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davewerden

ITEC 2014 Instruments, part 3: Jupiter XO and Wessex

Rating: 33 votes, 5.00 average.
I've been anxious to try the next two horns you'll find below. Both have enjoyed some "good press" recently. The Wessex is in the lower end of the mid-price range that is an important point of discussion these days. The Jupiter XO is in the beginning of the upper price range, and as such has well-established competition slightly above its price.

Jupiter XO
I had two chances to play the Jupiter XO, and my impressions were similar each time. The horn plays well overall, with good response on most notes and a respectable sound. However, the sound struck me as not quite "right" somehow. The best way I can describe it is that it sounded like it was trying to be bigger than it could really support. That may have contributed to the sound quality being a little brighter than I like. (The problem may have been partly due to a mismatch with my Wick 4AL mouthpiece. Perhaps something like a 51D or BB1 would suit it better, but I can't say for sure.) It was made well and felt comfortable in my hands. Intonation is shown below.

I confess I was under the impression that the XO was a mid-priced horn while I was at ITEC. Under that mis-impression it seemed like a good value. At it's actual price, though, it is not quite "there" for me personally because of the sound. It is within spitting distance of the price of horns that have a better sound. However, everyone has different taste and it may be just the thing for some other players, especially considering that it is cheaper than most of the pro horns.


Wessex Dolce Cantabile
This horn was the biggest surprise for me. It is priced in the very low teens, even with the trigger, and it plays quite well. The sound is nice and response is good. It seemed to have a little wider "slot" on each pitch than many other horns, but it was not hard to deal with. As I was playing melodies on the Wessex, before having the tuner hooked up, it seemed relatively easy to play the pitches with good intonation (not using the trigger, so the test would be fair). Intonation was really very good for a horn at this price. Actually, for this price, the entire package is well balanced - good sound, good response, good intonation. Impressive.

If you are considering a Wessex and want to have it with a trigger, I'd suggest waiting until they modify the trigger pivot's placement. That is already a planned modification, but I did not get a sense of the lead time for the change. As it is now, the pivot brace is uncomfortable for the left hand. Also, if you are a horn hugger, you may want to ask Wessex if they have strengthened the slide/belly guard. It is a piece of sheet metal, about half as large as the Prestige's trigger guard. Behind that plate is a reinforcement that looks roughly like lyre stock. It bends with a little pressure applied. I think for me it would have worked OK, but if you tend to squeeze the horn against you there will be some interference.


Compare these and other euphoniums on my Euphonium Tuning Comparison page.

This is part 3 of my ITEC feedback.

Read part 1 here
(Besson Prestige 2051, Besson Sovereign 955, Gemeinhardt/Big Mouth Brass):
http://www.dwerden.com/forum/entry.p...vations-part-1

Or read part 2 here (JP Sterling, Willson 2960):
http://www.dwerden.com/forum/entry.p...ng-and-Willson

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