People who know me know I have played alot of trumpets over the years! But my latest horn from ozwinds is a real knockout. It is a 8335RGM (reverse leadpipe, gold brass bell "shotblast" matte finish). Yamaha put so much research and development into the xeno trumpets, and it is evident in this horn. It combines the slotting and 'centre' of a heavyweight horn with the nimbleness of a lightweight horn.Sort of between a 8335 and the bobby shew horn (8310Z). It has an extra long leadpipe and heavy mouthpiece receiver.What this does is give you alot of centre and core to the sound at all volumes. This core is also helped by the 2 piece valve casing.This was a feature of Bachs of the Mt Vernon era, but it was despensed with due to the added costs in man hours and materials. But yamaha have reintroduced this feature with their xeno trumpets. It is incredibly free blowing, and a great instrument for finding your own voice.The workmanship is as good, if not better than the monette trumpet I owned (149Xl), and I would have to compare this horn to a custom made horn for workmanship and playability.The valves are quite and really fast. Bob Malone at yamaha is designing incredible trumpets! Check them out .

Rating: [5 of 5 Stars!]