The ______ That Comes With the Horn

I admit it -- I'm a gear-head. I love the toys and accessories that come with playing an instrument.

One of the cardinal rules of the gear-head is that if it comes with the horn, don't use it. This applies mostly to mouthpieces, but lately it can apply to a number of things, like cases and, depending on the horn, bells.

I have a Lawson bell, and I love it. It's old and worn but hard as nails. Quite frankly, I don't think it's possible to dent it! I got it a couple of years ago. Did I need it? Who cares -- it's a Lawson bell, and Lawson bells are awesome!

When I started playing the H200, I automatically screwed on the Lawson bell. I mean, hey -- it can't hurt, can it? As I started focusing in on the problems with the H200, it occurred to me to try the original bell for a while to see if it made a difference.

It did, and not in a bad way. My high F's spoke better, the tone was a little smoother, the horn felt ... well ... better. Go fig.

Of course now I'll be worried about dents and dings because the Holton bell is not tough as nails like the Lawson bell. But dings come with the territory, and I'll just have to live with it.

But in the mean time, what the heck!