Current Market Price Martin Committee II Tenor

[A Greene]

I heading into uncharted waters today looking at a c1940 Committee II tenor. Another Buy and Try situation. Curious as to the 2012 price for Martin horns. Current value is difficult to determine. Any thoughts would be helpful.

[spike421]

I've been watching these. It seems they're asking from $2000 to $2500 and they're not selling. The only one that sold (about 50% lacquer left) went for around $1200.00. Based on that, I wouldn't pay more than $1400 -$1600 for a really good one.

[JayePDX]

They are not as sought-after as the Comm III. Comm III prices are darn low right now...I have seen nicely set up ones not even fetching $1200.

I think if the Comm II in question is in good shape, no significant dents or dings, pads nice, no dramatic play in the keys, regulated well and speaking up and down...$1100-1300 is what market value would show these days. (Meaning what it could fetch on eFlay or C'list). If immaculate, $1500. If it has some issues, maybe $1000 tops.

Mind you, a shop, or some of the more wormy sorta online vendors...would price one at about $2500 and give it a lotta blustery press, hoping someone who didn't do their homework would fall for their hype....

...they are cool horns, very interesting...and I would suggest any vintage horn fan try one. They are sorta one of those 'bridge' models that has some unique qualities unto their own....not a Handcraft Searchlight, not a Comm III....

[MyMartinTenor]

I just got a Comm-II tenor -- I've had Comm-II altos before, but never a Comm-II tenor. I got a fantastic deal, so my price is not going to be helpful for market comparison. But, I'd also guess the market value in the $1000-1300 range, assuming good condition.

Playing wise, its shockingly good. A touch darker than my Comm-III (my main horn for 15+ years), a little fatter sound. BEST ALTISSIMO of any horn I've ever played (and yeah, I think that's mostly mouthpiece, but this Comm-II is SOOOOO much easier to G3 and G#3 than anything I've ever played). It doesn't push quite as hard as my Comm-III -- if you're going for that seriously overdriven rock/blues sound, the Comm-III is still stronger, it can go 3000%. The Comm-II definitely has a sonic "ceiling" after which the sound deterioriated. But, for a jazz sound or even traditional blues sound, the Comm-II is at least the equal of my Comm-III -- maybe slightly superior.

Keywork is just slightly more awkward than the Comm-III, and generally everything feels a little tighter/closer together. Neck angle is also just a little more old fashioned. But these are minor, frankly -- still a very comfortable horn for me.

I'm going to play my Comm-II tomorrow night and I'll record it. I can post links to videos of the Comm-III and the Comm-II played on stage and see if anyone has a strong preference...

[A Greene]

Thanks everyone - Ended up buying the horn. Very cool story - I'll going to list it in the for sale section today.

[JayePDX]

Wait...wha ? You bought it and are flipping it ??? or did I misunderstand something ????

....keep it for awhile, mate....play it for a few weeks.....

[JayePDX]

I'm going to play my Comm-II tomorrow night and I'll record it. I can post links to videos of the Comm-III and the Comm-II played on stage and see if anyone has a strong preference...

If they are being played with the same setup and in the same space, that would be a really, really interesting comparison. Go for it...post it in the Martin section...I'd love to have a listen to that.

[A Greene]

Wait...wha ? You bought it and are flipping it ??? or did I misunderstand something ????

....keep it for awhile, mate....play it for a few weeks.....

Jaye,

I purchased the horn for resale. I explained this to the individual(s) who sold me the horn. They knew they could get a better price online but were not willing to ship the horn. The vintage Martin market is light unless you go international. I wanted to have a realistic retail price before we discussed a purchase price.

I did play it for 30 minutes or so tonight - pleasantly surprised BUT I've played the same Selmer for over 20 years. I have found my "life long" saxophone.

[MyMartinTenor]

If they are being played with the same setup and in the same space, that would be a really, really interesting comparison. Go for it...post it in the Martin section...I'd love to have a listen to that.

ok, no sweat. I play my local blues bar at least every week -- heck, I played the same venue 4 nights last week w/ different groups. Same reed/mouthpiece, same space, no problem. Will play tomorrow (my usual jam night, which I usually record), and will post shortly.