Yamaha 82Z tenor

[Mark R]

I would really like to hear from players that have tried or own one of these new 82Z tenors. Also would like to know what you played before and comparison. In the past I have tried 61's and found them too shrill and played 875 customs and found them to have a great sound but being such a thick horn they didn't vibrate and were kinda not really dark but not brilliant in tone production. I am hoping that the new 82Z is somewhere in between them...thanks,Mark

[sessionsax]

MarkVI,

Check out saxboys (Greg Vails) comments in other threads in this section.

[Mark R]

sessionsax, I have read Greg Vails review but he really spends more time discussing the alto and I am more interested in knowing more about the tenor....from a tenor players perspective...thanks though I appreciate the heads up.

[saxboy]

SAXBOY here.

Hi MarkVI,

YAMAHA just had more Alto's at the show. My favorite Tenor was a toss between the un-Lacquered and the Silver Plate, but there was no Gold Plate to try. I did not care for any of the Lacquered 82Z's and it was a surprise since I love my Black 875.

It seemed most the guys playing the Tenor liked the Silver or un-Lacqered also. The first Tenor to be bought by an artist was the Silver Alto (Marienthal) and Silver Tenor (Frank something), if that means anything.

As far as relating to a VI; I would have to say so much depends on who and how you play. I traded my VI for the 875B Tenor. It took a few years for me to sell the VI, but I did when I realized I had not played it in forever. I still had the VI thru my buying a much more appropriate Neck for the 875B and then finding a very complimenting Guardala Mouthpiece. Once the package was dialed in, there was no loss in the VI sale.

I always try to overlap sales and purchases until I am convinced the new horn is better. For me, it was a big improvment.

Hope that helps,

SAXBOY

My Sax History is @ www.gregvail.com/sys-tmpl/yamaha/
My 82Z thoughts @ www.gregvail.com/sys-tmpl/yamahareviews/
My Current Gear @ www.gregvail.com/sys-tmpl/gear/

Peace all...

[Jedi2427]

Hi Folks,
I figured I'd post this here as well as the Market Place. I bought a new Un-lacquered YTS-82Z tenor, mainly to get a hold of the G-1 neck so I could try it on my other Yamaha tenors. (very hard to get those necks so far)
I also wanted to try the new 82Z tenor. The 82Z in unlacquered plays great top to bottom with more of a "vintage sound". I took the 82Z as well as my 62 and swapped the G-1 neck out on a couple gigs and both saxes played great, just different.
I like the edge of the 62 a little better. Jazz players should love this new horn. I will probably order some G-1 necks, for my existing horns.

So, I figured instead of sending the 82Z back I would offer it up for sale for essentially what I paid for it, which was about $2700.00 plus shipping. If you are interested you can email me at: todoroff@aol.com.
Thanks

[Jedi2427]

Hi Folks,
I figured I'd post this here as well as the Market Place. I bought a new Un-lacquered YTS-82Z tenor, mainly to get a hold of the G-1 neck so I could try it on my other Yamaha tenors. (very hard to get those necks so far)
I also wanted to try the new 82Z tenor. The 82Z in unlacquered plays great top to bottom with more of a "vintage sound". I took the 82Z as well as my 62 and swapped the G-1 neck out on a couple gigs and both saxes played great, just different.
I like the edge of the 62 a little better. Jazz players should love this new horn. I will probably order some G-1 necks, for my existing horns.

So, I figured instead of sending the 82Z back I would offer it up for sale for essentially what I paid for it, which was about $2700.00 plus shipping. If you are interested you can email me at: todoroff@aol.com.
Thanks

[Jmz]

Personally, I think the 82Z is a GREAT horn. When I played all the different versions, my personal faves were the silver and the unlacquered. I tried the black lacquer and the regular lacquer at NAMM, but neither one really did it for me. Some people (i.e. Saxboy) sounded great on those. :wink:

If you like the New York / Brecker-ish kind of sound, then I would recommend the silver or the unlacquered. The silver had a "shimmer" to the edge of the tone which was cool, but got a little harsh to my ear when pushed. The unlacquered tenors were my favorite...colorful and warm, but could sizzle when pushed. My personal fave is the no-lacquer, no high-F# tenor...put domed metal reso's on it, and you've got the perfect horn, IMHO. Of course, there are ways of making older 62s sizzle and snap, but it takes more alteration than what most repair shops can do.

BTW, Jedi, you and I go back a little bit---think Natasha and Maceo... :D (email me if you'd like...I'd like to keep this msg board post anonymous)

[woodwindmaster06]

DO NOT BUY A YTS-82Z YET THE UPPER OCTAVE PLAYS REALLY SHARP, MOST LIKELY BECAUSE OF THE G1 NECK, YAMAHA IS AWARE OF THIS PROBLEM AND IS DEVELOPING A NEW NECK, IF YOU GO TO YAMAHA'S CUSTOM SAX NECKS THEY DO NOT ADVERTISE THEM ANYMORE FOR THIS REASON.

