Saxquest.com

[leehwd]

Can any one tell me about Saxquest.com? They sound like good and professional people. Additionally, is Tenor Madness (Reassembling the New Sax plus some tweaking by Saxquest) necessary? Isn't there any chance that this could make some harm rather benefit?

Thank you for your comments and information.

Howard

[retread]

It doesn't do any harm, for sure. My Yani tenor was tweaked by Tenor Madness and it is great. Yani has a reputation for delivering well-adjusted saxes, so may the tweaking wasn't necessary. But from what I've read on this board, the TM service would be a really good idea for a Selmer.

[The Martin]

I allways thought that if you buy a new sax from a good shop that it's tweaked anyhow...

At least that's standard practice in the better shops in The Netherlands

[MusicMan]

The guys at Saxquest are great and on the level. They only want to do what's right by the customer and I appreciated the advise Mark gave me when I made a purchase from him. Any tweaking done would only be for the improvement of the horn.

[Pete]

... and here it is ...

[leehwd]

Okay, here's my experience.

I bought an alto sax from Mark at SaxQuest.com. He rather quickly responded to my email asking the price and other information. The deal went well, and they were professional and treated me decently. I paid it by personal check to get some discount, and I confirmed that the check had cleared from my checking account last Monday (3/31). I waited till last Friday (4/4), but I have not heard anything from them. So, I sent an email late that day around 5 pm EST, and Mark resplied to me on Sunday around 7 pm EST. He explained that he was out of the town, and told me that he would ship off the sax ASAP after checking with the bank on Monday (4/7). I thought that he would send me sort of confirming email, but he didn't. Therefore, I picked up the phone and talked to one of his associates today (4/8) around 11 am EST. He told me (after talking to Mark, I think) that the sax was in the final tweaking process (Tenor Madness?), and would ship it Thursday (4/10). I asked him to let me know the tracking number and he answered yes. I will see what is going to happen.

Well, I don't have any doubt that they are professional and good businessmen. In fact, I didn't want to make them hurry. Good prep and packing was more important to me than fast delivery, and I made it clear to them. However, definitely there is some room for improvements. Most customers want to get in the circle, and feel they are treated politely when informed of whatever small stuff. Simple notice or email will be great and customers like me will appreciate it greatly.

Hope this helps your evaluation. Thanks.

Howard

[Mike Cesati]

The guy from Tenor Madness is rady Jones and Co. Your sax will be checked out by the best. These are all top shelf people you are dealing with . Like everyone we have busy lives ,he's probably doing several horns at once. I'm sure you'll get customer satisfaction from these guys.

[Mike Cesati]

I apologize for my poor typing ,that's supposed to be Randy Jones

[leehwd]

Dear Mike C,

I have no doubt about it. They are professional and responsible people. I just wanted to point out that small thing would make a big difference. In fact, I am really happy with those guys at SaxQuest. Their price is competitive, and they know how to go through a smooth transaction with potential customers.

[danm]

My experience with Mark At SaxQuest last fall was great. I bought a sax from SaxQuest last fall and Mark was great to deal with. The sax was better than he said it was so I was very happy about the whole transaction. I took it to my tech and it needed nothing. Fast service and it was packed real well for the trip from St. Louis to Chicago. Good place to do business with.

[leehwd]

Hmm~~~, this is 12 am on Saturday.

SaxQuest promised to ship the saxophone by Thursday and let me know the tracking number. I waited till the Friday afternoon, but nothing had happened. I picked the phone, and was told they would come with the tracking number. The guy whom I talked did not even know if my sax had been shipped. So, he promised to check it and email me about the tracking number.

Well, they 'may' be good in reparing/tweaking the saxophones, but my saxophone buying experience with them so far is not so good as what others are insisting. Did I ask them too much? No, I don't think so. They promised, but they have never kept it at least in my transaction. I did more than what I was supposed to as a customer. Super fast payment, informing them of the check clearance, repetitive calls and beggings. What should I do more?

I probably won't do biz with these guys any more. Very disappointing so far.

[leehwd]

I received detailed email from Mark at SaxQuest, and he gave me a full explanation as to what has happened. As I wrote before, I paid by personal check. According to Mark, the clearance of personal check is way complicated, meaning that although the money was withdrawn from my account, that does not necessarily imply that the fund was securely transferred to his account. Therefore, he had to wait for the final notification from his bank. To make a long story short, he gave me a full explanation with apology for not fully communicating, and told me that the sax would be shipped on the next Monday.

I changed my mind. They appear to be good people. Hope this helps.

Howard

[OnyxSax]

I did a trade with them...a Mark VI straight for a Conn Curved. I found them to be on the level and professional in their dealings.

