Daktion
11-11-2005, 04:16 AM
I was going to post into my other thread but I wanted to link a few pictures and didn't want unsuspecting passerbys to suffer a huge bandwidth drain.
Anyways here goes.
So, I got my sax today yay! and have played it for the last 3 hrs. I'm going to be pretty honest here so there will be pros and cons. Oh yea, I'm using a S80 D with a vandoren blue box 3 and rovner light... if anyone is interested.
Review on the physical aspect:
As before, I do like the look of the case here.
Notice the imbedded pocket which imo is more protective then the outer pockets that actually stick out. It holds quite a bit of things btw.
Here is a shot of the case inside. I like the extra space for accessories.
Notice the seatbelts, which is pretty horrible. I don't think I'll be using it at all. However, feeling the inside of the case, it isn't that sturdy. The sax "will" move around abit. I suggest you get a real case that will give you the additional support if you'll be travelling alot with it. At most for me, I'll do local gigs so I'll keep it around till I cant stand it anymore lol.
Here is a shot of the logo that is attached to the case.... looks pretty but too bad it's plastic. I wonder what it'll look like when it gets some wear on it :twisted: Imo they should've sprung for a metal engraving.... it sticks out so it'll definately be rubbing alot.
Here is another shot of the sax... notice the white pearls. The feel of the sax is very nice. Very solid and the springs feel good. The finish as mentioned before is very sweet. Some people told me they think it's a bit overdone but I like it. The only finish (in terms of look) that I think might be a tad better is the antique finish on the ref54. The RTH is very nicely done. Worth the extra $$ imo.
Next up is a pic of the standard mpc and lig. The lig is finished in the same way as the sax.... it's actually not too bad. I think i might use it sometimes.
However, the mpc is pretty bad. It looks like it's been used and frankly, it looked gross. My lips won't be touching that... well unless it took a long disinfection bath... actually I still probably wont heh.
Notice the two scratches right on the tip.. and nope, it isn't smooth on the round side.... over-all the mpc was very sub-par. I rather they took the mpc out and charged me less for the horn.
I also picked up a neckstrap from Dave. I'm really loving it. This one is fo alto/soprano. It is very comfortable and the best part about it is the hook. I'm not a fan of the clips and the open hooks are kind of dangerous. So this worked perfectly.
Review on the sound:
Alright the sound is possibly everything I can ask for in a sax. The lower notes sang out in a dark and bold tone.... was I ever pleased. I spent a lot of time going over songs that stayed in the lower range and heck I can still hear it now.... it's just that good haha. I love the ease to hit the higher notes or go low. Some of the keys were alittle stiff but a small adjustment job fixed that. The upper range is also very good with the P. The middle range I thought was only abit better than average. But wow.... the sax can really take whatever you give it. The altissimo went off easily and I'm very suprised at how in tune the sax was. I do think i'll bring the sax into a tech (any recommendations from fellow torontonians?) to get it checked over. Although Dave did some adjustments, the sax did go awol on me for 3 weeks.... I want to be sure :)
I have an 82z with me atm but not for long as I'll be returning it :) . The yamaha key layout is a bit better however, the sound of the P blows it away. The strength I've always found with yamahas is that the high quality build and engineering of the horn lets us get a good sound out easily. So for alot of people it'll be perfect and with the ergonomic setup, they can achieve quite a bit. But to me, I've always thought the sound lacked a bit of depth, especially in the lower notes and it doesn't sing out as well as I would like. The P here beats the 82z hands down. I don't mind working a bit harder for the note if the sound is much more full and rich. Mind you, the P. played effortlessly aswell hehe.
I tried like four ref54 when I was shopping for a sax. Overall, I think the sound of the 54 in the middle range is better than the P. But I really didn't like the 54s in the lower range. It took abit more effort for me to hit the lower notes. Did I mention how much I liked the sound of the Mauriat especially in the lower range? I might take the P. into L&M and try it side by side with a ref54 to get a better impression. But as of now, the P wins. After shipping, customs, brokerage fees, etc etc. The P. is still less than half the price of a 54. With the $$ saved I can pick up the 66R and have it shipped as well.
Also, I love how I can feel the horn with every note. It's like driving a car and feeling it hug the corners as you accelerate through a turn. Just beautiful.
I think P. Mauriat has something special here and I hope they keep up the good work and build up their reputation. They definately need to be focused on the long term objectives and dont get caught up by the short term gains. Also, they need to be more clear on what they are offering. Dave found out that they do have engravings but will cost more, which is fine but they never told us till we asked. Also, they didnt do the white pearls on purpose. The impression Dave got was that they started the Rs with the whites but will phase into the turqoise later. The turqoise pearls saxes we see now are probably in a later production run or was done earlier for promotional purposes. Of course if you have a definate answer, feel free to correct me :)
Anyways, that's my not so quick review of the sax so far. Maybe I'll record something and post it in the future to torture you all 8-).
