New Kohlert saxophones ?

[coleman]

Hi there !

I'm planning to buy my first saxophone; since I can't evaluate by myself the condition of a used one, I've been searching on line for a new student model sax ( I have a quite small budget unfortunately ). I've found a "Kohlert 460 Tenor Saxophone" for a quite reasonable price .. does anybody know if it's worth the 500$ they ask and if it is a good tenor for a beginner ?

Thanks in advance,

Coleman


Ps: Any advice and/or suggestion will be strongly appreciated ..!!

[bruce bailey]

I think they are only using the good name. The ones I see on ebay look like the same old junk from China, but I may be wrong. I know the Piccolos they sell are made by Hardy so those are stencils.

[jasendorf]

Wow... these things are all over eBay... I wonder who's making them.

[jasendorf]

Alright... after a little bit of research it seems that they are being made in Vietnam. I couldn't get the name of the actual maker... but I guess they've been making flutes and clarinets under the name Kohlert for about 15 years now.

They are stencils of the SA80II's though... which would probably make the Kohlert family spin in their graves... but that's neither here nor there.

I have no particular opinion on these since I obviously don't have one to actually examine and play... this is merely some information I dug up asking around on the net. Take that for what it's worth.

Personally though... I wouldn't spend $600 to be a guinea pig on them.

[coleman]

Thanks for the precious informations guys !
I think I will stay away from the *new* Kohlert and find a better way to spend my money,

take care,

Coleman

[David Spiegelthal]

I have one of the recent Asian-made "Kohlert" saxes, a soprano I purchased new about five years ago. It has no country of origin listed on it anywhere. It's a typical SA 80 copy. Mine arrived with some very obvious quality control defects, but once fixed, it has served me well for the very limited use I have for soprano. A good occasional horn, but I wouldn't pay more than a few hundred dollars for one (or for any other mainland Chinese or Vietnamese sax, for that matter).

[nilsbull]

When I decided that I wanted to play saxophone again, after 35 years of not, I started out with one of those no-name (Oriental) sopranos in a molded plastic case. You can see 'em by the skid-load on eBay. It worked, but only after I'd worked on it.

Then I bought a "Made-in-Vietnam" (MIV) Kohlert alto at a store goin' out of business.

I ain't a professional musician but I ain't exactly tone deaf either. The alto plays very smoothly. It doesn't have any unusual out-of-tune places on it. Quick response & reasonably easy bottom end notes. I liked it so much I bought a MIV Kohlert soprano. Now that one did take a very small taste of work, but it does have the usual adjustment screws &c. I enjoy playing it as much as the alto.

I recently got the MIV Kohlert tenor. I was impressed with it straight out of the box. No chatter or warble on the low end, quick response & smooth mechanism.

Yes, they all look like copies of middle-grade Selmers. Yes, they all have the MIV sticker on the case & on the left hand thumb rest. Yes, they ain't expensive. And yes, they might not hold up to a brand-new "pro" Japanese horn. But if you're judging these MIV horns against earlier versions of other Oriental no-names, you might want to check out a recently made MIV horn.

They meet my needs & nobody's told me to get down off the stage playin' yet. And I didn't go broke gettin' 'em in the house. (I did have to fly low to get 'em in the house under my wife's radar, but that's another story.)

Play on, yo!

Nils

[Solid VI]

Not sure what to say about the MIV horns yet other than a friend is playing one and loves it. It's not a Kohlert though. I wouldn't pay more that $500 for it for sure and if you could find a Gary Sugal for under $1000 I'd go there first. And, contrary to what has been said on this site, the Sugals are not Asian! Think Yani if you want to know what they are like. I'm impressed with them. Of course, what do I know. I'm not a repairman, just a professional musician for 45 years.