King Symphony DB

etrumpet · Posted: Mon Sep 08, 2003 2:25 pm Post subject:

Hello out there!
Does anyone know anything about the King Symphony Dual Bore trumpet as played by Mr. James? Have any of you ever played one? They're pretty, but are they good in comparison to say a large bore Committee?
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Elliott Vincent

leadtrmptplyr · Posted: Mon Sep 08, 2003 4:23 pm Post subject:

I used to own a horn that was a King Super 20 Symphony SilverSonic that was the horn that Harry James played. It was a dual bore .464/.468 horn. It had a sterling silver bell and leadpipe. One of the best lead trumpets I ever played. Kick myself all the time for selling that one but had to. Needed the money. I hope to be lucky enough to have one again. If you have a chance to pick one up you could do a lot worse than this horn. Especially if the price is good. Dillon Music has one for $895 and I think that might be a little high in my opinion.

Andy Cooper · Posted: Mon Sep 08, 2003 6:38 pm Post subject:

Well the resitance level is similar to the large bore Martin but the King it is not as flexible. I think it is more open blowing than a Schilke X3 - pretty close to an MF horn. It has an extremely clear bell like sound (with the silver bell) that really cuts through without being bright like Getzen 900 or Benge 2X+. King knew how to build valves so that is probably not an issue. There is only one thing you need to be careful about - some of the Kings were made with an non-standard smaller receiver taper to fit the stock King mpcs. When a standard larger shanked mpc is inserted in the receiver the gap can be quite large - 3/4". With this much gap the horn blows about like a Bach standard 25/37 - kind of tight for me. Since the receiver is so thin - you cannot ream it to fit - you must replace the receiver. When I had the receiver replaced I experimented with the gap and had it set to about 3/16 about right for me but it also play a little broader and more open with a little less gap. With the gap reduced the horn is about as open as an MF but with a different sound.

I have been on the listening end of a Kanstul 1500A with the heavy braced main tuning slide - don't know what mouthpiece the guy was using but I thought the clarity of sound was similar to the silver bell king.

Price wise - you can usually find one on e-bay in the $625 to $700 range in good shape.

Oh - one other piece of Harry James trivia - some say that Harry had King build the Symphony Super 20 DB as a "balanced" model - the valve cluster closer to the bell - for his personal playing. This would have made it look similar to the 40's Selmers or to the Olds Recording model (except the valves would have been in line)

mfan · Posted: Mon Sep 08, 2003 9:20 pm Post subject:

I also had a King Super 20 Symphony SilverSonic with the sterling bell and leadpipe. I know it had the dual-bore design but I'm not sure what the measurements were. It was actually in the music store where I worked for many years. I bought a old Claude Gordon Benge(.464?) over the King. The Benge just felt a lot more open to me. However many years later I went back to the company and the horn was still there, so for a measly 250 I bought it. I hung it on the wall and being a college student, I eventually sold it for the cash. It was always more of a neat collectors piece to me. I remember it seeming to play very stuffy. Given I was comparing it to my Callet Jazz that I currently play on now. It did have a fantastic sound though. That silver bell really sung in the upper register! I've never played a large bore Committee so I can't comment on that. But intonation was fantastic, the sound was great, I just prefer a more open feel I guess. Hope this helps!
-Collin