Alternatives to the Adams Horn

[58mark]

I don't own an Adams, I may never own an Adams because it's hard for me to justify that kind of expense, but the two times I have played one were practically religious experiences. By far the best euphonium ever made

[tampaworth]

With the level of euphonium nirvana Adams has achieved, it's a wonder that the Adams Tuba line has yet to receive much buzz or acclaim over on Tubenet. Their CC looks absolutely beautiful in photos but not often mentioned. Price perhaps? The only Euphoniums that don't seem too get mentioned as frequently here, in general, are Willsons. I never quite understood why but then again I've never played one. I always enjoy keeping up with this forum and have learned a lot.

[TheJH]

With the level of euphonium nirvana Adams has achieved, it's a wonder that the Adams Tuba line has yet to receive much buzz or acclaim over on Tubenet. Their CC looks absolutely beautiful in photos but not often mentioned. Price perhaps? The only Euphoniums that don't seem too get mentioned as frequently here, in general, are Willsons. I never quite understood why but then again I've never played one. I always enjoy keeping up with this forum and have learned a lot.

I agree with you about the Willsons. Also, when you talk about euphonium brands with band members, a lot of the times they know Besson, Yamaha and sometimes Jupiter but not a lot more, although Adams is getting more known. Willson is hardly ever mentioned.
I never actually played on one until last december and i was amazed. I liked it more than the Adams E1 .55 I played one week before that, which I already liked more than the instrument I was already playing, which I liked quite a bit. Generally, I think Willsons have a more solid construction, or at least it feels that way. Also, it is far more easy for me to hit high notes on Willsons (I played a 2950 TA and a 2960 TA Celebration) than on any other instrument i played on (including the Adams, where i had to unscrew the receiver gap at least 4 or 5 turns to make the high G, A and B flat anywhere close to even being playable. Might just be my specific airstream though). Also the Willsons have not that much differences in tuning inbetween the notes themselves, so you don't have to correct massively.
But I too am learning a lot on this forum

[davewerden]

Willsons are good horns and are well-known in some circles. Here is my review of the 2960 from ITEC last year:

http://www.dwerden.com/forum/entry.p...ng-and-Willson

The Adams E1/.55 is not intended to compete directly with the Willson. The two horns have a totally different concept. Adams makes their E2/.80 to attract folks who like Willson but want the other qualities an Adams brings. And in fact one of the Adams artists switched from Willson to the E2/.80 model.

[Jrpetty24]

I played a new Wilson at TMEA this year and was pleasantly surprised I liked it. I say surprised because I played an older one at my last school and did not like it at all, the tone just seemed very bland and intonationion on the 2nd valve was terrible with those two horns the school had(medium shank models). When I played the new Wilson I like the response and tone of it, it had a nice characteristic sound on the brighter side of course, but for my tastes I didn't prefer it because it was slightly more resistant and was a physically uncomfortable build for a person of my size, I'm 6'2 with lanky long arms and I just felt I was holding something really small.

Might just be my specific airstream though

for the most part that is why I lean towards the Adams I own, it fits what I want and need for my airstreem and physical build better, but the Wilson was a very nice horn and would not complain if that was the horn I had to play on, wonderful sound.

I don't remember my friend ever mentioning something specific why he didn't like them but when he was looking at a tuba to buy at ITEC this summer he played literally everything and just didn't seem very interested in Adams. He played all their horns but quickly moved on and stayed longest playing on the Kanstul 5/4 CC in Red brass, and the B&S area, I'm assuming it was a PT-6(4/4CC i believe with rotary valves) that he eventually bought. He played an older used Hirsbrunner and liked it, but he said it just had a few quirks and was too expensive for a used horn. Ended up buying the B&S brand new for around the same price.

