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tom turner · 03-17-2007, 04:00 AM

Hi,

Horns die a very slow death, just like a TV set. If one could buy two identical tv sets but keep one in the box for ten years and only use the other, they'd be amazed when they hooked it up ten years later and compared it against the one that had been played for ten years.

Same with a horn.

When valves leak, the instrument slowly loses its bottom end response the most . . . and you have to begin to work harder and harder to make it respond. It also loses power and it loses precision in attacks and slotting.

Compounding this for most horns are the compacting of the valve alignment felts as the horn slowing has its valve alignment go out of spec too.

Yep, the slow death is too gradual to notice it happening . . . but your horn surely doesn't play anywhere as good as it did when it was new.

I'd recommend dropping a couple of hundred on a valve rebuild by Andersons, and putting some more money in a precision valve alignment. You'll be amazed at the instant improvements!

T.

03-17-2007, 04:00 AM	#6 (permalink)
tom turner Mezzo Forte User Join Date: Oct 2003 Location: Georgia, USA Posts: 788	Re: Leaky Valves = Death? Hi, Horns die a very slow death, just like a TV set. If one could buy two identical tv sets but keep one in the box for ten years and only use the other, they'd be amazed when they hooked it up ten years later and compared it against the one that had been played for ten years. Same with a horn. When valves leak, the instrument slowly loses its bottom end response the most . . . and you have to begin to work harder and harder to make it respond. It also loses power and it loses precision in attacks and slotting. Compounding this for most horns are the compacting of the valve alignment felts as the horn slowing has its valve alignment go out of spec too. Yep, the slow death is too gradual to notice it happening . . . but your horn surely doesn't play anywhere as good as it did when it was new. I'd recommend dropping a couple of hundred on a valve rebuild by Andersons, and putting some more money in a precision valve alignment. You'll be amazed at the instant improvements! T.