Pedal C

I have one of those horns, although mine is from 2005 before they started making their own valve casings. I haven't gotten to try a new one.

I agree that the feedback to the player is different and I'm not surprised that it never sounded right as you were playing. It took a little time to believe that the audiance was hearing it right, even though it sounded different to me. I got used to it pretty quickly, but I had access to a very live performance hall to practice in, and that helped a lot.

Using the non-Monette mouthpiece makes it pretty tough to really judge. I've done it (just out of curiosity) and I didn't enjoy it. I felt like it was a LOT of work to play and the sound was very dull with my Bach mouthpiece. The intonation was pretty screwy too. If you have a chance and can try it with a Monette mpc that FEELS ok, even if you hate in on your Bach, it might be worth another trial. Better or worse, I'm fairly sure it'll be different than the GR!

In any case, it sounds like you gave it a pretty open minded trial, which is more than some would do! It could be that Monette stuff just isn't in sync with your chops for some reason...ironically, I've tried a few GRs and can't play a lick on 'em so maybe they're just incompatable!

Jason.

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