Which Saxaphone- Beginner Options

[Phil]

I am 23 years old, started learning to play the alto sax at school but only kept it up for a couple of months. Would like to start again now and i was looking for some advice on what sort of alto sax to buy as there are so many out there.

I am on a tight budget but dont want to buy a rubbish instrument that will hinder learning.

Any advice on makes, prices, shops etc would be a great help.

Thanks All.

PhilipParr@hotmail.com

[Lucia]

Hi Phil

There was a thread on this sometime ago which may be of some help. You can find it here.

[Flame7]

Im in the same position, looking for an inexpensive alto sax but on a strict budget. Ive been offered a brand new Hanson for £340 or a Yamaha 275 for £419
Any saxophonists out there heard or played a Hanson? The Yamaha is slightly out of my budget but I may stretch to it if advised. I played a couple of years ago and got to grade 5 standard in 3/4 months (I play other instruments so it was just a case of finding my way around), Im a little worried that I might 'outgrow' the Hanson too quickly.

Anyone?

Phil - have you got a sax yet? if so what did you decided on?

xxFlame7

[oddy]

i was advised to buy a hanson over the student yamaha models- i played on the college yamaha for a while before i got the money together for my own sax, and have to say that although i found it easy to play to begin with, as i progressed it lacked the tone that i wanted. i did test a hanson and thought that it gave a better tone.....

i ended up buying an artemis III tho- the tone was good and it was one of the few i could afford :D

end of the day i think personal preference is the main thing- can you try em both?

[TenorClef]

Its difficult to find a nice sounding sax for under a £1000 IMHO, having said this most students start out on a budget instrument and opt for a sax that is playable with reasonable intonation and good durability.

Saxes you may consider for the above-

Jupiter
Elkhart
Yamaha

Their are others, such as Bentley, Fremont ect...whilst playable you would struggle with them on the post grade 5 syllabus.

Jupiter whilst well built can sound a bit to bright but the edge can be taken off with a good classical mouthpiece. The new Elkharts look great and have a nice feel to them. Yamaha's are well testified as to their quality and performance.

[elidatrading]

QUOTE (Flame7 @ Oct 6 2004, 01:27 PM)

Im in the same position, looking for an inexpensive alto sax but on a strict budget. Ive been offered a brand new Hanson for £340 or a Yamaha 275 for £419 Any saxophonists out there heard or played a Hanson? The Yamaha is slightly out of my budget but I may stretch to it if advised. I played a couple of years ago and got to grade 5 standard in 3/4 months (I play other instruments so it was just a case of finding my way around), Im a little worried that I might 'outgrow' the Hanson too quickly. Anyone? Phil - have you got a sax yet? if so what did you decided on? xxFlame7

Yes. Hansons have the best instruments anywhere at anywhere near the price. Buy one. If you're worried about outgrowing it then get the next model up, the SA-5, same price as the Yamaha (you are talking a used price for the Yamaha I guess?) and will easily outplay it.

Liz

[Flame7]

no, its a brand new yamaha, Im guessing that the price is good at that then? Im in the process of joining a beginners band in my local area and they buy instruments in bulk so get them cheaper and offer them to the members. Would i be better off with the Yamaha in this case then?

thanks for your response

xxFLame7

[Guest: Phil]

I haven't got mine yet but after much searching, I have found the Trevor James Artemis at £299 on the net which seems quite cheap as i have seen it listed elswhere for over £350 and they were ex-hire models.

Still not 100% sure what to go for though, and i'm still saving up really!

Thanks for all the response, keep them coming!!

Phil

[saxlover]

i started playing in june and i have a yamaha 275- very nice!

[Diamond]

Hey, I don't know if there's different serial numbers for yamha altos in the UK, but I live in New Zealand and play a Yamaha AS-100 alto saxophone. It is the student model but because I only use it for teaching it is quite good and I personally like the tone.

I'm a tenor person really, and while I can't speak for the alto version, the TS-62 tenor sax is excellent IMHO. Sorry, I'm getting a bit off topic :P

[TenorClef]

Hi Diamond, the 62 was the first yamaha sax to offer any real competition to the other major sax companies. Professional feel and sound at a modest price, repair technicians also love the 62 as they are very accessible to repair and make fine adjustments to. I love my 62 but i prefer the sound of the alto, it would be nice to have a soprano as well but my wife thinks i have to many instruments already. :rolleyes: