?Monique Bari? Okay for intermediate? [Archive]

mamma_sax

03-14-2003, 03:24 PM

Hi! My Daughter plays a old (1966) Buescher 400 nickel plated Bari. She really likes its character but wants a bari with low A. I can't afford to buy her another so she would have to sell the Buescher. Saw a purple (her favorite color!) Monique Bari on eBay (the only place I've found it ). I never heard of them, but wondered if she'd really regrett giving up her sax for one of these or if it would be okay for where she is in her skills (she's a freshman in high school). Her's is in the shop (again) this time getting repadded & realigned. I don't know how much more money I should put into the old one! I just don't want her to regret selling the old one! I'm leaning toward keeping the Buescher & waiting until she can afford a name brand I've heard of. Am I right!

JPrince

03-14-2003, 06:05 PM

Umm, if she is a mainstay Bai player (like I was/am through school) I would not get a Monique. It is a good doubler horn, but my Monique Tenor has some intonation problems that really prevent it from heavy use (not major, but enough to bug you). Also, I would advise against buying a Bari that's laquered other than gold. Bari's are big, and they tend to get knocked around a lot. I can tell from my '57 Martin Bari I just bought, and my schools Yamaha YBS-52, that gold laquered horns that get scratched, the worn away bare brass more matches the remaining gold laquer than say, bare brass matching say a purple laquer. If it got knocked around after normal use, it would just look really bad cosmetically after a while. IMO, I would just stick with the Buescher and not worry about a Low A. Mr. Will Cambell, direcotr of Jazz Studies at Northeastern State U. told me "A Good Bb horn is worth more than a mediocre Low A". Hope this helps.

Alan G

03-14-2003, 07:48 PM

momma_sax:

If you go to the old forum:

http://boards.eesite.com/board.cgi?boardset=saxweb

and head over to "Inexpensive Sax Brands" topic area - you will find some discussion about Monique horns.

Some folks around here don't care too much about the ebayer who is selling that stuff - or the stuff in question.

I play a low Bb Martin Bari in a swing band. While some of the newer charts call for a low A, it has not been a real problem for me.

I would personally recommend that you hang onto that old horn. Bueschers have a good rep - and you may have a "keeper" there. On the other hand - some of the newer stuff is good too - and you ought to be able to get a decent price for the old horn to finance a Yani or Yamaha or even a Unison (there ya go, Mr. Goodson!).

Up shot - stay away from cheap stuff with funny paint schemes!

Alan G

03-14-2003, 07:51 PM

DOH!

If ya look under "Misc Modern Saxophones" there is more discussion about Monique.

mamma_sax

03-14-2003, 10:12 PM

Thanks! Thats what I thought! We'll stick with the Buescher for a couple more years at least I think (Unless I win the Lottery). :lol: It's sort of beat up (nothing too major) but plays nicely & does have character! Thanks for your comments. It helps & thanks for showing me to the old forum. I definately will not get the Monique!

Anji

03-16-2003, 02:40 PM

Hey MammaSax... drop Dave Spiegelthal a line... he has a modern Buescher Bari BU-6 to low A that might be trade-able with your B400.

spiegelthal.dave@orbital.com

I've traded gear with Dave in the past, and he's got first rate stuff.
He's a serious player, and careful with money so he takes care of his own.

super20dan

03-17-2003, 01:45 AM

how dare you compare that "modern buescher" made in taiwan to the old bueschers.

JPrince

03-17-2003, 02:49 AM

I don't think he compared a B400 to a BU-6. I do think he is making the stement that a BU-6 is more favorable than a Monique. My vote would be to stay vith the vintage Buescher. I went from a school Yamaha YBS-52 to a The Martin and with the exeption of some sketchy intonation problems at first I couldn't be happier. Just my $0.02

jpciii

03-18-2003, 03:50 AM

hmm... I went from a The Martin to a YBS-52 and also couldn't be happier. I'm a Selmer and vintage sax fanboy, too. Go figure.

