Since I am currently too poor to get a good double, I found an inexpensive Conn 14D single on Ebay which is currently in the mail. Assuming that the condition is as good as was indicated by the seller (I talked to him in person), how good is this horn relative to other singles? Are the tone color and volume production good?

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PS: I'm a former horn player whose old Getzen compensating double was stolen 5 years ago.

If the 14 is an older one it should sound and work just fine.

Older? Are the newer 14D's of lower quality than the old ones?

Yes.

Any Conn French Horn made after 1970 is questionable. This is a result of the company being taken over by the Crowell-Collier MacMillan Company in 1969. They had no experience in good instrument making and immediately cut costs which affected the quality of the instruments by way of materials and craftsmanship. The Conn Company Assests were acquired by Steinway in 2003 and are now called Conn-Selmer. They have made many changes and are better instruments than the Horns made between 1970 and 1999, but they are not yet what they were earlier.

If you are looking for a good single horn (and you have already bought a Conn 14D) I would suggest you sell the Conn 14D and look into getting a single Bb horn. I think many many people over look the advantages of the Bb single.

If you are going to play a lot of music at the bottom of the treble clef and below the F single horn is a good instrument. If you are going to be playing a lot at G (second line treble clef) and higher - especially near the top of the treble clef and above; by all means look into the Bb single horn. Without going into details the Single Bb will be easier to play, will make more sense when you go to a double horn, and the physics and mathematics of the single Bb horn will allow you much more range and variables than the single F horn (unless you are going to specialize in very low horn playing).

Well I considered the Bb possibility. Problem is, there aren't as many B flat singles and the ones you do find tend to be a bit pricier. I could almost get a good double for not much more.

Also I don't plan to specialize in high notes. The range I plan to use is probably from about the E or D in the middle of the bass clef up to F or G atop the treble clef which is all single F-friendly; I'll be avoiding the super high notes at least for now. When I have more money it'll be onward and upward to a full double.