I have a pro one alto and think it is very good. I also think one difference between Antigua and Pmauriat is that Antigua has been in the student market for a long time. Kind of like Jupiter. I think the Pro Models are excellent but the name brand suffers from the student association.

 

I think that you bring up a very strong point. There sure are a ton of great and affordable options coming out of Asia right now. It is getting hard to keep up with them all.

 

If anyone tells you its got the cryogenic treatment, run the other way as fast as you can. It's just a lot of BS about freezing the horn which allegedly does something remarkable to the tone by aligning all the molecules or some such nonsense. Annealing is something else, it's a heat treatment.

 

Good to know. Thanks. If super-heating and then super-cooling saxophones and then playing them to define the tonal differences is a good paying career option, I chose the wrong career path! :razz::razz:

 

I can tell you that there is a struggle in man power. Since they were taken over last year, their resources have been tightened and it's become a battle to gain more dealers and produce more product due to lack of company support. I love their horns and hope that they can survive the take over.

 

Well, if that's the case, stick a fork in them cause they're done. What you've described is the beginning of the end for most companies because as manpower falls off mistakes start to happen. Quality will suffer and demands won't be met. What's happening in Asia is what happens everywhere manufacturing is flourishing. Eventually the workers want better benefits and more money which means the bean counters will make cut backs which eventually derail the business. The cycle continues as now the shift is moving to mainland China as their labor force is still the cheapest. So, the good news is, you will probably still be able to get an Antiqua Winds horn, it just won't be anything like the one you have now.

 

This is a bummer. I had a great Mauriat 66R, and I thought the Pro One tenor I tried was better in every way than my 66R.

I've always wanted to try one of their other horns with more focus & core.

Later

JOel

 

This is a bummer. I had a great Mauriat 66R, and I thought the Pro One tenor I tried was better in every way than my 66R.

I've always wanted to try one of their other horns with more focus & core.

No reason to be bummed! You can still try them and buy them and get their support!!! They're still available and making beautiful horns!

 

To be honest with you, I can't stand WWBW...I consider them a local store killer. Kessler produces their own overseas brand, can't imagine they would carry a competitor.

Have you simply tried calling them? I'm not privy to sales numbers or anything like that, just giving me personal experience with them and what I know is going on.

 

To be honest with you, I can't stand WWBW...I consider them a local store killer. Kessler produces their own overseas brand, can't imagine they would carry a competitor.

It's not unimaginable, given that Kessler did exactly that until a few years ago. Dave Kessler even wrote an elaborate review of the Antigua Pro One model on his blog (the entry is still there). Anyway, it doesn't matter why a particular retailer isn't selling Antigua horns. The point is that overall, they seem to lack broad, easy availability.

Have you simply tried calling them?

Any company that says, "Call us, and then we'll tell you where you can buy our stuff," is doomed. They need to be pushing that information out, not waiting to be begged for it. As you yourself mentioned above, Antigua's marketing lacks resources, and it shows.

 

Glitchy forum double post.

 

I’m no expert on the market, but I’m on the road a lot and I gig with lots of other horn bands. I’ve never seen an antigua sax in a shop that I can remember in 25 years of going to shops all over the country. Also never seen one in the hands of anyone who isn’t a student. The Proone was advertised on here for years though.

 

I have a pro one soprano and think its a great horn. I wouldn't mind having a tenor, but don't need another.

 

I commented on another Pro One post here that I just bought a tenor. It's very good. I occasionally - after a few weeks - think that it might become my main tenor. This is over a very good VI and a Mauriat 66 RUL. I think that the Mauriat is a 'better' horn - it has a clear, big, broad, full sound all the way up and down that I just love for some stuff, but I just don't sound as warm on it as I like. Other players clearly get a warm sound out of it. The Pro One has a nice big full sound and can sound sweet and very warm. The Mark VI also sounds great all around. And I may end up sticking with it. But I keep wanting to pick up the Pro One. All of what I've heard since playing jazz music on tenor makes it a little difficult wrapping my mind around picking an Antigua over a Selmer Mark VI. ! But. When you have a choice and keep picking up one more than the others, that just might be your horn. I've been very indecisive and changed my preferences frequently. So. We'll see. But I'm just posting my experience so far.
I don't know about other people but I rely on listening to good players playing horns I'm interested in, on YouTube. And Antigua doesn't have much. But I have heard Don Braden - he plays one and he could obviously play anything.

