Re: Mirafone 186 vs. Rudy Meinl 3/4


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Posted by Steve Inman on December 19, 2002 at 00:18:03:

In Reply to: Mirafone 186 vs. Rudy Meinl 3/4 posted by Chuck K. on December 18, 2002 at 16:38:17:

Joe remarked about the similarity of the 185 with the 3/4 Rudy. This is a valid comparison based on bore size, which are about the same for these two horns (around .730-.740 inches, approximately). However, the 185 had about a 15 inch bell (no larger) and the 3/4 Rudy, I'm pretty sure, has a 17" bell. So, I would expect the 185 to have a more compact/focused sound than the 3/4 Rudy.

I have, in fact, played both the 186 and the 3/4 RM side-by-side, a couple years ago at WW&BW. This was after having a brief email "chat" with Rex Martin, whose opinion of the 3/4 Rudy was very high. He told me he thought the 3/4 Rudy was the better horn, and would have a darker sound. However, my ears did not perceive this to be the case. The .770 bore, 17.75 inch bell Miraphone 186CC seemed to have a deeper/bigger/fuller sound than the 3/4 Rudy. At this time, I was playing the Besson 983 Eb, and I thought the 3/4 Rudy had (read carefully here) a closer resemblance to the Besson Eb than to the Miraphone 186. It has a lighter sound, and a lovely upper register (like the Besson Eb). It did NOT sound like a Besson 983, however. It had a darker sound with more core to it than the Besson.

Although others confidently told me the 3/4 RM was an adequate horn for medium-sized orchestras if pushed, I would much rather have a 186 for this task (if it had to be one of these two horns). If I was looking for a very nice quintet CC, then I would seriously audition the 3/4 Rudy. I'm actually afraid the 185 or 184 would actually be too small for quintet, but then it depends on the degree of "blending" you want to have with the rest of the group. Maybe tubists with more effective lungs than mine could make the 3/4 Rudy work in an orchestral setting. I would certainly need something bigger.

My out-dated recollections, FWTW.

Steve Inman
Kokomo, IN


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