Joined: 13 May 2015 Posts: 295 Location: Mississippi
Posted: Wed Sep 19, 2018 3:46 am Post subject:
I'm resurrecting this thread rather than starting a new one, after buying one of the Marcus Bonna GS Studio Cases.
This case is designed to allow you to practice the trumpet in an apartment or hotel room without bothering the neighbors. There are a couple of videos on the Marcus Bonna site that shows how it works.
The case, of course, holds a trumpet securely. In addition, it comes with a telescoping stand with collapsible legs. Mount the case on the stand at either sitting or standing height. The case has two vertical "flaps" (for lack of a better word) attached by velcro. They create an opening into which you put the bell of the trumpet. Think of playing into the case, rather than playing into an open clothes closet, to dampen the sound.
If you are interested, please check out the videos on the Marcus Bonna site. They will explain how it works much better than I can put it into words.
I found that it actually works well, with a minor modification. The "flaps" don't completely seal, even with the velcro, leaving a small open area that allows sound to escape. I wrapped a bungee chord around the case, which caused the flaps to seal better, solving the problem.
I set it up in a bedroom and closed the door. My wife was in the next room with the TV on at normal volume. I played a few things into the case, up to a high G played quite loudly. My wife in the next room said she could hear "something" but really couldn't tell what it was, without knowing that I was playing the trumpet. She said it was not objectionable in the least.
It's an innovative solution to a problem experienced by a lot of trumpet players. My experience is that it works. I live in a rural area, and I have a separate studio for regular practice, but I travel with some frequency, not only staying in hotels, but occasionally at a friend's home. It will be nice to be able to play at full volume without the back pressure of a practice mute, and without fear of bothering those around me.
Downsides: It's heavy. Keep in mind that it's not only holding your trumpet, but it's also holding the metal stand that comes with it. It's not intended to be an everyday case to haul around with you. It's designed to set up in an apartment or for practicing in hotel rooms. It's also pricey at $500.00. It is, however, well made. If it were my only case, I'd leave the stand at home for daily transport.
It took about four months to arrive after ordering it through a Marcus Bonna dealer.
Last edited by Speed on Wed Sep 19, 2018 9:43 am; edited 1 time in total
John Mohan
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Ex LA Studio Musician
16 Year Claude Gordon Student
Bumping this thread once again, as I was wondering if there was anyone else who has used this case, and can comment on its efficacy. And does anyone know of any dealers in the US (preferably near NYC) who carry it? I haven't seen it sold by anyone - I wrote directly to MB, but haven't yet heard back; was hoping to try one out.
Joined: 23 Mar 2003 Posts: 9014 Location: Hawai`i - Texas
Posted: Tue May 21, 2019 5:38 pm Post subject:
If you do hear back from Bonna, please share this with us. Also what the current price would be. Thanks. _________________ "If you don't live it, it won't come out of your horn." Bird
Joined: 23 Mar 2003 Posts: 9014 Location: Hawai`i - Texas
Posted: Tue May 21, 2019 7:05 pm Post subject:
I'm not keen on $500.00 but a practice room is a couple of thousand and takes up a lot more space. If it eliminates disadvantages of playing in a practice mute, though . . . _________________ "If you don't live it, it won't come out of your horn." Bird
Joined: 26 May 2006 Posts: 1808 Location: Toronto, Canada
Posted: Wed May 22, 2019 1:31 pm Post subject:
Wow - this is really interesting. For those that have actually tried it - beyond being quiet, how restrictive does it feel? Is it actually close to the experience of playing normally?
Joined: 13 May 2015 Posts: 295 Location: Mississippi
Posted: Wed May 22, 2019 2:41 pm Post subject:
It's not restrictive at all. Beats the heck out of playing with a practice mute.
I've never seen one in a store. I ordered mine from a MB dealer, and based on the roughly four months it took to arrive, I presume it was manufactured after the order was placed by the dealer.
