Antigua owners - Past and present

[mikebourg]

I am looking for some honest feedback from current and past Antigua Soprano owners. There is already a lot of feedback on this forum regarding them, but I want to hear from those who have really used them. There is a lot of opinion and smack from people who have never owned them or even played them. I want to try to weed through some of that. I am asking for your help. I am about to buy a soprano and do not have the dough to spend on one of the top four makers. If you were to do it all over again, would you buy another Antigua? If any of you got rid of your Antigua, why did you get rid of it?

[JMac]

I play a 586BC and love it. I would buy one all over again because of the price/quality ratio. Like many here, I purchased mine from Dave Kessler and the horn came set up perfectly. The only thing is many don't care for the stock mouthpiece that comes with the horn (I believe a Yamaha 4C blem) and opt to get a Morgan Protone. I did go for the Morgan and it sounds considerably better than the Yamaha, IMHO. I have tried other mouthpieces which sound even better to me (subjective, of course) than the Morgan ( a custom made MojoBari piece made from a 1930's Buescher blank). Bottom line - the horn responds to mouthpiece changes.

I don't know what your experience level is on soprano (I'm a beginner) or what your sound goals are or what style of music you want to play in which particular type of setting. These issues may have some influence on what horn you choose.

I would highly recommend an Antigua from Kesslermusic.com. Dave is an honest and straght-forward guy. I would also suggest that you play as many in your price range that you can lay your hands on. If possible, you should try out a well set up vintage Buescher or Conn (you could possibly get an 'ugly old horn' with a fantastic sound in the same price range - the pretty silver and gold plates with fancy engraving will run more). Many experienced players feel the vintage horns sound less 'duck-like' or 'oboe-ish' than newer sopranos.

You may also want to try a Jupiter Artist Series soprano. Merlin plays one and has a beautiful sound - you can check out some of his sound clips here - http://www.merlinwilliams.com/ at the clips and pics page.

Best of luck with your quest, and keep us updated - Jeff

[Dave Dolson]

Mikebourg: If I didn't have as many sopranos as I do, and of such playability, my Antigua 590LQ would be fine. I played it an entire weekend earlier this year at a jazz festival and had no problems with it. Since then, I've gravitated back to my favorite vintage soprano (a Buescher TT) with my Yanagisawa S992 as a back-up.

The Antigua sits in the closet. It isn't that the Antigua is inferior, it is that the horns I prefer are superior, if that makes any sense.

I've offered it for sale privately but had no takers - yet. I am not willing to give it away and maybe that's the problem - low-end soprano buyers don't want to pay my price, and those who want quality, tend to buy the Big Four. The truth is that the Antigua (at least mine and the others I've tried) are very competitive with the Big Four. If I don't sell it, I can always hand it down to my grandson when he's ready for a soprano - I don't need to sell it.

If one has a limited budget and can afford only one soprano, and wants a new one, I'd say Antigua hands down. DAVE

[Gandalfe]

Warning: I'm an intermediate player who only gigs 5 to 6 times a year.

I own a shockingly nice looking Antigua Winds 590BC (http://groups.msn.com/gandalfessaxcorner/antiguawinds590bcsopranosax.msnw?albumlist=2) (pictures by DaveK) that I have used for soloing and in a quartet. I mention the quartet because those of you have played in quartets know how important intonation is for a high instrument.

I couldn't afford a Yanagisawa s-991 so I bought the closest thing to it, this horn. I have owned this horn less than a year. I also picked up a Morgon Protone mouthpiece from Dave Kessler and it is the best sop mouthpiece I have ever used.

Also, my wife and my peers in the sax section like the sound of this horn and they didn't really appreciate the Yanagisawa curved s-901 that I had before. I have stopped looking for a soprano sax, as I am very happy with this one.

My next adventure will be the search for a bass sax. :D

[SAXISMYAXE]

I have a number of Sopranos to choose from that I have collected over the years, but since purchasing my 582 This year, I haven't played any of them thanks to the Antigua, I'm that happy with it.
As you may know, I am a die heart Vintage horn collector and player, but this new Antigua is a truely impressive horn for a number of reasons. I am still baffled at the quality: for the measily $695.00 I paid for it (yes, I too ordered mine from Dave/Chuck Kessler, and am extremely glad I did!) and really for any price.
I advise anyone looking for a great sounding and playing Soprano, especially one on a budget to seriously give these a try. I agree about the mouthpiece; While not awful by any means, you will most likely want to find a better replacement. The Morgan that Dave advises is a nice one. Cheers.

[Tim Wolfe]

I have owned my 582 soprano for 6 months. I play it daily and gig several times a month.

It is a great horn. I previously owned a Yanagisawa 901. It was a little better than the Antigua, but not by much.

