XENO YTR-8335RGSM vs. 8335RGM

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Thanks to one of my local horn pushers, Roger Holmes at Brook Mays' LBJ store, I've got a couple of reverse leadpipe Bb Yamaha Xenos for comparison. Both have the gold brass bell and matte finish, but one is silver-matte and the other is lacquer-matte.

I much prefer the look of the lacquer matte. With the gold-brass bell it ends up being three-tone, with yellow brass, nickel and gold brass. There's a really nice sheen and richness to the look. Yamaha's gold brass doesn't have a really high copper content, so it's more gold or bronze in appearance rather that red. This is really attractive with stainless accents on the valve caps and water keys. The lacquer shows off the two-piece valve casings (nickel tops) and the nickel used on each slide.

My wife prefers the all matte look of the silver horn. The only departure from matte is the valve caps and water keys. I've found that most people either love matte finishes or hate them. I'm in the middle. I prefer matte with some bright polished touches, like inside the bell and on the slide-ends. The lacquer Xeno is my favorite all-matte look so far. I think the matte-lacquer horn is gorgeous.

Playing these two horns you notice that their blows and tuning are almost identical. They have a tone-core and feel much like a good ml Bach. I used a mouthpiece with a fairly open backbore to get the feel I like. Intonation is very good with no unusual adjustments required to play in tune.

The slots on these horns are solid and relatively wide, much like a Bach 180-37R, with a medium resistance that most players will like. (I personally prefer a freer blowing horn, but the Xeno blow is what I think most people tend to prefer).

If you play out into the room you'll think that they sound alike from behind the horn; however, if you blow into the stand or a mirror you'll notice that the silver plated horn has considerably more edge. Both have rich core tones with lots of overtones, BUT the silver has much higher levels of upper partials. I think that both will project very well, but the silver will do a little better in that regard due to the upper partials. (I play jazz guitar and we guitarists add more upper eq than sounds good up close because it projects into a room better). Up close, you may think that the silver sounds "thinner", but as you move away the sound will become more attractive.

These two make three 8335R Yamahas that I've played in the last couple of months. I'm particularly impressed with their consistency. If I needed a "Bach-ish" trumpet these would be at the top of my list for consideration (along with some Bachs, of course). Anyone forced to purchase a horn without a play test can hardly go wrong with a Yamaha, if these horns are any evidence of their consistency.

Check 'em out.

Dave
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Schilke '60 B1 -- 229 Bach-C/19-350 Blackburn -- Lawler TL Cornet -- Conn V1 Flugel -- Stomvi Master Bb/A/G picc -- GR mpcs
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