Borganis vs. any other sax

[CMelodyMan]

I know this may be a dumb question, but, IYHO, how do you think Borgani saxes rank among the other top brands in quality, sound, etc? Would you consider them #1. 2. 3, 4 ,etc?

[brassnaked]

I know this may be a dumb question, but, IYHO, how do you think Borgani saxes rank among the other top brands in quality, sound, etc? Would you consider them #1. 2. 3, 4 ,etc?

On a scale of 1 to 10, 10 being the best:
11-1/2....cause 10 just plain ain't high enough!

[Dr G]

That's only if you're talking Jubilee Borgani's - the earlier ones were typical of the European student horn market (ie. poor yet inexpensive - you get what you pay for).

[CMelodyMan]

Oops :| , I should have made my question clearer. I meant the pro model Borganis. When did Borgani start making pro model saxes?

[BayviewSax]

Borgani -

For sound: 6

For feel: 4

for comparison:

99,xxx Mark VI

For Sound: 9

For Feel: 9

[Dr G]

Cool. When did Selmer start making 5-digit Mk VIs again? 8-)

[Budget Explosion]

wow. My experience was way different than Bayviewsax. Recently, I tried the current pro Borgani altos and it enjoyed playing them more than six or so Mark VI altos I tried that day...unfortunately, I was reluctant to buy the Borgani because it cost the same as the Mark VI horns, but when I take it off the lot, the Borgani will be worth about $2500, while the Mark VI may still be worth $5K.

[bbbouklas]

My jubilee goldplated borgani alto is a much better all-around horn than my (ex-) silverplated sba..

[RandyJ]

At the conclusion of the North Sea Jazz Cruise I picked up two weeks of work in Italy and went to Macerata. Played on a silver, pearl gold and a 130 with the 65 neck (tenors) along with the newish Reference 36 I had got from Paris in the middle of May. Was only able to spend about two hours with them but when all was done, to me I just sounded better on the Ref 36, had one person with me, a trumpet player, and he concurred. Actually he said the sound to him was better on the 36 before I asked what he thought. The Borgani's are a quality horn, just not for me.

[John_Dikeman]

To be the first really negative guy...
I played a bunch of new tenors the other day (I'm not much of a modern horn guy, so take it for what it's worth) But I thought the Borgani was the worst, by a reasonable margin.
I tried a Reference 54, Keilwerth Shadow, Cannonball big bell and Yani, not their top of the line, I don't know the name.
All horns felt a bit bland to me, compared to my Buescher or Conn, which I expected and accept as the reality of modern horns, for whatever reason. The Ref had a bit more going for it sonically, which surprised me as I'd previously only played the SA80 II and III, and I think these are both terrible (maybe worse than the Borgani:shock: ), the others sounded reasonably neutral, while the Borgani sounded bad to my ears. Just a sort of flat harsh tone. Of course, ergos and intonation are as good as any modern horn.
If you like them, that's great, many do.

[Dr G]

It's heartening to know that you didn't like any of them. ;)

:borg:

[John_Dikeman]

It's heartening to know that you didn't like any of them. ;)

:borg:

HAHA, yeah, what can I say...

Actually, the Ref was pretty good. And that's saying a lot as I'm not a Selmer kinda guy. If I went for a modern horn, that would be it. But it's a lot easier for me to trade around old Conn's then these fancy modern horns which cost an arm and a leg, and have no resale value.
Besides, I do like my horns.

[Leon]

I think setup is very important with these horns. Also, no two are exactly alike. I have owned for example three Pearl Silver Jubilee tenors in the past, two of them set up by Randy Jones and one by Roberto, and all were different. I don't think you can just go into a music store and try just one example and be fully informed. I do agree that the Pearl Silver (which I now own) compared to the Pearl Gold, for example, can be considered by some to be a little harsh, but one can learn to tame that quality. I prefer these horns to MOST Mark VI's I have played - but there are great examples of many tenors, Selmer, Conn, Buescher, Borgani, etc.

[Yellowhorn]

I think many of us don't have a clue how Borgani horns actually sound and feel because they are still very expensive vis-a-vis other brands, and, if I am not mistaken, its distribution worldwide is not that great.

But I agree with Art_Salt that the resale value of non-Selmer horns and those that are not major American and French vintage horns is low. I bought an RC curvy and sold it recently and I lost quite a bit of money, even though the horn was in the still in showroom conditions.

[nathan61]

I agree with Leon that the setup is VERY important with Borgani saxes. My pearl gold tenor is a nasty beast with just about any metal mouthpiece, but it is a great horn with an RPC mouthpiece. I also think these horns work best with mouthpieces with wider tip openings.