Anyway, play the Buescher with the new pads. Save up for a higher quality bari if she sticks with it and displays solid progress. JMO

rcwjd

03-21-2003, 04:06 PM

I would stay with the "400." They are really well made horns. 1966 was after Selmer bought Buescher, but I would still consider it an intermediate horn. My bari is a Mark VI, but I still have my original alto "400" that I bought new in 1961 (threw many a newspaper for that baby). It still plays great and I have never been able to part with it - although I use a Buffet Super Dynaction when I do play alto. If and when you decide to upgrade, I would look for the Keilwerth 90R or Yamaha 62 . For a lifetime investment, I would spend the extra money.

robbieg

03-21-2003, 04:17 PM

I'd suggest a Jupiter Artist Bari... I just got one, and it is a really nice horn, especially for the price.

michaelbaird

08-04-2003, 04:18 AM

Don't buy a Monique. They are a cheap Asian knock-off brand, will not hold up to abuse and will have little resale value. Check this site out:
http://www.gigdust.com/articles_instrument.html#bari_low

Phat Pat

09-05-2003, 02:55 AM

I have a Monique Bari, and if you cant afford anything else, and can have someone test play it before you buy it, go for it. But mine sucks, Its hardly playable, I guess I'll see if I can sell it before college and put it towards a good one.

if she is a freshman now, get her a sax that she can play on all 4 years, she will grow a lot as a player in these years so dont skimp.

Sigmund451

09-05-2003, 03:53 AM

Good god, dont buy a purple sax if you ever want to be able to sell the thing....much less THAT brand. Dont let your daughter's adolescent desire for fashion trends invade something respectable...such as music....(at least some music). She will want a respectable instrument later and it will not be that one...either musically or stylistically.

Its like letting a 3rd grader get a tatoo...you just dont go and do that.

David Spiegelthal

09-05-2003, 04:30 PM

First, Anji, thanks for the referral --- to all those out there, Anji also frequently has good used and/or renovated instruments available and his reputation is impeccable.
As for the Buescher BU-6 low-A bari, I sold that months ago -- it played well but was not rugged enough for the big-band/show/club work I've been doing (I now play a late-50's vintage low-Bb Conn 12M bari which suits me perfectly). The new Buescher is indeed a Taiwanese instrument, externally copied from the Selmer SA-80, and completely unrelated to the "real" USA-made Bueschers of old. I have no experience with the Monique, but it is also Taiwanese (or possibly mainland-Chinese) made and I'd bet you lunch it looks identical the BU-6 or practically every other Chinese/Taiwanese sax I've seen lately. In general, these instruments play well but often are made of soft, easily-bent alloys and have poor solder joints and so-so detail workmanship. Just my $.02 worth......

Phat Pat

09-06-2003, 06:16 AM

Moniques are made from copper, and all the solder joints are quite strong and well done. the problem isnt in how cheap it looks or feels, because its quite good in that department, they are just verry inconsistant, some are good some are bad.

DD3

09-10-2003, 05:20 PM

Mamma Sax, IMHO I would forget the Low A, there are simply not enough times that you have to have it. Two other inexpensive brands to check out are Saxophone.com- there are alot of posts on this company on SOTW, they are nice people to talk to; the other is Winston which are supposed to be good if set up right.
I agree with most of the other posters- stick with the Buescher.

mamma_sax

10-28-2003, 07:40 PM

Well, I'm back! My daughter has decided on a new saxaphone. She has been playing a new Jupiter at school and loves it. Not so many quirks as the old Buescher and It is easier for her to reach the keys on! She wants a Jupiter Artist Series, Silver Bari (893B5). At the local music store they had her play the Cannonball (she loved it but .... ouch! $1000 more in price) and the Accent (She didn't like so much). With her trade (they are only giving her $300 - $400 for her sax - less than we paid for the new pads!) the Jupiter is $2995, the Cannonball is $3595, and the Accent is $2595. Music 123 has the Jupiter listed for $2695 (with no trade). Has anyone delt with them? I don't know if we can justify paying so much more going local if we can get it so much cheaper on line. Any comments would be appreciated.

Bill Mecca

10-28-2003, 07:56 PM

If you are set on going with a new horn (that argument has already been made, I say stick with the Buescher) I would strongly suggest selling the Buescher Bari yourselves, you will get a far more equitable deal.

