Mack Brass EU5500 (ZO)

[eufony2]

Has anyone had any experience with the EU5500 offered by Mack Brass? https://mackbrass.com/eu5500-compensating-euph

Looks like it is manufactured by ZO. I'm looking to buy a new euphonium and willing to spend in the $3-4,000 range. I've heard good things about the cheaper EU1150S from Mack Brass and this looks like it may be their answer to the Wessex Sinfonico price point. Anyone know how the EU5500 and Sinfonico may compare?

[davewerden]

Welcome to the forum!

From the specs and description I would say it is NOT similar to the Sinfonico. This one appears to be copying the idea of a Miraphone 5050, at least as far as the bell size goes. The bore is more like the other pro euphoniums, around .590, but the Mack Brass model here is .610.

[guidocorona]

From posted specs, EU550 might be partially outsizing the Miraphone M5050 by a smidgeon. M5050 features a 12.205" bell, and bore ranging from 0.610" to 0.638". Conversely, the Mackbrass EU550 posts a slightly larger bell at 12.3", and a slightly more flairing bore ranging from 0.590" to 0.661".

Does EU5500 perhaps aim to pattern its tone on M5050? The published specs might suggest that this might be the case... Yet, without trying out this horn, or at least listening to some well recorded youtubes, it's impossible to tell anything about EU5500's actual performance.

Considering that EU550 features a trigger on the main slide, its list price of $3595 is inline with Sinfonico's $3250.

What is missing in the specs, is whether EU550 is manufactured by hand from sheet metal like Sinfonico or not.

Any evidence of its construction quality and performance potential inevitably rests in the proverbial pudding. It would be fascinating to hear EU5500 strutting its musical prowess. I for one have added this eupho to the horns to playtest at ITEC 2023.

Regards, Guido

[dsurkin]

[snip]Does EU5500 perhaps aim to emulate the tone of M5050? The published specs might suggest that this might be the case... Yet, without trying out this horn, or at least listening to some well recorded youtubes, it's impossible to tell anything about EU5500's actual performance.[snip]

Has anyone asked the people at Mack Brass? I always found them responsive to questions.

[guidocorona]

Excellent idea, Dean.... I intend to call MackBrass this week. Questions that immediately come to mind are:

* Constructed from sheet metal?
* Hand-hammered bell?
* overall hand-crafted or assembly-line construction?
* Alloy for bell, receiver, other parts.
* Bell thickness?
* Water keys... Count, where?
* Tone patterned on M5050, other?
* Any demonstration videos anywhere?
* Availability?

Please post here any other questions that I should relate to Mr. McGrady.

Regards, Guido

[dsurkin]

[snip]Please post here any other questions that I should relate to Mr. McGrady. [snip]

The photo shows a trigger but it's not mentioned in the specs. Is it only available with a trigger?

As an aside, I see that the EU5500 comes with stainless steel pistons. When I got my EU1150S, it came with stainless steel pistons but now the spec page shows that it comes with monel pistons.

[guidocorona]

Hello Dean, actually, the product description does assert that EU5500 does sport "a main tuning slide adjustment lever, ". Per my conversation with Chris Lair, this is a spring loaded lever/trigger.

And yes, apparently the horn can be ordered without trigger. For pricing of the horn without trigger, you may want to contact Chris directly:

Christopher Lair -- Operations Manager
804-924-5184
lairchris@mackbrass.com

As for Monel vs Stainless steel pistons on EU1150, Chris has confirmed that currently EU1150 is equipped with Monel pistons.

Note that I have gathered further interesting info on EU5500 during my chat with Chris.... I will turn my scribblings into complete sentences, and then will post them here.... Might take me a few hours, though.

Regards, Guido

[Christopher Lair]

Hi everyone, and thank you Guido! Thanks for asking about the new ZO euphonium at Mack Brass! I hope it's OK to respond here. To answer a few of the questions I've seen posted here, this euph is handmade from sheet metal. The bore is .590-.660. It is an original design, but in the early days the Willson 2950 was influential. We've been working on this for a couple years, and I'm very proud of the work the craftsmen at ZO have produced. It is available without the MTS trigger, but we usually order them with the trigger attached as most of our customers have requested. We do hope to have a demo video available for you soon, and possibly some other media and details. With any other questions, please feel free to contact me any time at 804-924-5184 or lairchris@mackbrass.com. www.mackbrass.com. Thanks so much!

