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P. Mauriat saxophone experiences?

80K views 221 replies 79 participants last post by  newjazz 
#1 ·
Does anyone know anything about these? The two things I gather are 1) they look nice, and 2) they are endorsed by a player I like.

Has anyone acutally had the opportunity to play one of these? where are they made?

thanks
 
#3 ·
As promised, here's my review:

Here's what I could get as far as background info. They're a Series II copy, made in Taiwan with French Brass. That's about all I know.

So I played one of the altos today, a PMSA67. I'm sold. Here's why:

The low end resonates better than any horn I've ever played. Blowing a low C is as easy as blowing a middle C. It really resonates well, with no stuffiness, no gurgling, nothing, just the note that Adolph intended.

The high end (specifically the palm keys) aren't thin like most other horns. They really have a great fat sound to them. Even into the alt range.

The intonation on these horns is dead-on. The lower RH stack is a little flat, but not bad, easy to lip up. The mid C-C#-D is REALLY well in tune. I was amazed while watching the tuner, I'm used to working a lot harder.

They respond (and overall play) as well as, if not better, than any other horn that I've ever played. And at the price that they're being offered, they're a steal, I feel like I should be paying twice as much for the horn as I am. They also come with a pretty nice BAM-style flight case.

I'll be getting my alto in mid-Jan. Tim over at Sax Alley has sold about 40 of these this year, their first year of production. Roger Greenberg (recently retired from UNC) switched to these horns, and that man is a serious player.

I'm really considering going all Mauriat with my horns. I've owned two Keilwerth SX90R's, a low-digit Mark VII, a Buescher 'Big B' Aristocrat, and a Conn Chu Berry. This horn blew them all away. It's suitable for both classical and jazz playing. This (as well as the above statements) are what make this horn different from the Cannonballs. Those are manufactured the same way ('cept they use Taiwanese brass), but I've always felt that the Cannonballs aren't really made for a classical setting. These things have the subtley for any classical playing, but I slapped my jazz piece on, and it wailed. I could probably tear down walls and small third world countries with this horn.

I'm making the switch, and like I said, I've played a lot of the big names out there, if that means anything to you.

If any of you have a chance to play these horns, GO FOR IT, you won't regret it.

As far as I know, Tim at Sax Alley and some place in Denver are the only places that carry the horns in the US. Tim's prices (as usual) are significantly lower than the place in Denver, and S&H is included in his cost. If you're interested, you might want to pick one up, the prices are going up after the 1st of the year, right now he's selling the alto for (I think) $1590. Check out his site www.saxalley.com

P. Mauriat horns are fine quality, and cost effiecient. What more could you want in a horn?

Chris S
 
#9 ·
tonyg,
I'll go to SaxAlley in the next day or two to search for a mpc for my new soprano and will definately check the P. Mauriat sax.

Kenny.
 
#10 ·
i tried the p.mauriat during the Thailand international saxophone conference....and it souns fantastic. In fact i was asking Roger greenberg and hear him played the horns on a solo concerto.

I think the intonation is fine, and it sounds nice, big!!! and of course, the price is something that able to move everybody heart to get one of this horns. but the only thing i worried is, whether the mechanicsm can last long or not. As most of the taiwan make saxophone played pretty well in the first few years, but can it last long and become a legendary instrument after some year???
 
#169 ·
i tried the p.mauriat during the Thailand international saxophone conference....and it souns fantastic. In fact i was asking Roger greenberg and hear him played the horns on a solo concerto.

I think the intonation is fine, and it sounds nice, big!!! and of course, the price is something that able to move everybody heart to get one of this horns. but the only thing i worried is, whether the mechanicsm can last long or not. As most of the taiwan make saxophone played pretty well in the first few years, but can it last long and become a legendary instrument after some year???
The Taiwanese manufacturers have come a long way there is no doubt about this and I am sure that the Mauriat's are great horns. If you are considering a Mauriat then I would suggest you also consider a Phil Barone Horn, also made in Taiwan.

The great thing about Phil's horns apart from playing absolutely fantastic, is that they are roughly less than half the price of the Mauriats and you also get a Phil Barone Vintage Mouthpiece a part of the deal, a Phil Barone Neck and a case like a Protec.

I play the bare Brass Vintage Tenor and the Classic Gold Plated Soprano.
 
#12 ·
I've went to Tim's place the other day but didn't have time to try any of the saxes!!! I will be back there on Jan. 27 for him to check my soprano and he said it would be about 2 hours, so in that 2 hours, I'm sure will have lots of fun with the P. Mauriat saxes :)

Will post back here soon.

Kenny.
 
#13 ·
I went to Tim's today to pick mine out. Come to find out, they're pretty consistent. One plays more or less like every other one.

I'll be getting mine hopefully next week (if I have it shipped, then I don't pay sales tax). I'll keep everyone posted on how it does.

Kenny, you might mention to Tim that you're going to want to be playing some, he got three altos in at the beginning of last week, and two of them have already sold. These things are flying out of there.

Chris S
 
#15 ·
Sigmund, I think this Taiwan horn smokes the Ref 54 tenor. I was just at Sax Alley yesterday played this wonderful horn. The P. Mauriat's got the dark, powerful sound of my Martin with modern ergonomics. I'm sold. This is the next sax I'm buying. I think this horn competes with ANY horn on the market.

later

Joel
 
#17 ·
I visited Saxalley for the first time. Great people!
I played the P. Muriats 66 and 67 models.
Key tables do have a series II feel.
The neck tip openings are large, over .515 on altos and the tenors are larger
Characteristically, CBalls came to mind. The horns are indeed dark and loud with a slightly less blattyness than the CBalls. Incidentally Saxalley had a Ref 54 tenor and 36. Played both. The 54 really surprised me. Very warm and resonant with great response and flexiability. Altissimo a breeze with superb scale. Spring tension about 30% less than typical. The bow on this 54 was bigger in radius like the 36. Not impressed with the Ref 36 though.
Sorry about losing focus on thread.

