What can anyone say about...

[catfriedrice]

I've got a nice selmer mark 7 alto sax, what is the difference in it and a 6,

[mark_m]

1

:)

[Morry]

Wouldn't it be -1?

[aanz]

Actually it would be:
A) an "I"
or
B) about $2500

[averageschmoe]

here's a handy tip for making your seven play more like a six: grab a chisel and do your best to obliterate one of the "I's." be careful though, the first "I" must be left intact, unless you really want a one of a kind instrument.

[Jeff Foster]

Others may want to correct me if I'm wrong, but I'm pretty sure the biggest difference is the bore. The VII has a more cylindrical (sp?) bore, which gives it a little darker tone. The VI has a conical bore which gives it a brighter sound with more edge. What about it Selmer experts? Am I right on this?

[Joe]

Jeff, you're correct. The VII has a slightly larger neck opening, which makes the neck more cylindrical. This results in a bigger, darker sound. VII's tend to be more inconsistent than VI's. Some just don't play well (especially altos), having either a bad sound, poor tuning, or both. A good VII is an excellent horn, especially for the money. IMO, they generally make a better classical horn than a VI.

Another difference, the action on the VII is designed for larger hands (ala. Hemke, the consultant for the horn). The pinky spatulas are huge compared to a VI.

[AG]

I've got a really nice VII alto (M255xxx), and it plays as well, if not better, as my old VI. I suppose I have "one of the good ones" :lol: The neck does have a larger bore that gives the horn a darker tone and a big, rich bottom end not found on the VI. Key work is different, redesigned for a slightly larger hand span (real man's horn 8) ). Spatula keys are larger but not huge. The intonation is dead on throughout entire register. I've got 2 other necks for it, a late VI neck and a Serie III Millenium silver neck; both fit and alter the tone somewhat. I can use my VII alto in any musical venue, performs well. All VII's may not play as well as mine, but all VI's don't play the same either. They're Selmers.

[Jonno]

Price, that's the big factor. I have a 256### Alto VII, and I like it. I used to play a Yanagisawa A990 up until 3 months ago, but I find the VII still has that vintage Selmer sound. When I push the air through a bit more I can get something near to the David Sanborn kind of tone.
Admittedly, I have only ever played one VI, and that was a terrible sax (it must have been the only bad one EVER made cause no one else ever admits to owning a bad one!), so I cant compare with that. However, I have played 3 BA/SBAs and I think that I would prefer one of those, and I definitely hope to get one sometime soon.
But at the end of the day my VII was almost 1/2 the price of the SBAs, with only a very small difference.
One thing about the VII is I use a softer set-up. Same M/P, but 1/2 a strength softer. I don't think that it is as "free blowing" as some of the modern horns (in particular my Yanagisawa).