Soulo Mute Adjustable Trumpet Cup Mute

Brilliant mute for big band work.

With a bit of experimentation you can get quite a range of sound from this mute. The adjustable cup means you don't have to spend hours filing the corks down to get a tighter cup sound.

I bought one to try and emulate the sound of my old H&B cup that's been around the block a few too many times and it gets it bang on. It blends perfectly into a section of H&B and perfectly replicates that glossy vintage sound.

The intonation with this mute in is fantastic! That for me was one plus over other cup mutes I've tried. In my experience, a cup mute is an exercise in compromise between not having to fight it in terms of intonation and getting a good sound from it. With this mute you don't have to settle for one or the other, you really can have both!

So... we all know cup mutes come in many shapes, sizes and sounds.

I was looking for a cup mute that gives a soft tone (along the lines of a Robinson or Humes+Berg Mic-a-Mute) and yet still had an adjustable cup.

I already had 2 adjustable cups, but neither was quite what I wanted:
- Denis Wick... a definite metallic tinge to the tone that doesn't appeal to me.
- Peter Gane.... great soft-toned cup, but verges on too soft and lacks projection as a result.

This Soulo is one I'd seen mentioned on a number of trumpet forums and when Thomann decided to stock them, I took the plunge hoping for a goldilocks cup - one that was adjustable and had a soft, distinctively "cupped" tone but not so soft that it wouldn't project.
Wasn't expecting this to be "the one" mute that I could carry most of the time, but was hoping for a nice alternative that would give me an alternative tone and option.... well I was wrong, this IS the all-rounder I'd hoped for, with a tone that is pretty damned close to what I had in my head, is adaptable and is really nicely built.

Honestly, if I had to recommend one cup to rule them all, this would be it.
Yes, it's not a Wick, and doesn't sound like a Wick (it's much better than that), nor is it a H&B... and you'll still want these two to match other players in your section - but if you want my vote for the most adaptable and best cup out there, I cast it for this one.