Looking for a good euphonium

[tubamage]

My son plays baritone, and would like his own euphonium - but I don't want to pay an arm and a leg for one - just to have it sit in his room in a few years - however, if he truly wants to get better on the instrument, I want him to have a good one to play as he does get better.

Any reccomondations?

[daruby]

How old is your son and how long has he been playing? This determines to some extent the kind of horn that would be suitable.

A nice used Yamaha YEP-201 is always a good choice in 3-valve horns. The YEP-321 is a great intermediate horn and can be played by beginners through professionals. The YEP-321 is essentially a YEP-201 with a 4th valve and with slightly nicer construction (rolled ends on slides, silver or two-tone lacquer finish, etc.).

You should be able to get a GOOD YEP-201 in the under $1000 range ($500-600 for a good one) and a YEP-321 (lacquer) in pretty good shape for around $1000 on the eBay/used market.

A primo used YEP-321S (silver) should be around $1200 or so. A new YEP-321 (lacquer) can be had for around $1500 at the last store I talked to.

If it were me, I would get a great restored Conn 14i or 20i (3 valve bell front) horn for around $700-$900 from phillipsmusic.com (in Missourri). They have VERY nice restored horns with hard cases that are rebuilt correctly. These are American "baritone/euphopniums" that have a very nice sweet sound when played with a decently sized mouthpiece (Conn 6 1/2AL or larger).

I primarily play a 1968 Conn Connstellation (24i) in the local community band and a brand new (2007) Besson Prestige model 2051-2 for professional gigs and recitals. Both of these horns would likely be out of your price range. I have a collection of 5 euphoniums (add a Holton double bell and two Pan-Americans to the prvious list) and one trombone at the present time.

Doug Ruby

[Rene Clabaugh]

My son also needed a Euphonium. He has played for 3 1/2 years on borrowed instruments; trombone, euphonium and tuba. We wanted an intermediate instrument that he could use in high school. The instrument also needed to have 4 valves and be similar to one that could be borrowed in Japan for a band tour in a few months.

We found a 30 yr old King 2280 in great condition and great sounding for $1100. This euphonium was not advertised online or anywhere, it was sitting at the music store on consignment. We did take 30 min playing the 2280 and also spent 30 minutes with it in a lesson with my son's Instructor.

My son was so excited when we got home with it (this week), he spent an hour and a half playing some of his current songs.

Others on this forum have said that the King 2280 and Yamaha YEP-321 are both easy to play. I found the posts here on TubaNews to be the most informative. Good luck finding just the right instrument for your son.

[mclaugh]

The Tuba Exchange 1300L (http://tubaexchange.com/product-detail.asp?PID=TE-1300L) ($995) and TE-1300S (http://tubaexchange.com/product-detail.asp?PID=Tuba%20Exchange%20TE1300S) ($1195) euphoniums are very nice instruments. I've play-tested four or five different 1300s over the past six months, and they have been consistently free blowing and hold their own against the Yamaha 321 and King 2280 in terms of sound and intonation. Also, in contrast to the Yamaha 321, they're large shank horns. The horns I've tried appear to have been well-made and I haven't noticed any fit or finish issues.

Two caveats I should mention:

1) these are Chinese-made horns. While past examples of Chinese-made horns of all sorts have earned a well-deserve reputation as ISOs rather than instruments, in fairness, Tuba Exchange seems to have the quality control issues sorted out, and they do offer a 21-day trial period (which can be extended upon request);

2) Tuba Exchange has only been selling these horns for 3-4 years, so they haven't been around long enough to establish a track record for durability.

Disclosure Statement: The opinion expressed above is my opinion. YOMV (your opinion may vary). I have no financial or business interest in Tuba Exchange, except as a customer, and receive no consideration, financial or otherwise, for voicing my opinion.

[Rickl]

Hi- My first choice among modern (current production) horns is the King 2280, followed by the Yamaha YEP 321. The new Jupiter (tried at the NYSSMA conference in Rochester, NY this past November) also impressed me. I prefer the King because the valves are better, you can produce a relatively larger volume of sound, intonation is better with the 3rd valve tuning attachment.
I am a school band director and euphonium player, and have fist hand experience with the King and Yamaha. Valves have been a problem of late with the Yamaha, so try carefully!
Rick:)

[iiipopes]

I agree mostly with what Rick said. But I would also consider the new Jupiter 4-valve 470. I have a friend who was a music major in college, trumpet performance, taught band for years, went into the ministry, and decided to pickup a horn again. He decided to come back on euph rather than trumpet and bought the new Jupiter 470 for all the reasons you mentioned, and is really enjoying it. He just purchased a gig bag so he didn't have to lug around the hardshell case. It is significantly less expensive than the King, but has good quality, improved over the older Jupiter instruments.

Frankly, I disagree with Rickl regarding Yamaha, even though they have good tone and intonation, because of their valves. A good friend of mine who is an instrument tech says that at least half of his repairs are re-rounding Yamaha valve casings. Not because they're damaged, mishandled or abused, just because they have too tight of tolerances and thinner metal, and just go out from handling.

What mouthpiece is he playing on? That could also affect his staying with the instrument. A lot of people play on the really deep "standard" Schilke 51D or a Dennis Wick or Steven Mead series mouthpiece for the largest tone possible. But if he's still in school, and still growing, I'd try something like a Schilke 50 or Yamaha 48D as an intermediate mouthpiece to see if he adapts to it better. The Schilke 50 & Yamaha 48D will have a good tone with good projection as might be needed in concert band. The Wicks and the Meads have a really broad tone that sounds great, but because of their really large throats can get hard to blow or be fuzzy unless you have a really well developed embouchure and breath support.

[Castle Killer]

I prefer the King because the valves are better, you can produce a relatively larger volume of sound, intonation is better with the 3rd valve tuning attachment.
I am a school band director and euphonium player, and have fist hand experience with the King and Yamaha. Valves have been a problem of late with the Yamaha, so try carefully!


Rick, would you prefer to have the kicker on the 2 piece 4th slide? If nothing else for the dreaded B natural that will give something to lock onto for the guys with 3 valved horns. :D

For harder stuff like brass band and what not, It would also give you a good low E, Eb, and Db (D is already good, not sure if that is enough for low C?).

[heliosuk]

Hi
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Cheers