Posted by Todd Morgan on February 22, 2003 at 22:42:28:
In Reply to: Re: Re: WTB: York 4/4 -5/4 CC posted by Andy Smith on February 19, 2003 at 08:09:43:
Hey Andy,
I knew that this time would come. It's time for you to change horns again. Yeah, I did my share of horn swapping when I was in college, but I will admit a lot of that was because of a lack of experience. As you know, I also own a 56J and I love it. The only other horn that I have enjoyed playing as much as my 56J was a Hirsbrunner 2P. I have not experienced ANY design flaws whatsoever with my 56J. It plays quite well in tune and it is very consistant from top to bottom. The only modification that I had done to my horn was a slide stop that was installed by Lee Stofer on my first valve slide.
Andy, what I would suggest for you to do is keep your 56J. Take it to someone like Matt Walters or Lee Stofer and have them look it over for any construction flaws and have them fixed. Then I would suggest picking up a different mouthpiece. If I recall correctly you use a Dillon M1C on your 56J. IMHO that mouthpiece is WAY too big for that horn. I used a Dillon G5B on my 56J for a while and I just found it to be too hard to control. I would HIGHLY suggest a Perantucci PT83. That is what I am using now and it has made a world of difference. There would be a learning curve of course, but it is worth the switch.
If you absolutely MUST get a new horn...then I would suggest trying a Rudy Meinl. I have always loved the sound of a Rudy Meinl and I believe at one point YOU shared that same view with me. The fact is, you will have a MUCH better chance of finding a quality Rudy Meinl than you will a York. The Yorks are just too few and far between. I recently got the chance to sit next to Lee Stofer in a band concert. He was playing on a Rudy 3/4 CC. He sounded marvelous on it. The Rudy's have a sweetness that no other horn has. Do I want to switch to a Rudy? No, but I will admit they are GREAT horns!!
Oh yeah...I almost forgot...GO PRACTICE!!!!!
-Todd Morgan
Tubist and Computer Scientist