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Please help me to not buy a Yamaha 82Z (alto)

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#1 ·
Share all its faults and, please, be brutal :banghead:
 
#2 ·
I once was in the market for a new 82Z alto. I played a lot of them in various finishes (not that finish matters, but some THINK it does). They were all different, unlike several Ref 54 altos I tried (that were all similar). I finally found one, bought new by a fellow SOTW member who wanted to trade for an alto I had. His 82Z had been well set-up by a local retailer and it played decently - the best that I'd played. After I got it, it just failed to motivate me. The seller wanted it back after a few weeks and I readily agreed.

I know some readers here may take offense to what I'm going to say and offer all sorts of defense, but I find Yamaha saxophones lacking in soul. And the 82Z I briefly owned (and played) was no different. Plain BLAND. For the money you'd spend on a new 82Z, you could get a new Yanagisawa A-WO1 (which I also own now and it is the best alto I've played). DAVE
 
#8 ·
Kenny: This was a while back. I don't recall if it was before or after Yamaha started with the necks. I didn't bother to check the necks I played. I had to visit many stores to sample the 82Z variations that were out there. I recall that the one I finally ended up with was purchased new at Anaheim Band, a well-regarded retailer in SoCal.

From my experience with THAT 82Z, it was clear to me that the seller did a proper set-up on the saxophone before it was sold. The other variations I played were in obvious need of some dealer-attention. But that was true with all the Ref54's I sampled before buying one. What was consistent among the Ref 54's was a similar tonal quality among all of them. That surprised me.

As far as Yamaha sopranos go, I still have a YSS62S in my family after I bought it new, then eventually handed it down to my daughter and her kids. It too is a decent player but after a while, another BLAND comes to mind. I've since sampled several Yamaha sopranos - not for me.

The other day I spent some time on youtube listening to various soprano tests. Yamahas, Rampones, and Selmers (II and III) were covered. Wow, what a sameness of tone. Oh yes, to the purists, I suppose there were some differences, but like I've posted many times, they all sounded pretty much the same to me. The differences were in the Nth-degree-range. Hardly worth getting in a knot over.

Yanagisawa for altos and soprano? Now you are talking, but my old '27 Conn is better than any of those I've owned or played. DAVE
 
#11 ·
The price is great as is... but adding custom duties and taxes (yes, we are hammered and ripped off by customs) it will reach 3300 euros,
not a big deal unfortunately...
 
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