TromboneChat

Got my current stable all out at the same time and put them through a couple paces.

That B&S

Interesting. I did like the B&S sound the best. At first, I didn't like the 8130, but it grew on me.

Also interesting that you put a 4b slide with the 1485. It probably broadens the sound a bit. Stll had noticeably less presence than the other horns.

None of them sounded bad, but the second tune you played I thought made them all sound less attractive. The articulation and bounce in the first tune made them all sound lively.

Anyway, thanks for doing stuff like this, its a useful reference set. Wish you could compare a Kanstul 1662i some time.

+1 for the B&S

Bach 50 M&W for me

I dug the YamaBach

The instrument with the most dense sound and the cleanest articulations is clearly the single valve Bach 50BG. The mouthpiece changes are distracting, to me. Would love to hear this with 1 mouthpiece and six instruments. The B&S is very intriguing. Have never played one.

I haven't ever even SEEN a Yamaha 8130 Bass, and you've got two?? Is the only difference between the two the bell? Definitely an interesting comparison. The B&S definitely has a great sound.

Right now I'm pretty much using a Markey 87 for all bass trombone playing. It's just such a great piece. Part of me wants to pick up a 90 to see how I like it, but rims that large just don't seem to work for me. However, they always tempt me because I have "not a real bass trombone mouthpiece" complex.

Bach 50.

Lots of people dig the B&S... so do I, but it's definitely not the choice I would make for that first excerpt! It's such a wildly different blow and approach, takes me some time to get into.

Also love that pretty much every horn (if I include youtube comments) has an equal amount of votes.

hyperbolica wrote: Tue Feb 04, 2025 7:45 pm Interesting. I did like the B&S sound the best. At first, I didn't like the 8130, but it grew on me.

Also interesting that you put a 4b slide with the 1485. It probably broadens the sound a bit. Stll had noticeably less presence than the other horns.

None of them sounded bad, but the second tune you played I thought made them all sound less attractive. The articulation and bounce in the first tune made them all sound lively.

Anyway, thanks for doing stuff like this, its a useful reference set. Wish you could compare a Kanstul 1662i some time.

Yes, the 4B slide (which also has an Edwards 2 leadpipe) really makes the horn just... easier to deal with. It fits mouthpieces, for one!!

I would love to have a 1662i at some point, but they don't come up in good shape very often. They are also all so different, just due to the options they offered.

WGWTR180 wrote: Wed Feb 05, 2025 6:01 am The instrument with the most dense sound and the cleanest articulations is clearly the single valve Bach 50BG. The mouthpiece changes are distracting, to me. Would love to hear this with 1 mouthpiece and six instruments. The B&S is very intriguing. Have never played one.

If I could find one mouthpiece that worked on all of them, I would use it! But I let the horns tell me what they work with. I figure it's better to have a good match for the horn rather than the perfect match for me.

tbonesullivan wrote: Wed Feb 05, 2025 9:02 am I haven't ever even SEEN a Yamaha 8130 Bass, and you've got two?? Is the only difference between the two the bell? Definitely an interesting comparison. The B&S definitely has a great sound.

Yes, they are maybe 70 serials apart. The bell on the more "used" horn had a split in the rim, so I put on this Corp bell I had sitting around. It's otherwise entirely Yamaha... and yet it sounds just like a 50 with only 1 Bach part.

For jazz, I kinda liked the King best (maybe it was the 1 1/2G) - but it didn't sound very cooperative / fun-to-play...

YamaBach is awesome. I liked that horn, the Bach 50 M&W for the more orchestral type stuff, and that single valve 50BG. All were great in their own ways! B&S is a vibe, but one that maybe requires more finessing on actual gigs??? Now I want to put Bach bells on my Yamaha horns

RJMason wrote: Wed Feb 05, 2025 11:19 pm YamaBach is awesome. I liked that horn, the Bach 50 M&W for the more orchestral type stuff, and that single valve 50BG. All were great in their own ways! B&S is a vibe, but one that maybe requires more finessing on actual gigs??? Now I want to put Bach bells on my Yamaha horns

You heard it here first!

I actually just got another 6130R to put that 50BG bell on

I found that the 50BG sounds best..It's a single valve horn and single valve horns usually sounds best..
BTW; in such test You should shuffle the sequence You play the horns.. In tests like this we tend to react on how different the horns sounds back to back more than how good they actually are..

Liked the sound of the 50BG best of all. Thanks for sharing. The B&S was beautiful.

I think I see why the Bach basses endure. As a tenor player I would much rather hear that Bach sound at the bottom of the section than any of the other horns. It just makes the low notes beautiful in a way the others don't. I could play into that sound so easily.

