The response on my E3 is excellent. Plays remarkably well at soft and loud levels, low and high and in between. You just think the note and it sounds. You feel the note resonating in the horn. It feels as if the horn is an extension of your body. I don't have any weighted valve caps, but the 1-3 caps are heavier than what I am used to for standard valve caps, just a little heftier.
The sound and resonance of the horn is wonderful, if not somewhat hard to describe. I have played certain notes on other horns, a low concert D (1-2) in the BC staff on a Besson, for example, and it just did not have a nice resonance or a "vibration" through the horn. On the Adams, that note just sings and rings and feels resonant and I can "feel" it. Most, I say again, most all notes on the Adams give me the same response - resonant, and I feel the note through the horn. There is a nice euphonium solo of "Some Enchanted Evening" that I played recently. The first line (some enchanted evening) ends on a low concert Bb (2nd line in BC staff). That note sounds utterly glorious. It just sings like crazy. Playing the horn in a big room is where it really shines. My director and band mates tell me all the time how beautiful this horn sounds. To me, the sound is the single most important aspect of the horn, and I have not found an equal to this horn. You really have to try the horn to experience what I am describing. I found much of this almost immediately after getting the horn, but some of it I grew into as I became familiar with the horn and its playing capabilities and characteristics. I think the consistent gauge of the metal makes a difference. In other horns when the metal is shaped, the metal is stretched so that some of it is thinner than other parts of the metal. Adams uses sheet metal and keeps the metal thickness basically constant throughout. I think the adjustable gap receiver is also a feature that leads to really fine tuning (not necessarily pitch) the horn for response and slotting.
It really would be useful to try an Adams or two (or more). If I had doubts and was really wanting to make the right choice, I would find a way to get to some Adams.
Here is my review with many pictures of my Adams E3 in two parts:
http://www.dwerden.com/forum/showthr...e#.WNyQD2w2zIU
http://www.dwerden.com/forum/showthr...o#.WNyQLmw2zIU
I have only once in my life played on a Sterling. It was short and in a place where I couldn't hear myself think. I believe it sounded nice and there was nothing about the horn that was a negative for me. I just couldn't hear well, and I only played it for a couple minutes or so. It is certainly one I would like to have had a better playing opportunity on. I could not faithfully compare the Sterling to my Adams. But I can compare my Adams to a Besson 967, a Besson 2052, a Yamaha 842S, a Miraphone M5050 (my 2nd most favorite horn ever), a Hirsbrunner (nice horn), a Wessex Dolce (best horn for the least money), a B&H 1956 Imperial, and whatever else I forgot or played in middle school and high school. The Adams wins in every comparison with all of these horns. Not even close on most. But, this is my opinion, for what it is worth. Others will have their opinions.