Tuba brands to avoid:
- Jupiter
- Schiller tuba
- Menl Weston Tubas
- Miraphone 281 Firebird 5/4 Tuba 281G
If you want to improve your skills on the tuba, you’ll need to practice consistently. Practicing without a tuba, on the other hand, might be challenging.
As a result, it’s frequently recommended that you invest in an excellent tuba that will serve you well for a long time and allow you to progress musically, because tubas aren’t inexpensive, it’s difficult to determine if you’re making the appropriate purchase. After all, tubas come in several shapes and sizes and are manufactured by a variety of companies to accommodate a wide range of players.
Stay away from any brand that has bad ratings, doesn’t have its own website, and is known to private label their instruments. As a general rule, it’s best to read the reviews first and foremost before purchasing a tuba from an established manufacturer. Forget about saving money in order to purchase a subpar instrument.
In this post, we’ll walk you through some of the tubas brands that you should avoid when purchasing it new or used.
Even while tubas may be well-known in the music industry, they aren’t always made the same. So without further ado, here is the list of tuba brands to avoid.
1. Schiller tuba
Schiller is the no 1 on our list of Tuba brands to avoid for beginners. Not even a beginner is advised to play this tuba in order to avoid giving up on their musical aspirations and being disheartened. Tubas are expensive, therefore the Schiller’s price should be a red flag for buyers. Musician’s instrument Schiller is a low-quality instrument made in China.
They are made of soft metal, which is not ideal because they tend to stick.
Even if some of these tubas are in tune, other notes sound out of tune or even flat. The Schiller tubas, according to the majority of assessments, do not satisfy the quality requirements expected by players. Schiller tubas are not suitable for beginners who wish to make progress with their instrument.
2. Jupiter
Many individuals have Jupiter on their “to avoid” list. Although they’ve been in business for a long time, the quality of their products varies greatly from one to the next.
While there are a few good tuba models in the mix, the general consensus is to stay away from them. Other companies create affordable tubas and sell them to beginner players, like this one. Costs are kept down by utilizing cheaper materials like soft metals.
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Issues with Durability
As a result, the products lose their capacity to hold their shape and get dented and warped when misused. For a beginner who is still learning the instrument, this might be a frustrating experience.
Jupiter tubas don’t seem bad for the price. It appears that most manufacturing issues only influence the instrument’s physical quality, not its acoustic properties.
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Resistance to Airflow
Keep in mind that this tuba is still a low-quality instrument, and you’ll notice a big difference when you switch to a higher-quality instrument. The airflow resistance in these tubas makes it a bit challenging on your lungs.
Hopefully, Jupiter trombones will get better in the future as they have lately stepped up their game. An Amazon reviewer stated that she used to have a Jupiter tuba in high school, and that part of the soldering had begun to separate, requiring her to send it to be fixed.
As far as she could tell, only one part of the repair was done correctly. Another reviewer who worked as a brass repairer noted that all Jupiter tubas were constructed of a soft metal and dented easily.
3. Menl Weston Tubas
In spite of the fact that most music retailers recommend Menl Weston Tubas as a top-of-the-line instrument, this tuba isn’t appropriate for beginning players. Even though Menl Weston Tubas are great for pros, they can be a pain for beginners to play.
The Menl Weston Tubas are renowned to be heavy, so you may find yourself exhausted after a few minutes of practice. As with other tubas available today, the Menl Weston Tubas mouthpiece isn’t the best, making it difficult to maintain a pitch when just beginning out with tuba lessons.
4. Miraphone 281 Firebird 5/4 Tuba 281G
No doubt, the Miraphone 281 Firebird 5/4 F Tuba 281G is an excellent instrument, but we wouldn’t recommend it to someone just learning the instrument. This is because of the design of the miraphone tuba, which makes it difficult for beginners to play. As a result, mastering the instrument may be frustrating and time consuming.
At times, even the most experienced tubists have difficulty with the instrument. Although miraphone tubas are well-liked, we don’t recommend them until you have more experience playing the tuba.
Buying New or Used Tuba: Which Is Better?
Buying a used tuba is acceptable as long as the previous owner was careful with the instrument. The condition of refurbished or new tubas should be checked before purchase. If you can’t check out a used tuba in person, your best chance is to buy a brand new one from a retailer like Amazon or eBay.
Renting a tuba is another alternative if you are unsure about your devotion to the instrument. It is possible to join in a “rent to own” program, where your monthly rental payment is applied toward the purchase price of the tuba and once the tuba is paid in full, it is yours to keep. It is recommend getting a new tuba mouthpiece for sanitary reasons.
Final thoughts on tuba brands to avoid
As you can see, there are a variety of approaches you may take to find some decent tubas and understand which tubas you should avoid.
For beginners, this is especially important because tubas are expensive and you don’t want to buy an expensive instrument just to find out you don’t like how it feels or sounds.
For those who aren’t sure if the tuba is for them, we suggest renting one to give it a shot at home. Tuba lessons can be long and challenging, just like learning any other hobby.
Regardless, remember that practicing is always vital, and if you’re having a rough day with your tuba today, you should always try again.
