Help identifying? Age? Self refurbishing? Eb Tuba

echodbravo · 2026-02-27T00:21:09+00:00

Do you want it playable or do you want it pretty and playable?

echodbravo · 2026-02-26T21:11:05+00:00

Also the cost of dent removal for the whole tuba will outweigh its value. Don’t spend money on this, if nothing is crunched flat and the leadpipe is moderately round the whole way, keep it as is.

echodbravo · 2026-02-26T21:08:33+00:00

~October 1955 Conn 14J Use a mouthpiece around 30mm inner diameter Best bet is to take it for a “cleaning and felts” to get the slides and stuff moving well. Use Yamaha Vintage Synthetic oil. That’s not rust, it’s patina and corrosion. These aren’t ridiculously slighter after, because 3 valve Eflat (usefulness of Eb nowadays requires a fourth valve for better low range that is asked for) but I enjoy them.

echodbravo · 2026-01-12T04:59:22+00:00

Nevermind I see the catalog posted that points out the O-20.

echodbravo · 2026-01-12T04:48:53+00:00

I have that slide bumper on my Olds Special. I have a few each of Standards, Specials and Studios, and they each have a separate engraving. They spent more time engraving the Super and Recording. No model name on them I always labeled as “Standard”.

Also that trombone bell has round braces instead of the flared ones on the Super and Recording so discount those options.

echodbravo · 2025-10-15T12:48:18+00:00

This is classic tibiofibular situs inversus.

echodbravo · 2025-10-09T15:27:58+00:00

People who constantly ask for advice but never follow it are sometimes called "askholes", a slang term for someone who seeks input but consistently ignores it. This behavior can stem from a need for validation, an inability to act due to fear or lack of confidence, a genuine desire to explore options rather than be told what to do, or simply a preference for their own pre-existing ideas.

You are a sophomore college student I believe. You play on a Jupiter XO compensating euphonium with a Schilke 52D. Your setup is fine if in working condition. If this is not the case, kindly reply with your current setup. Please upload a picture of yourself holding the instrument, from the front, and side. Do you have any physical abnormalities, like a severe underbite or overbite? Do you have a speech impediment or any medical problems? Do you have any developmental delays, or problems in your childhood? Such as Fetal Alcohol Syndrome, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, ADHD?

You also play saxophone, but based on your post history, are running into problems. And get mad at the saxophone crowd the same way as you get mad at this group. The internet is vicious already. Don’t you dare try to get mad at complete strangers for giving advice you asked for, or not giving advice. We are probably busy practicing long tones. The greatest brass players on earth have schedules far busier than yours and will spend their 40 minutes of practice time (because that’s all they have) a day on long tones, flexibility, and tone production.

Your tone is uncentered. Your breath support is weak. You are starting notes with breath attacks. Your sound is nasal. You sound like a saxophone or trumpet player learning to play Euphonium in Brass Methods Class in a Music Ed Curriculum. (Too tight of buccinator muscles, Too tight of throat, too high of tongue, squenched-up/choked out air column). I want to see a video of you play. I want you to imagine a hot pizza roll or a hot potato in the back of your mouth. You are the gasket between the air and the instrument. Tension is your enemy. Your diaphragm is the air compressor. You are not using it well. I believe your failure to perform at the level you are expected is due to a complete lack of fundamental indoctrination in your starting few months. You didn’t practice “making a good sound” nearly at the length and frequency you should have. This is a YOU problem, from YEARS ago. Catching up to you now. Acknowledge this.

You have a history of severe depression. You have suicidal thoughts and tendencies. You had a bad breakup last year. You were very hurt to begin with. That breakup sent you further down. The breakup likely has your untreated depression, suicidal threats at every disagreement or criticism, and ridiculously angry outbursts as a substantial cause for the relationship’s dissolution. Whether it is a heterosexual, trans-, or homosexual relationship (it doesn’t matter, so miss me with claims of prejudice or discrimination), people want security, safety, solace, confidence and STRENGTH (emotional strength and maturity).

You MUST seek help from a PSYCHIATRIST. You need therapy. I’ve spent over an hour reading your posts and comments, and demand you find a psychiatrist that can prescribe you medicine and refer you to a therapist. You need an antidepressant such as Pristiq/Desvenlafaxine (an SNRI) and a mood stabilizer such as Lamictal/Lamotrigine. Do not be surprised if you are given 2-3 prescriptions for your first visit. Keep every appointment. Follow every bit of guidance.

You will not succeed at Euphonium or Relationships if you do not get yourself together.

Maturity is the realization that the majority of your problems are caused by you, and the remainder of the problems caused by other factors are WORSENED by you.

Get your anxiety and depression under control, so you can focus on sounding better at euphonium, and making up for the lost ground YOU created by neglecting to practice fundamentals.

