Yss-475 or S901

[BobD]

I know there has been a lot of talk about these horns, especially comparing them, but I would like input from a slightly different prespective. I want a soprano as a second instrument. I would like one so that I could practice at night a little more quietly than I can with the tenor. So, my needs are not that of a performer. I was thinking that the YSS-475 would fullfill my needs and I know the S901 would be more than adequate. Money is an issue so I thought with the money saved on the Yamaha I could pick up a pretty good mouthpiece and still have spent less than the Yani. Is the intonation, tone, keywork, build quality decent on the Yamaha? Are people with this horn happy woith it?

Thanks,
BobD

[sadist]

ok since i own a s901 and i once swapped it with a ys4 dunno wad with a friend i can tell you a bit about both... although i have not seen to it that the technical fault of my yanagisawa is taken cared of...

both of them are decent instruments... characteristics much the same... However in my country the yanagisawa is cheaper than yamaha...

yamaha seems to have a slightly brighter tone... more free expressive...
yana's tone can change easily unlike the yamaha... what i personally think... and i believe that the intonation and tone is better on the yanagisawa...

whatever it is s901 is a sweet instrument JUST BEFORE BUYING CHECK IT IS WORKING!!! DONT REPEAT THE SAME MISTAKE I DID!!!

for mpc i think a s80 is decent... and if you wanna practice at night i personally think a softer reed will do good (pssst i practice at night with a 1 1/2... AHAHAHA)

[oppai]

Sadist, guessing from your writing style, you're probably in Malaysia or Singapore? I'm just wondering if the yanagisawa or yamaha's are significantly cheaper there. as I may have an opportunity to go there later this year. I currently own a s991 which after a couple of years, I'm beginning to dislike its tone (despite efforts to accomodate it, namely different reeds, mouthpieces etc), so I'm thinking of making a switch to Yamahas. I once tried a yss475, but I could not remember how it sounded like -probably because it was not so distinctive; the only thing I could remember was it is heavy.

[Dave Dolson]

BobD: My take on your question is that sopranos (and all saxophones, really) are not quiet instruments, regardless of what brand you buy. True, a certain mouthpiece/reed combo may affect your volume, but if you try to play quietly, you will be practicing and developing playing characteristics that are not the best for soprano. Those horns need to speak and the players need to learn to speak. No, we don't have to blow everyone off the stage, but the best sounding sopranos, in MY opinion, are the ones with a full voice. And again, the same goes for all saxophones. Play them with authority, not whimpishly.

Having said that, I don't see much difference between any of the top-name brands. I prefer Yanagisawas, having owned Yamaha, Selmer, and Yanagisawa sopranos, but the choice you make is a personal one. And they all can vary among those you try. DAVE

[BobD]

Thanks for all the replies. I guess a soprano isn't going to be that much quieter but it sure is less horn to wield when I'm pooped after a day of work and getting the kids to bed.

I was just wondering if the Yamaha is a decent horn. I don't want to purchase a piece of junk that won't hold up to some practice a few times per week. I would prefer the Yani but it's not in my price range.

Thanks,
BobD

[Mike Ruhl]

A friend of mine bought a new 475 last year. It's a good horn, ideal for your situation, imho.

[Stencilman]

Bob, finding practice time is difficult for me as well with 5 kids. I play one of my sopranos late at night, early in the morning at work and during my lunch break (one is a vintage Martin and the other is a Buescher C-soprano).

I also think that the YSS-475 is ideal for you. I played one of these for a while and thought it was fantastic for the price.

Mouthpiece and reeds make all the difference. Normally, I play a Dukoff D8 but chose to go with a Rico Graftonite B7 (cheap at around $20) and Fibracell 2.5 when I need to play softly. It took a couple of weeks to get to the point where I can't be heard when I'm playing outside of my office at home or at work.

[BobD]

Stencilman,

5 kids...that would put a damper on the practice time for sure. I only have two and find it a challenge. I also practice at work on my lunch hour. I go out into the parking garage. Fun acoustics. I'm usually OK at night to practice the tenor but sometimes I'm beat and a soprano seems like it would be more inviting to play than a booming tenor. I think I will go for the 475 and with the money saved order a few good mouthpieces to try out.

Thanks.

[Mike Ruhl]

We're all in the same boat. I'm an old hobbyist tenor player who got the soprano bug a few years ago. I opted for an even-cheaper wwbw model soprano for $299 on clearance. It's a good horn.

Bob - be advised, soprano will be a strain to play quietly for a while for an old tenor player. You get a lot of "back-pressure" blowing into that teensy little mpc...

[BobD]

Mike,

I know what you mean. I currently play a current prod. HR Link on my tenor. When I first got it I was bustin a gut to get air thru it. Now the resistance in fine and I actually like a little something to push on.

I did try the 475 and a 901 at usahorn a while back. The thing I remember about the 901 was it had a warmer tone and it was a little easier to blow. But I was using a HR Lakey on both so I'm not considering that a good comparison. Are you still playing that WWBW horn?

[Mike Ruhl]

Yep, still playing it regularly. I use it to cover clarinet, oboe, or 2nd/3rd trumpet parts in our church orchestra, and every other month or so play an offertory solo. It requires regular maintenance, but even that's kind of fun - this horn has adjustment screws for the left- and right-hand stack. The tone is not quite up to par with a pro horn, but for $299 I'm not complaining. And it sure is easier to tote around than the tenor.

[BobD]

That's great to hear that a 299 dollar soprano can be played so frequently and still hold up for you. Some on the forum tell alarming stories of asian horns falling apart in their hands. That makes me feel that much better about a YSS475.

[Russ]

Hi BobD,

I was just wondering, did you go for the 475 ?

I went into my local store today and tried those very 2 horns.
I'm not going to sit here and run down the 901 but I left the store with the 475.

Nothing wrong with the 901, but it just did not perform as well as the 475 in my big clumbsy hands. I thought the 475 sounded better too.

[BobD]

Russ,

I had the opposite experience of you. I preffered the S901. I think both horns are good and you probably got more bang for the buck but I just liked the sound and feel of the 901 better.

[Dave Dolson]

Russ and BobD: Could be as simple as the differences found among particular horns; not so much brand as an individual horn's set-up. DAVE

[MB-913]

Pricing = S-901 & YSS-475 is not same/very close. If you can pay more, I would say better to get a S-901. Which sounds a little better & thicker in my opinion.