I know that none of us like to put money of any consequence into a product sight unseen; and $500 for a case that is too heavy to use for your everyday case definitely is "of consequence" to most of us. This is one of those times that you just have to pay your money and take your chances.
While I don't expect to find a product like this in my local music stores, I would have thought that major markets like New York, Chicago, etc. would have a dealer with one on hand. Maybe not. Even if you find one to try out, my experience was that you're going to have to experiment with it a bit to get it as quiet as you'd like. Re-read my original post about the bungee cords. If you find one in a store to audition, I strongly suggest that you take a bungee cord or two with you so you can experiment with tightening the flaps down better than the velcro that comes with the case will do.
BTW, I'll be taking mine with me this weekend, as I'll be spending time in a hotel.
Joined: 26 Feb 2009 Posts: 1352 Location: SF Bay Area
Posted: Fri Feb 14, 2020 11:01 am Post subject:
Figured I'd revive this thread slightly for a review (since this thread is what made my wife order one for me as a gift!)
Received the case a few months ago, and it has been so helpful in dealing with practicing in an apartment. I rarely travel with it, given the weight/awkwardness of the case, but as a solution to practicing in an apartment without angering all of your neighbors, it is fantastic.
Tried various mutes (shout out to Bremmer as my travel mute of choice), but there always is a noticeable compromise in resistance and sound. With the Studio case you can actually hear what you sound like since it is essentially muffling your playing. No added/surprise resistance, just the open horn.
Surprise downsides are mostly to do with the size/height of the case. The music stand is a lot higher up than I normally play on, would probably be fine if I played with bell more towards the ground. The second is that the "minimum height" for the case is quite high - I'm a tall fellow and I need to put a pillow on the chair in order to get the bell in the slot.
Also doesn't work great with short bell higher horns, may work with long bell variants. Large bells (think rotaries and Adams A8s) can be hard to get into the slot.
Overall: highly recommend to anyone stuck in apartments who wants to be able to practice freely. _________________ More than one trumpet
A "few" mouthpieces
Joined: 23 Mar 2003 Posts: 9014 Location: Hawai`i - Texas
Posted: Fri Feb 14, 2020 12:56 pm Post subject:
bagman - not considering the resistance and those other factors - just the sound level - is the box any quieter than a good practice/warm-up mute? Thanks. _________________ "If you don't live it, it won't come out of your horn." Bird
Joined: 26 Feb 2009 Posts: 1352 Location: SF Bay Area
Posted: Fri Feb 14, 2020 2:24 pm Post subject:
kehaulani wrote:
bagman - not considering the resistance and those other factors - just the sound level - is the box any quieter than a good practice/warm-up mute? Thanks.
It is closer to the louder practice mutes than the quieter ones. To me it is comparable in volume to the Bremmer Whisper mute.
If you need silence it is definitely not the right tool (maybe if you put additional stuffing/dampening material in the box it would work). _________________ More than one trumpet
A "few" mouthpieces
I know I'm resurrecting an old thread but with all this social isolation I've gotten used to doing my practice with an open horn. I'm not looking forward to eventually going back to the situation where i need to practice at work with the silent brass.
Just wondering if anyone else has had experience with these ? and if so - good or bad. Also I'm particularly interested if anyone in Aust. has one and if so the cost and difficulty (or otherwise) in getting it into the country.
Joined: 30 Jun 2005 Posts: 2665 Location: sunny Sydney, Australia
Posted: Fri May 22, 2020 9:07 am Post subject:
Hi Zed
I'm in Sydney and have a couple of Bonna cases. Brass Music Specialists were able to help me twice, they are a great bunch after I got stuffed about locally.
But there are limits to what stores can do at times. I needed a case for a short bell piccolo, and the only way to get it was to order via Pete & Joanna Musson at:
mussonbassoonreeds.com.au
Solved my problems and I have what must be the only yellow Bona piccolo case in the world! (I did order it in yellow) Fast and easy to deal with.
cheers
Andy _________________ so many horns, so few good notes...
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