Stomvi

[spitvalve]

About a year ago I play-tested a Stomvi Elite trumpet and was very impressed by the workmanship and playability. I've been looking at their website and have developed something of a crush on Stomvi instruments. Very pretty horns.

I'd like to hear from Stomvi owners and what horns you A-B'd them against before buying. I especially want to know more about the Elite copper flugel and all of the Master series instruments.

I'm also interested in hearing from V-Raptor and VRII players, same questions.
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Bryan Fields
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1991 Bach LR180 ML 37S
1999 Getzen Eterna 700S
1977 Getzen Eterna 895S Flugelhorn
1969 Getzen Capri cornet
1995 UMI Benge 4PSP piccolo trumpet
Warburton and Stomvi Flex mouthpieces

[65strad]

My experience playing them is sort of indirect. My picc is a collaboration between Bach and Stomvi and has had a alignment by Reeves as part of the package. Tremendous sound/valves, intonation, build quality and playability. I have tested the P5-4, Yamaha, and Stomvi Elite.

For me, hands down top horn for the reason listed above. Elite second, Yamaha next and then Schilke.

My teacher plays a V-Raptor Bb and loves it. Also has a Reeves alignment and great sound. Stomvi produces extremely high quality instruments. Sorry I can't provide more playing feedback other than my hybrid picc experience.
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Tom
'08 Bach factory custom "one off" 43*G SN#2008
'65 Bach 181 37 SN#30836
'67 Bach 180 37 SN#39773
'70 Bach 181 37 SN#58831
'72 Bach 180S 43 SN#70503
'05 Bach VBS 196 Picc SN#560142
'07 Bach Chicago C SN#656602

[mpo]

I have played a VRII a couple of times now and the horn is on my short list that is for sure. Great valves, finish, and overall one heck of a horn. I would not hesitate to play a Stomvi horn. I guess that is what happens when a Jeweler gets into the brass business

[laurent]

Hi!

I'm the happy owner of a Stomvi Forte trumpet, and I confirm the 1st rate workmanship of this brand!

The Forte has a great playability and a fast and light response, the slides and valves work *like a dream*, the silver plating is 1st quality, the alloy used is very soft, the sound is really very nice and sweet... Love it!

And the (high) quality of the workmanship is the same for all the horns builts by Stomvi, from the cheapest models to the more expensives!

I play tested the Forte (obviously! ), the Classica and the Titan.

I didn't notice any significative difference between the Forte and the Classica, the second being noticeably more expensive than the first and perhaps somewhat more projective and brittle...
Here in Spain the Forte costs around €900 and the Classica about €1300, but regardless of its price I'm said that the Forte is often prefered!

As for the Titan... This one is a monster!!!
This standard weighted trumpet has sound as big as gorgeous, is incredibly easy to play and responsive, is... perfect, I think, I highly recommend to everyone who's looking for a new trumpet to play test the Titan!
Its only imperfections are its price (around €2700, more or less USD3300...), and that if you prefer the feeling of a heavy trumpet the Titan probably isn't for you...

But it's a really fantastic horn that worths a try!
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Bb Trumpets: Courtois Évolution IV, Stomvi Forte,
Buescher T-120, HT3.
Mpcs: Monette B2s3, Kanstul M-B2.
Flugel: H.Bagué (Yam 631 clone in red brass).
Mpcs: Curry FL & FLD.

[Bill Blackwell]

[laurent]

[Bill Blackwell]

[Bill Blackwell]

I will clarify one thing. It appears the 5926 Elite (copper) Flugelhorn is offered (off-the-shelf) in silver plate. But it can also be ordered in lacquer or raw brass/copper. And from what I have seen, the 'raw' option is commonly preferred.
_________________
Bill Blackwell
Founder - Sons of Thunder Big Band Machine

Wild Thing Bb - Copper
Wild Thing Flugelhorn - Copper
Wild Thing Short-Model Cornet - Copper

The future ain't what it used to be. ...
- Yogi Berra

[laurent]

[ConnArtist]

I can sort of speak to the Elite Flugelhorn. I have a phrankenhorn, which is the raw Stomvi Elite from the mpc receiver and valve block, but a Blessing solid copper bell instead, and a length of custom bent yellow brass from valve block to bell tail. Got it off ebeigh, and no idea the story as to how/why that happened.

