Anyway, the 455 is like the 350c without the oddness. There is no C, no valve, no short slide. It's just a 500/525 dual bore. Oh, the other side of this is that I've been looking for a 32h for a while. And I've been looking at other horns in this range, like the BAC Elliot Mason Chinese horn, and the Yamaha 893zd Landgren. Something between the Olds Recording and my 79h. Which is splitting hairs, I know, but these are the things I sit up at night thinking about. Some of you have the same affliction, so stop judging.
The 455G arrived (having just been sent from Japan yesterday!) and it's in great shape. From 5 feet you couldn't tell it was used. Really nice condition. Good slide. Plays well. A little ... characterless, I guess you'd call it, but this is what I expect from Yamaha as a Conn guy. It is no 32h to be sure, but it's a nice horn, and has a good feel. On a Conn, you feel like you can get as soft as you want, you can put as little air into it and you'll still get a sound. With Yamahas in general, I get the sense that there's a limit to how low it can go. Very well may be the player rather than the instrument, but that's the sense I get.
I've been playing my 8h in quintet, and the sound gets a little buried. So I think I'm going to bring this instead. My Olds Recording is a heavy horn for a straight small bore - I added a counterweight (1.63 kg), and the 8h (w/sl2525) is lighter (1.50 kg). The 455 weighs 1.52. And for compatibility, the 455 slide is interchangeable with 79/78h, just like the 32h, but unlike the 32h, the 455 bell/79h slide combination actually sounds like something usable. The 79h slide adds a little depth to the 455 bell. The 79h (includes F attachment) weighs 1.76 kg, just for reference (all horn weights include mouthpiece). The 455 slide actually almost fits the 79h bell, and the result is a little punchier than the 79h itself, which can be a little dark for a medium horn. I hadn't even considered this aspect of the 455, but it might give me the 78h that I've always wanted, and a 356/456 w/F very versatile combination. Remember what they say about dual bore - blows like the top, sounds like the bottom.
So it looks good, feels good, and I think it sounds good. It's a very natural sounding/feeling instrument. It's not a Conn, but maybe some practice will let me drive it like one. The only thing I might consider is a new leadpipe. Maybe a brass ark 32h leadpipe would inject enough Conn-ness to make this a really do-anything kind of horn.
One thing I've learned from a few years of horse trading is to never judge an acquisition too early. You might think you can make a quick judgment on something and maybe send it away to the next owner, but I know I go back and forth on a lot of equipment, and a real judgment takes maybe 6 months. So I'm going to play this in quintet, and maybe in a small orchestra, maybe some duets, and report back. But for now, I'm liking it without the reservations I had about the 350c.