[rockstar]

so the horns are fine, but the neck is the problem? i've been reading that the 82z is a great horn and DOES play in tune. you would think yamaha would have figured this problem out before they began marketing their products. lately, i've been playing on a yas 875 that's about a year old and has a G1 neck that came with it. i don't seem to have too much of a problem with the tuning now that i've strengthened my alto chops. of course there are a couple notes that are kind of funny, but i've learned the tendencies of the horn and can make proper adjustments on the tuning. anyway, i love the yamaha feel, especially on the 62s - i play on a 62 tenor and 62 bari - so i was thinking about picking up a 82z unlacquered tenor without the high F# key this april. i heard they sound great and play more like the 62s than the 875s. those of you who have the 82zs already, what's your feeling on the tuning? should i hold of on buying one until yamaha brings back a different neck design? also, does anyone know if we'll be able to get the domestic design with the neck? it looks like a shield with the letter "C" on it. check out http://tensax.s5.xrea.com/TenorSax.html for a picture.
rock n roll
matt

[scale_master]

What I read in the saxophone newsgroup is that the early G1 necks were good, but once they went into mass production, something was messed up. there was also one contributor who claimed that Yamaha is working on the problem and will offer neck exchange on warranty.

[Morry]

I've been told by a major U.S. retailer that the problem may be more than the neck, and that they are considering dropping the Yamaha line.

[Brian]

Ive played a YAS 875S for a couple years now, With the G1 neck. The tuning is more spot on than any sax I've ever played. I previously owned a custom alto (different horn) with an M1 and intonation was not near as good. Neck?... maybe. Neck / Horn relationship? ... more likely.

[Brice B.]

Saxboy, can you confirm any of this???

[Bill08690]

Several sax mfgrs have had trouble with necks and the upper octave. The taper of the neck in the first few inches of the small end can influence the performance of the upper octave. A good tech may be able to fix this kind of problem by altering the appropriate spot on the neck. Although not an expert I suspect the main body is just fine.

Disclaimer: I don't own any Yamahas....

[Bill08690]

Forgot to mention that the chamber of the mpc can influence the upper octave also. Try a mpc with a big round chamber, I think.....

[Brian]

Bill is 100% correct. The Mouthpiece neck relationship is as critical as the neck body relationship. Nothing will ever be a 'no brainer' when it come to set up and intonation. There will alwys be the necessity to listen and ear train. .. Too bad, huh?

[Brice B.]

Well, I emailed a Yamaha Rep. from their website, and his responce seemed to confirm what was posted previously. He said that as far as the alto Z, all is fine and no modifications will be made or is necessary. The TENOR Z, however, did suffer from some production flaws, and the neck is being corrected to prevent intonantion problems in the high register. People who buy or bought from a Yamaha dealer will be able to exchange flawed necks when they become available. Hope this info Helps!

What sucks is that I was just about sold on the Z's. I might have to wait a bit to see what happens. And as one who still loves Selmer quite a bit, I hope that everyone will take note that quality control can be hard even for Yamaha!

[saxboy]

SAXBOY here.
I have emailed my friends at Yamaha have no information on this issue. It has all been news to me and I have found no other discussion on this elsewhere yet. I will post when I get an answer, just been working a lot this week.
Hope it is not true but don't know. It was not my experience when I played the saxes at NAMM. I love the new saxes and the saxes at NAMM were amazing instruments!
I hope SOTW can continue to be a quality site with solid information.
Any outside source information available out there?
SAXBOY

[Brice B.]

Again, I will state that this info came directly from a Yamaha Rep who answered my email sent to the address on their home page.

[saxboy]

Brice, you are right about the neck.
I also was told that there had been some complaints from Tenor 82Z buyers with the G1 neck.
It has not been universal. It was some complaints and Yamaha has been quick to research the issue, make a design alteration in the neck and make them available as a no-questions-asked replacement for any 82Z owners feeling there could be a problem as you have stated.

When I played the 82Z Tenor, I had no problem or concern with the pitch, so I'm not sure what the problem is or was. I was told it was a small design change and not a quality control issue in manufacturing.
I do look forward to playing and comparing the 2 necks on an 82Z when they are available to see what the difference is.
I'm also very interested to see what people have to say after changing the necks out to the new G1.

Brice, don't get pissed at me. I just feel the need to check things out and make sure what is going on. had to check it out...
Good luck and keeps us informed when you get anything more on this.
SAXBOY

[Brice B.]

Thanks for the update Saxboy! I think the new necks will be in the hands of horn owners towards the end of April. I think the situations sucks, but Yamaha has certainly done the right thing in researching the situation ASAP and doing their best to correct it.

[Chris Ferrell]

I hope that everyone is finding the 82Z solutions that are right for them. This is a truly outstanding instrument and I hope that everyone gets an opportunity to try one. Best of luck! Keep up the dialogue!

[Ten62]

Does anyone know if this same problem applied to the 62's? I just recently bought one this past May with a G1 neck. I haven't noticed too many problems other than I have to pull the mpc way out on the cork to keep from going too sharp. I am currently playing on a Meyer 8 medium chamber but have on order a Jody ESP-X .100.

[GRSAX4]

wow this thread is old.

[shmuelyosef]

...not any more

[soybean]

...not any moreHaha! Yes, but shouldn't there be some sort of expiration date (like on milk) on older posts? It's confusing. I think older posts should be available to view, but not to resurrect. For example, if no one has added anything new to a post for two years, it is then closed.

[hgiles]

Info in some old posts is still relevant. Posting to add to it, in this case is appropriate, since some info doesn't get dated.

For example I love my 82Z tenor.....

[nitrosax]

I like the 82Z tenor but I think for it to really sing and wail like it should...you need a gold plated neck on that thing...

R

[Saxplayer1]

Or a Custom G3 Silver Plated Neck (for tenor that is).

[shmuelyosef]

I like the 82Z tenor but I think for it to really sing and wail like it should...you need a gold plated neck on that thing...

R

or just really good chops...8-)