[dsurkin]

[snip]Thanks for asking about the new ZO euphonium at Mack Brass! [snip]

Thanks for joining in, Chris.

For what it's worth, the ZO website shows various models of euphonium and notably does not include the EU5500. For purposes of comparison, the Jin Bao web site has long featured the 1150, which is available from a number of retailers. This makes me think the EU5500 might currently be exclusive to Mack Brass.

[dsurkin]

Hello Dean, actually, the product description does assert that EU5500 does sport "a main tuning slide adjustment lever, ". [snip]

Thanks, Guido. I was taking a quick look while on a break from work and I missed it.

[guidocorona]

Hello Dean, it is my understanding that MackBrass has distribution exclusivity for EU5500 in the United States. Hence we do not see EU5500 when opening the native zoindustrial.com site from the US.

This implies that some versions of the ZOIndustrial.com site visible from other regions may or may not list some variants of EU5500, depending on the existance of any applicable local distribution agreements.

G.

[Christopher Lair]

Thanks again, Guido. This is correct. Mack has exclusive distribution in the USA, which affects all that web licensing stuff that’s way over my head. LOL

[guidocorona]

All, I chatted with Chris Lair yesterday. As promised, below is a quick summary of what I learned about EU5500, which may complement the info on horn’s home page.

The list price of EU5500 is as follows:

Silver plated with spring-loaded MTS trigger: $3895
Silver plated with Gold trims, and spring-loaded MTS trigger: $4195

The bell is made from yellow brass by default.

A variety of finish options are available as special orders. For example:

Gold brass bell instead of YB: Probably a $300 upcharge.
Brushed silver plated bell: Pricing not specified.
No MTS trigger: Chris will research pricing difference with the ZO factory.

EU5500 is aimed at intermediate up to professional musicians.

EU5500 is not made from tubing. Instead, it is hand-crafted from sheet metal, and its bell is hand-hammered.

After some two years of development, EU5500 is almost finalized. According to Chris, this horn is an original design, inspired by the Willson 2950 in overall body plan, as well as tonal consistency across the range. Yet, EU5500 has achieved a considerable flexibility in tone color and expressivity all its own.

The Current pre-production unit in Chris’s office features two water keys, one on the main slide, and the other one on the 3rd slide…. Future versions may improve on water key design, placement, and potentially number of water keys.

Finalized production units might arrive with the next shipment, hopefully by the end of September 2021.

The supplied hard Case features wheels, backpack straps, and the horn is further protected inside the case by a hard foam shell.

The supplied mouthpiece resembles a little bit “Wick 3”.

A drip-guard is standard with this euphonium.

Threading on top/bottom caps is said to work smoothly…. Caps are not prone to cross-threading.

While no online videos are available yet, Chris is working on a demo video… We'll stay tuned.

Mackbrass will be showcasing EU500 at upcoming US national brass shows, as well as music education venues, and some regional conferences as well.

That's all I have for now. I'll add more information as I find out.

Regards, Guido

[dsurkin]

All, I chatted with Chris Lair yesterday. As promised, below is a quick summary of what I learned about EU5500, which may complement the info on horn’s home page.[snip]
The Current pre-production unit in Chris’s office features two water keys, one on the main slide, and the other one on the 3rd slide…. Future versions may improve on water key design, placement, and potentially number of water keys. [snip]

Thanks for posting that, Guido. I'm pleased to read that they paid attention to the threading issue, but I'm surprised at the lack of a water key on the first valve slide. I imagine they'll get a good amount of feedback about that.

[Christopher Lair]

Hi Dean. The first valve water key (or lack of) has already been addressed and is in the works. In addition, we are working on moving to a more efficient version of water keys and also better locations on the slides themselves. Thanks so much for the feedback as it is very welcome! The craftsmen at ZO have proven to be very flexible and thorough when working toward improvements, so they've really been a joy to work with. Of course there are many different personal opinions and preferences out there, but when we see something that will definitely improve the overall design for most customers we're on it asap. Thanks again and keep it coming!