Feedback from Hanson owners?

TonyMoroney · Jul 25, 2007

On the back of my last post, I'm curious about the Hanson, firstly Pete plays one.. Pete is it your main squeeze?? I'm curious because until I started reading this forum I'd never heard of them... so I'd really like to hear more about them from those that own them,,, tone, build quality, service, etc....

Cheers

Tony

Rogerb · Jul 26, 2007

I think what I have, the SA-5 (or tenor equivalent)
is the best buy.... the differences in the pro models are, IMO, more visible (cosmetic) than audible.

Excellent value (although Walstein is a major newcomer in that field) and after-sales service second to none, I'd guess.

My teacher, a MKVI player says he'd happily gig with it.

Very robust construction.

I'm not qualified to comment on intonation, but it sounds good when my teacher plays it!

Pete Thomas · Jul 26, 2007

I don't actually have the hanson tenor any more, in the end I didn't buy that one. I do intend to go back some time to the hanson factory and try out a few more.

TonyMoroney · Jul 26, 2007

Pete Thomas wrote:
I don't actually have the hanson tenor any more, in the end I didn't buy that one. I do intend to go back some time to the hanson factory and try out a few more.

The more I read about the Hanson's, the more I'm starting to feel like it might be a smooth move as a next step up (looking at the SA-8-S24K, I love Silver horns). Which would leave enough for my plan of getting a nice Tenor from them in the near future.

TonyMoroney · Jul 26, 2007

Rogerb wrote:
I think what I have, the SA-5 (or tenor equivalent)
is the best buy.... the differences in the pro models are, IMO, more visible (cosmetic) than audible.

Excellent value (although Walstein is a major newcomer in that field) and after-sales service second to none, I'd guess.

My teacher, a MKVI player says he'd happily gig with it.

Very robust construction.

I'm not qualified to comment on intonation, but it sounds good when my teacher plays it!

Roger 🙂 I agree, I took my first sax I bought back to the shop because I thought the octave key was sticking open (doh!! typical newbie mistake), the guy in the store (sax.co.uk) took it to one side and blew up one side and down the other, knocked out a few riffs with masterful ease, handed it back to me and said "Seems fine to me" then proceeded to explain why I might be experiencing the problems. It was a very humbling experience.

I'll be calling the Hanson gang today to get a feel for them, maybe arrange a visit so I can play a couple.

Thanks for the feedback.

Col9 · Jul 27, 2007

[No message]

old_git · Jul 28, 2007

I'm not sure how you judge a saxophone if you've only owned or played, or in my case attempted to play, one.
I liked the impression the company gave, liked the deal offered, a rebuilt ST-8s 24k ex-display model, liked the yearly service available for transportation costs, never had a silver instrument before but just sat their amazed by its beauty when it arrived (HURRR on it and you die), enjoy owning and playing it and they'll need a special coffin lid as I intend to be buried with it and finally, who said "Thank goodness."?, SuperTech Griff had a quick play as he'd never even seen one and liked the action, sound and price, mind you anything would sound good in his hands.
Realise it is no help at all, just get one.

vaughanb · Jul 29, 2007

Hi All

I'm now the proud owner of 3 of their instruments. A ST5-V, SB8-24KF and a T5 Grenadilla Clarinet. I'm over the moon with each instrument and can't fault the aftercare service.

I recently had an annoying buzz on the tenor in the upper register so I took it back to Alistair (on a Saturday morning) and he had a listen and couldn't find where the buzz was coming from. They stripped it, re-tightenend everything and had it ready for the following Wednesday (I eventually picked it up after 7pm). It doesn't make any noise now apart from the ones I want it to make! They also gave my bari a fettle at the same time. I doubt you would find a shop which would provide this type of service and opening after hours to accommodate their customers.

I would definately recommend going and having a go. They are just having quite a bit of building work done at the moment so it's a bit of a mess but well worth a visit.

from
Vaughan

TonyMoroney · Jul 29, 2007

Thanks Vaughan,

I'm going to try and get to them next week when I'm up there on business, out of curiosity, do you rate them against other manufacturers you've owned or played??

Cheers

T.

P.S. A very warm welcome to the forums!!

vaughanb · Jul 29, 2007

Hi Tony

I have very limited experience to compare them to as i've only been playing for about 18 months.

I used to own a very cheap alto for about 2 months then I bought the tenor on my teachers recommendation. Before I bought the bari I did try a few (yamaha YBS32E, yani 901 and Keilwerth ST90) and I found the hanson to be most comfortabe for me (with my small hands). It's a little heavier than the others I tried but I think the sound is alot nicer. I would much rather put up with a bit extra weight if it sounds better.

Their after sales is a huge plus point. I don't think any other sax maker gives a 5 year parts and servicing warranty.

from
Vaughan

p.s. I don't think they have any bari's in at the moment so if anyone wants to try one and they are in the Sheffield area drop me a line. You can nip in and have a blast.

Linky Lee · Jul 30, 2007

I too rate them highly, as it seems most people do.

I've had a couple negatives, but have also been in the minority with that. The problems I have were catered for admirably and are pretty much solved, just one niggle.

What I would advise is caution. And I'd advise it to anyone looking to buy any saxophone at any point. By caution I mean try more than one. Saxophones seem to be a dark art and vary with differences so minor you couldn't possibly notice them.

I had slight intonation troubles with my Hanson SA8-24K-F. I tried four different Hanson saxophones, one from the same batch as mine, a brand new one, and one a year old.

almost two years ago they introduced a new neck design so I had one of each to put on the saxes too.

My intonation varied between the saxophones, not hugely but certain patterns could be seen. What we found was that I had better intonation on my saxophone (unsurprisingly as I've played it much more than these other ones). The new crook didn't make the slightest bit of difference on my sax, but the old crook wasn't as good on the new saxes for some reason.

The problem I had was that my bottom D is very flat. Just the one note. The rest of the sax plays great. The solution was to raise the C key to bring it sharper. The problem is finding a balance between playability and intonation that is workable. I'm looking into moon shaped things to move the position of the tone hole so I can get the best of both worlds.

The point of the long winded story is; give more than one a go, and go with which one you find the best. If you're not very experienced, find someone to take a long who will listen and give you advice you trust. Alistair there was very helpful and Chris their technician for me.

The Otto Link Tone Edge mouthpiece I use had much better intonation than the Selmer S80 throughout the range. Strange.

TonyMoroney · Sep 9, 2007

Well now I'll be awaiting the results of Pete's Great Tenor Blow Off (fnaar fnaar) to see how much credence to give all of this. I've still not bought yet, mostly due to a lack of Sax Emporiums when I went away a few weeks ago (no shortage of guitar stores though, so I now have a nice new (used) guitar 😀 ). Looking forwards to see how the Walstein fares against the other horns and my ears.

Pete, don't keep us in suspenders too long!!

T.