Got my new YA9930!

[bradshawm]

Yesterday was my 27th birthday, and it just so happened (though the purchase was not planned that way) that my new YA9930 arrived via Fed EX that afternoon. Whoa, what a birthday present! It is exactly like one review that I read on a dealers website, in which the reviewer stated that it played perfect, almost too perfect. I don't know what else to say. It looks, feels and plays perfect. The scale is perfectly even from top to bottom. It is free blowing, and I can play PP almost effortlessly throughout the whole range. One thing that I am very impressed with, and I think it is typical Yanagisawa, though I don't have enough experience with them to say for sure, is that it comes straight from the factory, set up and ready to go. Straight out of the case, it played perfect. Another thing is that it even comes with the Yani 5* mouthpiece which plays very well in it's own right. I found the same with the 991 and the 992 when I tried them.

Reading what people have said about the tone, and then finally playing it and comparing it to the 991 and the 992 has proven to be very interesting. I've heard people mention that it was very bright, but I do not find it to be that bright. I found the 991 to be brighter but a little courser sounding with decent projection, the 992 to be dark and smooth, but lacking in projection, and I find the 9930 to be in the middle.

There are a couple things that will take getting used to. It is much more focused than my other alto, and while the projection is decent, it is almost like hitting a limiting gear on a transmission where I feel like it should give me more, but doesn't. The other thing is that the left hand G-B keys are closer together than anything else I have played, which isn't a problem except when it comes to adding the Bb bis key. I'm sure a little practice will take care of most of this, and maybe experimenting with a different mouthpiece than my Morgn 6L will bring out more volume.

Needless to say, it was a pretty good birthday!

Marshall

[moooose]

WOW! Although delayed... happy birthday and congratulations!

I woud confirm what you said: also in my case, my Yani (A992) played perfectly just out of the box.... it's nice to know that somebody still work with so much attention (and maybe love).

[Dave Dolson]

Marshall: Congrats.

In MY view, "bright" is subjective and much of that depends on the player and his set-up and what he WANTS to hear. I've cited examples of this before.

Yanagisawa is a class act - enjoy it. DAVE

[Tryptykon]

Marshall: Congrats.

In MY view, "bright" is subjective and much of that depends on the player and his set-up and what he WANTS to hear. I've cited examples of this before.



Indeed, you have .

[SaxyAcoustician]

Marshall, congratulations. :cheers:

I'm still waiting on my Yanagisawa A991 unlacquered. All Yanagisawa horns are great including the 901 line of horns.

I'm not sure what you mean nor do I think you're sure what you mean by the horn being "limiting". Going along with your transmission analogy (which I like btw), it's likely that your engine is not a good fit for the transmission...yet. That engine would be your air, tongue, throat, embouchure, and your sound concept.

Either that or your reed is too soft or not the right cut or both.

Anyway, have fun with what I think is one of the finest saxophones ever made.

[bradshawm]

Thanks all.

SaxyAcoustician - I know exactly what I mean by limiting. With the exact same mouthpiece and reed, I get a much louder sound from my other alto. My wife commented on the same thing. With this one I hit a threshold, and when I push it, there is nothing more. I had an old Ford Pinto that was that way. The transmission had a limiter on it so that you could not go over a certain RPM so you didn't burn up the transmission. That is exactly what this feels like when I play. It plays effortlessly, smooth and beautiful, and I have a lot more to give the horn, but it is like there is nothing more there. It is like it is so focused, that even if I try, I can't lose control.

I still love the horn, just need to work with it.