Posted by Klaus on August 03, 2000 at 18:21:16:
In Reply to: Updates to my web page posted by Rick Denney on August 02, 2000 at 01:58:33:
Rick�s description of his German and American (but German made) BBbs is very interesting.
The reference to the parallels in loudspeakers is something to think about. I happen to own a York Master myself, and I was one of those asked for advise before Rick�s investment in his York.
My YM has a recording bell. From any point of view this must create some additional problems of design not even encountered in the design of a sousaphone.
The bell of a sousa is bent with a not too small radius. The sousa stack being behind the back of the player does allow for the bell to protrude a good deal forward from the stack without disturbing the overall balance of the instrument.
If the recording bell did protrude that much from the stack of a tuba, then it would cause the tuba to be very front heavy. Making it hard to keep it steadily upright.
At least the bell of my YM has a very sharp bend at the lower side of the bell throat. My sense of math can see no coherent formula being able to describe that bend.
Even if I like my YM very much, I would be interested in comments of any general/inherent problems of sound and intonation encountered in recording bell tubas as opposed to straight bells tubas and to sousaphones.
When I got my YM I thought of it as a large dark and foundation providing instrument. I wanted an instrument more rich in transients at the attack and a little lighter in playing character.
So I bought a Conn 40K 4 valve sousa. My initial expectations were badly disappointed.
Despite the sousa having a valve bore of .732 as opposed to the .750 of the YM, the sousa is a far darker and more foundation rich instrument. Probably not as fat as the Monster of Kevin�s. But so large, dark and resonant, that I never tried anything the like unless from my Yamaha 641 euph and my Besson 981 Eb.
So I have ended up with the YM being my small and elegant BBb in relation to the 40K. So I am understanding the claim of a recent thread, that the large sousas were the true inspirations of the BAT style instruments.
A question to end this post:
Do any of you know whether the modern 20K sousas are made from the same heavy gauge brass as the 40K�s were?
My maybe wrong understanding of former threads is that the 40K and the 20K do have the same progressions of bore.
Klaus