Wessex Linz and Berg

[Mcordon1]

Both horns have great reviews(but Berg has MORE reviews, it came first)

On a Facebook post, the Wessex founder said "the Linz is based on the Berg, but with a smaller 15" bell""
But, on their website, both are listed with the same specs, bore and 15" bells. Seems like an older version of the Berg had a bigger bell flare.

Berg is 5 valves right hand, Linz has 6 valves, 4R + 2L

They both look like the same horn. Just one has six valves and the other 5.

Any thoughts/opinions? TYIA

[Doc]

I have tried both of them a couple times, and I thought they were good F tubas. The Linz' bell seemed a tad smaller/different (maybe previous incarnations of the Berg had a larger bell?), and I liked the Linz better overall than the Berg (Linz' intonation was easier, more singing sound, 4+2 is a personal fave). But if someone gave me a Berg, I'd play the heck out of it. Intonation was pretty good on both, both responded as an F tuba should, and both made a good sound. IIRC, the Linz has hand-made sheet-brass bows and bell, whereas the Berg does not. Maybe that has changed also...

[tclements]

I had a Linz here for almost a year and played it at every opportunity. It was as 'plug and play' as any F tuba I have ever played. I'd still have it if a dear friend didn't need a good F tuba. For more info, PM me. Thanks!

[JeffT96]

I had a Linz here for almost a year and played it at every opportunity. It was as 'plug and play' as any F tuba I have ever played. I'd still have it if a dear friend didn't need a good F tuba. For more info, PM me. Thanks!

Does the Linz have the Wessex Z valves (last I checked the website it didn’t specify)? If so what is your impression of those? I have a (non Wessex) Jin Bao 410 and it’s a pretty great tuba except for the valves. I’ve been hesitant to consider the Wessex rotary tubas for that reason.

[Wu299]

I tried Linz for a minute or two and heard a colleague try it, too. It felt really playable and had solid (although not really perfect) intonation.

I didn't like the valves at all. They felt like the ones I had on the school-owned Strauss – somewhat sticky and slow, and kind of unpredictable, which is exactly what I didn't want my tuba to have. First thing I had to do after unpacking the Strauss was take apart the third valve, clean it, and hope it will not be so sticky – it got stuck half the time. Not what I would expect from a play-tested tuba.The build quality and refinement also was lacking, I had a couple of braces on the tuba where you could cut yourself on the little ring in the middle. Interestingly, my colleague owned a Strauss as well and his tuba was COMPLETELY different than the one I played – e.g. the valves were fast and loud, as opposed to the ones on the tuba I played, which were slower but silent.

Linz felt like a really nice tuba with poor valves and I do wish Jonathan used the German valves he uses on some of the more expensive tubas (at least as an option). Had my Willson not come up by the time I was in the market for an F, I would consider the Linz. But playing side-by-side a German- (or Swiss-) made tuba and Chinese-made tuba, well... I would choose German/Swiss pretty much every time, as it just feels more solid. Chinese tubas are not bad in my experience, but I'm just not sure how much I can trust them in the long run. After a year with my 20-year old Willson, I have not had a single problem that was unexpected (ergonomics aside).

That all being said, when first trying the Linz, I was impressed by the playability for the price. I just wish the valves were better.

[tclements]

@Jefft96. I am sorry, but I have no idea what valves were on my sample. Honestly, I don't care. For me, I ask these questions:

1 - Does the instrument make the sound I like
2 - Is the pitch workable (NO tuba plays perfectly in tune)
3 - Playability. Do I have to screw with it, or can I just play the darned thing.
4 - Mechanics - does everything work right.

On the Linz (for me) 1 - 4 are yep, yep, just play it, and yep.

SOLD!

Good luck on your search.

[JeffT96]

@Jefft96. I am sorry, but I have no idea what valves were on my sample. Honestly, I don't care. For me, I ask these questions:

1 - Does the instrument make the sound I like
2 - Is the pitch workable (NO tuba plays perfectly in tune)
3 - Playability. Do I have to screw with it, or can I just play the darned thing.
4 - Mechanics - does everything work right.

On the Linz (for me) 1 - 4 are yep, yep, just play it, and yep.

SOLD!

Good luck on your search.

Understood. Thanks for taking the time. Maybe I’ll get to try one for myself one day.

[JeffT96]

I tried Linz for a minute or two and heard a colleague try it, too. It felt really playable and had solid (although not really perfect) intonation.

I didn't like the valves at all. They felt like the ones I had on the school-owned Strauss – somewhat sticky and slow, and kind of unpredictable, which is exactly what I didn't want my tuba to have. First thing I had to do after unpacking the Strauss was take apart the third valve, clean it, and hope it will not be so sticky – it got stuck half the time. Not what I would expect from a play-tested tuba.The build quality and refinement also was lacking, I had a couple of braces on the tuba where you could cut yourself on the little ring in the middle. Interestingly, my colleague owned a Strauss as well and his tuba was COMPLETELY different than the one I played – e.g. the valves were fast and loud, as opposed to the ones on the tuba I played, which were slower but silent.

Linz felt like a really nice tuba with poor valves and I do wish Jonathan used the German valves he uses on some of the more expensive tubas (at least as an option). Had my Willson not come up by the time I was in the market for an F, I would consider the Linz. But playing side-by-side a German- (or Swiss-) made tuba and Chinese-made tuba, well... I would choose German/Swiss pretty much every time, as it just feels more solid. Chinese tubas are not bad in my experience, but I'm just not sure how much I can trust them in the long run. After a year with my 20-year old Willson, I have not had a single problem that was unexpected (ergonomics aside).

That all being said, when first trying the Linz, I was impressed by the playability for the price. I just wish the valves were better.

I’m not familiar with Strauss. My 410 is a Schiller. The sound and intonation are pretty great. The valves were fast and quiet when new but about 6 months after buying it they got sticky. I removed and carefully cleaned them and after that they all had excessive end play which made them very noisy. I was able to fix the issue with super thin shims on the bottom bearings. They’re working pretty well again but may not last. At the end of the day I wasn’t expecting a lot for what I paid so I’m okay with it. But definitely hope to upgrade before long.

[jtm]

I tried out a Berg last weekend in an exhibit hall that was quiet enough to hear, and liked it. It was easy to play -- that's mostly a short way of saying that it's really similar to what I'm used to, which is not a bad thing at all. Nice sound, responsive, in tune with itself, fun to play. The valves were quiet and felt fine. I expect show instruments to be adjusted to be about as good as possible, so objectionable valves would have been a surprise. I'm on my third F tuba in the 18 months I've been learning and playing F tubas, so I might have done better if I'd just started with this one.

One incidental thing that got my attention: it's surprisingly heavy. It's essentially the same size and shape as mine, and when I swung it up off the floor to play, it didn't handle the same at all. Not bad -- it feels sturdy -- but surprising.

[jtm]

One incidental thing that got my attention: it's surprisingly heavy. It's essentially the same size and shape as mine, and when I swung it up off the floor to play, it didn't handle the same at all. Not bad -- it feels sturdy -- but surprising.

Now that I look at the Berg web page again, I see that it's smaller (bell, height) than what I'm used to, so its heaviness is even more striking.