MFfan

Good Point! It could be something else. I didn't write in to ask that question. Maybe someone else did? Lot of times certain selling stores don't want to bother to add clarifying details to their listings while the auction is in progress, others are grateful for our assistance. I have noticed most decent instruments and electronics seem to be sold from the NW states and California,where shipping charges are the highest to the eastern part of the country.

__________________
Dave Rafferty
07 Barrington Trumpet, 1972 Reynolds Medalist
55 Besson 8-10 trumpet
55 Roth by Reynolds Cornet
73 Olds Ambassador Cornet
30's Czech small bore Trumpet
Getzen 80 cornet, 33 American Standard cornet
66 Olds Ambassador Trumpet
www.kalamazooconcertband.org

MFfan

I have just looked at the photos of the trumpet again. The one of the receiver is clear enough to show no model number is stamped on the side. I see from the Connloyalist it was stamped on the underside of the receiver during that period. I wasn't aware of that detail.

Anyway, quite a few bidders have shown interest in it and bidding up to $102 with auction ending this afternoon.

__________________
Dave Rafferty
07 Barrington Trumpet, 1972 Reynolds Medalist
55 Besson 8-10 trumpet
55 Roth by Reynolds Cornet
73 Olds Ambassador Cornet
30's Czech small bore Trumpet
Getzen 80 cornet, 33 American Standard cornet
66 Olds Ambassador Trumpet
www.kalamazooconcertband.org

davidelf

When I bought my '57 Conn 6B for $90 it was in terrible shape except for the valves which were flawless. After major bell work and a Reeves alignment, it was sent to Jason Harrelson so he could work some of his magic on it. He replaced the braces and tuning slide crook and added a set of 3 cylindrical finger rings. The tuning slide crook was replaced with one from a Bach so I think that makes it a step bore. This may be heresy to all of the "Conn loyalists" out there but it was in really bad shape when I got it, and now it is the best trumpet I've ever played hands down.

Dale Proctor

In the time since I posted a pic of my '60 Conn 6B Victor trumpet on this thread about a year ago, I've aquired the brother to my trumpet, a '63 Conn 5A Victor short cornet. Great playing cornet with a rich, powerful sound. Although it looks good in the picture, it could use some cosmetic work. I'm seriously thinking about an overhaul (but the valves are like new - no problems there).

__________________
"Brass bands are all very well in their place - outdoors and several miles away." - Sir Thomas Beecham

Olde Towne Brass
www.otbrass.com

Brass Band of Huntsville
www.brassbandofhuntsville.org

nieuwguyski

My primary trumpet is a 1942 Vocabell. My main cornet is a MacMillan-era 5A Victor. My backup cornet is a 1923 80A Victor. My main C cornet is a 1921 11A Vocal (okay, "main C cornet" is a bit of a stretch as I have no real need for a C cornet, but if the need should arise the 11A Vocal is my first and only choice).

__________________
John N. Nieuwguyski

screamingmorris

Please compare the tone, amount of resistance, etc, of the Conn 5A with that of the Conn 80A. I have never played a Conn 80A.

I have noticed something interesting about the Conn 5A:

When I first got it I thought it sounded too big, too Teutonic, required too much air.
But after a couple of months I discovered that I preferred it to a .460 bore cornet.
And then I realized that I was actually sounding better on the Conn 5A than when I first got it.
Apparently I have adjusted to it in terms of breathing and in terms of embouchure and in terms of what I expect from tone.
The tone is less Teutonic now, more beautiful, because I have adapted to the Conn 5A.
I tried some extra-deep Yamaha short-shank mouthpieces such as the Yamaha 13E4 and had some difficulty.
So far the Conn 5A plays best with the Conn 7C that came with it.
I am going to experiment some more and see if a Bach 7 or 7A or 7B sounds good with it (I especially prefer the Bach 7 on trumpet because it is something of a semi-deep "V").
I was really tickled with how a Bach 7E or Weril W46 sounds on a Conn 5A. It sounds so open that most people would never guess that I was playing a High F.
(A person whose posting name begins with "n" and ends with "i" was kind enough to send me a trumpet version of the Weril W46 and I liked it so much that I special-ordered a cornet version of it.)