A video like this makes more sense of your collecting habit - they all sound good, but in different ways.

Though I'd have a hard time ever putting down that B&S I think.

VJOFan wrote: Thu Feb 06, 2025 9:20 am I think I see why the Bach basses endure. As a tenor player I would much rather hear that Bach sound at the bottom of the section than any of the other horns. It just makes the low notes beautiful in a way the others don't. I could play into that sound so easily.

I'm primarily a Holton bass trombone user but I was always the most comfortable using a Bach in orchestra. I had one awhile back that I highly regret selling. It's been sitting on someone's trombone stand for the last 10 years.

WGWTR180 wrote: Thu Feb 06, 2025 10:13 am

VJOFan wrote: Thu Feb 06, 2025 9:20 am I think I see why the Bach basses endure. As a tenor player I would much rather hear that Bach sound at the bottom of the section than any of the other horns. It just makes the low notes beautiful in a way the others don't. I could play into that sound so easily.

I'm primarily a Holton bass trombone user but I was always the most comfortable using a Bach in orchestra. I had one awhile back that I highly regret selling. It's been sitting on someone's trombone stand for the last 10 years.

Who's??? Let's find them

ngrinder wrote: Thu Feb 06, 2025 12:16 pm

WGWTR180 wrote: Thu Feb 06, 2025 10:13 am
I'm primarily a Holton bass trombone user but I was always the most comfortable using a Bach in orchestra. I had one awhile back that I highly regret selling. It's been sitting on someone's trombone stand for the last 10 years.

Who's??? Let's find them

You definitely know him.

what were those exercises?

Nice playing!

How much of the differences we hear are due to the size of the room and the player vs. the equipment? I hear differences, but I wonder how different they sound in a concert hall or a recording studio: how do they sound to an audience member, or your colleagues in the back row?

sf105 wrote: Fri Feb 07, 2025 8:25 am what were those exercises?

First one is a Harmonic Dexterity etude, the 2nd is from Brad Edwards' Simply Singing book.

Kbiggs wrote: Fri Feb 07, 2025 10:20 am Nice playing!

How much of the differences we hear are due to the size of the room and the player vs. the equipment? I hear differences, but I wonder how different they sound in a concert hall or a recording studio: how do they sound to an audience member, or your colleagues in the back row?

Of course that's the rub- I think it's why people sleep on the M&W, for example. That space has very little room for that horn to shine, where it does in the concert hall. But it's what I have! And I think it's still interesting anyway.

First of all nice playing!

I liked all, but maybe that Thein was a little uncomfortable? Or less home? The Yamahas and Bach sounded definitely home. And the King was interesting! Amazing you can change equipment's and still sound good and effortless. I think it boils down to taste, ensemble/ genres, and what you feel is the best choice?

Leif

Savio wrote: Fri Feb 07, 2025 11:43 am First of all nice playing!

I liked all, but maybe that Thein was a little uncomfortable? Or less home? The Yamahas and Bach sounded definitely home. And the King was interesting! Amazing you can change equipment's and still sound good and effortless. I think it boils down to taste, ensemble/ genres, and what you feel is the best choice?

Leif

Yes, the B&S is not the easiest horn to step into. It sounds great but the response is wildly different than any of the others.

I choose which one to use based on the situation- the M&W gets the big orchestra stuff, the Yamaha for commercial playing, the B&S for smaller orchestra and chamber settings. It's just nice to hear what people think, which is all over the map!

Burgerbob wrote: Fri Feb 07, 2025 1:56 pm
I choose which one to use based on the situation- the M&W gets the big orchestra stuff, the Yamaha for commercial playing, the B&S for smaller orchestra and chamber settings. It's just nice to hear what people think, which is all over the map!

Interesting about the B&S. It appears to have a larger throat in the bell compared to the others (particularly the King). Does the sound have a presence or “springiness” similar to some older Conn basses?

Kbiggs wrote: Fri Feb 07, 2025 2:06 pm

Burgerbob wrote: Fri Feb 07, 2025 1:56 pm
I choose which one to use based on the situation- the M&W gets the big orchestra stuff, the Yamaha for commercial playing, the B&S for smaller orchestra and chamber settings. It's just nice to hear what people think, which is all over the map!

Interesting about the B&S. It appears to have a larger throat in the bell compared to the others (particularly the King). Does the sound have a presence or “springiness” similar to some older Conn basses?

It's a bit like those but more more broad, more German in that aspect. Tons of color though, not like an Edwards that gives up all the color for broadness.