Originally Posted by southsidejazz

For many, many years I have religiously collected and played Olds trumpets. As of yesterday I now have 34. I love them dearly. At the end of August my house was broken into, and amongst the things taken was one of my favourite Olds horns. The insurance money had to be spent on a replacement instrument, and after trying fourteen different horns owned by fellow musicians or supplied by manufacturers, I settled on a Taylor Chicago Standard large bore. It is now my horn of choice. Many of my fellow players have blown the model I had on approval and have loved it, claiming it was far better then their own instruments (amongst these were a "Wild Thing", a Monette, an Eclipse, a Lawler, a couple of Bach's, several Yamaha's, and a couple of Kanstul's). However, I have had so much abuse from players about the weight of a Taylor and it's inherrant lack of brightness. I can get a bright sound from my Taylor, and got used to it's weight after only a week. Why are heavy horns so maligned? They play and project so much better than standard (32 - 40oz) trumpets. I am not willing to experience the personal attacks some guys have experienced on this forum, so constructive comments only please.