Difference between practice mutes too exaggerated ?

gerardo1000 · Regular Member Joined: 14 Jun 2009 Posts: 70

Well I tried, owned, kept, returned, sold, many practice mutes in the past four years, and I finally reached the conclusion that, with VERY FEW exceptions, the differences are minimal and mainly related to personal taste rather than objective facts. These are the practice mutes that I had the opportunity to test:
Faxx compact, Dillon compact, Pro Tec Liberty compact (all three very accurate clones of Best Brass); Mutec standard (Harmon shape), Pro Tec Liberty standard (Denis Wick Style), Bremner SSShhhh, Brass Spa. Bach , Humes and Berg SSHH Manny Klein Quiet Practice mute. Yamaha Silent Barss new model.
Apart from the new version of Yamaha Silent Brass, which in my opinion is a very good mute even without electronics, with very little back pressure and high volume reduction (but it is in a class of its own, at $180.00) I DO NOT SEE these great differences between all the above mentioned mutes, Yes, a couple are just a tiny bit louder (FAXX and Pro Tec Liberty "Denis Wick style") a couple are a tiny bit more stuffy (Brass Spa, Bach, Mutec standard( but in general they are very comparable. For example, one of the mutes that I like better, and that I kept, is one of the least regarded in reviews, almost neglected: The Humes and Berg Manny Klein Quiet practice mute. I measured the volume with my smart phone app, and it is one of the quietest (second after the Bremner ssshhh) and the back pressure is not worst than the others. In conclusion: if you own a Protec Liberty compact, a Faxx compact, a Humes and Berg, a Bremner sshh, a Dillon compact, a Yamaha Best Brass, then... be happy and enjoy playing the trumpet. Your mute IS FINE !!!

Bill Dishman · Heavyweight Member Joined: 06 Feb 2003 Posts: 1174

I have put together a survey comparison/contrast study with 46 different practice mutes.

Your comments are really quite valid in that many are very similar to each other in styles and playing characteristics.

Much is personal but I tried to put some of it into a comparable format.

e-mail me at afn54653@yahoo.com if you would like me to send you an updated version of my survey.

Bill Dishman
Gainesville, Florida

gerardo1000 · Regular Member Joined: 14 Jun 2009 Posts: 70

Bill I already got from you your great survey, thanks ! It is possibly the most accurate and complete survey on practice mutes ever.
I used your survey as a guide to purchase practice mutes. However, in my very personal opinion, the survey underlines differences in tone, volume, back pressure between different mutes that I found, in practice, less visible than expected.
For example, the survey rates the Pro Tec Liberty compact practice mute as a "very good mute" and the Humes and Berg practice mute as average.
In my personal test, instead, I found the two mutes almost identical in performance, and I even measured the volume level with a decibel app, and discovered that the volume levels are the same.
Yes, the tone is different: similar to a quiet "Harmon mute" for the Pro Tec Liberty, more similar to a real trumpet (with much less volume) for the Humes and Berg. Finally, in this specific comparison, my personal bias is towards the Humes and Berg mute, which is not rated as one of the best in the survey.
Again, while there are some differences, it is mainly a matter of personal taste. My humble message to trumpet players, especially beginners, is: enjoy your trumpet, practice a lot, yourp ractice mute -WHATEVER is the brand- is probably fine, stop searching for the holy grail of practice mutes which does not exists yet, and enjoy your instrument !

chuck in ny · Posted: Thu Sep 25, 2014 5:08 am Post subject:

some apt comments here. i feel the same way.
like many i went on an idiot quest for the ideal practice mute. i became dissatisfied with the brass spa, too stuffy, paid big for the japanese best brass, then got a denis wick adjustable cup mute which does a lot of things including being a pretty good practice mute.
i grew tired of the search and gave away the best brass. if it fell, being aluminum, you had another dent. i stopped using a practice mute for years. then one day i tried the humble brass spa again and found it very acceptable. i had become a stronger player and could easily deal with the extra resistance. unlike the wick adjustable cup mute it's light, and the volume is spot on, you can hear the sound and a person in another room can't. for an occasional use item it's amply good enough. the problem was never the mute, it was always me.

AJCarter · Posted: Thu Sep 25, 2014 5:18 am Post subject:

I have one of the plastic best brass practice mutes. I think it's fine for when you would need one, for a quick warmup or a small fundamentals session, but if I'm going to spend money to not be heard, then I would go with the new silent brass. For now, my E-Brass jr. works just fine though.
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