Posted by Tom B. on November 10, 2002 at 12:40:15:
In Reply to: Re: Re: Re: Hirsbrunner Tubas posted by Tracy B. on November 10, 2002 at 12:00:20:
Wait a minute...I wasn't attacking you or your comments at all.
You said:
"4. Limited quantities. These tubas aren't cranked out by an assembley line. They are assembled by master craftsmen and not by some local yokel with a soldering iron. This has a HUGE effect on price. It comes down to less tubas that cost alot of capital to build."
So I read it as "these tubas are hand made because they aren't coming off a factory assembly line. They are put together buy a master craftsman by hand."
The fact is that these tuba are cranked out on an assembly line with only the minimal final amount of tweaking being done by the master craftsmen after the instrument has been put together. This is the same claim that nearly every instrument maker makes.
You're right...quality construction has a affect on how an instrument plays. That said, I've never seen a Jupiter or St. Petersburg that was poorly built. Do they use the finest materials money can buy? No. Do they tweak the instruments before they sell them? Probably not. Are they poorly built because of this? No.
Yorks of the 30s and 40s are still around because they have been well taken care of, not because they were really that well built. It's the same way with classic cars, etc.