Tristar Standard Trumpet Review

Overall Rating

Very cheap
Good value for the price

A little shoddy in finish

I bought a Tristar standard quality trumpet on Ebay for less than £45 sterling in Autumn 2005. It's a good little instrument in every respect, except for a slight lack of workmanship in the finish - one valve slide, once removed, was difficult to get back in because the tubing was slightly misaligned, and there were also odd places where the silver plate was missing (very small areas).

It played in tune throughout the register.

It came complete with a reasonably serviceable case and a good mouthpiece.

I would strongly recommend this for a beginner: a much better option than laying out 4 times as much for a Yamaha or Besson and finding the child gives up after a few weeks!

I have posted a review for a 4 valve Tristar euphonium under the heading "Tuba".

Members' Comments onWrightfamily30's Review

• pro trumpet on 16th Oct 2006

  I'm a professional trumpet player of 35 years and there is a mistaken belief that its ok for a Beginner to learn on a cheap 3rd world trumpet. The reasoning is the child may give it up or its cheaper than renting..etc. This is a very common belief because of lack of knowledge and money.
  These trumpets are very poorly made and usually cannot be repaired, some are made out of pot metal: a mixture of lead & copper! A student needs a well made instrument to learn on they don't need to learn on piece of junk. I am so glad that I had a moderately priced well made trumpet to learn on or I may not have continued. Trust me there's a good reason these trumpets are so cheap and you can not buy a good trumpet at that price, its not going to happen. Read reviews and do research and buy a Brand name trumpet if you can afford it or rent. It can be repaired and if your child gives it up it will have resale value.

• Wrightfamily30 on 17th Oct 2006

  May I respond?
  I'm a euphonium player with 36 years experience of playing that instrument. I wholeheartedly agree that it is important to provide a usable instrument for children to learn on. Ideally, everyone would be handed a B & H Sovereign (or equivalent, high quality, fully compensating instrument) at the outset, but with a new cost of well in excess of £2000 (and second hand values, even for elderly and well worn instruments, rarely dropping below £800 for a Sovereign and £500 for an Imperial) it is extremely unlikely that many LEA's in the UK would be prepared to provide such instruments through their schools music departments, or that many parents would be able (or willing) to lay out such money, when there is always the chance that the association with the instrument may prove to be a short lived affair.
  
  As an 11 year old, I myself was handed an old, 3 valve Boosey and Hawkes instrument, with a standard B & H mouthpiece. It had no case so I had to carry it around in a canvas rucksack. Only 5 years down the line did a B & H Imperial with a Denis Wick mouthpiece come my way. I would far rather have started on the Imperial, but we have to be realistic.
  
  As I said in my original review, the Tristar euphonium (and trumpet - see other review), while far from perfect, does perform well enough, and I am currently using it at school in two different music ensembles, with perfectly satisfactory results. It is NOT a Sovereign, but it plays well enough, with a fruity tone, and it has suffered no breakages, plate wear, sticky valves or anything else - yet.
  
  If it came to the choice between providing a 'junk' instrument such as the Tristar, or denying a child the opportunity to try out an instrument through lack of funds, I know what I (as an enthusiastic champion of brass instruments in particular, and music making in general) would do.
  
  I understand that a 'professional' musician, with a far keener ear for exact intonation, a far greater awareness of tonal quality and a much keener eye for perfection in manufacturing might baulk at accepting that other musicians would recommend what they would regard as 'junk', but my role is to get children started in music making, and these instruments are adequate for this task.

• pro trumpet on 18th Oct 2006

  I understand your thoughts on buying Tristar Instruments. I live here in California, and evidently there are higher quality band Instruments available for rent. The problem with many of these cheap Instruments is the valve actions are intolerable.
  
  If that's all the parents can afford and there's no other quality instruments around to rent, I guess it's better than nothing.