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Starting to shop around a bit for a Bb tuba. Looking at the Eastman EBB534 and the King 2341. Very similar looking tubas but I'm wondering if anyone has any experience playing either or recommendations. Thanks

Yeah, I played an early new-style 2341 for about 9 months while my Holton was in the shop. I liked it. A lot. The sound to me was very much similar to my 6/4, just rather smaller, if that makes sense, and the intonation was better. I could easily support a 50 piece concert band alone. I have strongly considered the 2341 as a retirement horn, when I become to lazy or decrepit to tote my BAT, as it's noticeably lighter and easier to haul around. I would almost call the 2341 a baby-BAT.
Ask Rick Denney, as he has the same Holton 345 and uses the Eastman version of the King 2341.
I'm pretty certain you'll like both horns, if you get a chance to play them.
Tim Here they are - 4/4 King 2341 on left, Holton 345BBb on right. Very similar configuration, just different sizes.

Both are good horns, with one being an imitation of the other. Intonation is nearly point-and-shoot on the King, and the Eastman is also very good. Both are easy to play. The Eastman is cheaper than the King when purchased new, but a used King can be purchased for a very reasonable price.

I purchased a King 2341 from Baltimore Brass nearly two years ago. A used horn, however in tremendous condition. The pitch is very good and the notes slot easily. The only caveats with this horn to me are that the brass is extremely soft, so being cautious when handling is necessary and the weight of the horn. For an older player like me, a Hercules stand has worked out very well. The horn is solidly built and has a strong bottom end. Good luck with your search!

I think the Eastman is finished as well and is more consistently made than the King. I have always been surprised by the variability coming from Eastlake—not its reputation of old. But I think they considered the 2341 a price-point tuba because it was a Bb and would mostly be of interest to schools and amateurs. (It’s not cheap enough to be a price-point tuba, though. The Eastman is.)

The Eastman is as well-constructed as my Yamaha 621, which is to say assembled with competent care but not intended to be a work of art. The valves are very good and the slide alignment is decent.

In playing, the Eastman is a very different playing experience than either my Holton or my Hirsbrunner. The Hirsbrunner’s bell is in the flight path of low-flying aircraft, and it is a power-sound instrument, ideally suited for getting off a shell-less stage and into the brain of the guy on the back row. Players underestimate how much sound it puts out. The Holton can be woofy, and it takes the right mouthpiece to maintain clarity. (I started with a PT-48 and now use a Sellmansberger Orchestra Grand cup and either a Grand or Symphony shank depending on mood.) Both of these particular big tubas by their nature produce a lively tone with a lot of harmonic color, compared to other examples of big tubas I’ve tried, with the Hirsbrunner being more flexible in tone but less warm and friendly. But both are too big for small ensembles—either too penetrating or too broad—at least with me at the helm.

The Eastman has the roundness of the Holton and is more about warmth and less about power. I bought it to play in a quintet, where it is an antidote to the crispness of the trumpets and trombone, but I switch to an F for two-trombone and early music arrangements. The F can do a much better job of pretending to be a bass trombone, and I can get a wider variety of tones out of it. But for jazzy stuff or arrangements that depend on deep tuba timbre, the Eastman does well.

I don’t think I’d try to balance a typically too-loud community band playing the King or Eastman by myself. But a section of them would be fine, as long as the players are not tempted to hold back because of how loudly that short, wide bell plays in their ears.

Its strongest feature it shares with the best of the Kings: it’s extremely playable, with nearly perfect intonation (by tuba standards) and no bad notes. It’s far more acrobatic than the big tubas.

I found the 534 to be mouthpiece sensitive, but not in the way I thought. I use mouthpieces with more cup to them in general, and figured that would also work in the Eastman because of its big, round tone. Instead, I got a tendency to play flat and really not much life in the sound. But the mouthpiece that really works well is a Laskey 30H that I tried out almost by mistake. That classic funnel is really ideal in the Eastman, but it’s a bit smaller in diameter than my usual and that may also be part of it.

Recommended. Play before buying.

Rick “and expect it to need tweaking and cleaning by an expert, if not already done” Denney

If your heart is set on a King, go bigger with the older detachable bell style. If you like the short 34'' tall horn then buy a new style. 34'' to me was way too short and hard to pull upper slides out to dump water on and no one makes a generic gig bag that fits it unless you spend $$$ with Messina or Cronkite style bags.