I've played Keilwerth, Selmer, Yamaha, and Unison sopranos. I personally prefer Yanagisawa and Antigua over the others.

I think they are great horns, especially for the price. But, I think they are great period!

Best of luck.
Tim Wolfe

[xuanvu]

I'm using the Antigua 590 for about 1 year and half now, very happy with it. I gig 3-4 times a month, and it've served me well...

[mikebourg]

Thank you all for the feedback. Nothing negative yet. I take that as a good sign that evdryone is happy with their horn.

[jgill2000]

I've had my 590BC for about 17 months now, and I still love it. I've had the instrument into the shop a couple of times for a tune-up, and during the last visit, I had silver solder added to the joints holding the key arms to the key cups on the right hand keys - a manufacturing defect left these joints weaker than they should have been, and I had a couple of bent keys - one right before last year's Christmas concert. Other than that, I've not had any problems. I should probably take it back into the shop for another check-up, as concert season is approaching again.

The stock mouthpiece is in a baggie in my closet somewhere. I tried it once, and tossed it aside. Paul Coates talked me into a couple of Runyon mouthpieces, and I picked up a Rovner ligature to go with them. I've been playing Vandoren Java reeds. I love this setup - but go with what works for you. Just don't expect much from the standard Antigua mouthpiece - it's no match for the quality of the horn itself.

I only use the straight neck - if the 582 had come in the BC finish, that would be my perfect horn, since I probably prefer 1-piece sops over those with interchangable necks. Again, that's just my opinion. Nothing wrong with the 590's setup, but two necks are just one more than I need.

I, too, bought from Dave Kessler. He's great to work with - I highly recommend him.

If I had to do it again, I'd make the same decision - and get an Antigua. No regrets. (Of course, if I won the lottery, then I'd get a Yani S9030, the one-piece solid silver soprano, and then a 901 for practicing, so I don't tarnish the silver. We can dream, can't we?)

Good luck.
jgill2000

[Ian]

586 BC for about a year now, playing it a couple of times a week, and no hassles apart from one bent key early on. Excellent intonation, looks beautiful and I would not change it. I could not justify the extra cost of one of the big four? Not so sure what extra I would be getting.

[ralph lh]

OK, I'll chime in here also. Similar comments to the others - I have been enjoying my 590BC since getting it from Kessler's early this year. I rehearse a couple of times a week and play fairly regular gigs. While the sop is a second horn, main sax is alto, it has played well and not given me any problems. I'm using either a Morgan 6J or a Jody Jazz Q10 and they both play well with just a bit of difference in tone.

I see that Kessler's has the BC back in stock and at those prices, the horn is excellent value. Wouldn't hessitate to buy this horn again. I also now have a vintage Conn sop that I am just getting used to and will likely play as my main horn but I couldn't recommend the Antigua sop any higher for the price range.
Ralph

[pknight]

There is a lot of opinion and smack from people who have never owned them or even played them.

Really? What makes you say this? I have a 590LQ (from Kessler), and I have already posted my comments about it, which are similar to most of those already posted. However, I am curious how you can tell, from a post, whether or not the poster actually owns, or has played, a particular sax. Quite a skill.

[Russ]

I believe he is referring to people knocking Antigua horns without having played them. No skill needed for that :wink:

My 590SP is still doing a wonderful job. I've bashed it a couple of times too but it has not marked at all. Still sounds perfect.

[stevesklar]

There are ppl who have knocked the Antiguas but it is usually the older Antigua models. The current models are absolutely fantastic for the price.

I've had mine close to 9 months now. I play it alot. Key action is great but I've managed to get it to more of a "silky smooth" level using teflon oil. I don't know how to explain it .. it was more "mechanical like" versus the selmers, keilwerths, etc. But that's a small price to pay for the price difference.

Definitely a top notch horn - I play the 582LQ (1 piece).

[mikebourg]

Just an update. I did buy the 590LQ from Kessler. :D I love the horn. Intonation is very good. It was damaged in shipping when I first got it. Dave Kessler paid for shipping back to him and they repaired the horn. It plays great now and I am very happy that I did business with Kessler Music. They made the sale good and are as good as everyone says. If I had to complain about them, I would only say that they were at times a little slow to respond to email but I am not complaining. Dave if you are reading this, thanks again. The horn is great. What a deal! :twisted:

[DaveKessler]

Just an update. I did buy the 590LQ from Kessler. :D I love the horn. Intonation is very good. It was damaged in shipping when I first got it. Dave Kessler paid for shipping back to him and they repaired the horn. It plays great now and I am very happy that I did business with Kessler Music. They made the sale good and are as good as everyone says. If I had to complain about them, I would only say that they were at times a little slow to respond to email but I am not complaining. Dave if you are reading this, thanks again. The horn is great. What a deal! :twisted:

All I hear is complaints in that. Sheesh! What can a guy do? Just kidding of course.

