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Thread: Any good practice mutes to recommend for playing in an apartment environment

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Jun 2015
    Location
    South San Francisco
    Posts
    11

    Any good practice mutes to recommend for playing in an apartment environment

    hello everybody,

    I am moving into an apartment near my university campus and will be situated in a second story apartment. I am planning on bringing my horn with me when I move in and would like to ask if there are any suitable practice mutes I could purchase/look into that can minimize the amount of "noise" produced. (Fear it being stolen if heard playing and don't want to disrupt neighbors.

    Thanks,

    Leon Chen

  2. #2
    If you can leave the mute in the room (i.e. don't plan to travel regularly with it) then I'd go for the full-size Wick mute. It does a good job of quieting and messes you up less because it extends out of the bell more.

    For example:

    http://www.ebay.com/itm/Denis-Wick-D...-/152587487266
    Dave Werden (ASCAP)
    Euphonium Soloist, U.S. Coast Guard Band, retired
    Adams Artist (Adams E3)
    Alliance Mouthpiece (DC3)
    YouTube: dwerden
    Facebook: davewerden
    Twitter: davewerden
    Instagram: davewerdeneuphonium

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Jun 2015
    Location
    South San Francisco
    Posts
    11
    I would like to ask which full size wick's practice mute would you recommend for a miraphone 1258a?

    http://www.wwbw.com/Miraphone-1258A-...um-463932.wwbw

  4. #4
    I've tested that horn, but did not have a practice mute to try. Do any of our members know the answer?
    Dave Werden (ASCAP)
    Euphonium Soloist, U.S. Coast Guard Band, retired
    Adams Artist (Adams E3)
    Alliance Mouthpiece (DC3)
    YouTube: dwerden
    Facebook: davewerden
    Twitter: davewerden
    Instagram: davewerdeneuphonium

  5. I think the full size wick is a pretty universal fit. The seal round the bottom is made by a wrap of adhesive foam which can either be trimmed to fit a narrower bell or built up with similar foam or weatherstrip to a wider fit.

  6. What about the new Yamaha Silent Brass? any thoughts?

  7. #7
    The Yamaha silent brass is an excellent practice mute option. It does a very good job in reducing the sound that others hear without affecting the sound the player hears. You wear headphones when you play with the mute in. The primary draw back is price. These are significantly more expensive than traditional mutes.

  8. #8
    I'm in much the same boat as Leon: I've taken a 380 sq. ft. bachelor apt to be near my office job during the week. I have time to practice at home (single family home -- no noise restrictions) on the weekend, which is pretty much Sunday afternoon/evening for my weekly community band rehearsal, but I need more practice during the week to keep up.

    My high-rise was built in 1969 and seems to have great soundproofing. My apt is next to the the elevator shafts but I never hear the elevators, and I very seldom hear my neighbors. Despite that, my apt is VERY small and I am terrified to practice the euphonium in such a small space.

    Sound attenuation is the most important feature I'm looking for, but I don't mind spending more money for a better product if it keeps my horn quiet and lets me practice with confidence that I'm not going to get noise complaints.

    I can afford the Yamaha Silent Brass but I don't have money to throw away. If it helps me practice in peace I will gladly buy it. Would a less expensive practice mute be just as good?

    I like the look of the DW SM travel mute, and wouldn't mind having a warm-up mute that fits in my bell, but it's not that much less than the Yamaha and I don't get the electronics that I could also use to digitize my practice sessions to review and critique. I sometimes do this with a digital voice recorder, but a plug-in mike would work much better.

    Is the DW practice mute the industry-standard and the best option? Would it attenuate sound well enough for such a small place? I read one comment that the chap's wife said she thought it actually made the instrument louder!

    Are the inexpensive cone-shaped mutes just as good at sound attenuation? If so, for $100 or so I could have something that would let me learn the fingering and timing of my pieces during the week with work on tuning etc on Sunday afternoons.

    I have a very old YEP 321 -- it has thick metal and produces a very big sound, and I'm not a skilled enough player to do anything under mf very well anyway -- I probably play a bit too loud even when I'm not trying make a big sound.

    Could anyone give me some advice?

  9. #9
    Join Date
    Jan 2006
    Location
    West Palm Beach, FL
    Posts
    3,853
    I had a Yamaha Silent Brass mute for a few years when I was playing my Yamaha 641 (same bell size as 321). This was the older model from about 15 yrs ago. It worked well for deadening the sound too. As all mutes I've tried, intonation can be affected. Using the electronics with a descent headset helped in hearing a better sound. There were a couple of settings including sanctuary or church that simulated better acoustics. BUT, it is pretty bulky and top heavy. The mute would fall out when I laid the horn down.
    Rick Floyd
    Miraphone 5050 - Warburton BJ / RF mpc
    YEP-641S (recently sold)
    Doug Elliott - 102 rim; I-cup; I-9 shank


    "Always play with a good tone, never louder than lovely, never softer than supported." - author unknown.
    Symphonic Band of the Palm Beaches
    El Cumbanchero (Raphael Hernandez, arr. Naohiro Iwai)
    Chorale and Shaker Dance
    (John Zdechlik)

  10. #10
    Quote Originally Posted by davewerden View Post
    If you can leave the mute in the room (i.e. don't plan to travel regularly with it) then I'd go for the full-size Wick mute. It does a good job of quieting and messes you up less because it extends out of the bell more.

    For example:

    http://www.ebay.com/itm/Denis-Wick-D...-/152587487266
    I have one of these and I think they are great...decent sound attenuation, decent pitch, and comfortable to blow. However I have noticed that whenever I play more than ~30 min or so I start to get some mild pain in my arm. At first I thought it was just me, but I watched Aaron Campbells YouTube video, and he reported the same thing. He recommended the Wick travel mute as a solution. I wanted to ask if anybody has tried this and the best brass? Any comparative comments would be appreciated

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