Chris,
The JP saxophones ( John Packer) are very good quality Chinese horns. They have been sourced by John Packer music in Taunton and have been involved in the manufacture and design along with improving quality control that meets their exacting standards.
I really like them and have purchased a couple of tenors that I rent out to a couple of mature students of mine.
Also If you buy a JP 045 from our shop it will get professionally set up by me, you get a years warranty, and before the end of the first year you can bring it back and get a free checkover worth £40-50!
OG
Most new saxes these days look very much alike and some are very similar. there are a few companies that make saxes and put whatever name you want on them both in China and Taiwan
but Mauriat is not one of them.
As regards to keys and keyguards- most modern saxes from the 70's onwards are generally loose or very close copies of the Mk 6 selmer as far a keyguard and left hand pinky tables are concerned. the more modern copies are copies of yanagisawas
(under/overslung crook octave key, and double armed keys on low C ( which is a King trait)
Regarding the West Country take over - damn, you have strumbled on our grand scheme which includes seeing off Grockles and Emmets, holiday makers in Devon and Cornwall respectively, and selling our wares in big high street chains like Tesco - the wares being, Langage Farm clotted cream from Devon, Ginsters pasties from Kernow (that's the not yet independendent state of Cornwall to the uneducated) and Sheppy's Cider from Zommerzet.
BTW I have been resident in Exmouth in Devon since 1981 and I am still not and never will be considered local. I do helpo fight the cause though.
