Tech/maintenance SHWoodwind Updates

[Stephen Howard]

It's review time again!

On the bench for this session is a brace of Martins.
Well, OK, only one of them's the real deal...but the other one's no slouch.

First up is the Martin Committee III alto (wot a beauty):

'The Martin' Committee III alto saxophone review

And then there's the Martin (cough) Yanagisawa S800 soprano:

Yanagisawa (Martin) S800 soprano saxophone review

Enjoy!

 

[Nick Wyver]

And then there's the Martin (cough) Yanagisawa S800 soprano:

Which is very similar to my S6 from 1981. The only difference I can spot is they've ditched the ball and socket on the octave mech in favour of a fork and pin. The spring hole in the low Bb pillar is still there. Mine's in better nick too but then it's had one "careful" owner from new.
It doesn't get played much now since I bought an S991 but it's still good.
Is the G a bit sharp on your model? I stuck a crescent in mine about 20 years ago which improved it quite a lot.

 

[Stephen Howard]

I thought the S6 line was done and dusted when the 800 series came out.

I'll bung a note in the review about that spring hole on the S6. It's odd that it's there on both models.

I didn't notice any sharpness on the G, but then it's quite a laid-back, resistant soprano - and that'll have an effect on how it's blown (for me, anyway).
And yeah, it looks remarkably similar to the S6 - so I'd guess that most of the changes would have been in the body tube/tonehole department.

 

[Stephen Howard]

Today's Benchlife Blog update - Well bowled at the tip.

A rolling blog of everyday life on and around the workbench

 

[Sunray]

You never know mate ...

😉 The imperial Micrometer may come back into fashion in a couple of years, we may even start counting 12 pennies to the shilling again ... OMG! 😱

Hope you find the glasses case you're looking for on your next trip ...

 

[Stephen Howard]

Gawd, I hope not...it's taken me this long to get used to metric.

Mind you, I found a farthing (quarter of a penny) while digging the garden the other day. I'm hanging onto it...just in case.

 

[MarkSax]

Great read on the Martin Alto Comm 3 review. And happy that you gave it the thumbs up. I play one, the only alto I own and the last one I'll buy, it is that good. You're spot on about Martin owners too. Funnily enough I chose it over a 2nd hand RAW, not that the RAW is lesser, they sound like unidentical twins. Doesn't stop me from wondering what the RAW would be like over time and practice. I loved the alto so much I bought a Martin tenor as well. I just bought a very good 2nd hand SA80II for everyday practice and because of GAS to be honest, but it's more refined with better ergos and it's helping me become a better player but the Martins are what I play when I want to impress (my wife).

 

[Stephen Howard]

'Unidentical twins' - I like that, and yeah, it really captures what both horns share.

I know what you mean about wondering what a horn will sound like over time - which is why I like to form my impressions as soon as I can. If you spend too long on a horn you start 'driving' it with your own core tone, and they all start sounding much the same - at least until you get to the point where you're really exploring the nuances. And it can take a long time to get there.

 

[thomsax]

Another Martin guy here! I have 4 "The Martin" . A Martin the sounds like a Martin. It's was just "Martin" that made saxes with thick wall and soldered on toneholes. A horn with many diffenet voices. A perfect rock & roll saxophone that can challange a Stratocastor. Still many players that is on "The Martin". Even if there was some trouble with neck on the alto that SH had on the bench, I think Martin Comm necks was one of the best necks that ever been made. Today I play a YTS 25 most of the time. It's because I like high baffle mouthpieces with big windows. These mouthpieces are not so good on Martin saxes.

 

[Karolis]

Mind you, I recently had an email from a chap who pointed out quite an obvious mistake in one of the Notes articles - and while it wasn't originally a deliberate mistake I reckoned I'd leave it there to see how many other people spot it. He was the first in over a decade.

Was it : "I can across it quite by chance...perhaps it was destiny?" in a "Chucked Off"?

 

[Stephen Howard]

Nope - but good spot. That one's been there for over a decade.

 

[vries1]

The fiddler's clarinet : "More often that not"

 

[Stephen Howard]

Another good find...but it's still not the 'one'.

 

[vries1]

Of fate and saxophones : "Au Clair de Lune" should be "Au Clair de la Lune"

 

[vries1]

Jazz etiquette ( Pt.2 ) - Dress : "The fundamental principal" ....

 

[vries1]

How to be a not-saxophone player : "The second stage is to have your mouthpiece refaced. That's pronounced ree-faced...NOT reff-aced. You needn't really know what it means, it's enough to say 'I had it opened up a tad'. There are several craftsmen who can not do this work for you"

 

[vries1]

Of course, these points are very very minor - and rather boring compared to the "crevices" typo that Steve probably recalls quite well...

 

[Stephen Howard]

Of course, these points are very very minor - and rather boring compared to the "crevices" typo that Steve probably recalls quite well...

Ooh yes, that one was a corker!

Some good new ones there...but still not the one...

 

[Karolis]

Some good new ones there...but still not the one...

Oh no! I've started an apocalypse! Now the shwoodwind website has more editors than the BBC….

 

[Stephen Howard]

Oh no! I've started an apocalypse! Now the shwoodwind website has more editors than the BBC….

I'm always amazed by the amount of feedback I get from readers - whether it be a heads-up on a typo, some information on dates and models or even just anecdotes relating to features or problems I've pointed out in a review.
And it's always, always welcome.