Best Valves
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I have several Getzens and the valves are the best of my lot of horns. Others are close but longevity between oiling, lack of surprises and nimbleness place them at the front. I just played an early 70's 800 Eterna cornet, Best Getzen valves I've played!
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Hi J.Jericho,
What makes for great valves? Whew! That's a tough question and preference might bias the study. -
Like many of us, I have had the chance to play a number of different trumpets, cornets, and flugelhorns. The valves I remember as being exceptional were in most of the Getzens, but the best may have been in a 1952 Blessing Super Artist I once owned - I still kick myself for having parted with that horn.
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@Dr-Mark
Bias and familiarity of different systems or lack of it. I have an affection for bottom sprung valves. I love the feel. They seem simpler. Easy to switch out the springs for different resistance. But they are not common with modern instruments. So many have never tried them. I have an old trumpet with short stroke, bottom sprung valves and the action is fantastic. Though the trumpet is 70+ years old, they are still in great shape.
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I’ve always felt that the French style valves of the t/c 6xx Holton Collegiate line to be fantastic!
Frank Holton valves too were very fine
Vintage Blessing.......
very light and fastBest valves are any that I don’t think anything about. Get the horn out, oil up and play. Which apparently boils down to a whole host of different materials and makers.
I honestly can’t really tell the difference if they’re sprung from the bottom or not except maybe that the top sprung seem a bit more precise. But now I’m playing a Besson Sovereign 955 which is bottom sprung but seem as solid as can be though it’s quite different than the horns regularly discussed here
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I won’t go as far to say “best”, but the Zirnbauer set on my Schlub flugelhorn is simply amazing.
Top notch craftsmanship, extremely fast, pretty much silent, and as smooth as can be.
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I like valves that never let me down. My Getzen horns never let me down but the new bought Straub with Baurnfeind and my 80's Bach did... That was The Horror
But actually, at least 60 second hand horns later, I never had valve issues with later horns like Conn 22B, Conn 22B USA, Julius Keilwerth, Selmer Radial, Selmer, Yamaha (even one with plate loss!), B&S, Antoine Courtois, Melody Maker, Martin Handmade, Jupiter, XO Brass, King, Schenkelaars, Olds, Buesscher, Holton and the ones I already forget had fine valves so what can I say?
I like the Yamaha valves and the valves of my later Bach trumpets where great as well; good compression even after 30 years of intensive use.
Since I like Getzen instruments I tend to have a favor for Getzen valves but actually I have to admit that there are many great valves out there
