martin handcraft imperial

[vick]

i just found one of these altos sitting in an attic for who knows how long and tried it out. it definently needs some work but one thing i noticed is it has the loudest, brightest sound i have ever heard. i tried a runyon 10, runyon spoiler 10, meyer 5m, lakey 6*3, selmer c* and c**, and a rascher, all of which except the rascher produced an insanely bright sound. any suggestions on a moutpiece that can tame this beast. i am looking more for that smokey, blues feel that can be pushed for r&r/r&b when needed.

[Sigmund451]

Perhaps a larger chambered darker mpc...a lakey is pretty insanely bright in my opinion on any setup. If your into spending the money a Morgan. There are also plenty of Runyon pieces that should tame it down...along with the reed selection you choose. Kinda shocked it was really bright with a Selmer tho. May want to look at something like the Runyon SR. Its supposed to very versatile. I have no on order so I cant comment. Im wondering what reed your putting on there. I have found that the Alxeanders, especially the Classiques can really cut the edge but also be pushed as well. You have some experimenting to do...enjoy.

[vick]

the selmers weren't to bright but they were brighter than usual. i was using some old lavoz medium hard reeds which were probably getting a little bit soft. would a hard rubber berg in about a two chamber do the job? they seem to be pretty fairly priced. or maybe a link? i dont know. i always had good results with the meyer on my yamaha 62.

[Hornlip]

I never heard of any Martin that was "insanely bright"!! Are you sure it's a Handcraft Imperial, with the funky e-flat trill key tone hole positioned under & behind the E1 tone hole, or the later "Imperial" that Martin made as a student horn?

Handcraft Imperial would be from the first half of the 1930's; the later Imperials were made in the 60's.

[Sigmund451]

If the serial number is around 2-300xxx its the imperial student horn. If its real low its the old imperial and should not be so bright.

[clem]

I used an HR Link 7 on mine and it sounded pretty full. It was a fairly loud horn, but I wouldn't exactly call it bright (say, like a Yamaha). Also, this horn had very good intonation, much better than a '50s Indiana that I bought new ($265) in 1958.

[vick]

its definently a handcraft imperial (funny tone hole under the e1 is there). it needs an overhaul so that might be contributing to it. this thing is just loud though. i don't know why its so bright.

[Sigmund451]

Could be that that the corks under the main line are compressed and the key heights are way out of specs. Overly closed holes lead to muted sound that may be fuzzy. If they are too open it can indicate that they may be too high. My Martin Tenor is a bit too edgy for a typical martin. I attribute that to the key heights being higher than I have been told they supposed to be. Also hook up to a tuner...is it playing sharp...thats another hint towards that. Leaking horns are not real loud.

Also are the felt bumpers gone for the bell keys an the C. A lot of volume and edge is impacted there. Im by far not an expert but some tinkering around has shown that this is often true. Try playing with some tape and cork tabs to mess with the key heights and the bell key openings. Even if its the new imperial it shouldnt be screaming. Thats my 1 cent. Good luck. Experiment before you make any decisions, it may help for a more effective visit to a tech. Just dont go changing anything you cant put back unless you know what your doing. Have fun

[vick]

i sure don't plan to undertake this myself. there are several good techs in my area so i'll check with them and see what i can do. this will make one monster horn when i'm done with it. a worthy replacement for my yamaha.

[MJ]

Vick,

Please update us on your new sax after tech repairs. I'd be really interested in your assessment, since I have a Handcraft Imperial also. I'm just a beginner player with no MPC knowledge, but the instrument is a pleasure to play with all the keys working smoothly. Some very nice sounds on the old girl! I'm betting you enjoy yours!

[Claus]

I have got a Handcraft (SN: 119.xxx) which has a beautiful, smooth sound. There is absolutely nothing "insanely bright" about it. I think you will have to reassess when you have brought your Martin into a good playing condition.

I wouldn't even call mine "bright". I used to play a JodyJazz #7 and have recently switched to a mouthpiece made by Johannes Gerber, which works even better. I unterstand stand both mouthpieces are based on Runyon blanks.

My JvW refaced Meyer is a good match, too.

[super20dan]

i have one of these too and i wouldnt call it bright either.in fact its down right dull sounding and intonation is worse than any other alto i have ever played . i hope all of them arnt as bad as mine.