Initially I was pretty happy with it - the upper notes would actually play at higher volumes (though not at the same level at the rest of the range), and the horn overall felt loud and consistent.

The sound was loud and consistent, as I had expected; however, when I blasted out high notes during soloing, my horn went completely silent - these upper-register notes would not come out (which was quite embarrassing!).

That is said with the caveat that horns, mouthpieces and reeds don't all play well together