Anyways here goes.
So, I got my sax today yay! and have played it for the last 3 hrs. I'm going to be pretty honest here so there will be pros and cons. Oh yea, I'm using a S80 D with a vandoren blue box 3 and rovner light... if anyone is interested.
Review on the physical aspect:
As before, I do like the look of the case here.
Notice the imbedded pocket which imo is more protective then the outer pockets that actually stick out. It holds quite a bit of things btw.
Here is a shot of the case inside. I like the extra space for accessories.
Notice the seatbelts, which is pretty horrible. I don't think I'll be using it at all. However, feeling the inside of the case, it isn't that sturdy. The sax "will" move around abit. I suggest you get a real case that will give you the additional support if you'll be travelling alot with it. At most for me, I'll do local gigs so I'll keep it around till I cant stand it anymore lol.
Here is a shot of the logo that is attached to the case.... looks pretty but too bad it's plastic. I wonder what it'll look like when it gets some wear on it :twisted: Imo they should've sprung for a metal engraving.... it sticks out so it'll definately be rubbing alot.
Here is another shot of the sax... notice the white pearls. The feel of the sax is very nice. Very solid and the springs feel good. The finish as mentioned before is very sweet. Some people told me they think it's a bit overdone but I like it. The only finish (in terms of look) that I think might be a tad better is the antique finish on the ref54. The RTH is very nicely done. Worth the extra $$ imo.
Next up is a pic of the standard mpc and lig. The lig is finished in the same way as the sax.... it's actually not too bad. I think i might use it sometimes.
However, the mpc is pretty bad. It looks like it's been used and frankly, it looked gross. My lips won't be touching that... well unless it took a long disinfection bath... actually I still probably wont heh.
Notice the two scratches right on the tip.. and nope, it isn't smooth on the round side.... over-all the mpc was very sub-par. I rather they took the mpc out and charged me less for the horn.
I also picked up a neckstrap from Dave. I'm really loving it. This one is fo alto/soprano. It is very comfortable and the best part about it is the hook. I'm not a fan of the clips and the open hooks are kind of dangerous. So this worked perfectly.
Review on the sound:
Alright the sound is possibly everything I can ask for in a sax. The lower notes sang out in a dark and bold tone.... was I ever pleased. I spent a lot of time going over songs that stayed in the lower range and heck I can still hear it now.... it's just that good haha. I love the ease to hit the higher notes or go low. Some of the keys were alittle stiff but a small adjustment job fixed that. The upper range is also very good with the P. The middle range I thought was only abit better than average. But wow.... the sax can really take whatever you give it. The altissimo went off easily and I'm very suprised at how in tune the sax was. I do think i'll bring the sax into a tech (any recommendations from fellow torontonians?) to get it checked over. Although Dave did some adjustments, the sax did go awol on me for 3 weeks.... I want to be sure :)
I have an 82z with me atm but not for long as I'll be returning it :) . The yamaha key layout is a bit better however, the sound of the P blows it away. The strength I've always found with yamahas is that the high quality build and engineering of the horn lets us get a good sound out easily. So for alot of people it'll be perfect and with the ergonomic setup, they can achieve quite a bit. But to me, I've always thought the sound lacked a bit of depth, especially in the lower notes and it doesn't sing out as well as I would like. The P here beats the 82z hands down. I don't mind working a bit harder for the note if the sound is much more full and rich. Mind you, the P. played effortlessly aswell hehe.
I tried like four ref54 when I was shopping for a sax. Overall, I think the sound of the 54 in the middle range is better than the P. But I really didn't like the 54s in the lower range. It took abit more effort for me to hit the lower notes. Did I mention how much I liked the sound of the Mauriat especially in the lower range? I might take the P. into L&M and try it side by side with a ref54 to get a better impression. But as of now, the P wins. After shipping, customs, brokerage fees, etc etc. The P. is still less than half the price of a 54. With the $$ saved I can pick up the 66R and have it shipped as well.
Also, I love how I can feel the horn with every note. It's like driving a car and feeling it hug the corners as you accelerate through a turn. Just beautiful.
I think P. Mauriat has something special here and I hope they keep up the good work and build up their reputation. They definately need to be focused on the long term objectives and dont get caught up by the short term gains. Also, they need to be more clear on what they are offering. Dave found out that they do have engravings but will cost more, which is fine but they never told us till we asked. Also, they didnt do the white pearls on purpose. The impression Dave got was that they started the Rs with the whites but will phase into the turqoise later. The turqoise pearls saxes we see now are probably in a later production run or was done earlier for promotional purposes. Of course if you have a definate answer, feel free to correct me :)
Anyways, that's my not so quick review of the sax so far. Maybe I'll record something and post it in the future to torture you all 8-).