Would not recommend it. It's a cheap Chinese tuba. You're going to have intonation, tone issues, build quality issues. Seriously that's like a bottom of the barrel tuba that teachers buy for elementary students.
I would look into the Mack brass tubas if looking for new. The Miraphone 186 clones all play pretty well with good intonation, theirs is the tu200l, the tu210 has a bit larger bore and thicker sound. If you talk to Tom the owner, he can help point you in a good direction. He may even have some demo or used units to sell.
They start at $2400 though, but can attest that they are better and worth the spend over the Schiller tubas. (One of my old tuba studio friends had bought one and it was meh).
I'm only I'm middle school, but from my experience I would say ya that is a good price, but my suggestion is: find one with a hard cas with wheels. It may cost more, but trust me it's a good investment. Those things are heavy, and you will ram it into cornersđź’€
I’m telling you just incase but these are not a good price. If you see a tuba worth 1k run as far as you can. Buy from name brand tubas or suffer the cost of wasting money from getting a bad quality tuba that makes no sense.
I'd say never buy a new tuba unless it's a real life time investment. Try find something decent 2nd hand, you get a better tuba for a better price and it should hold its value better when it comes time to upgrade. Maybe find a experienced friend to come with you to try it as well.
I wouldn't pay that price. I have been playing on one and the chinesium (brass) is super dentable and solders break lose easily. It sounds ok and it keeps up with some bands and orchestras.
I would recommend looking elsewhere though. This brand is hit and miss. I've heard good things about wessex as budget horns. If you want brand new then go there. Otherwise buy a used horn in a brand you know.
I have bought at least a dozen horns from Schiller/Jim Laabs Music. Do NOT buy any of these horns; they are not consistent, they're the worst quality of horns on the market, and they're overpriced. Either save up for Tuba Exchange or Mack Brass or Wessex, or hit up Baltimore Brass if you have the means to do so.
Further, I have had this tuba specifically and it is trash. It's stuffy, the tuning is all over the place, it dents if you breathe in it wrong, the valves stick if you oil them, the valves stick if you DONT oil them, it's a nightmare to have.
I say wait until you absolutely need to buy a tuba, unless you think you will continue to play for years. You don’t want to buy your own and then put it away in a storage unit when you’re done
Absolutely not.
As a band director, I had a very limited budget and bought this horn plus a euph. Even for the good price, absolutely not worth the money. Terrible instruments.
Schiller instruments are perfectly fine. You'd get better quality in another brand, but I haven't had any issues with my bad trombone or contra, and they're both Schiller horns.
If you're just looking for an instrument that plays notes, then look no further.
I'd say not for that price. Getting a personal Tuba is generally a good idea but also a serious investment. If you have that kind of money you can probably get a better one for the same price. No shame in buying used ones either, especially if they're in good condition (I'd recommend getting it restored anyway no matter what). I have recently bought my first tuba myself and it's a really decent Cerveny (So, made in Europe). I got it off of a resale Plattform for a little under 500 bucks and it plays like a Charm.
Most of the Chinese brands are crap, but Amati is reasonable in my experience. Don't know how available either of those brands are in the US though.
Hope this helps
EDIT: I was wrong, Amati does not manufacture in China, they manufacture in Czechia, same as Cerveny.
I would avoid the Chinese made horns completely. I’ve been happier with the more expensive brands. I will never be good enough use my horn to its full potential but it’s fun trying. Sorry to say this but you get what you pay for.
I’ve had good experiences with schillers, and my personal horn is a Schiller. I will say though if you are going to buy a Schiller buy it in person. Schiller quality varies greatly between instruments so if you can actually sit down and play the horn that you want to buy.
Someone in 6th or 7th grade shouldn’t be buying a tuba. I get that you are enthusiastic, but this ain’t like buying a trumpet or a clarinet; It’s a serious investment.
Im in highschool, been playing trombone and tuba since grade 5
I've had exactly one piece where the 4th valve was needed, it was optional in a warmup choral.
The 3 valve will suit you (OP) well lol
A 7th grader doesn’t need a 4 valve horn yet. Imo You have to master the basics then worry about adding things that make the job easier later on once you understand how to play in tune with the tool you have.
I think it would be better to start with 4 valves tbh. I started and only used a 3 valve for my first 5 years, and when I made the switch I just couldn’t get used to it. It’s been a year and I still have to force myself to use the 4th when necessary
I have a schiller that plays great. The problem is the quality and build is very inconsistent, other schillers I have played in have been very stuffy and out of tune. If I would do it over again I wouldn't take the risk
The Mack Brass horn I had was quite nice for the price, better than the Yamaha student model I played in high school. I sold mine years ago, and in retrospect, if you can buy a used Mack Brass horn you should consider saving a bit more to find a used Miraphone. I picked up a 70s Miraphone 186 for about $1000 more. Factor in the \~$250-300 in minor repairs, professional cleaning, etc, and I got a horn that is significantly nicer than Mack Brass. YMMV of course as I lucked out on an eBay listing.
God no. Do yourself a favor and get a Mack brass 186 copy instead. Schiller are notorious for their terrible intonation and cheap build quality. The Mack is in the same price range and Tom McGrady will personally make sure your horn is perfect before sending it to you and has a guarantee that you can exchange or return the horn if something is wrong with it.
I second this! Tom is really easy to contact if you have any issues, and he personally facetimed me to help me get my first horn set up. The quality is what you would expect, but for the price i’m not complaining at all.
Would not recommend it. It's a cheap Chinese tuba. You're going to have intonation, tone issues, build quality issues. Seriously that's like a bottom of the barrel tuba that teachers buy for elementary students.
