The Monzani MZEP-1150L Bb-Euphonium Brass does not only convince with its unbelievable price/performance ratio. The stainless steel valves run precise and silent what cares for a comfortable playability. The long lasting mouthpipe of the MZEP-1150L is made out of yellow brass and gives a warm and balanced sound to the instrument. The outter slides are made out of robust nickel silver to protect the inner slides. A special highlight is the compensating valve to support critical notes.
This instrument is a fantastic choice for getting back into playing after a 15-year break. I never had a compensating horn back when I was playing in school and always wanted to one.
I ordered this euphonium for non-professional use, as I play the trombone and I had an euphonium before, and wanted to have one again for doubling. After purchase I have the instrument tested by some professional friends as well, and they were amazed on the price/performance ratio. It plays quite in tune without the need of alternate fingering. Good players can produce nice sound out of it, but it sounds a little bit smaller than the professional euphoniums they compared it with. The instrument is still new so it may improve later a little a bit, and we cannot expect this to sound as good as a 10x more expensive professional level instrument.
The finish is not perfect but looks nice out of the box. The valves are really tight fit, but with the thinnest type of oil(JM number 1) they work well. The factory corks are too thin, and the factory valve springs are too hard, those I replaced right away. It does not cost a lot but it means a lot.
The factory mouthpiece I have not even tried as I already had Denis Wick SM4. The tuning slides requires the hard slide grease as they are not really tight, but the compression with the hard grease is fine.
The case is big and not really comfortable, but its hard and protects well. Not really good for a small kid using public transport, but for a really small kid a compensated euphonium is usually too weighty anyway. The 4th valve has to be blocked in otherwise it does not fit properly in the case, they could improve it a little.
Overall its a nice instrument especially for the price.