
The Conn 88H is the classic large bore symphonic
trombone, made famous by Emory Remington and generations of great
players since. Played in Los Angeles by Ralph Sauer, Byron Peebles,
Sonny Ausman, and Jim Miller of the LA Philharmonic. Also played by
Bill Booth and Jim Sawyer of the LA Opera Orchestra, Dave Stetson of
the Pacific Symphony, Alex Iles of the Long Beach Symphony, and by
freelancers Andy Martin, Loren Marsteller, Charlie Morillas, Ira
Nepus, Ron Minor, and many many others.
The classic vintage Conn 88H trombones made in Elkhart, Indiana,
like this one
have
been in high demand, but many players think that the new horns, now
made in the King factory in Eastlake Ohio, are the best that Conn has
ever made. The new horns are different in that the bell rims are
soldered around the edge, like Bach and other brands. This gives more
projection and a smoother attack to the sound, really a more modern
style. Also, the two piece bells are no longer soldered at the seam,
but are instead tig welded, which uses welding rod of the same
material as the bell, and fuses the bell parts into one piece. Cool.
And...there are countless options. Gone is the day when you could
walk into a music store, lean on the counter and mumble, "88H" and
get exactly what you wanted. Now you have to decide.
The vintage Elkhart Conn 88Hs had an 8.5" thin rose brass bell and
a .547 slide with a soldered in lead pipe. The original old style
lead pipe was designed to accept mouthpieces with a Remington taper,
which makes most Bach style mouthpieces wobble a bit. Now the new
Conn 88H trombones have the more common Bach taper lead pipe as the
stock S leadpipe.
Conn now offers the traditional thin rose bell, a heavier rose
bell, and a yellow bell all with soldered rim. A new addition is the
large throat 9" K bell in rose brass, formerly seen as the King 5B
bell.
The new Conn rotary valve was formerly used on the King 4B. It has
more rounded curved ports into the valves and a sleek valve cap. Ball
and socket linkage replaces the old string linkage, but unfortunately
the throw is a little longer. It's still reasonable, with a very
light action. The paddle, now flat like a Bach 42B paddle, can be
adjusted closer or farther away from the pivot. The open wrap F
attachment tubing is the most open shape around.
Need a new Conn? Then read on and pick the options you want, and
we'll put a horn together for you.
|
| Model |
Specs |
Price |
Delivery Time
|
88HTO
 |
8.5" thin rose brass bell, standard .547" bronze
slide, stock S leadpipe, rotary valve, open wrap F
attachment, case and 5G mouthpiece
Our most popular
seller in the Conn lineup has a thin Elkhart style
rose brass bell with an open wrap F attachment and
the new standard rotary valve. Open wrap F
attachments have fewer curves and tight tubing
bends, respond better in the lower range, and tend
to blow more like the open horn. They are the
standard now on the top horns. Just be careful not
to bump the F attachment crook on anything behind
you, like the wall, or the choir members with their
omnipresent folders, as the F attachment tubing
sticks out a fair amount behind the tuning slide.
Still, the open wrap plays well, looks very clean,
and costs no extra. Includes case and mouthpiece ,
choice of slide. |
$2329 |
Usually in stock |
8H
 |
8.5" thin rose brass bell, standard .547" bronze
slide, stock S leadpipe, straight neckpipe, no
valve, case and 5G mouthpiece The 8H also has its own page
here |
$1879 |
Usually in
stock |
88HO
 |
8.5" standard weight rose brass bell, standard
.547" bronze slide, stock S leadpipe, rotary valve,
open wrap F attachment, case and 5G mouthpiece
This bell is the new
heavier rose brass bell. If you want a bigger,
solid sound more like a Bach 42B, this can do it.
You can play louder with less edge, but still get
fast response and a clear tone. Sometimes the
heavier bell can feel dull to me at low volumes,
but it still has a very warm sound. Not as popular an option
as the 88HTO. This one is pretty
heavy for a red brass horn. |
$2329 |
Usually in
stock |
88HKO
 |
9" large throat standard weight rose brass bell,
standard .547" bronze slide, stock S leadpipe,
rotary valve, open wrap F attachment, case and 5G
mouthpiece
This is a totally
new bell for the Conn 88H. It is made of the
standard weight rose brass, in a 9" diameter, with
a large throat, or faster expansion. It works. It's
got a big modern sound, not unfamiliar to Bach 42
players. The 9" bell isn't really too big, and
centers well, and I can hear the pitch well too.
