The Brass Band Forum

After playing a Yamaha tenor horn for just over six months, I can no longer stand its horrible and serious tuning problem. As traosb as said before it is IMPOSSIBLE to tune. In the YAH203 model, the tuning slide is in completely the wrong place, leaving any note played on the first valve seriously out of tune. You cannot fault the valve system, infact its probably has the best valves I have ever played with, but by God it is just horrible to play. It seems Yamaha have got it right with the Maestro Cornet, I think they should just stick to them and leave the rest of the Brass band spectrum to Besson, Cortois-have I spelt that right?- and Schilke.

I am now looking to buy a Besson Sovereign Tenor horn. So what do you think about them, are they Great or poor. I know, they just don't make 'em how they used to!!!

I'm looking to buy around the £1,500 mark so can any one think of a good make around there, or is BS the way to go?

They dont make them how they used to...... In fact when I used to play a sov tenor horn in the 80's our then solo tenor horn player used a yamaha, which sounded fantastic ..... and that was at champ level.......

so, maybe you just got a duff yamaha or yamaha dont make em like they used to?......I know the sovereign horns are not as good as they used to be.

May be worth waiting a while before you buy a Besson....... Word on the street is that Besson are to launch a Prestiege Tenor horn, so better wait for that rarther than go out and buy a sov now........ If you wait you may also be able to get a sov at a discount price as im sure the prestige horn will be more popular.....(depending on the price )

I played a yamaha very briefly at the end of the 80s/early 90s (approx) and it lasted less than 6 weeks before I packed it in - I'm surprised Tom's managed this long with his.

The only real problem I've found with the more recent Sovereigns has been the valves - I had one of the first of the last model of Courtois horn and the valves were like a dream, but unfortunately Mount Charles favoured sovereigns so my Courtois is rotting away in the attic...

Perhaps one day the manufacturers will all realise that the others have something they don't and will strive to combine the good aspects of each. Unfortunately I can't think of anything with the Yamaha I'd want to keep, but combine the valves of the Courtois with the sound and shape of the Sovereign and I'd be happy.

Has anyone considered teflon coated valves??? Just something I thought about patenting...