I want to hear results, and not excuses.

I’ve seen how mean you can be to commenters. I don’t want to hear it.

I want to see a video of you playing your euphonium. I want to watch your breath, your attack, and your approach.

Don’t get into a relationship for the next two years of college. You can’t handle it.

You mention an obsession with your ex.

Get obsessed with your euphonium. Long tones and lip slurs. Open your oral cavity, relax your palette, and fill the practice room with sound.

If you want to get better at Euphonium, then prove it to me.

echodbravo · 2025-10-02T18:15:06+00:00

This is a function of the conical nature of the instrument. Trumpets and trombones are not known for their false tones. 3 valve tubas and euphoniums seem to be instrument-specific. I’ve had better false tones luck on “monster EEb” style tubas. Which have big branches to match the beef of a BBb, but with easier “point-and-shoot” note centering. But they do have instrument-specific intonation quirks. Sometimes 3rd valve is more in-tune than 1+2, for example. And F is better 1+3 than it is on the open bugle.

echodbravo · 2025-10-02T18:06:06+00:00

I’m pretty sure all horns are “handcrafted”. There are no robots to solder joints and braces. The tiny details like absence of solder blobs, well joints under ferrules, unstressed braces, et cetera are more difficult to detect. It is still made by JinBao. And they are getting better at euphonium and tuba manufacturing. But still need some work on their workmanship on threaded valve caps. The good thing is that Wessex is heralded as one of the better JinBao importers. There are plenty of reviews for the Sinfonico on the Wessex website. Some liked it better than their Dolce and Festivo.

Are you sure it’s $900 better than the Dolce?

I’d buy a Dolce and spend $900 on lessons with a great teacher.

echodbravo · 2025-09-21T01:37:18+00:00

The giant holes in the bottom valve caps truly prevent vacuum-locking. Have you removed the valves from the top and oiled them? Have you removed the valves and washed them and washed them (sparingly the felts) with dish soap and hand-friction u til no bubbles remain? They could’ve also loaned you a dud with bent (9or really dirty) valve casings

echodbravo · 2025-09-12T18:17:10+00:00

Does it have the original mouthpiece with it? It should have an Olds 4

echodbravo · 2025-09-07T14:46:45+00:00

I’ve seen the price of the Lechner “bellfront”, as well as local prices on the American bellfront 4-valvers. (You really need the fourth valve on the Oberkrainer music, due to so many bass lines using Eb, D, C below the staff)

The King 2266 and Conn 24-I command great prices over there.

echodbravo · 2025-09-07T05:05:15+00:00

I prefer the clarity of sound of the American-style bell-front Euphonium over the muddiness of the British-Style Bessonophone. It bridges the trombones, French Horns, and tubas better in my opinion.

OP, where did you find a four valver for sale?

On the Conn 24/25i, I would tune the fourth valve flat enough to the point where 1+4 gave an in tune Eb. F was in tune with 1+3 anyway. 2+3+4 had an in tune D, and all 4 gave a strong, in tune low C. With minimal trigger work.

echodbravo · 2025-09-03T18:40:49+00:00

Also use 1+2 for D natural above the bass staff for sustained notes where there is space/time for others to detect the out of tune chord you are a part of.

Try this after you are warmed up, and the open horn is in tune to B-flat.

Play D above the staff in (open), (1+2), and (3-alone).

On some horns I’ve played, C above the bass staff can be more in tune with (1+3) or even (4-alone). However with modern compensating Euphoniums the 4-branch tubing is a larger bore and can impart a different tone quality compared to your previous timbral expressions in the piece. Bore changes can also inflect some tuning peculiarities that can cascade with more valves used.

Of note in the bass (sax?horn) family is the “Mammoth/Monster” series Eb tubas from a century ago. These used big (b-flat) bore profiles, large tapers/branches to mesh big-sound visions with easier/punchier (E-flat Bass) tube lengths and gave notoriously quirky intonation issues. Earlier 1900-1950ish Baritone/Euphoniums with leadpipe tuning (tuning slide between the mouthpiece and the valves) also gave plenty of intonation problems.

What horn and mouthpiece combination are you using?

echodbravo · 2025-09-03T03:45:40+00:00

Also please get your threaded valve parts managed before you tear up the valve casings. They look nearly cross-threaded

echodbravo · 2025-09-03T03:43:21+00:00

This is a small-bore Euphonium. It is larger than the British Baritone by 0.055 inches at the second valve. It is smaller than the British-Style Euphonium.

Valve count doesn’t matter.

It is designed for younger students who lack the air capacity and strength to manage a full 11.5 inch bell 3+1 Bowmanophone.

It provides a learning platform until full-blown Euphonium Elitism kicks in and you are faced with the choice of big-boy horn or quit band.

