Wittner tailpiece with built in fine tuners

Question:
We have a question regarding tailpieces. You have suggested getting a Wittner tailpiece for the little viola. My friend had the full size I showed taken in to his friend's repair shop and they suggested the same kind-explaining that it works better with the new strings people use now. The old one may break with the new string tension etc. We looked at it's construction and get the concept of how it is better and that these fine tuners used for accuracy are better because the potential for getting loose is gone. Obviously use of fine tuners would create less wear and tear on pegs, bridges, etc. However, when I look at pictures of professional violinists' violins I see many different tailpieces, but only one fine tuner. Are they resistant to change for the "better" or is there another reason for staying with the traditional set up?

My answer:
With the modern strings fine tuners aren't necessary (except for the E string). Most professional violinist/violists use only one fine tuner. Although some are using two for the upper two strings. Four fine tuners are recommended for students, who are learning to tune their own instruments, in addition to helping to save time for teachers in lessons. The advantage to a Wittner tailpiece with the built in fine tuners is that they are light weight (lighter than adding four fine tuners to a wood tailpiece) and the tuners are curved on the bottom, which minimizes the possibility of damage to the top of the instrument when the tuners are turned all the way down. I have recently put a Wittner tailpiece on my fiddle and I love it!