[davewerden]

I don't remember my friend ever mentioning something specific why he didn't like them but when he was looking at a tuba to buy at ITEC this summer he played literally everything and just didn't seem very interested in Adams. He played all their horns but quickly moved on and stayed longest playing on the Kanstul 5/4 CC in Red brass, and the B&S area, I'm assuming it was a PT-6(4/4CC i believe with rotary valves) that he eventually bought. He played an older used Hirsbrunner and liked it, but he said it just had a few quirks and was too expensive for a used horn. Ended up buying the B&S brand new for around the same price.

Two well-known tubists, whose opinions I trust, tried the CC and F at ITEC 2012. They said they recognized the HB lineage in both. They liked the CC, but did not seem real excited about it. But the F got them excited! It was a similar experience at ITEC 2014 - people really like the F. We'll see where Adams goes with the CC. They certainly have a good starting point with the HB tooling. It may be something regarding just minor build-points that need to be tweaked, or it could be the choice of metal/weight to get people excited about the CC. I'm not nearly enough of a tubist to advise them on this, but I'm sure they will listen to players who test them and adjust accordingly.

[58mark]

I've played the CC and found it nice, But nothing to get really excited about, certainly not for a premium price horn

[MichaelSchott]

As a Willson 2900S player, the only brand I'd consider switching to is the Adams although my experience with their horns is extremely limited. My Willson is a very early model, probably made in 1980 or 81. I went to college with Roger Behrend and he raved about the Willson while we were at MSU playing Sovereigns. He studied with Brian Bowman who was one of the earliest adopters of the 2900. I've rarely thought the horn anything but outstanding. There are some intonation issues, but only the Adams is significantly better. The 3rd partial F concert is quite sharp and the A above that quite flat. Other than that the intonation is very good. What I really love about it is the tone quality and the high range speaks very clearly up to the high D. Willson makes a sturdy heavy horn with a resonant tone. I recently played a newer model 2900 at NABBA with a trigger and there were some differences. The newer horns vibrate more(different bracing?). The tone is similar.

I played an Adams at a dealer about 18 months ago. It was more of an entry level model without the SS bell and in a lighter metal. The response and intonation were great but I struggled with the upper range and the sound was light. I'd love to try a higher end version.

[davewerden]

Thanks for the feedback everyone, I'm in contact with Aaron now. Dealing direct with Adams has already proven to be much easier than going through a dealer.

To circle back on this one, I understand that euphphilli now has a new E2 that Adams sent him. Aaron updated me today, although I think he was just cleaning up old emails because the horn was delivered a couple weeks ago. See photos of his new horn at the link below. It's pretty nice looking!

http://www.dwerden.com/forum/showthr...New-Adams-Euph

[daruby]

Just a word about alternatives to Adams...Just 4 Brass is now carrying Sterling in stock. You can order a Virtuoso for a list price of under $7,000 from Mark Stuckemeyer. A comparable Besson is over $8,000.

[cochranme]

With the level of euphonium nirvana Adams has achieved

If this is true, then mine must be defective, because I played a concert today and missed several notes...

in in all seriousness, Adams are well-built, high quality, undeniably beautiful instruments. However, they will only do whatever the user tells them to do. I'm glad that so many here have had positive experiences with them, but I get a little concerned that people may expect them to possess magical properties. Playing an Adams isn't going to fix any fundamental problems that the player has. Same for Besson, Willson, Yamaha, or any other high quality instruments. I love my horn and it works wonderfully for me, but it is probably responsible for less than 30% of the total package that is my playing. It would be like me buying a $500 tennis racquet: it will work great...if I'm a great tennis player.

[euphdude]

Just a word about alternatives to Adams...Just 4 Brass is now carrying Sterling in stock. You can order a Virtuoso for a list price of under $7,000 from Mark Stuckemeyer. A comparable Besson is over $8,000.

Unbelievable that the Bessons have become so expensive. When I wanted to buy a baritone, I initially had my heart set on the Prestige until I saw the price tag of $7000+. No way I could justify that kind of money on a horn that can only be used in one genre. I got a Wessex and a demoed Neo baritone with over $2000 left to spare. Does anyone know what is driving the price of the Bessons so high? I guess they think the market will support it.