10 Best and Affordable Trombones and Famous Trombones Brands

Trombones are known to be one of the most useful of all the other bands out there and an impeccable instrument for orchestra purposes.

This instrument had the ability to adapt itself in any environment whether the music is sober or it is rocky.

But the position of this instrument in the orchestra was not secured until 1808, though there were traces of the slide brass instruments by the middle ages.

In today’s time, trombones are used almost by every group of musicians, whether it be jazz, band or orchestral.

Also, these trombones are manufactured by various brands. So lets take a detailed look at some of the best trombones from various brands which are definitely worth a shot if you are searching for one.

Best trombones Under $ 200


Mendini by Cecilio Bb Tenor Slide Trombone

Mendini by Cecilio Bb Tenor Slide Trombone under $200

Mendini is yet another model of trombone by Cecilio. Cecilio is a reputed company which specialises in the manufacturing of brass, woodwinds, strings and other accessories of music instruments.

This company had been established roughly ten years ago and since then, it had been successful in retaining its place among the top manufacturers of the industry.

It also focuses on music instruments for students as well. Talking about Mendini By Cecilio Bb Tenor Slide Trombone, you get tuner, pocketbook, white gloves, a cleaning cloth  and a durable and hard case out of the box.

That means you get all the required accessories at one place itself. The key features of this are B-flat key, bore of 500 inch, 8 inch bell and also one year warranty.

This trombone has been designed specially for the purpose of beginners and it does a great job. and The Best Part Its Highly Affordable.

Reasons To Buy

  • The instrument is very handy and is very comfortable to use.
  • The product comes with one year of warranty for product security and satisfaction.
  • There are a number of accessories in the box.
  • It is absolutely perfect for the beginners of all kinds.
  • The tuner you get out of the box helps in teaching intonation

Reasons To Avoid

  • There is no F-key, so it plays only on B-flat.
  • The gold plating on the instrument can be accidentally scratched off.

pBone1B Jiggs Plastic Trombone

pBone PBONE1BLK Jiggs Plastic Trombone, costs $179

pBone 1B trombone comes from the makers of Warmick music group.

The credit of world’s first plastic trombone goes to Warmick music group. In 2018, they also came up with the world’s first plastic trumpet and cornet.  

Talking about the instrument, it has a very good sound.

In the first place, you may think that the plastic build quality will not sound good, but the sound is way better than expected.

If you purchase pBone1B Jiggs Trombone, you will be subscribed to reputed associations of music and bands. This means you will get free membership of reputed associations for six months.

It also comes in eight different colors. So, the buyer gets an opportunity to choose his favourite colour from the set of eight different colors.

Due to the plastic framework, this trombone is available at a very affordable price and this makes it a good choice.

The box also includes a number of accessories that will surely help a musician to learn more skills and knowledge regarding the use of trombone.

Reasons To Buy

  • The Plastic frame of the instrument makes the instrument affordable by all.
  • It is Handy and is very comfortable to play.
  • The Slide is made of glass fibre which increases smoothness.

Reasons To Avoid

  • Despite being affordable, plastic make may upset a number of musicians.
  • pBone1B Jiggs uses a plastic mouthpiece which has no comparison to the one with metal

Glory Brass Bb Trombone

Glory GTD-2 B Flat Brass - Best trombone under $200

This trombone is designed and marketed by Glory, one of the leading instrument makers in the industry.

They mainly focus on selling their trombones online.

But you can not point a finger on their quality.

They maintain very good quality without much hike in the price.

If you are a beginner, then this trombone is perfect for you. There are reasons for this.

On one side, it is easy to play and on the other side, it is light in weight too.

You also get a hard case to keep the trombone safely and securely.

There is no F attachment, only the B flat and that makes the instrument perfect for beginner level players.

Reasons To Buy

  • With the trombone, you get a stylish and long lasting hard case. This will protect the instrument.
  • It proves to be the perfect choice for beginners as they can handle the instrument easily and can learn to play the instrument more quickly as compared to other trombones.
  • The trombone comes with perfect fit and finish. There seems no error in the manufacturing of this product from any dimension. It is truly a product which we may term as value for money.
  • Those who are beginners, will surely be able to produce a soothing and smooth sound from this trombone without much difficulty.

