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Thread: 2017 Model Schiller Elite - base model

  1. #1

    2017 Model Schiller Elite - base model

    Hi Folks - on another thread, I revealed about my newest acquisition, the 2017 Schiller Elite in lacquer. Last year I had a Wessex and a Yamaha Neo that I sold for non-musical personal reasons. I kept the Olds Ambassador that I picked up a couple of years ago that Dave alerted the list to on ebay. For 98% of what I do these days, amateur community band playing, my Olds is plenty good enough to get the job done. Unless I was alone, I doubt anyone would notice whether I had a bigger compensating horn or not. For solos and especially for the Bach cello suites that I love, the Ambassador just can't get it done there. I've written about how I played a student's 2017 base model Schiller and how amazed I was at how this seemed to indicate that all of the Chinese manufacturers (not just Wessex) have raised the bar since I first picked up an early Schiller in 2009. That was 4 months ago, and two weeks ago I pulled the trigger on one of the ebay offerings. It arrived this past Monday, and I've been playing it for nearly a week.

    I think it is a very good horn, regardless of the price. As I mentioned previously, Schiller addressed all of the old mechanical issues I had with the 2009 model. Gone are the clanky valves, cheap thin metal valve caps, and crude lacquer finish...all nicely addressed here. Unlike every Chinese horn I've ever owned (yes Wessex, that includes you too), I haven't felt the need to switch out the springs at all nor do I intend to at this point. The lacquer finish is very good...I've seen better on some Yamaha and Shires trombones and Besson lacquer euphs I've seen on display, but those are premium instruments. The finish is far far better than the 2009 offering. The tone appears to have slightly more heft and color compared to the 2009 model, based on my memory, but that might be due to differences in mouthpieces...as you can see the best two I've found so far are the SM3 and my Doug Elliott 104/J/J9...the Wick may be a touch more colorful and the Doug Elliott is slightly easier to play.

    This will obviously bring up a question about how does it compare to the Wessex. I wish I had the silver Dolce I had to compare against this, but I don't. My impression in terms of overall playability is that they are nearly identical. Once I switched out the stock Wessex valve springs with Yamaha coated springs (that I didn't have to do with the Schiller), I'd give a slight edge to the Wessex when it came to valve action, as they include Besson style valve dampers which does make a slight difference. The Wessex has the wider valve buttons whereas the Schiller has the Yamaha 642 style buttons. I slightly preferred the Wessex buttons. In terms of tone, the Wessex seemed to be a Besson-Yamaha hybrid whereas the Schiller is all Yamaha 642 (old style)...they were very close though. I'm sure the floating leadpipe that Wessex includes might contribute to this. All in all, I couldn't be more pleased with the new Schiller, especially considering the cost. I think Jonathan and Wessex deserve alot of credit for raising the bar across the board for all of these instruments. I wonder whether this more budget friendly axe would play as well as it does were it not for their involvement. I still say individuals who will be purchasing a horn like this as their primary euphonium should pay the extra money for the Wessex. Piece of mind with their quality control and the upgrades they provide are worth it for those cases IMHO. If you are just needing a secondary instrument, back up horn, practice horn, etc, IMHO, I can't justify spending the extra money on the Wessex. Again, these are my opinions here, and I'm just an amateur.

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    Last edited by euphdude; 08-13-2017 at 01:46 PM.

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Jan 2006
    Location
    West Palm Beach, FL
    Posts
    3,853
    Nice review Scott. Thanks for taking the time to post this - along with pictures.
    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)

  3. Quote Originally Posted by euphdude View Post
    I think Jonathan and Wessex deserve alot of credit for raising the bar across the board for all of these instruments.
    Thanks for that! I believe we are pushing up the standard overall in China and am pleased if that is the case for everyone.
    www.Wessex-Tubas.com
    Customer Services & Chicago Showroom visits: Dolce@Wessex-Tubas.com
    Shipping & UK Showroom visits: Coda@Wessex-Tubas.com

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  4. #4
    I've had the instrument for a little over a month now, and I'm really enjoying playing it. After spending quite a bit of time on an American style euphonium as my only instrument, it makes it very apparent what a BIG sound this thing produces. I think the Wessex I sold last year was very similar. And then I just discovered what may be one of the contributing factors about why these instruments (including the Wessex) have such a big sound. I could have sworn that my old 2009 Schiller was truly based off the Yamaha 642 with a 300 mm bell....the Neo also has a 300 mm bell. Here is where it gets weird...current day Wessex and Schiller say they have a 300 mm bell, but if you look at the Wessex website, it says that is equivalent to a 12 inch bell. 12 inches is actually just a touch bigger than 300 mm! (305 mm to be exact). And I measured my 2017 Schiller, and the bell size is.....12 inches. I compared my Schiller to a Yamaha Neo at Chuck Levins and the Neo definitely had a smaller bell and it had a much thicker bell rim. Without question the Schiller produces a larger sound than the Neo. While I really like my tone on the Schiller, it is very big and rich, the tone on the Neo still is the sweetest sound I've ever produced on any euphonium. Now, I've got to see if I can get Quintheeskimo to lower his price on that lightly used lacquer Neo that is on ebay!

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