Yes it is true that from time to time, I can get a little behind in e-mails. This is mainly due because I prefer to answer all of them personally. And with as busy as we get sometimes, that is tough (right now it is almost 11pm on Saturday evening and I am posting this while also answering company e-mails).

Glad to help Mike. I hate when damage occurs but we do our best to make sure that the customer is happy with the end result.

[sax rookie]

I have a complaint.

I bought a 590lq for Kessler's and I love it to. I am a returning 'late bloomer' and for the cash, this horn is perfect for my needs. Kessler's were great people to buy from and would do it again.

The complaint? The neck cork is a little thick. I had to sand it down to get my piece to slide on far enough to play in tune. It was easily fixed with sanding tips I gleaned from SOTW. Great horn.

[Gandalfe]

That's not a fault, it's a feature. What if you needed more cork for your favorite mouthpiece? Sanding cork is trival.

[lnauman]

I recently owned an older model Antiqua Winds 570BC soprano. I bought it off of E-Bay and when I came in it had bent rods and keys, but other wise in mint condition. I played it for a few months and really liked the sound, but after trying a friends Yamaha 475, which was ergonomically superior, the keywork on the Antigua felt mushy.

I only played the Antigua occasionally for a few months and it started to develop a gurgle when playing low G and F. I gave it to an experienced repair man who replaced some pads, He worked on it for two days, and said that the next time it needed adjustments to take it somewhere else! He asked me to play it for him to make sure it was fixed, and it basically had the same problem with the gurgle after all the work he did to it. He worked on it again and this time it was playing a little better. I decided that my repairman and myself had enough of this horn, and I sold it.

I just recently tried a Yanagisawa 902 curved bronze soprano and immediately bonded with that horn, so my next soprano might be a Yani curved. I'd still give the newer straight Antiqua Winds soprano's a try but I want a curved horn right now. There's less weight to support and for me, as a middle age beginner, much more comfortable. :)

[Gandalfe]

Mike, how old was the Antigua Winds 590BC? As noted in *many* earlier articles, the Antigua gets better with every release. I wouldn't buy an older Antigua Winds because they were not good horns. The one I bought last year is.

Don't get me wrong, I'd prefer a Yanagisawa 991 from which my Antigua Winds is based. But I didn't have an extra $3000 to chip in, you know what I mean? I trust you are not implying that a five year old horn from a company that is fast coming up in the world compares to a new one. Because, obviously, it does not.

A lot of friends have played my Antigua Winds 590BC. It is a stunning horn and a great player. And when they hear about the price--well two of them are now waiting for horns from Dave Kessler's shop. I hope I don't come across as touchy on this matter. It's just that I felt your interpretation didn't present all the facts. And by omitting the age of the horn, new buyers might get the wrong idea about a really decent instrument and buy a Shill or some such drek instead.

[mikebourg]

Mike, how old was the Antigua Winds 590BC?

I think you are addressing Lee as my experience was very good.

[Gandalfe]

Correct. Lee?

[lnauman]

Gandalfe,
The Antiqua Winds 570BC that I had was maybe about five years old. I was careful to mention that it was an older model in my last post.

I read about these horns on this forum, saw what I thought was deal on E-Bay, and later found out I had a less desirable model.

Maybe someone else out there has the older model like I had and I hope they have better luck with theirs. I really liked playing the one I had, but didn't get much playing time on it until it had to go into the shop.

I would feel confident getting a newer Antiqua Winds straight model, but as I mentioned above, the curved soprano feels the best for me. The Yani S-902 I want is $2400. :roll:

[danm]

I have had my 586LQ for about 6 months and I can't get over how well this horn plays. I play it at least 3 times a week and in front of people at least 3 times a month. It has great tone with the Runyon Custom I play. I have done some duets with a very good flute player and I can stay in tune with the flute which I would dare not try with my MK6 tenor! I have had no problems with it and no ajustments yet. It also looks great unlike my other horns. It is my only non vintage horn in my collection. My nearest horn is 40 years older that the sop. I also purchased mine from Kessler...DAN

[Joe Jazz]

You can add my name to the list of 590BC owners that are very impressed with what you can get for under $1,000 these days. I'm another satisfied customer of Dave Kessler......

[SaxDave]

I bought an Antigua Winds sop way back in 1994 (I don't remember the model number, but it was the highest model they had at the time). With a Dukoff mouthpiece and Vandoren #3 reeds I thought the sax had a very good sound. The sax was very well made and in the 6 years I owned it (heavy use)I never had to do any repairs. I hear that the newer Antigua's are much better than their older models. If that's true, I can't wait to get one!


Dave