 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: markcr
Date: 2012-12-11 21:31
Hey, I could use some help. Can anyone verify that this YCL-CS is legit? I called Yamaha and gave them the serial number 001430 but they said it doesn't show up in their database. Does anyone else own a YCL-CS who can verify that this is what the logo is supposed to look like? I think I may have been scammed. Hope not. Here are some pics:
https://picasaweb.google.com/117978545918229268189/YamahaYCLCS#
Post Edited (2012-12-11 21:46)
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Author: Eric V
Date: 2012-12-11 21:48
Hi markcr, I don't have a CS but I do have CX's and customs with various logos and the one in your link looks right to me. The keywork and wood and case all look right too. Looks like a lovely horn, how does it play?
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Author: markcr
Date: 2012-12-11 22:07
I haven't received it yet. I just bought it on ebay then called Yamaha to verify the serial number. In hind sight I should have checked it first. Anyway, the lady at Yamaha wasn't able to bring up any record for the serial number that is on the clarinet, therefore could not validate if it was indeed a Yamaha product or a counterfit. I can't seem to find any info or pictures of the "CS". There are lots of pictures of "Custom CS" and "CSV", "CSG", etc., but not much on a plain "CS" like the one I bid on.
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Author: Timmy7930
Date: 2012-12-11 23:50
This probably means the instrument wasn't registered by the original owner.
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Author: Jack Kissinger
Date: 2012-12-12 05:17
I have a pair of Yamaha CS clarinets. The markings, key work, case ... everything on your clarinet is identical to mine. The serial number of my Bb is about 100 below yours. The serial number on my A is about 300 below yours. Your serial number is certainly within a reasonable range.
I have some quibbles with the seller's listing. You can make of them what you will. The seller lists the instrument as "Custom." Yamaha made a "Custom CS" but that model followed yours (and mine). It's logo has a script "Custom" in large letters. Your clarinet is thus a CS, not a Custom CS. Also, the seller says the instrument was purchased new in 2008. If that's true, I think the instrument would have to have been new old stock that had sat on the dealer's shelf for several years. (But, given the demand for professional Yamahas at that time, such a scenario is entirely possible). I doubt the instrument was made much later than the mid-1990s. I bought both of mine (separate purchases) in 2002 and they certainly were not new. The seller of the A said he had used it through college but, upon graduating, found he had no need for it. Given the difference in serial numbers, your clarinet can't have been made more than a couple of years after mine. Shortly after I purchased mine, probably early 2003, a seller put up several Custom CS and CX clarinets so, the Custom CS would have replaced the CS by at least 5 years before your clarinet was purchased "new."
According to the Yamaha United States website, the CS is a discontinued model. The historical sequence of model designations given for this model is: 72 (1985-87), 72-CS (1988-94), CS (1994 -- ). Note that Yamaha gives no termination date for the CS even though it lists the model as discontinued and the instrument hasn't been offered (in the U.S., anyway, and I think Canada is probably the same) for several years at least.
One puzzling note (for me, anyway) is that the Yamaha U.S. site never mentions the Custom CS (or Custom CX). As a result, it's hard to tell whether the "CS" identified on the site is actually the Custom CS (in which case the "CS" is the tail-end of the CS-72) or whether it includes both the CS and the Custom CS. (BTW, Yamaha Europe gives different dates for many of its models. Apparently Yamaha's marketing strategy varied depending on location.)
I don't think you should be worried (especially given the seller's feedback rating) that your clarinet isn't authentic. Aside from the fact that it looks perfectly legitimate, what would be the motivation to counterfeit an instrument that often sat on dealers' shelves for years. Considering the time, effort and cost that would have to be involved to make a convincing copy, why not counterfeit a clarinet that was more in demand?
Best regards,
jnk
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Author: markcr
Date: 2012-12-12 14:38
Thanks, Jack - and everyone else who replied. I'm feeling confident that the CS isn't a conterfeit and I've been in contact with the seller and he says he's played clarinet for years and that this instrument plays better than any R13 he's played. I got a bit nervous due to the same issues Jack mentioned about the sellers ad - not to mention that Yamaha customer support said they don't have the serial number in their database. Anyway, the clarinet is on it's way and I can't wait to play it. I've heard nothing but good things about them. I currently play a Yamaha YCL-20 and a Vito V40 so the YCL-CS is my first "pro" horn. Hmmm... I guess that means I can't blame the instrument anymore. :-)
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Author: Garth Libre
Date: 2012-12-13 02:32
You can always blame the instrument, no matter how good it is. Even the sleaziest, cheapo horn sometimes does something well, and even a nice pro horn has some peculiarity that makes something a little difficult. The trick is in finding a nice compromise. An R-13 has lots of problems to go along with its strengths. A pro Yamaha has some obvious strengths but very few weaknesses. That's what makes it such an attractive instrument. I have a CSV which I love but I can't say what the difference between it and a CS are. I know there is something but never having seen a CS, I don't know what it is.
Garth, 305-981-4705. garthlibre@yahoo.com
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