It's not big and woofy like one might think. It's just a
little step up in the Wars of the
Larger Arsenal, which is fine, since
the bass trombones and tubas have
tended to creep up in size, and some
folks just want a darker instrument
from Conn. No problem, here it is.
If the bell was this same larger
throat model, but cut off to a 8.5"
diameter, no one would bat an eye
anyway. The larger flare just
reflects back some of the high
overtones in the sound, so you get
some more darkness. Turns out this
bell has been seen before as the
King 5B bell. Seems like a good idea
to me to offer this bell with the
fine 88H setup. This bell is
available with any 88H slide or by
itself to use with your old slide.
This bell is also useful with a
.562" bore bass trombone slide as a
smaller, lighter sounding bass
trombone. Includes case
and mouthpiece, choice of slide. Call for
availability. |
$2449 |
by special order |
|
Options on Conn Trombones
|
Price |
|
Silver plate |
add $250 |
|
Slide options |
Price |
|
SLF4747 - stock slide - .547"
bronze outer tubes, standard S leadpipe is soldered
in, new Morse taper fits standard shank
mouthpieces. This is the standard .547" bore
slide with the soldered S lead pipe. This slide is
included with the base 8H and 88H purchase price.
The lead pipe now has the most common Bach
mouthpiece shank taper. Brass with nickel outer
sleeves and narrow nickel end crook.
|
no charge |
|
SL4747 - .547" - same as
above with 3 removable leadpipes
The standard .547" bore slide,
same as the SLF4747, but includes 3 removable lead
pipes, two with the Bach shank taper: S and M, and
one with the Remington shank taper, R. Brass with
nickel sleeves. |
add $200 |
|
SL2525 - .525" - medium bore
with 3 removable leadpipes, 1 large shank, 2 small
shank This is the medium bore .525"
slide, very similar to the old 78H slide except for
the larger connector. The Conn catalog mentions
gaining high range stability with this slide. That
isn't quite right. This slide makes you soar in the
high range. It has a lighter, more compact,
brilliant sound, and is so easy to play. For fans
of the old 78H, an 8HT with this slide is a great
updated version, but with the larger 8.5" bell.
Occasionally used by Ralph Sauer. This slide
includes two lead pipes that accept a small tenor
shank mouthpiece, T and H, and one lead pipe that
accepts a large bass shank mouthpiece, X. Brass
with nickel outer sleeves. |
add $200 |
|
SL2547 - .525"/.547" -
medium/large bore with 3 removable leadpipes, 1
large shank, 2 small shank
This is the dual bore slide,
with a .525" medium bore top tube, and a .547"
large bore lower tube. The idea with this slide is
to give the ease of playing of the smaller bore,
and the big sound of the larger bore. It does that
well, and also give the 88H a more characteristic
tenor trombone sound. Jeff Reynolds found this to
be his favorite, and still got a great tenor style
sound even with his bass trombone mouthpiece in
this slide with the 88HO bell. Includes the same 3
lead pipes as the above SL2525 slide, T, H, and X.
Ralph Sauer also uses this slide much of the time.
Brass with nickel sleeves. |
add $200 |
|
SL4762 - .547"/.562" -
large/xlarge bore in lightweight bronze with 3
removable leadpipes This is the large dual bore
slide with a standard .547" top tube and a larger
bass trombone sized .562" lower tube. For players
who like to play really loud, you can get a huge
warm sound on this slide. Lightweight version is
brass without nickel sleeves. Includes the same S,
M, and R 3 lead pipes as above. This is a favorite
among Bach players because it plays so open.
|
add $200 |
|
SL6262 - .562"/.562" - xlarge
bore, bass trombone sized, Chicago style in
lightweight bronze with 3 removable leadpipes
This is a lightweight bass
trombone slide in .562" bore, with three lead pipes
from the Conn 62H bass trombone, B, C, and D. You
can get a great low range and a big loud but smooth
sound with this slide, at the expense of losing
some brilliance in the upper register. Light weight
style, brass without nickel sleeves, very fast
response. |
add $200 |
|
Parts |
Price |
|
88HTO bell only, with case
|
$1700 |
|
SL style slide with 3 leadpipes, any
size |
$1200 |
|
SLF4747 slide with single leadpipe
|
$1000 |
|
88H hard case |
$200 |
These horns ship in 1-2 business days if in stock, in
15-30 days
otherwise.
|