Reasons To Avoid

  • Though the finish is magnificent and praiseworthy, the gold plating may be scratched and this is the area where quite a considerable number of musicians may get upset.
  • It is not a product with a lot of features. It primarily focuses on the beginners and so not much features are given in this model. Though you may get them in higher models of this company.
  • This model can be played in B flat only, that means F attachment will not work in this instrument. It is another negative point of the instrument

Ammoon Tenor Trombone Bb

ammoon Tenor Trombone Brass Gold Lacquer Bb Tone B flat Wind Instrument

Ammoon is a new company in the industry and offers a variety of products.

If you visit their website, you may find a whole range of instruments and accessories for students as well as teachers.

You can find drums, orchestra and band instruments, gear, audio equipments, keyboards, strings, etc.

In other words, you can get all items and products related to musical instruments at Ammoon.

Talking about the Tenor Trombone Bb, this trombone comes in B flat and it produces excellent sound.

It uses high quality materials in manufacturing like brass and cupronickel which increases the life of the trombone.

Also, the box contains every thing needed for a kick start.

You may also find a guide to get started. Also, the trombone is not much heavy in terms of weight, therefore, it is a great choice for the younger players.

Reasons To Buy

  • Mouthpiece is made of cupronickel and good-quality brass. Therefore, the sound quality is way excellent.
  • It is made with the motive to suit all levels of musicians. Thus, this model is suitable for all the levels of musicians, viz., Beginners, intermediate and advanced.
  • It slides very efficiently and smoothly thereby giving a great feed and feedback.
  • The accessories which we get in the box also include a cleaning cloth and a pair of white gloves too, a good bet!!
  • The tone is clear and is of excellent quality.

Reasons To Avoid

  • It is limited to B flat only. That means it can not be played on F attachment.
  • The color of the trombone shown in picture and the color of the actual trombone that you receive may be different from each other.

Kaizer Trombone Bb

Kaizer Trombone B Flat Bb Nickel Silver costing $195

Kaizer Trombone Bb is yet another magnificent piece from Kaizer. It is an American company with American standards.

Since it is an American company, you should be sure of the quality of the product. They sell what they show.

It comes in B flat and is hand crafted with extreme perfection.

It focuses on the students and therefore, it comes up with the 45 days free trial course as well as other necessary accessories that would prove to be helpful for the students.

Reasons To Buy

  • It is easy to set up and can be quickly made ready to be used by the students.
  • The size of the instrument is medium and thus it is easy to handle and use.
  • The 45 days free trial course is a great benefit to the students.
  • Also, the company gives a lifetime warranty on its product.
  • The box also contains all the required accessories for a kick start.

Reasons To Avoid

  • The product is basically designed keeping in mind the requirements of a student. Therefore, it is not a good choice for intermediate and advanced level players.
  • Also, the slide action is not that smooth as expected.

Best Trombone Under $ 300


Mendini MTB-31 Bb Tenor Slide Trombone - The Best Trigger Trombone

Mendini MTB-31 Intermediate B Flat Tenor Slide Trombone with F Trigger Best Trombone Under $ 500

It is also one of the most preferable trombones of all.

It also comes with those same .547 inch bore and 8 inch bell with a lead piece. The box contains tuner, cleaning cloth, mouthpiece and gloves.

The instrument comes from the makers of Mendini. Mendini and Cecilio are related to each other. Mendini excels in the manufacturing of strings, brass, woodwinds and other accessories of instruments.

In addition to this, what is more exciting and worth appreciation is that it claims to sell these products at wholesale price.

This model has a B flat tenor that is specifically designed for an intermediate level player.

The in box accessories are in ample quantity and thus makes playing the instrument easy.

The accessories include a tuner, cleaning cloth, a pair of white gloves and a case for keeping the trombone safely.

The case is hard and durable. Also, the size of the instrument is quite large and the slide action is smooth. Only thing that can limit its sales is its color.

Reasons To Buy

  • The F attachment provides an extended range.
  • In box accessories meet the perfect requirements to play this instrument.
  • This product also comes with one year warranty from the side of manufacturer.
  • The sound quality of this instrument is worth appreciating. It has a considerable and a pronounced feel and feedback.
  • Intermediates will find it perfect for themselves.

Reasons To Avoid

  • Though the trombone has a very feasible and eye catching design, the nickel plated depiction may not be liked by all.
  • It definitely has a smooth sound, but you may find it inferior if you compare it to other top end models.

