Re: What kind of equipment do yo use


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Posted by Kelly Mankowski-O'Bryant on May 09, 2001 at 14:48:01:

In Reply to: What kind of equipment do yo use posted by Let's have some fun! on May 09, 2001 at 11:40:29:

Hi All -

I play everything on Eb tuba these days. Using the new Yamaha YEB-632S (silver)
fully compensating tuba. 3 up top, plus 1 on the side, a la the classic
British style.

Got a 19 inch bell, and a new, more open wrap than a lot of Yamahas - as well
as other Eb's - in the past. Also, the folks at Yamaha changed the thickness
in the metal on this horn in places, some thinner, some thicker, thus you get
the big daddy sound (esp. down low, thanks in part to the bigger bell), yet
the thinner walls in some spots make her more nimble and lyrical than other
horns its size. To poorly paraphrase a U.S. television commercial:

"It's big enough for a man, but civilized enough for a woman."

Please, no flaming ladies - it was a sincere compliment!

Using a Schilke Helleberg II on her now. Not sure that is the final choice,
but I'm getting good results with it for now.

BTW - making the switch from the "American" 5 valve system to the British 4
valve compensating system threw me for a curve for while, but once I got the
hang of thinking like a euph player ;-), I can say that I'll never go back to
a non-comp horn. I've never been more pleased. Anti-Comp folks owe it to
themselves to give the compensating system a real test drive (this is nothing
new to euph players...) - if you can get the mental discipline going to make
the switch, I think a whole bunch of tuba folks out there would be in for a
real pleasant surprise.

Anyway, my dissertation on switching to the compensating system, for what it
is worth.

Cheers,

Kelly


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