But... the valves are INCREDIBLE. bottom-sprung, super fast, and I swear they are a shorter stroke (though I haven't measured). A lot of websites indicate it is 0.460 bore. That is not true in my case. The bore is 0.417, which you can occasionally find at other websites if you dig deeper. Not sure why this misinformation is out there. I should add, classy gold-plated valve buttons and caps (top and bottom) that never tarnish! Nice contrast to the oxidized raw brass IMHO.

It has what I would call a mellow and smooth timbre. It is more silky, buttery smooth, than velvetty, smokey fuzzy. My old Belgian Flugelhorn was more the velvetty-fuzzy kind (which I prefer and never should have sold!). But my Stomvi definitely delivers what I consider a true flugelhorn timbre, and does not get trumpety sounding at all with my Wick 4.

Plays great above the staff. The only funky note is the F in-the-staff (not F on top of staff) is flat. High G and A are fine.

That horn is HEAVY though. no idea how much weight is from the Blessing bell vs. a real Stomvi bell, but the Blessing bell is definitely thick and solid.

That's all I can think of at the moment. I know it's only a semi-Stomvi, but let me know if you have any specific questions.
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"Stomvi" PhrankenPhlugel w/ Blessing copper bell
1958 Conn 18A cornet
1962 Conn 9A cornet (yes, the Unicorn )
Reynolds Onyx cornet
c. 1955? Besson 10-10 trumpet
1939 Martin Imperial Handcraft “Model 37�
1986 Bach Strad 37 ML

[JugglingManiac]

Hi,

I personally own the Stomvi Master Eb/D trumpet, and I love it! Although I do not find the price difference between the master and elite justified, as both are very similar in playing characteristics, the master has the edge of the Combiscrew bell system.
Before purchase, i compared both elite and master to various other eb trumpets - bach artisan, bach strad, schilke... All were inferior to even the stomvi elite.

[meester]

I just received my new Stomvi trumpet Bb Forte. I am very impressed and incredibly happy with it. This is NO student horn dudes, this is a professional horn. Blows very easily, you need little air, the notes come out as effortless, greatly in tune, responds quickly ... for a student like me it is a dream! And I only paid 660€ from an online shop in Spain http://www.lallardelmusic.com/trompeta-sib/161-stomvi-forte-5000-trompeta.html

This is truly an incredible "student" trumpet. NOTHING compared to my old student trumpet, with this Stomvi I was able to hit notes I could have never been able to hit with my old trumpet ... even without warming up at all. I played with ease, with little air and effort, the notes were focused even the low F#. When you grab it and blow ... it plays by itself. Again, this is NO student trumpet, it is PRO stuff. And the make and finish is beautiful.

I am genuinely impressed by it. At that price range there is NO competition. If you are a pro, this is a bargain, if you are a student this is a bargain and a dream trumpet that will make your miserable-trumpet-student-life easy going. I will definitely keep this trumpet forever and wont sell it second hand.

By the way, it comes with an extra set of springs and stuff for the valve parts. Now I will test the Stomvi Harmonic Sound and Dynsound products once I spend a month with this horn.

I am very happy with my Stomvi Bb Forte trumpet ... a winner!

[jblo]

I've owned 3 Stomvis.

Master Ti Bb - Gold plated. Spectacular horn, but I couldn't get the upper register to hook up. I had two pipes (2 and 3), 3 bows (25, 26, 27) and 5 bells (silver 25, silver 27, brass 25, brass 27 and custom rimless 5.25" copper). Great legit horn. Favorite setup: 2 pipe, full 27 bell in brass. Sold it. Don't miss it.

Maurice Andrey Elite Combi - Gold plated. Reeves aligned. 3 pipe, 25 silver bell, 27 brass bell. It might have had 2 bows too - I don't remember. OK horn. Liked the Master WAY better. Sold it. Don't miss it.

Mahler Ti C - Silver. Reeves aligned. Can remember the spec 100%. I think it was a 23 bell and 14 pipe. Decent horn. Easy to play coming off Bb but sounded more like a Bb to me. Sold it. Don't miss it.

ALL 3 HAD AMAZING VALVES. Strong candidates for the best valves I've ever owned.

