 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Simon
Date: 2010-09-15 06:11
I was wondering if the doublers out there can comment on the Antigua Alto Saxaphones. Has anyone had any experience with these. I understand these are made in Taiwan but are computer copies of some very good brands like Selmer. I would appreciate any comments.
Many thanks.
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Author: justme
Date: 2010-09-15 08:13
There are a lot of posts on the saxontheweb forum.
Here's one general list of Antigua Winds threads, it should help you get started. You can search for many more if you desire...
http://forum.saxontheweb.net/forumdisplay.php?99-Antigua-Winds
Justme
"A critic is like a eunuch: he knows exactly how it ought to be done."
CLARINET, n.
An instrument of torture operated by a person with cotton in his ears. There are two instruments that are worse than a clarinet -- two clarinets
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Author: Ed
Date: 2010-09-15 13:22
I have heard very good things about these instruments and about improvements over the years. I recently had the opportunity to play the student tenor sax. It was surprisingly very good. It had a nice feel and evenness. Intonation was good. It was quite a bit better than similar horns I have tried. I felt that I could take it on a gig with good results.
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Author: Gandalfe
Date: 2010-09-16 16:10
I like these instruments until I started by Kessler Music (search on Internet for URL) instruments. Dave and his dad Chuck Kessler select excellent instruments and set them up very nicely. There prices are hard to beat and most of my friends use them now for new instrument purchases.
Jim and Suzy
Pacifica Big Band
Seattle, Washington
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Author: Noel
Date: 2010-09-16 16:25
I have an Antigua soprano. It plays very easily, it has good intonation - it is well made and it sounds good - but although it is reputed to be a computer copy of a yanagisawa - I don't think it sounds completely like one. It doesn't have the same build quality, but it's a good buy for a doubler, I think.
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Author: donald
Date: 2010-09-16 19:46
More than a decade ago NZ was flooded with "Boston" saxophones used by the only big/national music store as the mainstay of their sax rental fleet... a few years ago they decided to swap to the Antigua range. Terrible clarinets, but the saxophones are reputedly a huge improvement on the Boston ones. That's what it's come to in the 21st century, you're doing good if you're an improvement on crap!
As for being"computer copies", well, they're copies and I'm sure a computer was used somewhere along the way. It reminds me of the "J Michael" clarinets with "made with Japanese technology" stenciled on them.
That being said- the Antigua saxophones ARE an improvement on the junk, and they appear to have a reasonable "durability" level according to the techs at the rental shop here in NZ...
dn
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Author: DixieSax
Date: 2010-09-16 21:43
The Antiguas are not bad, and are generally improving with each new model they introduce, but if you are looking for something well made, and something that plays extremely well - excellent value instruments, I second the recommendation of looking at the Kessler line, or at Phil Barone's line of saxophones.
It's my understanding that the Kessler instruments are assembled in Vietnam from Taiwan parts, and the Barones are completely manufactured in Taiwan, but the ones I've played have been excellent. I own a Kessler alto and tenor and use them as backups to my Selmer and SML primary horns, and have no issues whatsoever with gigging with them.
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Author: MondeLuna
Date: 2010-09-23 21:20
I also reccomend checking out the saxes @ Kessler Music. I went to LV after reading the threads on Sax on the Web and purchased an antigua Soprano Sax, (I bought the alto on an auction site.... bad choice). The soprano is a great horn. The alto on the other hand was an older antigua model so it isn't as good a horn.
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Author: lllebret
Date: 2010-09-23 23:44
I can't speak to the playing qualities of Antigua saxes, but a student of mine just got a Barone alto sax and it played very nicely, in tune and came with a good mouthpiece (and he had a choice of several facings and chambers) and a nice sax shaped hard case . I would seriously recomend checking them out - it seemed like he got a very fair deal (I'm not affiliated in any way with Phil Barone - I just play his tenor mouthpiece and was satisfied with his customer service when I bought it so recomended that my student check out his horns).
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