Best High End Trombones


Batch 42BO Stradivarius series

Bach 42BO Stradivarius Series F-Attachment Trombone costing $ 3399

This includes mouthpieces with large shank, grease and a beautiful case.

The key features that make it more preferable are B-flat/F key, fixed lead pipe, .547 inch bore and a 8.5 inch bell.

It is manufactured by the manufacturer Vincent Batch.

The company also excels in making trumpets, mouthpieces and cornets, etc.

The Brand was named after Vincent Bach, the man who established this company. Earlier, that is, in the early phase after establishing the company, Bach only focused on the manufacturing of mouthpieces.

Later on, he also the company also started manufacturing trombones and the first trombone, bearing the company’s name, was sold in 1924.

From then on wards, Bach has been known to be one of the best trombone makers of the industry.

Reasons To Buy

  • You can play it as soon as you take it out of the box. There is no need of tuning it.
  • It has a very rich and a very deep enriching sound.
  • It comes with a slide action which is fluid and is very comfortable for a smooth action.
  • The design does not fail to capture the eyes with beautiful, yellow brass design.
  • It is a great instrument for beginners as well as those who are at an intermediate level.

Reasons To Avoid

  • Though the  brass quality is excellent, the grease used is somewhat of low quality and thus it makes sliding action bit rough.
  • The instrument is too big in size and may be heavy for musicians.
  • Very Costly.

Yamaha YSL- 8820 Xeno Series Trombone

Yamaha YSL-882O Xeno Series F-Attachment Trombone

You get to see B flat key with .547 inch bore, 8/11/16 inch bell, and a lead piece which is fixed.

Yamaha is a well known instrument manufacturer. In spite of dealing in the manufacturing of a number of instruments, it does not fail in maintaining its quality.

They specialize in the manufacturing of music instruments like digital pianos, as well as there accessories. It has a reputed position in the industry.

This model of trombone is designed keeping in mind the needs of intermediate and advance level musicians.

Thus, the makers provide F attachment which expands the range.

Also, with .547 inch bore and 811/16 inch bell, it gets large in order to be suitable for large sized persons. Even the sound quality is excellent and matches the brass construction.

Reasons To Buy

  • You can use B flat as well as F trombone.
  • The yellow brass is of good quality and will work for a longer time.
  • It includes a considerable large sizes mouthpiece.
  • It gives out smooth and uninterrupted sound quality.

Reasons To Avoid

  • The trigger of F attachment sticks on playing, thus interrupting the play session.
  • A beginner may find it difficult to use the F-attachment.

Conn 88H Symphony Series

Conn 88H Symphony Series F Attachment Trombone

Again the same features and accessories, only the manufacturing company is changed.

Conn Selmer has its own reputed position in the industry of instrument manufacturing.

Not only this, Conn Selmer is a parent company of many companies which specialize in instrument making.

Vincent Bach, Selmer, C.G. Conn, King, Holton and many more companies are the subsidiary companies of Conn-Selmer.

The fun fact is that Conn Selmer is itself a subsidiary company of Steinway musical instruments, Inc. 

The trombone is a very good instrument for the intermediate and advance level players.

It has the F attachment which is responsible for increasing the range.

You may not be getting much accessories with the instrument and that is a bit disappointing.

Reasons To Buy

  • The F attachment increases the range.
  • It has a long lasting yellow brass which is sure to lure the musicians in terms of durability.
  • Again, the sound quality is considerably outstanding and worth appreciation.
  • Another key feature of this trombone is that it is light in weight and thus you may play it for a longer period of time without feeling tired. This way, you will also love it playing for long.

Reasons To Avoid

  • In spite of the yellow brass being durable, the design may not be liked by many musicians due to their own preferences.
  • Though lightweight and easy to use, it is not a good choice for the beginners.
  • Another negative point of this trombone is that it does not come with ample accessories.

King 2102 2B Legend Series Trombone

King 2102 2B Legend Series Trombone Best High End Trombone

It is another trombone from the makers of King.

All those who do not know about the company King or are reading it for the first time, King is a subsidiary company of Conn-Selmer itself and is listed among the top manufacturers.

The owner of the company, Thomas King, was itself a trombonist and he set up this company in 1894.

So there should not be any doubt on the quality as the owner himself is a master in this field.

Coming on the instrument, this trombone is the only jazz-specific trombone in our list.

Though it is smaller when comes to size, it has a rich range of upper pitches that make this trombone unique in its category.

