Sean Chisham on June 19, 1999 at 21:46:36:
In Reply to: Help! Purchasing Crisis! posted by Jason on June 19, 1999 at 19:14:15:
Current auto sales also dictate I should be shopping for an SUV but I won't do that either. After relooking at that servey, which is not actually on TubeNet but linked to, I did notice there were a lot of Miraphone owners. I had never really noticed that before. I also noticed their were a LOT of Yamaha owners. To each his own.
I used to play on a school owned Daryl Smith Kalison CC. It seemed like an ok horn. I didn't buy one, but that was just me.
If you are really indecisive then shop around a bit. Sounds like you have been working exclusivelly with the Tuba Exchange. Their are some other shops which have good selections at reasonable prices like Baltimore Brass Company, Brasswind, and Dillon Music. If you have some extra coin than also consider Custom Music.
I have never dealt with Tuba Exchange myself, but from what I have seen, they push the Kalisons and St. Petes pretty hard. To be honest every dealer has a favorite horn they like to push. Brasswind will push VMI and maybe Cerveny. Baltimore Brass pushes Getzen G-50's. Custom pushes B&S. Dillon pushes their in house customs.
Every shop has favorites. Just like every car salesman has favorite cars they push. Some shops are little pushier than others, but you really need to take your time and try out a few horns. You have already bought one horn you didn't really love and don't make the mistake again. I am not knocking the Kalison you have your current eyes on. I am just saying that you really should shop around and find something you can't go without instead of loosing money every few months/years on new horns.
If you are using Tuba Exchange right now, keep in mind that they do not carry some brands, or may not have some brands in stock to try out such as B&S, VMI, Hirsbrunner, Walter Nirschl, Cerveny, or others. I do notice they carry Rudy Meinl and Yamaha. You might want to seriously consider those also if they did not present them to you when you last went to try out horns.
I would guess that the St Pete caught your eye initially due to the salesmanship of Tuba Exchange and the attractive low price. The salesmanship is to be ignore from any shop, and the attractive price looses some of it's luster when the horn has to be sold at a loss later. Even if the loss is only slight. Buy the horn you reall want. It may mean a bank loan or a few months of bologna, but it will be worth it over the lifespan of the horn.
sean