I’m looking for some thoughts on trombones as I’m looking to purchase a new one. Particularly Shires and Edwards. I’ve been told that both are equally as good, and that it all comes down to preference. What are your experiences with either?

Back in the day I went to Elkhorn, WI for an Edward’s fitting. You get three hours with a tech, and by the end you’ll have something that does what you want it to do. I imagine Shires has a similar service. With the “custom” horns I don’t see the point of doing it any other way if actually having a horn built for you is possible. Otherwise, I would think if you’ve played one Edward’s, you”ve played one Edward’s.

As far as how my Edward’s performed, it was superb and taught me how to play better.

I'd rank them equal in quantity and performance. I think the deciding factors would ergonomics and where you have to go for a fitting. Definitely worth going somewhere you can try different models if you aren't going full custom.

They're both definitely great trombone makers. I've owned 2 shires (Curran model and a bass with trubores) and 1 Edwards (502). IMO (big big grain of salt), Shires has a bit more color to their sound, but the Edwards I had was much more even and consistent.

I’ve played both and I prefer shires much more. I’m just not a fan of the sound I get on an Edwards. They’re great horns, just not for me

Shires, especially tenors, has a few more options (one piece bells, several additional valve types, altos and small bores with f attachments, notably) but Edwards still has a dizzying array of options that either way I would be really surprised if 95+% were unable to find something that worked brilliantly for them, given enough time and funding. Incidentally, both the Getzen line up and the Shires Q series are each companies respective “popular” options, so not only do I suspect that most players can find something that works great from both companies, but I would likely be able to gamble on what they ultimately choose and possibly beat the house choosing a fairly small subset of options. And, on paper, those “popular” configurations are nearly identical: two piece, medium weight yellow brass bell, Thayer valve, and a wide (but not bass bore), regular weight slide.