Advice on Buying a Used Euphonium

[RonSwansonsMustache]

ive had my eyes on a used boosey&hawkes imperial model besson on ebay. i am currently using the schools yamaha 321, which is alright for the most part. i am also planning on playing in bands all the way through college and what not. i am only concerned because there has always been a negative connotation to buying used instrument over the internet. i mean the pictures look completely fine, except for the valves which look slightly rusty, but im not sure if that will just be a purely aesthetic thing.

heres the link to the ebay listing
http://cgi.ebay.com/Bb-Euphonium-Boo...87686862810777

[jonromero1]

Advice on Buying a Used Euphonium

it looks fine. i played an imperial a couple months ago. nice horn, but being it's a middle shank (euro shank) horn, i find it kind of small. i almost feel like a giant hugging a dwarf. lol. but thats just me. i loved playing it, just uncomfortable for me to play due to im a large guy. but if you wanna buy a mouthpiece for it if the one with it doesn't work out, make sure to buy a middle shank mouthpiece. sometimes they are tricky to find in local music stores (around here in south louisiana anyway.) i usually buy my stuff online though.

[carbogast]

Advice on Buying a Used Euphonium

There may be a bend in the bell, and there are no good closeups of the tubing in the valve cluster. The case is a very old style. If you are in the US, figure $100+ for shipping. The price seems fair, but I don't perceive it as a bargain either.

If you are thinking long term, for college and beyond for example, I would consider a newer instrument. I've put a few children through college lately, and one of the first things is to set them up with a computer and software that will last 4 years. This seems to cost around $1000 - $1500. Keep in mind that after 4 years a computer may be obsolete and ready for replacement. Therefore, I think investing $30000 - $5000 in a euphonium would not be unreasonable for a serious musician, and the instrument may last for many, many years. If you are eligible for college loans, you might consider financing an instrument through the loan. There has been some discussion regarding a new Sterling "entry level" horn in the $3000 range. I imagine it will be a very good instrument and is worth a look.

- Carroll

[JoCologne]

Advice on Buying a Used Euphonium

I see, the auction is finished and the horn sold for a good price. I've bought my 1974' B&H Imperial (large shank) last December for about € 1300 via ebay - and I'm very satisfied with it. I play it with a SM4 mouthpiece. It has an awesome sound, intonation is also quite good. Thumbs up