These are large bore horns that require lots of air support to really resonate. If you want to sound like Coltrane or Stan Getz you will probably be dissipointed with a Borgani. Those guys didn't play large bore horns. If you want a vintage sound you will also be dissipointed- no modern horn sounds like an old Selmer or old Conn. But if you are looking for something different then tray a Borgani- these are great horns. I sold a 5 digit mark VI, bought a Borgani, and havent looked back!

[jmm1713]

The Goldplated one that I tried was very stuffy .

[GAS_Wyo]

Was only able to spend about two hours with them but when all was done, to me I just sounded better on the Ref 36, had one person with me, a trumpet player, and he concurred. Actually he said the sound to him was better on the 36 before I asked what he thought. The Borgani's are a quality horn, just not for me.
I SOOOO agree with this. I am extremely satisfied with my 36. Yes, I am now and probably will always be a Selmer man, but I have tried many of the others, and just have that Selmer sound in my head.

[wmclean]

Great tone, great intonation, great ergonomics ... a KEEPER for sure - Borgani Tenor.

Qualifications: I play classical and hymns for myself and small personal groups. Volume and bright I do NOT want.

W.

[Reedsplinter]

I SOOOO agree with this. I am extremely satisfied with my 36. Yes, I am now and probably will always be a Selmer man, but I have tried many of the others, and just have that Selmer sound in my head.

You have a Ref. 36 & just got your RPC 115? Exactly my rig. I love it.

[tomasi]

I don't regard myself a exceptional tenor player, I concentrate on alto, but I've tried and compared lots of tenors to my '39 Hüller tenor I love for it's gritty and booming sound. Great for rock screaming and in the other hand for soft subtoning but nothing special as a all rounder. I've played most new Yanis and Yamahas, all new Keilwerths and Selmers (Except Ref 54 collectors editions), some vintage Selmers (SBA, several Mk VIs and one Mk VII), a good Conn 10m among others. And then also a matt gold plated Borgani Jubilee.

I found it to be a VERY nice horn. My favourite all round tenor of the bunch with one of the Mk VI that was also great, just in a different way. I found the Borgani to be dark and warm sounding as I prefer a tenor to be and ergonomics did fit me nicely. The sound had really something in to it and it was a joy to play.

The tech warned me though that the horn is very fragile. I have no further experience about that myself but the he said that they already had to resolder one of the posts that had just dropped off without any rough handling. Fix was done very professionally, but it was noticeable on the finish near it. Because of that the horn could have been had with very reasonable price and I was extremely tempted to leave the shop with it. But this time I managed to keep my cool and the feared GAS did not take over me again... ;)

[clarnibass]

FWIW I recently compared several sopranos - Yanagisawa solid silver, a great Mark VI, Conn (I think the model is called New Wonder or Chu Berry) silver plated, and a Borgani that looks like it is lacqured but maybe they don't have lacquered instruments then it was probably gold plated (I didn't pay much attention to the finish). I tried them with several other players (one very successful tenor & soprano sax soloist). I've tried them with a Yamaha and a Yanagisawa mouthpieces and one of the players tried with his mouthpiece (I forgot what it was).

All were pretty good in most parameters.

Intonation - The Yanagisawa and Borgani had excellent intonation, the Mark VI was very good too especially for a VI (actually belongs to played by a classical player) and the Conn had some problems so a classical player would probably not choose it for that reason alone (in fact, he plays a different soprano in a classical quartet for that reason mostly).

Sound - For sound alone, I liked the Conn the best with the VI close behind but the Yanagisawa and Borgani also sounded excellent. It made a lot of difference who played them. The pro soprano player sounded best on the VI (he actually owns the Yana). A classical player sounded best on the Yana (he owns a VI actually). The owner of the Borgani sounded pretty much the same on all.

Sound consistency - Yanagisawa was best here. Very smooth between regtisters. The Borgani close behind with just a little more difference from open C# to D. The Conn and VI were pretty good too but just not as good.

Keywork - This is totally subjective (as if everything else so far isn't!) but I preferred the Conn by far. It is light and the keys are very comfortable. Surprisingly the VI with also older keys was the least comfortable, but it was even lighter which made it a great choice! The Yanagisawa and especially the Bogani were very heavy (I could play the Conn or VI with no strap but not the others). The keys of the Yanagisawa and Borgani were also pretty comfortable but the setup from factory of the Borgani was super hard springs and poor quality adjutment (I was very surprised for this price instrument).
No F# or front F on the Conn by the way.

[clarnibass]

Double post...

[dutchy]

We were looking for a brand new alto in the higher class, i.e. Selmer Reference, Keilwerth etc.
They also presented a Borgani just to try.
It was absolutely beautiful finished (with an eye for technical details), and according to my son, played extremely easy, using his own selmer mouthpiece, but it just was too loud. Must be an excellent solo instrument, but for orchestra, in our opinion, just too loud.