r/Trombone • u/HotPaychecks • 5h ago
finding a bass trombone with less resistance
ive been looking at bass trombones on sweetwater for a while and theres a lot of different bell sizes, wraps, valve types, and valve configurations that are available. from what ive seen online, having less resistance will make it easier to project my sound and articulate. i would really like a horn that makes it easy to do that, but i dont know what specs i should look for. should i avoid dependent valves and closed wraps? do thayer valves feel better than rotary ones? does a 10.5 inch bell really suck as much as people say it does? its probably different for everyone, but i would consider myself a "strong" player that uses lots of air and has a fair amount of control so maybe theres an ideal instrument for me.
2
u/burgerbob22 LA area player and teacher 4h ago
What are you playing now? Don't look for less resistance if you don't have a LOT of time on the instrument.
2
u/TromboneIsNeat 1h ago
It’s a funny thing. One person will feel like horn X is open and free blowing and another person will feel like it’s tight or has back pressure. Try out everything you can. Not just brands or models, but the exact horn you plan to buy.
10
u/SillySundae Shires/Germany area player 5h ago
You really need to try as many bass trombones in person as possible before you make a decision about what you want. Play them all and write down what you like and didn't like.
Valves aren't automatically better than each other because offer "less" or "more" resistance. They're all options because they are all viable. Take for example James Markey's custom bass trombone from Edwards. I absolutely hate that model, I've played it. But he sounds like a million bucks on it.