Wish I knew how a Connstellation cornet compares to my Conn 5A.

- Morris

MFfan

As an mostly irrelevant aside to the Conn22b on SGW discussed earlier, it sold for $154. Fairly close to the one they auctioned some months ago.

__________________
Dave Rafferty
07 Barrington Trumpet, 1972 Reynolds Medalist
55 Besson 8-10 trumpet
55 Roth by Reynolds Cornet
73 Olds Ambassador Cornet
30's Czech small bore Trumpet
Getzen 80 cornet, 33 American Standard cornet
66 Olds Ambassador Trumpet
www.kalamazooconcertband.org

mike ansberry

I've been looking at Ebay auctions for quite a while. I'd like to get a Conn Wonder cornet from the early 1900s/late 1800's. I have a 1915 Buescher True Tone mdl 15. It is an okay horn. It seems to me that when you put a modern style cornet mouthpiece in these, they sound a lot like a trumpet. When I play them with the original "V" cup mouthpieces, they sound sort of half way from trumpet to flugelhorn. When I was in school, I mentioned to Mr. Haynie that it came with a V cup. I speculated that early cornets were meant to be played that way. He told me that was wrong. The cornets were played with regular cupped mouthpieces. But my experience is telling me different. That may be the only time I've ever heard of Mr. Haynie being wrong.

I've also been looking at some vocabell cornets. My interest was somewhat diminished when I read on the Conn Loyalist that the vocabell cornets play more like trumpets, and the main difference is just the wireless rim. They look to be state of the art for the 1940-50 era. Conn did a lot of R & D at that time.

__________________
"Music is a fire in your belly that has to come out of your mouth, so you'd better put a horn in the way before someone gets hurt" (paraphrase of Bleeding Gums Murphy)

nieuwguyski

I'm pretty sure that at one time in the past I posted that the 5A is darker than the 80A, and at another time that the 5A is brighter than the 80A, so apparently my opinion has drifted a bit. I have heard live recordings of myself on both and the 5A can cut through and bite more, when you really step on it. On the other hand, the 5A can feel more... intimate. It may simply be because the bell is closer to my ears, but if I feel like playing a schmaltzy ballad in the practice room I'll grab the 5A over the 80A.

My feeling is that the 80A plays more like a trumpet, while the 5A plays like a cornet. I once used the 80A when subbing with a local amateur symphony, and it blended with C trumpets with no problem. (What can I say? I was a last-minute sub and one of the parts was written for cornet in A. My 80A has the Bb/A quick-change mechanism, and I used it.) I don't think I could have played the 5A in that situation and pulled it off.

I'll admit that it seems strange that I should say that the 5A plays like a cornet, despite the fact that it can brighten up and cut better than the 80A. I can't really explain it -- it just feels that way. Maybe the 80A projects more like a trumpet. On either this or the "other" trumpet board (or maybe both), there is a poster who describes the 80A as the ultimate in versatility, capable of hanging with either the trumpets or the cornets, depending on mouthpiece choice, and I agree. It may not be the best at either extreme, but it is a real Swiss Army Knife of a horn.

The resistance is comparable. I've played similar programs on both and didn't notice that one was harder to play to the finish line than the other. Neither one works particularly well with a Wick 4 mouthpiece, paralleling your experience with the Yamaha short shank; that .485" bore doesn't seem to relate well to a very deep cup and large throat. I have had reasonable success with the Wick B cups.

Your comment about adapting to the 5A is on the mark. While it can goad you into a Teutonic approach what with its massive bore and impressive heft, and it certainly will respond to such an approach, I enjoy it the most when I back off and approach it more delicately.

__________________
John N. Nieuwguyski

Dale Proctor

My exact experience with my 5A. Tried my Wick 4B on it and the results weren't very good. It also didn't play particularly well with a 7CW Connstellation mouthpiece. It seems to respond best to the various Bach cornet mouthpieces I have, the 3C and 6 in particular. It is a big, heavy, powerful cornet, though.

__________________
"Brass bands are all very well in their place - outdoors and several miles away." - Sir Thomas Beecham

Olde Towne Brass
www.otbrass.com

Brass Band of Huntsville
www.brassbandofhuntsville.org