Any French Horn aficionados our there?

[NowWhereWasI]

Looking for an intermediate level double French horn for my DS. He currently has a single one. His teacher recommended a Yamaha but I have been looking at those and they are pricey. His current horn we bought off ebay and it had some problems with it so I very wary of buying from that site again, or any second hand for that matter. Would anyone be able to recommend one that doesn't break the bank? Many thanks in advance.

yamaha is a good solid make generally. very consistent in quality.
tbh unless you can get the teacher to come to try at second hand places that's what I would go for.

Thanks greenelephant. Are there any other makes which are decent?

(disclaimer: I play trumpet)
when I was teaching 20 years ago jupiter & boosey&hawkes were also rated. though they were not as consistent as the yamaha instruments, it was a gamble buying without trying.
bach and conn are a good bet 2nd hand if you can try with the teacher.

DS has an elderly second hand Bach, we bought through the teacher so we knew it was going to be ok... they’re so much money I wouldn’t want to get one without advice

thanks so much for the advice. Will look into the ones you've mentioned.

I'd definitely take advice from a horn teacher before spending out on one. We hire DD2's from DuetShop for a very reasonable fee each month and are likely to do that until she needs a full size horn. It's worth looking on the websites of brass shops such as Phil Parker, Dawkes etc. as the descriptions of each horn are useful. If you ring Parkers, they will give incredibly useful advice about the different types.

If you end up buying new, are you already aware of the Assisted Instrument Purchase scheme? If you are eligible, it means you don't pay VAT so a potentially significant saving on a French horn!

Sorry to say it, but if your child is even close to serious , Yamaha is your starting point price wise. It only gets more expensive, and wonderful.

@SE13Mummy thanks for the tips will look into those

@Lavender yes he is serious about it

There is a lot of food for thought here. Thanks all for your advice.