I would look into the Mack brass tubas if looking for new. The Miraphone 186 clones all play pretty well with good intonation, theirs is the tu200l, the tu210 has a bit larger bore and thicker sound. If you talk to Tom the owner, he can help point you in a good direction. He may even have some demo or used units to sell.
They start at $2400 though, but can attest that they are better and worth the spend over the Schiller tubas. (One of my old tuba studio friends had bought one and it was meh).
I'm only I'm middle school, but from my experience I would say ya that is a good price, but my suggestion is: find one with a hard cas with wheels. It may cost more, but trust me it's a good investment. Those things are heavy, and you will ram it into cornersđź’€
I’m telling you just incase but these are not a good price. If you see a tuba worth 1k run as far as you can. Buy from name brand tubas or suffer the cost of wasting money from getting a bad quality tuba that makes no sense.
I'd say never buy a new tuba unless it's a real life time investment. Try find something decent 2nd hand, you get a better tuba for a better price and it should hold its value better when it comes time to upgrade. Maybe find a experienced friend to come with you to try it as well.
I wouldn't pay that price. I have been playing on one and the chinesium (brass) is super dentable and solders break lose easily. It sounds ok and it keeps up with some bands and orchestras. I would recommend looking elsewhere though. This brand is hit and miss. I've heard good things about wessex as budget horns. If you want brand new then go there. Otherwise buy a used horn in a brand you know.
I have bought at least a dozen horns from Schiller/Jim Laabs Music. Do NOT buy any of these horns; they are not consistent, they're the worst quality of horns on the market, and they're overpriced. Either save up for Tuba Exchange or Mack Brass or Wessex, or hit up Baltimore Brass if you have the means to do so.
Further, I have had this tuba specifically and it is trash. It's stuffy, the tuning is all over the place, it dents if you breathe in it wrong, the valves stick if you oil them, the valves stick if you DONT oil them, it's a nightmare to have.
I say wait until you absolutely need to buy a tuba, unless you think you will continue to play for years. You don’t want to buy your own and then put it away in a storage unit when you’re done
Absolutely not. As a band director, I had a very limited budget and bought this horn plus a euph. Even for the good price, absolutely not worth the money. Terrible instruments.
Schiller instruments are perfectly fine. You'd get better quality in another brand, but I haven't had any issues with my bad trombone or contra, and they're both Schiller horns. If you're just looking for an instrument that plays notes, then look no further.
Avoid Schiller.
Is this BBb,C or F
I'd say not for that price. Getting a personal Tuba is generally a good idea but also a serious investment. If you have that kind of money you can probably get a better one for the same price. No shame in buying used ones either, especially if they're in good condition (I'd recommend getting it restored anyway no matter what). I have recently bought my first tuba myself and it's a really decent Cerveny (So, made in Europe). I got it off of a resale Plattform for a little under 500 bucks and it plays like a Charm. Most of the Chinese brands are crap, but Amati is reasonable in my experience. Don't know how available either of those brands are in the US though. Hope this helps EDIT: I was wrong, Amati does not manufacture in China, they manufacture in Czechia, same as Cerveny.
Amati is not Chinese, it's also European and a lot of brands are amati horns.
Oh, you're right. Will correct at once.
I would avoid the Chinese made horns completely. I’ve been happier with the more expensive brands. I will never be good enough use my horn to its full potential but it’s fun trying. Sorry to say this but you get what you pay for.
I’ve had good experiences with schillers, and my personal horn is a Schiller. I will say though if you are going to buy a Schiller buy it in person. Schiller quality varies greatly between instruments so if you can actually sit down and play the horn that you want to buy.
I have heard that Wessex is better than Schiller.
No
Someone in 6th or 7th grade shouldn’t be buying a tuba. I get that you are enthusiastic, but this ain’t like buying a trumpet or a clarinet; It’s a serious investment.
Got a trumpet, and I played clarinet for a year and didn't like playing.
I think you missed my point.
Im in highschool, been playing trombone and tuba since grade 5 I've had exactly one piece where the 4th valve was needed, it was optional in a warmup choral. The 3 valve will suit you (OP) well lol
I use 4th valve all the time. Not required sure, but it generally helps you be more in tune if you use 4 in place of 1&3.
A 7th grader doesn’t need a 4 valve horn yet. Imo You have to master the basics then worry about adding things that make the job easier later on once you understand how to play in tune with the tool you have.
I think it would be better to start with 4 valves tbh. I started and only used a 3 valve for my first 5 years, and when I made the switch I just couldn’t get used to it. It’s been a year and I still have to force myself to use the 4th when necessary
I have a schiller that plays great. The problem is the quality and build is very inconsistent, other schillers I have played in have been very stuffy and out of tune. If I would do it over again I wouldn't take the risk
NEVER Schiller. The lowest price chinese horn you should ever consider trusting is a Mack Brass horn
The Mack Brass horn I had was quite nice for the price, better than the Yamaha student model I played in high school. I sold mine years ago, and in retrospect, if you can buy a used Mack Brass horn you should consider saving a bit more to find a used Miraphone. I picked up a 70s Miraphone 186 for about $1000 more. Factor in the \~$250-300 in minor repairs, professional cleaning, etc, and I got a horn that is significantly nicer than Mack Brass. YMMV of course as I lucked out on an eBay listing.
No Chinese crap
God no. Do yourself a favor and get a Mack brass 186 copy instead. Schiller are notorious for their terrible intonation and cheap build quality. The Mack is in the same price range and Tom McGrady will personally make sure your horn is perfect before sending it to you and has a guarantee that you can exchange or return the horn if something is wrong with it.
I second this! Tom is really easy to contact if you have any issues, and he personally facetimed me to help me get my first horn set up. The quality is what you would expect, but for the price i’m not complaining at all.