The world's most expensive saxophones are made using Yamaha parts

[Marc]

Hey, folks… just wanted to share this curiosity my teacher told me yesterday.
Swiss made Inderbinen saxophones, considered by many people as the Rolls Royce of winwoods, are custom handmade per request (average waiting time 1 year), and feature Yamaha Custom applicature (i.e. keys, springs, etc.)
So the small family owned company located in Switzerland only makes the body itself, including the neck, and three models of mouthpieces. Having chosen Yamaha as the provider for all the moving parts tells us a lot about the quality of the japanese craftmanship.

Inderbinen saxes start at around 8,000 swiss francs (some $8,300) for a soprano, and rises up to $11,400 for a tenor… No advertisement intended LOL.

My teacher had the luck to have one alto in his hands and test play it some months ago, when a friend of his brought one to show to a selected group of players “in case there were one interested on buying” Oh, my…!

[john]

there’s no doubt in my mind that yamaha has been making great stuff for many years now. the thing where they have not surpassed selmer in is the material of the composite brass that makes up the actual horn. this is where selmer’s sound shines. I have always thought that the yamaha’s still feel as good if not better in some cases.

[Jazz Cat]

good tip, I wondered why virtually all pros use selmer mkVIs…I remember side-by-side testing them 35 yrs ago as a teen, and choosing yamaha yas 62, which I still own/play to this day…because the action was faster, tighter, crisper…which I wanted, to play bird-style bebop. but if selmer’s tone/resonance is better, that explains it. too bad mkvi’s are so pricey, 6-12k on ebay; I don’t want to pay that much; though they sound great.

[Marc]

Well, now that you both mentioned it, I remember my teacher told me the great advantage french-made Selmer horns have is the alloy they use to build the bodies. That’s why well aged MkVI’s are highly sought after.
It seems swiss manufacturer Inderbinen could get the best of both worlds and perfectly matched his high quality alloy horns to Yamaha keyworks.

[Michael]

The Selmer Mark 6 is probably the most sought-after Saxophone in the world…they cost a pretty penny too. When I got my Trevor James Saxophones back in the Spring, there’s no question that if I could have afforded a Selmer Mark 6, I would have easily bought one. The average price for a Selmer Mark 6 is roughly around $7,000; maybe even more. There’s some good deals on Selmer Mark 6 Saxophones that pop-up here-and-there for less than $7,000 and if someone is serious about getting one they usually will have to jump on it pretty quickly, because if you don’t then someone else will. With my Trevor James Saxophones, my Alto Signature Custom is a true pro-model Sax and there’s NO WAY anyone could convince me to trade it for another Alto–it’s just too good of an Alto. And I’m not “ashamed” to say that the Alto was my first choice over the Tenor. My Trevor James SR Tenor is an Intermediate model and is an excellent, excellent Saxophone to say the least and was well within my budget. I had no plans to get any new Tenor, but my wife helped make that happen. I recently got to try the Claude Lakey Apollos metal MP with my SR Tenor…WOW. I have one coming for it soon 🙂
The thought of having a Selmer Mark 6 Tenor, who wouldn’t want one?!? But these days, who can afford it either? More power to us if we can have a Sax like a Selmer Mark 6 or a Yamaha, but we need to remember how important it is to have the right MP/reed/ligature is. I think it’s really tough to beat a high-caliber MP/Reed/ligature paired up with a good, solid Sax…we don’t necessarily HAVE to have a Selmer Mark 6 to “sound good” if you get my meaning. I think it really comes down to the person playing the Sax. As an example, take an open audition: The person who can really, really play a Saxophone is going to get picked, regardless of what Sax he’s on. He can be on a student Model Sax and his MP/Reed/ligature set up and, if he knows how to play, he will sound better than someone who does have a pro-model Sax like a Selmer Mark 6 but doesn’t have rock-solid playing ability. I just don’t there’s any model of Sax out there that replace consistent, solid practice and our abilities to play a Saxophone. On the other hand, if we have that ability and can get a Sax like a Selmer Mark 6 or a Pro-Model Yamaha, heck yeah go for it. I just don’t think we should loose sight of being able to really play a Saxophone and pair that up with the right MP/reed/ligature combination.