[dha]

I recently bought a few Francois Luis ligatures from Saxquest and the original package got lost in the mail. They honoured their policy and re-shipped me the ligatures which I have received and am very happy with the ligatures. I would definitely shop from them again, I think Saxquest is a very good honest dealer.

[King Bee]

If you read both of leehwd's posts on February 3, you can see what a huge positive difference a small bit of communication can make for a customer's attitude. The lack of communication is often the kernel of many problems, such as that with the delivery of the Steve Goodson horns. :wink:

[sabritas]

Do they take offers on vintage sixes or do they expect you to pay the full price listed? What kind of deals have people gotten?

Also, they have not returned my phone call. I've left three messages and an email over the past two weeks. What gives?

[shmuelyosef]

I really like what Saxquest is doing as another legit vintage horn restorer. As a store, however, my one interaction was less than perfect. I won one of their trivia contests which included a coupon for $50. So I ordered some supplies and entered the coupon #, but was billed the full amount. I called Mark and he said he would send a credit through on my card. It never showed up...

[sw3119]

has anyone done a consignment deal with them.

I mean has anyone had them sell a sax for you.

I am thinking of doing this with a King Zephyr alto that I have.
Just curious to hear about others experience with them.

[shmuelyosef]

Since this popped back up, and I had raised an issue previously, I thought I would share some positive info. I recently bought a sax on eBay from Saxquest; the transaction went well and it is a nice horn (Keilwerth Modell Ponzol tenor), although communication was slow. I'm slow sometimes, too...

[sabritas]

I've got two horns from Mark, a mint mark vi and a reference tenor. If you get a reference you must get it from him. I've tried lots of them and his play the best. The mark vi arrived exactly as advertised, what a dream!!!! One minor thing is that case was described as excellent and it was except for some stitching had come undone. Also at times communication can run a day or so late but these two things are minor points.

[Beowulfmk]

I purchased NY meyer large chamber for alto. It is as described and plays superbly. However, I have a problem with shipping. They sent it with priority mail, and MPC was located on the corner. it was covered with two layers of bubblewrap, which I don't think is safe enough. If there was a blow to the corner where mpc was located, there may have been a damage. It did arrive safely so I'm happy.

[awholley]

I have nothing but praise for them.

I ordered a Buescher curved soprano on Friday in the late afternoon and it showed up at my door on Tuesday at noon. It appeared exactly as advertised. I took their description of it as being a great playing horn with a grain of salt, but after it arrived I could hardly stop playing it. It is easily the best soprano I have ever played, and it arrived in _perfect_ adjustment --and I am very very picky about that.

Mark was also very responsive to my emails, always responding within 24 hours, and generally more like 4-8 hours.

I'd definitely do business with them again!

Alan

[Keith Ridenhour]

Mark is a real nice guy and extremely easy to deal with. I stopped by his shop/house today and ended up buying a horn from him. (King Tempo) My wife and I spent an hour looking at some of his horns/ pieces and the historic building his house/shop is in. He bent a little on the price of what I purchased and even though the horn plays very well as is is making a few alterations to it I asked for at no additional charge. I think he is stretched and people don't realise that Mark is Saxquest and he is essentually a one man operation trying to run a business and doing what he has to outside this business (gigs and other non music jobs) to make ends meet. Gotta give him alot of respect. He will stand behind what he says and I think the problems other posters may have had are all due to him not having staff to help with email, phone etc. Everybody needs a little time off. K

[rsclosson]

I keep hearing great things about saxquest and have no reason to doubt them, but I have tried at least four times to work out trade deals and inquirys and have been totally ignored. I have tried e-mails and phone calls to no avail. I would rather be told to "kiss off" than just be ignored. Still bewildered and frustrated about this.

[Whatasaxman]

I have only had one dealing with Mark at Saxquest and found him very personable and knowledgeable. As for tweaking a brand new horn.... I have never seen a horn from the factory that doesn't need it. the Yana's are great, but I repadded my A9937 2 days after I got it to make it perfect for my needs.

[retread]

I have dealt with Saxquest a number of times, by e-mail and telephone, and have never had a problem. Sometimes it's taken them a while to respond, but it was worth the wait. Mark (and Syd when he was there) gives great advice and offers excellent products.

[T-MAN]

Mark is a great guy to talk to over the phone. Knowledgeble and friendly.

But good luck getting them to email you back... :? especially at the info@saxquest.com email addy.

[Beowulfmk]

I agree about info@saxquest.com. Just e-mail John or Mark. They have answered all my questions. They also contacted me after the sale to make sure that I received package.