I've had friends who did a trade in and took a bath. A nearly new Yamaha YTS23 tenor (lacquer was perfect, he barely played it), they only gave him $350 for it. When I told him they regularly sell for $1000 or more on ebay, and those were no where near the quailty shape of his, he nearly... well it's a family show ;-)

I'm not up on the value of your horn, but there are people here knowledgable in that regard, But get a good, reliable, honest estimate of its value, figure out what you want and post it for sale here first....It will be a much more rewarding experience. If that doesn't work, contact places that restore horns, and last but not least try ebay.

just my $.02

mamma_sax

10-28-2003, 08:17 PM

Yeah, We already decided that we wern't going to trade it cause they are giving us less than it cost to repad it! They did the repadding too! Double whammy! We have it on eBay. I'm not sure what it is worth as the nickle plate is not original and the snap thingys for the pads were taken off long before we got it, so it's not all original. A couple of the welds have broken also. We probebly paid too much for it when we bought it but we didn't know! I've got it starting at $750. (Way less than the $1395 that we bought it for!) Hope that is in there! Mostly just wonder if buying a new one on line is a good idea or not! Thanks

woofhead

10-29-2003, 06:26 AM

Hi,

I saw the jupiter artist for 2500 smackers: Check it out:

http://www.musiciansfriend.com/srs7/search/detail/base_pid/460301/sourceid=00396732468880049505

good luck!You should also try the vito-it's the same horn as a yani 901 and a much better horn than any of the ones you tried so far.The vito is around 3 grand or maybe slighlty less at music 123 or woodwind and brasswind.

mamma_sax

10-29-2003, 04:00 PM

Thanks! Has anyone ordered from them? I'm leary sending that much money to a company I don't know (got taken for $1400 earlier this year on a computer purchase :oops: ). I'd like to order from someone that I know someone else has had good luck with! My daughter is pretty much sold on the Jupiter although she keeps talking of the Cannonball. She wants silver though wich adds expense. I'll be purchasing the horn, but she is working at Hardee's to pay me back as she's too young (15) to get a loan. This will be her first big purchase as the Bari she has was a Christmas/ Birthday presant. Her friends all can't believe she's not buying a better car (She drives a 81 Eagle). She can't believe they'd spend that much on a car! But a new Bari is worth it in her eyes!
Thanks again for everyone's help.

Bill Mecca

10-29-2003, 04:06 PM

Mamma

I've ordered stuff from them, been very happy, bought a mixer, cables, mic stands, music stands( the Axman heavy duty portable is great! for about $39 but I digress.)

I had a problem with the mixer, they had me fedex it back and shipped out a new one right away. the only "problem" I had with them is they substituted a mic stand for the one I ordered, I sent it back, they sent the same branc(substituion) back, finally got someone on the phone who tole me they substituted on purpose as they do when the one I ordered is out of stock since they are the same stand, under different brands. I told them they should put that in writing when shipping and would have avoided frustration and three sets of shipping charges (two on their bill)

All in all I find them very reliable, good quality stuff at great prices.

Never ordered a horn from them, didn't know they carried them until recently. But I would prefer to buy one that I tried in person.

mamma_sax

10-29-2003, 04:21 PM

Yeah, that playing it in person would really be the way to go I know. She was really impressed with the cannonball after she played it and really didn't like the other she "test drove", but she does play a Jupiter II at school & likes how it plays. I don't know if we can justify the increased cost ($2,995 with her Buescher as trade in, so over $3000 as compared to $2500!) It's a hard decision as we do like to give the business to the local music store, but $500++ dollars is a lot of difference in price, not to mention giving her old Bari away! I don't know! Has anyone ordered a horn from either Music 123 or Musicians friend.com? Let me know how it went! I'm thinking that it is the way to go?

Anji

10-29-2003, 04:29 PM

I may have something better suited, for a little less money.

anji12305"AT"yahoo.com ("AT"=@)

Harri Rautiainen

10-29-2003, 05:25 PM

Thanks! Has anyone ordered from them? I'm leary sending that much money to a company I don't know....
Rightfully so, mamma_sax.
No, I have not bought anything from Musician's Friend company myself. But some SOTW visitors have. For a year I had a few links to their product pages on some appropriate article pages. I checked them recently and discovered some business to my pleasant surprise. Mostly saxophone cases, music stands and accessories. All ordered items were delivered, and none returned. Now I got so much encouraged that I put some product links on the main page: http://www.saxontheweb.net/
All items, except the Pro Tec reed case, have been ordered by visitors earlier.

This was the unavoidable commercial announcement. The usual disclaimer (fine print) as in the case with other affiliate programs SOTW are involved: SOTW cannot guarantee that their past performance will be repated every time in the future.
However, if you do decide to buy from MusiciansFriend.com, please use the links on SOTW pages (e.g. bottom left on the front page).
Thanks for your support,
-Harri

AuntSaxophone

06-10-2007, 06:44 AM

Joe Jazz

07-15-2007, 10:32 PM