After almost two years, I got fed up with the quirks of a fourty years old B&H round stamp baritone. So, I sold it and decided to buy a four valve compensated Wessex baritone (BR144). The decision was partly based on the good reviews on this forum. In this review I want to sum up my first impressions, after three weeks with the horn.
The prototype which is somewhere on this forum is really different from the final design, which has a fourth valve wrap more similar to a euphonium wrap than the Prestige-like wrap of the prototype. I like the looks of the final model better, and the resistance when using fourth valve is not that bad.
The first impression of the horn was good. Overall quality seems fine, but the finish is not at the level of a Yamaha or Besson. Some of the soldering is not super tidy and threading on the valves is a bit rough. But, at this price, these are minor points. The valves do require attention in the first weeks of playing. At first the feel smooth, but after some hours of playing, some metal grinding builds up and they start feeling sticky. They definately need breaking in. After each practice, rehearsal or concert I clean and re-oil the valves, and regularly rinse them. I expect that this will take some more weeks. Probably I will replace the springs for heavier models, as I had on my B&H.
The tone of the instrument is great, it works very well in the brassband setting it was designed for. In low register it can be round, towards a euphonium sound. In the middle and high register it can be compact like a tenor horn. Intonation is a lot better than that of the old round stamp. Fourth valve helps in the low register, and for the somewhat flat middle c (concert pitch). Other than that, nothing to complain about. The instrument feels open, there is not too much resistance. I like the feeling of a bigger bore like this, combined with a mouthpiece with a tighter backbore, for that bit of added control (I use a Stork T1).
I am really happy with the horn. It really helps me creating the sound I have in mind, without having to worry to much about intonation. Despite some flaws in the finish, overall quality is very good.
I was happy to read that Jonathan will further improve the production process. The combination of a good, own design, with cost effective production in China works really well. That little extra attention can really make Wessex a serious contender for quality instruments at any level.
I expected that I would have to explain to people what instrument I am playing. But the overall first response is: "Nice, a Wessex, I heard good stories about them".
Any questions or remarks? Let me know...