P Mauriat: Unremarkable build quality

[ekim4]

I had a chance recently to try 2 alto 67's and 2 tenor 66's and found their sound to be very good and what I was looking for. Nice darker core, sort of the opposite of my yani's. But the build quality was poor. These horns felt like student knock offs compared to what I'm used to. With further inspection I noticed the palm key cups were in general too small as the rolled tone-holes were right at the very edge of the pad, others needed realignment, the octave mechanism didn't feel solid and in general the horns didn't inspire me to want to play them. Honestly, the Barone horns I tried had a much better feel so I guess all Tiawanes horns are not the same.

[paulio]

I had a chance recently to try 2 alto 67's and 2 tenor 66's and found their sound to be very good and what I was looking for. Nice darker core, sort of the opposite of my yani's. But the build quality was poor. These horns felt like student knock offs compared to what I'm used to. With further inspection I noticed the palm key cups were in general too small as the rolled tone-holes were right at the very edge of the pad, others needed realignment, the octave mechanism didn't feel solid and in general the horns didn't inspire me to want to play them. Honestly, the Barone horns I tried had a much better feel so I guess all Tiawanes horns are not the same.

Interesting comments. I guess the only way to know if the issues you have picked up are real or percieved is to look at horns with a few kms on them.

[Borganiboy]

I had a chance recently to try 2 alto 67's and 2 tenor 66's and found their sound to be very good and what I was looking for. Nice darker core, sort of the opposite of my yani's. But the build quality was poor. These horns felt like student knock offs compared to what I'm used to. With further inspection I noticed the palm key cups were in general too small as the rolled tone-holes were right at the very edge of the pad, others needed realignment, the octave mechanism didn't feel solid and in general the horns didn't inspire me to want to play them. Honestly, the Barone horns I tried had a much better feel so I guess all Tiawanes horns are not the same.

All mine are perfect.Each to his own but for me having all the rest they stand below my 66RUL.Built solid and like tanks.And sound wise it cant be touched.My 4 mauriats i had have stayed set up and leak free alot longer than all the other top horns i owned for sure.

[warp x]

...........the octave mechanism didn't feel solid and in general the horns didn't inspire me to want to play them.

I have the same experience with them.

[whaler]

The ones I tried felt like they wanted to jump an octave down on middle D. Very strange that three different tenors did the same thing. For the price, there are better options. As their "stock" goes down, maybe they will be a decent buy knowing that they need a lot of adjustment.

[Borganiboy]

And yet as mauriat have shook up the sax world with the most talked about modern sax's out there and i would be brave enough to say i bet they have grabbed a HUGE amount of the sax sales worldwide and theres thousands like me who love them.Each to his own but compared to my mk6's,yams,yanis,jk's and a borgani i have had i think the 66rul's suit me just fine

[dha]

And yet as mauriat have shook up the sax world with the most talked about modern sax's out there and i would be brave enough to say i bet they have grabbed a HUGE amount of the sax sales worldwide and theres thousands like me who love them.Each to his own but compared to my mk6's,yams,yanis,jk's and a borgani i have had i think the 66rul's suit me just fine

I totally agree. I have had my tenor 66R for awhile now and it keeps getting better. I shelved my MKV1 and King Silversonic. I really dig the Mauriats sound and feel.

[buddy lee]

I've had the exact opposite experience. I've owned a 66R for over 2 years and it's needed only minor adjustments (leaky pad stuff, once a year as usual) and I just bought a Swing 55 a few weeks ago. Neither want to drop an octave on me @ D2. No problems with the palm keys, no problems with the octave mechs. And as far as build in general, it's probably the heaviest/most robust feeling horn I've held in my hands. It makes Yamahas and even a lot of vintage horns feel like toys. When I bought the Swing, I really tried to play as many horns in the $2k - $3k price range as possible. I tried a few Yamahas, a few Cannonballs, a Selmer or two, etc.

Maybe I'm just a know-nothing noob though, yeah?

PS- I've yet to have the pleasure of trying a Barone horn, but really want to.

[Nobby Keys]

My 66RUL Tenor is just fine, no problems. I've not played my Selmer Series III since I bought the Mauriat about two years ago.. I would not hesitate in buying another Mauriat if I needed to.

[buddy lee]

And I'll say this as well, I really wanted to NOT buy the Swing. I REALLY wanted something else to be better for me so I didn't have to own 2 Mauriats. It just didn't work that way this time =)

[rogmanins]

The first 66UL I got off P Mauriat had some issues with the octave-- I identify with the above, but I believe this may have been early in the evolution of this instrument, and easily fixed. The New 66R I got a few months back was absolutely killer, with no issues with the octave at all- just the opposite-- a great playing and built horn.
I am very curious about the swing-- what do they sound like?

[buddy lee]

The first 66UL I got off P Mauriat had some issues with the octave-- I identify with the above, but I believe this may have been early in the evolution of this instrument, and easily fixed. The New 66R I got a few months back was absolutely killer, with no issues with the octave at all- just the opposite-- a great playing and built horn.
I am very curious about the swing-- what do they sound like?

To me it's like a 66R but more subdued-sounding. Less big/dark/spread, more focused. Still a very free-blowing horn.

[andrewfrankhouse]

in general the horns didn't inspire me to want to play them.

I found this to be the case as well. For the bread they're demanding these days, their performance should be greater than adequate.

[SaxMI]

Perhaps the last sentence in the original thread "Honestly, the Barone horns I tried had a much better feel so I guess all Tiawanes horns are not the same." has something to do with criticism of Mauriat horns.

[martinm5862]

The ones I tried felt like they wanted to jump an octave down on middle D. Very strange that three different tenors did the same thing. For the price, there are better options. As their "stock" goes down, maybe they will be a decent buy knowing that they need a lot of adjustment.

That's a setup problem. I'd try a different dealer or seller.

[Borganiboy]

Still trying to figure out the unremarkable build thing.Still waiting for mine to fall to bits.

[Tenortones]

tenors I've owned:
Yamaha Intermediate 52
Selmer Mark VI:
148000's
105000's
186000's
Keilwerth SX90 black nickel w/rolled tone holes

current horn: P.Mauriat 66R

[magical pig]

tenors I've owned:
Yamaha Intermediate 52
Selmer Mark VI:
148000's
105000's
186000's
Keilwerth SX90 black nickel w/rolled tone holes

current horn: P.Mauriat 66R

In chronological order?

[montague saxby]

Strange mine hasn't fallen apart yet, which could not be said for the keilwerth SX90R I had previously..

[Mark R]

I have found the P. Mauriats that I've owned have been of better build quality than most of the newer Selmer's and B&S I've play-tested, and much better than some of the other Asian horns. That said on build quality alone I've always felt that Yamaha and Yanagisawa are the best built....but even as well made as the Yamaha and Yanagisawa is I prefer the playability, vibration and sound/voice I get from my 66RUL though I did find the 82Z to be a great playing horn.