Thomann proBONE 3 M Bass Trombone

I've now been playing this horn for a couple of months and I am incredibly impressed by it. I play for a brass band and before this I played on a Bach 50BG which was briefly followed by a King 6B. The Thomann proBONE 3 simply outclasses both of them.

The proBONE 3 plays like a far more expensive instrument, very responsive from sailing around above the stave to the depths of the pedal register. There isn't a register where it becomes cloudy like I had experienced on my previous instruments.

The tonal quality is very good, giving a deep sonorous sound in the quieter parts and the classic bass trombone 'rip' when things get louder. The tone is far superior to the Bach I played on, which was quite thin. The King gave a similar sound but was far less forgiving if you slightly miss-pitched.

The valves are currently the best I've played on. Incredibly smooth action and just the right amount of resistance. They do require regular maintenance (I oil them once a month to keep them in good shape), but this is not much difference to any trombone. I have found that after an extended playing session, engaging both valves can become difficult. This (for me) is down to the horn resting on the hand-thumb joint when both valves are engaged. However, this happens so infrequently I don't even count it as a con.

The only slight downside is the slide. It isn't the smoothest ever. Again it is better than the Bach, but I consider the King superior in this respect. This isn't to say that it is a bad slide as it is far from that, but it could be a little better.

Apart from the instrument you also get a Pro-Tec case (which aren't cheap!) and a full cleaning/maintenance kit, which whilst not expensive by themselves is a nice touch. It is essentially an all-in-one bass trombone kit.

Overall, an incredible horn for the money and I would recommend it to anyone who doesn't want to spend ~£5000 on an instrument.

I am just a beginner so I can't compare to expensive instruments - but this horn is such a pleasure to play. It also looks fantastic. It arrived pre-oiled and ready to play out of the box.

With mine, there is just a small issue of the 2nd valve having a small bump in the middle of its path. Nothing you'd feel during use if you oil it well and don't look for it.

It comes with a case that has straps which is absolutely fantastic. The case holds the instrument very snugly so it must be modified somehow if permanent mechanical grips are to be used. I use Neotech and it does not collide with the case if the strap is disconnected. The case has an external pocket that *almost* fits A4 sheet music. This is an awful oversight that many case designers do unfortunately.

The mouthpiece is unmarked, and rather small for a Bass trombone, so it's best to use a different one. I purchased a JK mouthpiece recommended by Thomann staff and it works very well.

The kit comes with maintenance materials and tools. They are ok for starting out. It also comes with a slide cleaning rod that's a bit dangerous to use if you don't know what you are doing, so please consult a professional before any deep cleaning.

In general it is a wonderful instrument and I am
truly grateful to Thomann for the opportunity to study bass trombone at such a low entry cost.

Nach ausgiebigem Gebrauch (fast 4 Jahre) und vielen Auftritten nun eine Bewertung der proBone 3:

Ich nutze das Instrument nicht mehr nur alleine bei robusten Auftritten (Bierzelt), sondern mittlerweile als Allrounder-Posaune in verschiedenen Kapellen/Bands für unterschiedliche Genres (Rock/Pop, Symph., Stimmung).

Die Ansprache ist mindestens so gut wie bei meinen Yamaha-(Tenor-)Posaunen, der Tonumfang gut erreichbar vom E' bis d''. Der Sound ist weich und warm, mit entsprechendem Mundstück (Bach 1 1/2 G, AL 6 1/2) kann man unten ganz gut knacken und es klingt auch oben nicht dünn, allerdings nichts für eingefleischte Jazzer oder Spieler, die einen spitzen, hellen Klang bevorzugen.

Die Verarbeitung ist ok, hier dringt der günstige Preis am ehesten durch. Wie bereits einmal erwähnt - der Stimmzug war auch hier zu leichtgängig und machte sich selbständig, was durch den Fachmann aber leicht behoben werden konnte. Ansonsten die Lackierung - naja.
Ich möchte das Ding vorrangig spielen und nicht pflegen, also (zu) wenig Ventil-Öl und nur zweimal Badewanne/Jahr - es funktioniert auch mit minimalistischem Aufwand. Züge laufen sehr gut, ich schwöre allerdings auch auf Trombotine.

Gewicht ist schon hoch, bei Auftritten über viele Stunden nutze ich die Handstütze aus Neopren, die ist gut und vor allem handlich.

Es gibt bestimmt bessere Posaunen und auch Sound-Päpste haben bestimmt etwas auszusetzen, aber von mir 5 Sterne für das sehr gute Preis-/Leistungsverhältnis. Evt. habe ich auch eine aus der Sonntagsfertigung, aber eine Qualitäts-Streuung kommt ja bei allen Herstellern und nicht nur bei den Chinesen vor.
Meine Frau ist übrigens mit ihrer proBone 2 ebenfalls zufrieden.

P.S.: Der mitgelieferte ProTec Koffer ist ein feines, robustes Teil. Hat auch schon auf einem Flug als Hauptgepäck die Posaune und viel Equipment gut geschützt.