The short answer
daCarbo makes four carbon trumpets, from bright to full. Each one has a carbon bell.
- ChangeMaker, from €2,990. The way in: bright.
- Unica, from €3,990. The all-rounder: brilliant and balanced, and the one for lead.
- Toni Maier, from €6,590. Warm and open.
- Large, from €7,990. The flagship: full and very open.
Choose by where and how you play, not by the spec sheet. If you're not sure, start with the Unica. Before you buy, Andi Keller, the founder of daCarbo, hears you play on a free video call and recommends one. He also says straight out if none of them suits you.
Four horns, one question
You've seen the four on the site. The prices run from €2,990 to €7,990, and the words next to them are bright, brilliant, warm and full. Those words don't mean much until a horn is in your hands. So which one is yours?
Most players start with the numbers: bore, bell size, weight. That's starting at the wrong end. You know your sound comes mostly from you and your practice, and you're right. One player who moved from a Unica to a Toni Maier after three years said it plainly in his review at Thomann: don't expect miracles, the trumpeter still makes the sound.
The better question: where do you play most, and what does the horn have to do there? The Sunday service in a cold church. Lead in a big band on a Friday night. Three sets at a wedding. A ballad in a jazz club, close to the mic. Each of those asks for something different, and that's what the four models are for.
What all four have in common
Every one of them has a carbon bell. Where a brass bell vibrates and loses energy, the carbon bell barely moves. To the people listening, it's still a trumpet: in a blind test, listeners could not tell carbon from brass. The models do sound different from each other, from bright to full.
So you're not choosing between carbon and brass here. That has its own article. You're choosing the sound that suits your playing.
If you play jazz and want a bright, direct horn: ChangeMaker
The ChangeMaker is the most affordable way into a carbon instrument. It's put together more simply, so it costs less. The response is bright and direct, and the sound is bright and open. Andi sees the ChangeMaker on the jazz side. It comes in a hard case, not a bag, and you get the same call with Andi as for any other model.
One thing to know: you may have read about the lab result, about 10 percent less energy for the same result. It was measured with a daCarbo bell, not a ChangeMaker bell, so we don't claim that number for the ChangeMaker.
Start here if you mostly play jazz, you like a bright horn that answers at once, or you want to get into carbon for the lowest price.
If you play lead, sit in a section or play a bit of everything: Unica
The Unica is the all-rounder: brilliant and balanced. Its tone stays bright and even from the bottom to the top, and it's flexible enough for classical music as well as jazz. It's also the model for lead and section players.
On paper: a 128 mm carbon bell that you can take off for easy maintenance, first-class piston valves and an ML bore. Gold lacquer, silver plate or a custom finish, and a full leather bag.
There's a practical reason to try it first, too: the Toni Maier and the Large are made in small numbers, about 20 a year. If you only try one daCarbo, try this one.
Start here if you play lead in a big band, second or third part in a concert band, a wedding one weekend and a church service the next, or if you simply don't know yet.
If you want a warm, open sound that carries: Toni Maier
The Toni Maier is warm and open. It's named after the former principal trumpet of the Vienna Symphony. Its extra-large bell carries high up and low down, and the bore is medium-large but feels large.
TrumpetScout, an independent tester, titled his review of it "Klassikhorn aus Karbon", a classical horn in carbon. It isn't only for classical players, though. Quentin Collins, who has played with Prince and Alicia Keys, played a Toni Maier on stage at Moods in Zürich in September 2026.
Start here if you play solos or first part, in a concert band, an orchestra or a church, and you want a warm sound that carries. If you're torn between this one and the Unica, play the Unica first.
If you want the fullest sound in the line: Large
The Large is the flagship: full and very open. It's the most open instrument in the line, a large-bore trumpet with a heavy valve section and a 139 mm carbon bell, the same size as on the Toni Maier. It's fully matt, and finish, water keys and finger supports can be made to your wishes. Andi sees the Large on the classical side.
Start here if you play classical music, you already like a large bore, and you want the fullest sound daCarbo makes.
A great horn can still be the wrong one
No spec sheet tells you this part: of four good horns, maybe one or two will suit the way you play.
One concert band player in the US expected carbon to sound like a plastic trumpet. Then a friend brought his Large to rehearsal, and he was "completely surprised at how well it played, how easily it responded, and how full it sounded." He bought a used Unica. After a while he noticed he had to work harder above the staff than he wanted to. His verdict: a great horn that didn't quite fit him.
Fit is personal, and it's why Andi hears you play before he recommends anything.
What the choice won't change
No model plays for you. Whichever one you choose, your sound and your range still come from you and your practice. And on all four you may notice one thing yourself: because the bell barely vibrates, you feel less vibration in your hands. Some players need a few days to get used to that, so give a new horn more than one evening.
How to compare them
The best test is free, and it works on any horn. Take your own mouthpiece and one passage you know well, ideally the one that's hardest for you late in a gig or a service. Play it on your own trumpet, then straight away on the daCarbo. Same room, one after the other.
Where to play one: Thomann lists the Unica and the Toni Maier, and Fleming in Houston lists Unica trumpets. Stock changes, so ask before you go. The other ways are in where to try a daCarbo before you buy. And from 20 to 22 November, daCarbo is at BRAWO, the wind instrument fair in Stuttgart, with all four trumpets side by side.
What they cost
| Model | Character | EUR | CHF | USD |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ChangeMaker | bright | from €2,990 | from CHF 2,990 | from US$3,560 |
| Unica | brilliant, balanced | from €3,990 | from CHF 3,800 | from US$4,790 |
| Toni Maier | warm, open | from €6,590 | from CHF 5,900 | from US$7,440 |
| Large | full, very open | from €7,990 | from CHF 7,490 | from US$9,440 |
The price includes tax, customs duty and shipping. Nothing is added when it arrives. You have 30 days to send it back from the day it arrives. Custom builds aren't included, and you pay the return shipping.
The Unica, the Toni Maier and the Large are handmade in Switzerland. Andi assembles and tests every instrument in Lachen.
Play trombone? The three carbon trombones have their own page.
All instruments and prices: dacarbo.ch
Still not sure? Ask Andi
- You book 30 minutes with Andi, on video, in English, German, French or Italian.
- You play a little for Andi and tell him about yourself.
- Andi recommends an instrument. He also says straight out if none of them suits you.
The call is free and commits you to nothing. Book a free 30-minute video call with Andi
Sources
- daCarbo, all instruments and prices
- daCarbo, home page (the call, the 30 days, prices including tax, customs duty and shipping)
- TrumpetScout: "Klassikhorn aus Karbon: Aufbau und Klang der daCarbo Toni Maier" (2017)
- Vereecke, H. and Kausel, W.: "Carbon Fiber Reinforced Polymer, an Alternative to Brass?", International Trumpet Guild Journal, October 2012, pages 41 to 43
- Trumpet Herald, thread "DeCarbo ?", a concert band player's experience with a daCarbo Large and Unica (2020 to 2022)
- Thomann, customer reviews of the daCarbo Toni Maier 139R (review of 19.02.2021)