[Jazz Cat]

good point, Marcelo, thx re info on those, indeed best of both worlds w/selmer body + yamaha keywork, smart solution

right Michael, all your thoughts make perfect sense –esp. re importance of right MP.

for alto I like Vandoren AL3 http://www.amazon.com/Vandoren-SM711-Optimum-Saxophone-Mouthpiece/dp/B0002D0KR8/
for tenor otto link STM 6 http://www.amazon.com/Otto-Link-OLM-404-6S-Master-Mouthpiece/dp/B0002DW5K8/
both w/rovner ligs and vd java red 3 reeds http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0002F4YRS/

I like my otto link so much on tenor I’ll be buying one for alto, too.
the vandoren AL3 is magnificent, super open tone, best alto mp I’ve tried in my life

[john]

Yup M6’s are considered one of the worlds top saxophones. I have one. I also have a sax that sounds better than my M6…. it’s my M7.
It was played side by side during an important studio recording session and the producer (well-known Bob Rock famous for bands like Metalica, Aerosmith, Bon Jovi) without noticing I changed from my 6 to 7 during a short break asked what I did to sound different. I told him I switched horns and he said good, stay with that one. why don’t I always use my M7? because the 6 feels better. also, sure in the controlled environment of a pro recording studio it was noticable but not on a loud stage with a rock band.
Anyway guys, it’s fun to talk about and dream of the most expensive horns in the world but it’s just not that important. there are a lot of quality names withoput even getting into selmer and yamaha that will do us extremely well. even quality student models. get one and then work on your playing and spend your money on a few mp’s and try different reeds.

[Michael]

What Johnny said above is EXACTLY my point. Nothing, but nothing, can replace our own ability to play a Saxophone and that’s the bottom line. We can’t just go buy a Sax like a Selmer and then think all-of-the-sudden were going to sound good. Like Johnny said, focus on our technique, a good mp/reed/ligature–yes..the right ligature makes a huge difference. Along these lines, check out this video I shared below of “Sax on a budget”. I think he sums it all up pretty well here. The one thing that he does mention in this video, which I don’t quite agree with, is that it doesn’t matter what kind of MP/Reed that you have..that’s not totally 100% true. I understand where he’s coming from on the important thing is the player behind the horn, but MP/reeds DO make a difference. It’s always worth getting a good MP v.s worrying about having to have a Selmer Mark 6, etc..

[Anonymous]

I don’t fully subscribe to the view that the mouthpiece/reed is fully responsible for the overall sound/tone/timbre of a saxophone, or the person who is playing it. Each sax has its own distinct sound, try the same setup on a dozen selmars, you can’t guarentee the same timbre will come out.

It doesn’t matter what setup you put on a selmar, it still has that selmar sound, and you won’t get that selmar sound on any other make.
The selmar sound is down to the sax not the setup, or the player.

The only thing thats putting me off buying a selmar is i play next to my teacher, who uses selmars, and when i compare my yamaha sound to his selmar, it has a sound that to me is designed for a certain type of playing, and that sound doesn’t feel like me, i don’t feel like i want to go there.

I’m currently reading a basic repair manual for sax’s, and theres a chapter on buying your 1st sax, and interestingly the repair guy who wrote it says – if you have the cash, buy the best, but then he goes on to say, be careful buying the best, because 2 or 3 years when you develop your own sound, you might find the instrument doesn’t quite fit the sound you like. in other words you could end up trying out other sax’s to get the sound you want – costly mistake so hold back for a few years!

Guitars are the same – i tried out half a dozen in a shop, costing twice as much as a selmar, and i didn’t like any of them, none of them grabbed me in a way that i couldn’t put them down

[Tim56]

Let me in here! I have a Yamaha 62. A Selmer M-6, 66 thou. Made in late 1956 Yamaha is 4 years old. The gent playing the 300 buck horn is very good! He is right! When it comes down to it! It’s the player and his ability! The other stuff,,, just makes him better as far as sound is concerned. The only guys on this site that have heard me play, are Johnny and Mike Bishop. I don’t like the way I sound on my laptop. So, that’s why I have not posted. Yeah, I know I should not be concerned with that? However, I have a real problem with memorization! Figure this, I know the music, I can play you any note on my horn. I can’t memorize simple tunes to save my life!! No joke! I guess I am just afraid I’ll screw up so bad, that I have not done it. I have just rejoined the orchestra at my local city college. Had our first practice. Not too bad. I have a private lesson with the band director in the afternoon tomorrow. Iron out the timing and some other bumps? Other people that have heard me play, say it sounds real good? I do play with a long time friend that is a great piano player. We get together and play at his home. No one has called the cops yet! So, must not be too bad?? LOL Back to the horns. I got my 6 cheap. I had the good fortune to play a 6 a few days ago. I was the first to play it in 40 years. I had been relaqued. It was a 85 thou. It sold for 5 thou. Cheap!!!!! I played it for the people at Tenor Madness tenormadness.com They thought it sounded great. So, there out there. Nuff for now. Tim Oh, I had the money. I have been very fortunate in my life. I have always gone by,,,get the best!! You can’t go wrong??? So far, so good!!!

[Author]

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