It is not adequate for the students or for a marching band but it is a trombone worth trying and trust us or not, this trombone is sure to give a considerable feel and feedback in terms of playing.

The key features of this trombone are that it comes with B flat key,  .481 and .491 inch bore, and also 7 3/8 inch bell.

Also, we get a 12C mouthpiece and a shell to keep this trombone protected. 

The shell gives a deluxe feel amd thus it looks attractive.

Reasons To Buy

  • This trombone is designed specifically for the Jazz players.
  • It has a great and enriched sound quality with clear projections.
  • Due to the small size, this instrument is easy to handle and can be played comfortably.
  • It has a classy look and style.
  • The upper range in this trombone is immensely rich and that is something we will not find in every other trombone.

Reasons To Avoid

  • Though the small design is good and feasible, it is not recommended for the students as they can not learn that quick on this trombone.
  • This trombone, though perfect for an individual play, may not be fruitful and suitable for some ensembles and that is a great disadvantage.

How To Buy A Trombone


How to buy Trombone

There's not too many things to look before buying Trombones, but I will mention a couple of things you must ensure so that you won't end up with a bad instrument.

Note - There's a very rare chance that the trombone you purchased online does not deliver what it promises. This buying guide is solely focused when you can test the instrument by testing it with your hands not virtually.

And the online world is a safe world if you get a defected product or not satisfied with your final purchase then there's always the option to replace or get a full refund.

So let's see what you need to ensure before buying trombones.

Slide

Trombone slide

The first thing to note is if you are buying a brand new trombone then slide must be good. There's no excuses if the slides don't work smoothly.

I know it takes a little while and a fair use of the slide to work smoothly, it's gets better over time.

Endurance, Blow and Responsiveness

Another notable thing to test while its in your hand is to check the blow. By the blow  I mean to check the endurance and the responsiveness of the horn.

A good horn is super responsive.

The Note must sound right away from the moment you articulate and put your air through the horn.

If you ever feel even a slightest of resistance in your embouchure muscles when you blow then its not a good sign. Cause the trombone will make you fatigued, you going to get tired much easier.

A good trombone gives a much more endurance when the blow is perfectly aligned with the airflow which goes through the instrument. A good trombone does not give you too much fatigue.

Generally cheap or not well made trombones makes your chop get tired too quickly. So in short avoid this.

Flexibility

Make sure you check the flexibility of the instrument before finalizing your purchase. By flexibility I do not mean to bend the trombone.

What I mean to say is check how easy the trombone allows you to do lip slurs and how well it allows you to move through registers to registers.

Intonation

Also check how in-tune are the partials. If you don't know what partials are simply partials are just the overtones.

So check how the partials are in-tune with each other.

The better the instrument the more in-tunes the partials are going to be.

Another best way to check the intonation are to get a tuner.

A tuner allows you to easily check the partials. Tuner also allows you to check the high's and low's, even or odd, arrangements of the horn are in-tune or not.

Tone Quality

Probably, the last thing to check is How good is the Tone Quality.

It is something you know from your experience and is quite easy to spot. 

Our Final Thoughts On Trombones And Their Brands

So, these were the few trombones of a number of famous instrument companies.

A trombone can fit in any ensemble and will not be an instrument to be called as odd one out.

It fills the emptiness of other instruments in an ensemble.

No other instrument can match the depth and soul of sound of a trombone. But, to play the best sound, your trombone should be of the best quality.

It is obvious that if you pick a trombone of mediocre quality, then you might have to compromise on either the sound quality or the smoothness of the slide or the color, etc.

Also, do not go just by the looks and branding. Sometimes, a lesser known brand may also come up with one of the best trombones in the market.

So rather than going on the branding and the appearance of the trombone, consider the quality, features, in box accessories, warranty periods, etc. A good trombone will fetch a good tuning and hence a good blend of music.

Anyways, these ten trombones were the best pick from our side that you may go for in case you are searching for a good trombone that can suit your requirements.

Music is something that, if played in the right way, soothes our ears and give an immense joy. It fills our heart with love.

Studies have also proven that playing music even for half an hour can be a helpful measure in reducing the stress by 30-40%. And also a person should be able to play at least one musical instrument.

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Author - Daniel Cooper

About the author

Daniel Cooper loves to make weird sounds by pressing the Black & White Buttons on the instrument and claims to be a musician.

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