Experience with Shires dual-bore tenor slide

[raschultz]

My sound concept is moving me toward a dual-bore 547 slide on my Shires tenor. Currently I have a 3YM bell (yes- one of Steve's prototypes for model 7), gold-brass tuning slide, and nickel-silver slide. Brass slides help reduce the brightness and edge a lot (based on playing them with my bell), but I'm looking for a certain sound and response. My Bach 16 (late 60's vintage) has a brass conical slide and plays beautifully- less edge, more rounded, more (some say lyrical, like cornet vs trumpet) and that's what I'm going after. I have isolated the NS slide as my issue.

Any experience with Shires TB547.62 slides please (and in yellow brass)? A beast or worth considering? Thanks for whatever you choose to share.

[Matt K]

I tend to prefer dual bores myself. So I’d say it’s worth considering. Or also the T2547; I play a 525/547 as my main “large” horn. As you mentioned the brass definitely responds differently than the nickel, or at least I find it does. So it might still yet be better to get a single bore in brass. It’s hard to tell in a vacuum. But both dual bore options shires offers or, of course, the 562 straight can work well.

The 2 piece bells, in my option, do a little better with smaller slides and their type 5 bells with larger slides. That’s by no means universal. It may not even apply to me. My sample size is pretty low.

Leadpipe choice can also help. Again, hard to recommend blind, but the 1 or 1.5 paired with a TB47 or TB4762 is typically the route I take.