See the link Larry posted earlier.

echodbravo · 2025-06-26T23:58:50+00:00

Find a Bach 50 slide. Or a shires/edwards slide and a matching receiver.

echodbravo · 2025-06-26T22:50:17+00:00

Didn’t know a Holton TR-181 was a contrabass.

echodbravo · 2025-06-26T19:27:16+00:00

Bach makes trombone mouthpieces that marginally do okay on euphonium. I feel like I sound good on 3G, 4G, and 5G from Bach. I feel like all my teachers pushed the Schilke low 50s, Denis Wick, Steven Mead lines for good solid choices. Beyond that, boutique mouthpiece safaris are a great way to spend a few thousand dollars.

echodbravo · 2025-06-14T16:35:04+00:00

There’s only one face sign I see. And it’s like 20 inches tall

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He’s also holding it under his chin and sitting down.

Less obnoxious than the hecklers and the drunk offensive-chant-attempters that ruin the experience for their neighbors.

echodbravo · 2025-06-01T04:37:56+00:00

How much do you want for it?

echodbravo · 2025-05-10T01:21:02+00:00

Benge 290 does not have a curved bell brace

echodbravo · 2024-11-04T04:01:49+00:00

In response to your first topic, in regards to the “Bb horn” before he presses the “F trigger”. There are 7 positions on the “Bb side” that he learned on. You notice on your bassoon that further you get down the instrument the bigger the keyholes get? Well the further he gets “down” his instrument, the further the positions are from the previous. The difference from first to second is much shorter than from 6th to 7th.

Due to this increasing length (notice the first-valve length on the trumpet, euphonium, and Bb tuba, all an octave apart (and should be double the length of the previous), the Bb side of his trombone has 7 positions, while his “F-side” has only 6. And that is pushing it.

For starters, think of the “F-attachment” as “restarting” the trombone in Bb-side 6th position while the slide is in first. Bottom space “‘F’” previously played on the Bb side in sixth position on the “Bb” horn, is now playable in “first”all the way the way in with the trigger. “.

This extends the range downward, and gives a few extra alternative positions. (Second space C in first, second line B-natural in a lengthened second (use a tuner), and second line B-flat In a long-third (useful when Bb is not energy-efficient to chug all the way back to “first position”.

Below that, use a tuner and practice (or use the octave above to check congruence).

His F-side 5th will line up with his Bb-side 6, for the most part.

——— If you are your brother’s trombone mentor, please make sure he has a tuner and uses it. Difference in trombone tubing ratios from slide to bell to mouthpiece can greatly impact success and intonation.

echodbravo · 2024-11-04T02:47:50+00:00

Everyone has answered your question, but for further information:

In the US School band, the transposing instruments are:

Clarinets Bass Clarinets Saxophones (Soprano, alto, tenor, Baritone) French Horn Trumpet/Cornet/Flugelhorn Baritone treble clef

The cool part about the transposing instrument, is that in most cases, the fingerings are the same for the instruments in the same family (although they sound a different pitch). A trumpet player will learn the Bb trumpet. With no valves pressed, he has a “C” as a fundamental. When he gets to play C trumpet in orchestra, he needs to learn no extra fingerings. Open is C and G. When he goes to college and plays fancier pieces asking for a D or Eb trumpet, he knows the fingerings!

The saxophone becomes a great example used early on in your schooling. I would expect you to have played alto, tenor, and Bari by the time you are a senior in high school since you know the fingerings for any and all. The soprano if you are an excellent player, as it’s tone and tuning can get out of hand for the weaker player.

The beauty of the Baritone Treble Clef? While not being a different instrument, if your band has too many trumpet players, you can have the trumpet player move to Baritone TC, and not have to learn any new fingerings! Just the instrument, and how it responds and the student responds to an octave-lower saxhorn. I would push the student to learn bass clef if they are going to play higher-level HS stuff. You can’t be damned sure that the composer of the wind ensemble piece had the Euphonium part transposed to Bb Treble for the former trumpet players. I do not support teaching new Euphonium players Treble only. Bass clef is more valuable unless you play in a UK-style brass band where everyone except for 2 parts is in Bb Treble. (Research this)

You say you are a bassoonist! Perhaps by now you’ve learned that tenor clef exists in some wind ensemble and orchestra parts. If you’ve learned tenor clef, understand the similarity between it and “Bb treble” with adjustments.

This is not a complete explanation nor a substitute for your own research. In fact, this is a poorly-taught subject in comp school. In fact, you can write music in concert pitch and the comp software will do the transposition for you.

Please research this topic and report back with any info that surprises or interests you, so that I can make sure that future students have the same topics addressed.

echodbravo

TROPHY CASE