Yamaha Silent Brass Euphonium Mute Review

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(More customer reviews)The SB29 system really does work pretty much as advertised - here are the actual impressions and details, after playing with it for 30 or 40 minutes.
First - how silent is it? Well, take your euphonium and cram a pillow in the bell as best you can. Play it. Forget what it feels like to play. The SB29 will mute it somewhat better than that, in my case 2/3 the volume. The muted sound (not through the headphones) is nothing pretty to listen to (can you say sick cow?), but it is soft enough I could imaging people in the same room learning to ignore it after a few minutes. People in adjacent rooms are unlikely to notice it. I would not play on an airplane :-)
Next - back pressure. Forget the trombone review of "blowing up a balloon". There is no increase in pressure, per se, I would say the back-pressure is acoustic, such as you would experience (feeling to the embouchure) when playing in a smaller practice room compared to a room with a 20+ foot ceiling. The biggest difference you notice is that, especially in the lower register the horn resonance is decreased, so the notes don't "pop into place" as sharply. For example, when playing octaves from middle Bb to low Bb, until you learn it a bit the lower note is not as sure a thing. Is it bothersome? Well, somewhat bothersome below say a mid-bass clef staff D, and not a great problem above. But back-pressure - no, more muffling. It blows freely. Actually, in some ways it reminds me of how a trombone feels after playing a euphonium - less of that clear, round "the horn generates its own volume" feeling. Hard to describe.
Finally - the sound you hear through the headphones. I found it best in the echo position of the switch, which is not that much echo, perhaps the same as in my great-room, or in a small chapel. The sound is not that wonderful sound you get when not playing muted, but it is completely usable and not unpleasent. Above middle F, it is pretty good, certainly enough to enjoy playing. Below low Bb I would describe it as "somewhat stuffy and unsure". I found that somewhat louder volume settings alleviate some of this.
Is it fun to play with, and useful? Yes. Absolutely useful. First of all, you can practice in any room, and it doesn't matter. You could certainly practice in a dorm or hotel room, no problem. I can now practice at midnight and not risk waking anyone. Can you make music? Absolutely. You may not be in love with your sound, but you can still enjoy the music you are making. Dynamic differences are about right, you can practice technique, and in fact it may help for this, as the response you hear is less delayed, so the individual notes come out clearer. And finally, you can connect your mp3 player to it if you want to play along with a reference recording.
Summary - clear recommendation, 8 out of 10

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