Valve Actuation

[walldaja]

Hopefully I did this right. What is your "go to" means of actuating your valve(s) on your F / Gb tubing?

[hornbuilder]

This is something that we don't really have much choice over, as it depends on what the manufacturer of the particular instrument chooses. Bach, for example, have never made an instrument with string linkage.

M

[sirisobhakya]

Mechanical.

I have 2 horns with mechanical and 1 with string. Strings can yield, which I don’t like. Also, my string one has quite a stiff spring for finger paddle of the G valve, and sometimes I don’t really know that it is just the spring tension, or it is the limit of the valve. Careful spring adjustment should fix it, but still...

Edit: I find it strange that while mechanical dominates the poll here, it seems to be totally different in (french) horn forum and community. Why is that so?

[FeelMyRath]

I was quite happy with the string on my Yamaha, likewise I'm quite happy with the mechanical linkage on my Rath

[greenbean]

A good string setup is good.
A good mechanical setup is good.

[Posaunus]

A good string setup is good.
A good mechanical setup is good.

[Splendour]

I've never had a mechanical linkage fail on me while playing, string on the other hand has.
Yes, with proper maintenance it may well have been avoidable, but I've stuck with mechanical since.

[harrisonreed]

I converted my 36H string linkage to mechanical linkage FTW.

[hyperbolica]

I've got both. Given the option, I'd take string because it takes less maintenance, can be adjusted perfectly, and is easy to replace if it breaks.