Sonics on the Muriat was simple and clear with a medium focus. Very free blowing horns that require more effort to shape and control each note.

When I glanced over P. Muriat's web site and noticed albest musical, I thought I might have clue who makes them. In my directory - www.albestsax.com.tw. The link is now dead. I do recall reading last year that they OEM for CBall and Dixon and Jupiter on the albest.com.tw site
Conatct I have for albest is Galtosax6@ms75.hinet.net
I did a search on the email.
http://www.sosaxy.com.tw/main.htm
 
#18 ·
From what it sounds I guess the looks are where the similarities stop. I play a Martin as well as a 54. I wouldnt really compare the two...Kind of like apples and oranges....meat and cheese...something like that. Dave at Junkdude said that people are trying the Cballs and other big sounding horns and comming back and buying these horns.
 
#19 ·
I brought my R1 Jazz curved soprano today for Tim to adjust, it took him 2 hours so I got a chance to play some P. Mauriat soprano sax... One word, "WOW!!!" If I have money at the moment, I would take it right away without any hesitates... It's absolutely beatiful: control, reponses, & tone... The action is fast, I mean REALLY FAST. It reponses so fast that the moment I finger a note, I immediately feel the response, the vibration and the note just speaks... and it is much easier than my R1 Jazz (after the adjustment from Tim, my sop. is very close but still, not equal to the reponse of the P. Mauriats) The tone is what I'm looking for. I always look for a spreading kind of tone, and this is it. It can fill the whole room easily, without the harsh. I will save some money now and my next purchase, for sure gonna be a P. Mauriat straight sop. sax.

Kenny.
 
#21 ·
Sig,

Two things: 1) They're not a 54 copy, definitely a Serie II.

2) They're already starting to up the prices. I got last year's price from Tim simply because he didn't have any in stock for me to buy until after the first.

As a side note, I went and picked mine out last week. I played three of them, and the thing that I noticed was that they're VERY consistent. I picked mine because it seemed to respond slightly better than the other two, but not that much. If I didn't know better, I would have thought that Tim handed me the same horn three times.

It should be here any day now.

Chris S
 
#22 ·
Just thought I'd add my $0.02 about the Mauriats. I was up at Tim's a couple weeks ago for an adjustment to my ref 54 alto. Tim let me try several tenors while he worked on my alto (Kenny - I was the guy that was there when you were checking out soprano mouthpeices).

Anyway - the Mauriat tenor was a very pleasant suprize. It is very much a series II clone except the tone is a little warmer and spread. Think of it as a series II that is slightly less punchy and powerfull. The tone isn't nearly as dark as the Ref 54 or 36 tenors, but the Mauriat was waaaayyy easier for me to blow than those Reference horns.

I think these horns are a real contender, especially if you consider the price. The thing I always fear when looking at saxes in that price range is that they will sound like a student horn with a thin and weak tone quality. But that wasn't the case at all. There is really a core to the sound that will project just fine. It does have the full, sultry, enveloping sound that puts it in the professional sax category. It's the real deal.

I do wish they had other finish options available though. I'm not big fan of the matte finishes or the fake vintage patina......
 
#23 ·
Hey sweetsax, didn't know that you was the guy there :) I will bring my Ref. 54 alto to him for an adjustment job too, Tim did a wonderful job on my Sop... Like you said, the thing I like the best about P. Mauriat sax is that they just blow so freely and easily, the notes just pop out and you can feel the vibration the moment you blow...

Kenny.
 
#24 ·
Hey Kenny,
Yep that was me. I hope you are enjoying that R1 Jazz curved sop. I knew what it was when I saw the case and it made me jealous, man.

Do you have tenor sax? I want to get one soon, but since it's not my main horn, I want to keep it as cheap as possible. I was thinking of either going vintage or getting a Yamaha, but playing those Mauriats made me think twice. They are over 20% cheaper than the Yamaha Z, and they seem to play real nice. hhhhmmmmm, decisions, decisions.....
 
#25 ·
I went and picked up my alto today and played for about an hour.

I'm still sold on it. I had a few probelms with the low register, but I'm going to (temporarily) attribute that to it being a new horn.

This thing sings, and it projects VERY well.

There were some concerns regarding the durability of these horns, and after playing it for an hour, I think (just the feel of the horn) that they're very sturdy. A friend of mine picked it up and I asked him if he thought it was sturdy, and he seemed to think so.

So anyway, I'm going to be practicing a lot this weekend, I love this horn.

Best,
Chris S
 
#26 ·
Hey Chris,
Keep us posted on how the horn holds up and settles in after the honeymoon.

I have been saving my pennies for a new tenor and I wanted to keep the cost as low as possible without sacraficing too much in the way of quality and sound (so yamaha custom is the obvious choice).

But these new Mauriats present a new and interesting option. The one I tested played great, and the cost is even lower than a yamaha custom.
I just don't want to buy the mauriate and find myself yearning for "better" horn later. I already went through that never-ending quest with my alto, and I can't do that again for tenor. I just want one that I'll be happy with forever.

but then again, we saxophonist never seem to be satisfied. It's all part of the sickness........
 
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