My buddy's Master picc is really nice - a little dark for my tastes, but a player.
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Jason Blome

Bb - CarolBrass CTR-5205L-YLT-P
Cornet - CarolBrass CCR-6880-YLS-P
C - CarolBrass CTR-6262H-YSS-P-C
Flug - CarolBrass CFL-6200-RSS-L
Picc - CarolBrass CPC-7735F-YLS-P

[Andy Del]

I have played on various Stomvi horns over the years, and never found one that I'd want to own.

Very nicely made, good plating, great cases, interesting designs, but they just don't play very well. Generally, they just feel very tight.

cheers

Andy
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so many horns, so few good notes...

[mds]

I play stomvi, trumpets good, easy to play. Now I sell my C Master.

[Crazy Finn]

[rufflicks]

First thing to do is make contact with K.O. and talk to him about what kind of playing you are doing and what you want to achieve. He is a straight shooter and will help you understand each horn.

I have played each finish in the Vr-II standard weight and several of the V-raptors. I own the Vr prototype and a burnished lacquer Vr-II. It is my opinion that the silver plate Vr-II is the most versatile. I think the burnished is great for commercial work and the gold plate works best for the legit end of the spectrum. It is just my take on the different finishes. Here is a video where I play 5 different Vr horns using my commercial mouthpiece. Take the video for what it is worth.
(my son wanted to run the camera on this one, sorry.)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E3SXXAmzPDo

I like my prototype for legit work and my burnished Vr-II for commercial here is a video that shows the difference in the way I use them. I play them using different mouthpieces as well; legit and commercial. Again take the video for what it is worth.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b_HFhF4Cwks&feature=related

All the Vraptor horns slot extremely well, respond quickly, have even register response, have a compact blow, project well, and have a great sound.

I have played the Stomvi Elite and Titan Mambo Bb trumpets. The Elite is a good solid horn with good slotting but it's register, sound, and blow are not as good as the Vraptor line. The Titan is closer to the Vr horns but I prefer the Vr it is just that much better of a horn. (For me)

I have played the Vr-II C excellent horn and hopefully more orchestra players check this horn out. It is KILLER!!!!

The Elite Pic is very accessible to the occasional pic player and a great horn for those that play a lot of pic. It is a fine horn. Patterned after the P5-4, a better blow and standard trumpet mouthpiece A/Bb pipes.

The Elite Flugel I have played in Silver finish only. Very focused, great intonation, excellent slotting and the classic Couesnon sound. It is a great playing horn. It is a very clean blowing horn. Yes you guessed it I do have a video. I play 5 different flugels take this for what it is worth as well.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wT-LDSmn-FA

As far as what I have played them against, just about everything! The only horn I felt was immediately accessible like my Vr-II and covered all the same territory was the Laskey. This really doesn't mean much because I may not play like you, nor do I use your body to play the trumpet so...There are may fine horns out there and thank God that there are. We are all very different players and the variety gives us all a horn we can love. Stomvi makes well built, fine playing, very accessible solid horns. I highly recommend trying them. The question is do they make one for you?

Like I said at the top call K.O. and talk to him he will be happy to help you better understand the Stomvi line.

Good luck, hope this helps a bit.

Jon
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http://www.youtube.com/user/Rufftips

Remember this is supposed to be fun.

[spitvalve]

Thanks, Jon. That was the A-B I've been looking for. BTW, nice playing!
_________________
Bryan Fields
----------------
1991 Bach LR180 ML 37S
1999 Getzen Eterna 700S
1977 Getzen Eterna 895S Flugelhorn
1969 Getzen Capri cornet
1995 UMI Benge 4PSP piccolo trumpet
Warburton and Stomvi Flex mouthpieces

[rufflicks]

Bryan,

Do talk to K.O. and let him know what horns you play and in what situations. Also let him know what kind of blow feel you are looking for. He has a light weight and a large bell Vr. I haven't played either.

Glad one of the videos helped, I know that there is interested in the Vr horns. I hope to get some videos put together in a way that helps folks hear them. These early videos are my learning curve attempts. The Vr horns are certainly worth a blow, may not be for everyone but they are good horns.
Good luck finding a horn.

Jon
_________________
http://www.youtube.com/user/Rufftips

Remember this is supposed to be fun.

[robeebee]

I'm loving my Stomvi b flat classica

Plays nice and open

Great valves and slides as well

Tried an S3 in the shop, great horn but out of my price range