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Super 20 Fan Club

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#1 ·
We're baa-aaaack! Super 20 players, stand up and be counted.

Super 20 tenor, 364xxx, silver neck, brass bell, no pearls on the side :(

I've had this horn since 1974 (sophomore year high school). Dad paid $75 for the horn, then another $100 for a complete overhaul/relacquer (it needed it).

Despite what you may have read, these are very flexible horns, adaptable to all musical styles. The combination of the sterling silver neck along with bore taper/neck curve/bow curve allows the Super 20 tenors to bring out the best in a variety of mouthpiece setups.
 
#584 ·
Woo hoo! Back in the Super 20 club! I told my story in another thread, but I'll just post it here anyway. So I sold my Super 20 tenor recently to get some cash to help out my sister, then stumbled across a great alto when one of my friends told me he had an alto that belonged to his mom's uncle that he was looking to sell. I wasn't even planning on buying the horn originally. I told him I still had the Conn Shooting Star alto I started out on, but I figured I'd go take a look at it to give him a price estimate. He told me he was planning on selling it for $500 and I told him I'd check it out and see if he should charge more or less. Needless to say I was pretty shocked to see an early Super 20 when he opened up the case. As soon as I blew the first few notes I could tell it was a great horn. So I told him I'd give him $2400 for the horn and bought it on the spot. Serial number is 298XXX. It's a relacquer, but I could care less. It's a killer player! Soooo happy to be back in the Super 20 club again!
 
#585 ·
I made it as 2nd tenor in the Santa Monica College big band, my first jazz gig ever! And luck would have it, the other tenor player had a 1964 dark honey Super 20 with the two-tone, lighter bell key finish. wow. First owner too. Jumped right into Night in Tunisia, my reading is spotty but I got copies to study. Yeehaw!

-swans
 
#587 ·
Since I bought a Series 1 Super 20 alto ( mint off Ebay) I started enjoying playing alto again. Superb horn..I'd forgotten how it should be. I have a mint V1 from new 108... but there's always been something I couldn't get over,,now I'm looking to get a new neck for my V1 to try and match the S20, The ergos are late 40's but the response, vibe and sound are something else,,no wonder Bird played one.
 
#590 ·
Wow! Such a great group! I lucked into my Super 20 (Silversonic) in college. I was a sophmore and I had just decided to leave my physics major and all the calculus behind for the music department. A month into my sophmore year, a clarinet major was leaving music for business and he sold me my silver coated baby for $150! I was playing it on a gig a couple weeks later and a guy offered me $500 on the spot for it - thank goodness I was smarter than that. The horn still plays great. The horn has a classic sound and I love having it in my (small but mighty!) arsenal.
 
#601 · (Edited)
I'm a new member to this club.. new to the alto club too.

I lucked out on this find at a pawn shop (posted about it in another thread). Its an early eastlake I guess, in great shape. only paid $450 for it, which is insane!!

right now I'm using an Otto Link super tone master 6* (that came with it) with a #2 selmer Roy J Maier reed (are these any good? I got a box of 25 for free). I also have an old Buffet Crampton C (hard rubber) mouth piece I might try with it.

would anyone have any recommendations on which of the two mouthpieces would be better to bring out the best sound of this horn? and maybe suggest a good reed to use for either one? Keep in mind I'm still adjusting to the alto (played tenor for awhile, but stopped playing for a year, now playing again because of this horn).
 

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#616 ·
I'm a new member to this club.. new to the alto club too.

I lucked out on this find at a pawn shop (posted about it in another thread). Its an early eastlake I guess, in great shape. only paid $450 for it, which is insane!!
Wow, that is true steal!!! You are a lucky man/woman!!! Since I have a similar SilverSonic I have some questions:

1) what serial range is your horn?

2) how free blowing is the horn?

As you can read in my previous mail I have some problems with my SS so your response would be appreciated...

regards,
Rob.
 
#604 ·


Tenor sax section in the Santa Monica College Jazz Band... from left John Cheyne 424xxx Super20, me 427xxx Super20, Early McCalister Cannonball. Great guys. You probably can't see it but John's Super20 has the honey lacquer on the body with lighter colored lacquer on the keys, mine's a relac. Sounds so sweet, the two King cousins crooning together... He plays an STM 8 and I have a woodwind co. 7* refaced by Erik Greiffenhagen, but we still blend well surprisingly.
 
#605 ·
I'm a Super 20 tenor owner, 303xxx probably around 1949, silver neck brass bell, full pearls, fresh overhaul with SG black roo pad and brass resonator. I'm so proud of this horn althought it's a relacq... Unlike my 173xxx Selmer Mark VI orig lacq i put under my bed, this baby sleeps besides me with my JK SX90 soprano... ok I know I'm sick but i love my babies so much, forgive me! :p
 
#606 ·
welcome to the club... no sickness, just pure fondness. I'd sleep with mine too but my wife takes up 2/3 of the bed, haha.

Did you get reso-techs or other custom brass resonators? I'm really happy with my setup same as yours, 1 year in and still no sticking, except for the cork pad in the octave vent, grrr. The firm pad slap doesn't really bother me any more, though I might switch to white pads when I get another overhaul in 5 years. what mouthpiece you playing?
 
#607 ·
swansong, the new pads are SG with Maestro Star Airtight Solid Brass Resonator. No sticking at all and the voice become even more mellow with great resonace... the horn really vibrates under my fingers when playing. it's a such a joy playing this horn man... my bandmates commented on the deep tenor voice right after the first song i played with it (it's a ballad "You Are Too Beautiful"), while they have no idea i changed another horn, just asked me what i did to improve my voice (shxt me man it's embarassing telling them it's not me but actually the sax!).

My mpc is DG Studio. I tried with my custom Link and Meyer by the late Jon Van Wie and also vintage bronze Berg, DG studio somehow make the voice more colorful...
 
#608 ·
I'd bet the STM would be good (use one on my KS20 tenors, all three of them), obviously depending on what opening works best for you. Also try Vandoren V16 mpcs (ebonite) -I use one on my 42 King Zephyr Special and KS20 altos and it is really freeblowing and versatile, like it was made for the horn.
 
#613 ·
Interesting, because I have the opposite opinion. My Link STM 8 NY is my favorite mpc on my S20, and I prefer it to some of the great high baffle pieces I've had (RPC, vintage bronze duckbill Berg 115/1 SMS).
 
#614 ·
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