Re: Mirafone 186 Comparison


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Posted by Klaus on December 05, 2002 at 05:36:30:

In Reply to: Mirafone 186 Comparison posted by MrKun on December 04, 2002 at 22:38:23:

The Miraphone catalogue offers a much more varied set of outfit specifications, than the simple distinction between S and Pro models.

There are 7 different combinations of these parameters:

brass or gold brass

clock springs or spiral springs

S-link or a mini-ball equivalent linkage

Nickel silver trim or not

Brass or nickel silver rotor casings


Not all thinkable permutations are available. And not all of the 7 Mira-given options are available on all models.

If I were into rotary tubas, which I am not (yet), my favourite combination would be:

As much gold brass as possible, especially leadpipe and bell (for warmth of sound)

Spiral springs (for easier adjustment and repair)

Mini-ball equivalent linkage - no S-links, no double-T-joints (for less noise and for easier adjustment)

Nickel silver valve casings and ferrules, but no nickel silver slide male and female branches (the first factor for durability, the second for flexibility and for a more lively response)


This ideal of course is based on some experience (I have 56 rotary valves sitting on 19 instruments with 1, 2, 3, 4, or 5 valves on each), but I have not yet seen, much less owned, an instrument, where all of my ideal parameters have been joined in one single unit. One reason being that while most of my ideals are considered high quality factors, the absence of nickel silver in the slides is considered "entry-level".

Klaus

PS: Miraphone documentation in form of high resolution scans of a circa 1993 catalogue (.jpg and .pdf formats) has been uploaded some time ago to my YorkMasterPublicPhotos Yahoo groups (free, open, and non-posting). The same goes for some other makes like Besson, Courtois, B&S, and more. My stuff is not the newest, and I try to avoid redundance, where the makers have provided good online documentation themselves.

Furthermore, there are lots of illustrations of the odd and old from the brass world. Most often from sources, that are obscure and temporary. Even if close to 300MB of information have been uploaded, this is not even close to being an encyclopedia on brass instruments.

The most recent index in Word format can be found through the link given below.

Tips:

The method to get the high resolution .jpg's to load on your screen is to click first the thumbnail, and then the medium sized pic. Not all .jpg's are uploaded in high resolution.

You can not register to a group trough a thumbnail/.jpg link. Please use the group links on the first page of the index.

About the photo, that hopefully appears above here:

It is the 60KB version of the scan of the 1993 specs spread on Miraphone rotary tubas. The high resolution .jpg and .pdf version to be found via the index.



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