[mostly alto guy]

I recently wrote Saxquest via email and proposed to come by on a Saturday to have a look around, noting that I'm a collector, always on the lookout for great horns.

No response of any kind.

[retread]

It's my impression that Saxquest is primarily an internet business, and a tightly staffed one. Tire kicking is best done by looking at the all the photos they post on their web site.

[Alan G]

I concur with retread - I have personally visited Mark in his South City (Shaw Neighborhood) residence. The best way to contact them is by phone. Understand that these guys are operating out of their personal home. edit - ! - Guy and Gal - ! I didn't want to leave any false impressions about Marks "life style" . . .

I'm sure Mark would be happy to have players come on by... and was very gracious to me when I was there. During my last visit, a tenor player from an internationally renown Jazz singer was there, check'n out a horn....Umm - since he was in the living room - I took my bari to the upstairs bedroom to check out some MP's!!

It would be cool if they bought a store front in this area...I'd be hang'n all the time!

Best bet - give em a call - (314) -776-6416 during business hours.


Hey- MOSTLY ALTO GUY - where's youze at? I play in a swing band that is based outta Belleville - and we occasionally need substitutes for gigs.

[mostly alto guy]

Hey, I did finally get an email response, a very pleasant one.

Alan G, I live in Troy.

But be careful inviting me to gig--I'm not a jazz player, though I'd love to learn, but am primarily a collector and classical (military/concert band) player. If you know of any venues for that kind of stuff, I'm all ears.

Also, my day job keeps me very busy, so I usually have little time to practice these days. Know any good teachers in the area? If I had one again, I'd make the time to practice.

Drop me a line-- click the e-mail link below.

[Alan G]

mostly alto guy - check yer email....

BTW - ya might want to edit your email out of that post - so it doesn't get picked up by the @#$%*^$ spammers....

[Hurling Frootmig]

I've edited that out for Mostly Alto Guy. Please remember that you can set up an email in your profile and the email button will appear with your post. I'm not sure if the spambots can parse it or not but at least it makes them work a little harder!

[mostly alto guy]

Thanks--it was late, and I wasn't thinking. I have a robust firewall and good spam filters though, but then again, you can't be too careful.

[Hurling Frootmig]

I'm amazed at the amount of spam that gets filtered out between the spam filters that my provider uses and the filters that I employ via a program called Spam Bully.

Back to the topic. I've talked to Mark from saxquest on the phone and he was quite helpful about a couple of horns that he had in stock at the time. I've also traded e-mails with him from time to time about specific horns. I haven't purchased anything from him yet but I'm sure I will at some point because he seems to be a straight shooter and has a reasonable exchange policy.

[BATMAN]

Just wanted to chime in here.

Saxquest is responsible for me getting my dream horn, a silver Conn 30M.

I had an 86K Euro MK VI, and when I saw the 30M on the site, I called them. I spoke with Syd, and after approval from Mark, we made a trade agreement.

I promptly shipped my horn via UPS and when they had finished inspecting it, they promptly shipped the Conn. The whole transaction, starting with the phone call and ending with me receiving my Conn took a little over a week. This is FAST, considering the travel/shipping time and whatnot.

Great folks, with only the best horns for sale. I would highly recommend them.

And I agree with the assesment that it's best to CALL them. As I can surmise from the amount of staff, this is not a large retail store or anything. Email probably will be the slowest method of contact, at least relative to a phone call :)

[milesonthesonnytrane]

mark is a great guy
he helped me choose a good horn for my trade<mark 6 alto for mark 6 tenor>. There was a little confusion with the payment but that was on my side. That is, my father was buying and left for a military trip for about a week and half. Mark held the horn for me gave me a fair price on my alto and the tenor was sent the same day that i paid. Praise for saxquest!!!

[ProfessorZeek]

I have to agree, mark was very good to deal with and true to his word. He had sent a transitional Conn Chu which suffered a bit of shipping damage. He paid for the repair and then provided a discount on the horn. Overall, a great guy and I'm looking to buy another horn from him.

[twowheels]

A good plug for both Saxquest and Tenor Madness....

Mark Overton is great to deal with. Honest and up-front, does what he says he's going to do. And happy to answer all of my E-Mails...I was fairly high-maintenance on the transaction! :)

But I was very happy with the Ref 54 alto I got from him, and Tenor Madness did a superb job setting it up. A good horn will sound good, but as you all know a well set-up good horn just *sings*. I'd definitely do business with Saxquest and/or Tenor Madness again.

[stonescar]

Been having trouble with the info(at)saxquest.com adress, not getting replies :(

Beowulfmk
You said, just mail Mark - I don't have his e-mail adress!

[shmuelyosef]

mark \at \saxquest \dot \com