which vintage better--40s or 50s Martin tenor??

[ProfessorZeek]

i remember bootman and someone else saying he liked 50s vintage more than 40s.

anyone else have comments?? why the difference in preference?

thanks.

[Sigmund451]

I have never compared but I hear the post war 40's play a little darker. Cant say its true tho. Perhaps the keywork changed a little too.

[Dave dix]

I have a 1930 handcraft master(typewriter)tenor and a 1956 The martin tenor.The master is a bit darker compared to the martin but that has domed metal reslo's whereas the master has rivet pads.The main difference is the egornomics,the keys are a lot lower on the early sax(simular to the true tones) whereas The martin is angled up a bit and is faster action.
I enjoy gigging with either horns but,i suppose, the later one is more comfortable and has more punch but the master has a wonderful smokey type of sound which is perfect for blues type of gigs.
I have a 1940 martin standard special(handcraft alto) which is a different type of beast.Great action and very powerful with great tones. A sort of brighter darkish sound.A bit brighter than my true tone alto but not much to make a difference(main difference is the slight woody tone from the buescher)
Key angle is slightly higher on the martin compared to the buescher.
If you wanted to compare all three martins the master has lower key angles the 40's alto a bit higher and the 50's the highest and easiest to use if this makes sense!!!!
Also the metal seems a bit thicker on the earlier horn but i would need to get a micrometer out to check it
Dave

[Keith Ridenhour]

I've owned a Commitee 1, 2 and 4 the Martins. All in all I'd agree with the previous posts. I found my 1948 The Martin to have alot better action and alt and intonation than the Commitee's. But there is a depth of sound in those old Commitee's that's hard to beat. All are good, quality horns for the money. K

[garyinla]

I have numerous Martins. I am currently playing Handcraft Imperials, CommII's and THE MARTIN altos.

I prefer the Handcraft Imperial (1936) and the THE MARTIN (1945- 1965) over the CommII (1940). They have a slightly bigger sound.

The CommII is a smaller bore sax than the other 2 I believe. That has pros and cons.

They are all in the same family of horn, and have much the same tonal qualities.

The THE MARTIN is a little harder to control in terms of tuning because of the big bore and the neck design, I believe.

If you heard me play on all three, you may not be able to tell the difference between the Handcraft Imperial and the THE MARTIN. But the CommII is a slightly more piercing, cutting, lighter sound.

There are occasions I might prefer the CommII-- ie if i wanted to cut through better in a R&B horn section to play a lead solo, or if i wanted to have a lighter, clearer, tone for a particular jazz gig or other accoustic gig where i want to have a less broad, less fat sound. You dont always want the fattest sound possible.

For blues or r&B in general, I would want the other 2.

I havent measured the bores. The THE MARTIN is obviously the biggest. THe CommII is obviously the smallest. As to whether the Handcraft Imperial is bigger bore than the CommII, or just feels and plays that way, I am not sure.

[1saxman]

I believe the question refers to 'The Martin Tenor', and asks whether there is any reason to prefer one from 1945-49 over one from 1950-59. The answer is, there isn't. It's the same sax all the way through, including the Magna, which had a few cosmetic 'upgrades'. As with any brand/model, you just have to judge each horn on it's individual merits. Workmanship appears to be consistent through the whole run, and they never even changed the tone booster design from the flat, riveted type.

[garyinla]

I have some THE MARTIN altos, not tenors, of different vintages. My impression is the earlier the serial number, the better the horn.

They are not identical throughout the product run. I have one as early as 148xxx. (I dont have the horns in front of me, this is an estimate.) The earlierst horns seem to be built better than the later ones. For one thing the alternate side Bb right palm key rest is soldered in the right place. On later THE MARTINS, the key rest is soldered in a place that is almost useless for its intended operation. I have considered asking a repairman to take that piece off and resolder it to the right place.

I could be wrong, but i also believe the bore on the earlier ones is very slightly smaller than later ones. The horns definitely have a slightly different feel.

On the other hand, towards the end of the run, there was a design modification to the neck octave mechanism. There was an extra piece welded on the neck to prevent the mechanism from over-opening and breaking the spring. I have only seen this on one THE MARTIn, it was a tenor with a high serial number (over 205xxx, but I dont recall the number.)

The engraving on the horns also differs somewhat depending on vintage.

Also the lacqour used differs also. On the earlier ones, the lacqour is a darker gold color. On the later ones, it is a more modern looking brighter gold color.

Also on the very latest horns, (somewhere over 205xxx) the toneholes are not soldered on, they are of conventional design. I have not seen these horns personally, but i saw photos of one of them. I didnt believe it until I saw it. PRoduction was moved from Indiana to Wisconson I believe, as indicated on the engraving, and it is the Wisconson ones that have the non soldered on toneholes. The sax also lost the adjustable right thumbgrip at that time too, I think.

Otherwise they are basically all the same.
I have 2 in good repair now, 152xxx and 202xxx and they are both very good horns.

IF you think of a product run from 1945 to 1965 you would expect differences in build quality, etc. That is a long time and a lot changed during those years. But even assuming hypothetically they didnt put the pads on as well in 1965, or the toneholes werent as flat (although one repairman told me Martins have flat toneholes), etc. that doesnt mean that after some good repairman today rebuilds the sax that it wouldnt be a great sax, because a lot of the playabilty now would depend on the quality of the rebuild and repad.

Thomas on SOTW once said that he believes there was a change in the alloy used at the end of the run too.
He said that the Magna used a special alloy and then it was adopted for the regular THE MARTINS also.