 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: sesqui
Date: 2015-12-16 08:50
Can anyone tell me if they'd have any success with Conn Bass Clarinets, especially the older (1950s) models? Are they worth the investments for $1800 some? I've always been a Selmer man, but am willing to try this horn if it's the right price and with a veritable derth of older Selmers on the market. Thanks!
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Author: CEC
Date: 2015-12-18 21:04
That strikes me as a very high price. I don't have any experience with Conn basses, but given its age, my concerns would be with tuning and the strength of the keywork - rod flexing might be a problem. Repairs can be more expensive on older horns, too. If you can try it before you commit and have a repair person have a gander at it, that would be ideal. Old horns have a certain charm about them and some have outstanding tone, but reliability and intonation issues can take the shine off of ownership pretty quick.
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Author: bill28099
Date: 2015-12-18 23:23
I have an old wooden Conn bass, paid 300 bucks for it. Changed a few pads, fought with the register mechanism, it is a dual vent. It plays, if that's all you have or can afford it will do. Now maybe Dave Spiegelthal could turn it into a silk purse but I sure can't. Even overhauled and in perfect playing condition I wouldn't pay more then $500 for one, maybe $600 in a weak moment.
A great teacher gives you answers to questions
you don't even know you should ask.
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Author: Lelia Loban ★2017
Date: 2015-12-19 18:28
Be aware that when C. G. Conn died, his widow sold part of the name of his brand. Any instrument labelled Conn without his initials, C. G., is one of those later models. I'm an amateur, but fwiw, I think the Conn clarinets and saxophones from the 1950s are not nearly as good as C.G. Conns. I began clarinet on a 1957 wooden Conn Director soprano Bb. It's better than a lot of student instruments from that period, but it's got extremely wide 12ths and some other built-in intonation problems. Also, the keys are cast, not forged. One of mine (right-hand low C-lever) broke during ordinary use. They break easily. The Conn basses from the 1950s also have those brittle, cast keys.
Lelia
http://www.scoreexchange.com/profiles/Lelia_Loban
To hear the audio, click on the "Scorch Plug-In" box above the score.
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Author: Ursa
Date: 2015-12-20 00:18
The later Conn basses, made of hard rubber and often sold mistakenly as a plastic bass, are serviceable. They are made by Malerne. The one I once played on had a LH Eb/Ab lever. Keywork is crude-looking but doesn't flex like a Bundy. The neck angle may not suit everyone.
I would not pay more for one of these than I would a Bundy bass, say, around $200-$300 for a good fixer-upper.
Post Edited (2015-12-20 00:30)
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