 

Yes, I have been in communication with Don Braden. I recently purchased a Gold Plate R.S. Berkeley Virtuoso tenor, part of what motivated me was how good Don sounds ...and played the Virtuoso for several years as his main horn. He still has and plays the Virtuoso. Previous to that he played on Keilwerth for a long time. He switched to the Antigua Winds ProOne and 2500 because he likes the textural difference and fatter/wider tone the Antigua Winds are like that perform closer to the Keilwerth. I am loving my R. S. Berkeley but I'd say it leans more towards the MKVI bore and I'm willing to bet the Antigua Winds ProOne and 2500 are somewhere between that and Keilwerth. Don could and does play whatever horn he desires. I don't believe Antigua Winds is paying him tons of $$$ to endorse their horns, doubt they have the budget. I think he earnestly likes their horns and also from a great music educators viewpoint likes there are companies making great pro level products at an attainable price for serious students.

 

I nearly picked a Pro One tenor up several months back when Quinn was selling them cheap but I already have 5 tenors and just couldn't justify buying another.

The Virtuoso is also a very nice feeling and playing horn and one that actually is more Mark VI like than most of the Taiwanese horns despite what many of the other brands might want to suggest with their marketing.

 

I nearly picked a Pro One tenor up several months back when Quinn was selling them cheap but I already have 5 tenors and just couldn't justify buying another.

The Virtuoso is also a very nice feeling and playing horn and one that actually is more Mark VI like than most of the Taiwanese horns despite what many of the other brands might want to suggest with their marketing.

I could be wrong. It is my understanding that R.S. Berkeley saxes are made in China, not Taiwan. All the horns I've owned made in Taiwan (P. Mauriat, Barone, Antigua Winds, Eastman 52nd St., Eastman 640) are stamped below the serial # "Made In Taiwan". This Virtuoso has nothing stamped below the serial #.

 

Yeah, I'm not sure about the RS Berkley either though I just checked 4 of the 5 horns I own that I'm pretty sure were made in Taiwan and none of them are stamped. I have two Barones (both older from 2008-2010) a Tenor Madness Custom and a Mauriat 67R alto. The 5th is a silver plated Barone I just bought and it's presently living at my parent's place. I only played it for a few hours while I was there on vacation a couple weeks back but I think that horn was stamped "Made in Taiwan". My first Barone tenor did come with a small sticker that said "Made in Taiwan" but the sticker is long gone.

Regardless these are nice playing horns. I was at USA Horn several years ago and Mark pulled out 5 or 6 Asian made tenors - a couple of Vikings, a Sax Dakota, something else I can't remember and the Virtuoso. If I had taken any of those home that day it would have been the Virtuoso. It played the best and was the most "Mark VIish" of the bunch - I had plenty of vintage VIs there to compare it to. That being said, I've played some other RS Berkley horns including a Low Bb bari that were terrible so.....

 

Yeah, I'm not sure about the RS Berkley either though I just checked 4 of the 5 horns I own that I'm pretty sure were made in Taiwan and none of them are stamped. I have two Barones (both older from 2008-2010) a Tenor Madness Custom and a Mauriat 67R alto. The 5th is a silver plated Barone I just bought and it's presently living at my parent's place. I only played it for a few hours while I was there on vacation a couple weeks back but I think that horn was stamped "Made in Taiwan". My first Barone tenor did come with a small sticker that said "Made in Taiwan" but the sticker is long gone.

Regardless these are nice playing horns. I was at USA Horn several years ago and Mark pulled out 5 or 6 Asian made tenors - a couple of Vikings, a Sax Dakota, something else I can't remember and the Virtuoso. If I had taken any of those home that day it would have been the Virtuoso. It played the best and was the most "Mark VIish" of the bunch - I had plenty of vintage VIs there to compare it to. That being said, I've played some other RS Berkley horns including a Low Bb bari that were terrible so.....

Interesting. I didn't think that ANYone had a couple of Vikings! I thought they were all bought, and, mostly, held on to!
Can you say something about your TM Custom? Anything you can compare it to, favorably or unfavorably, would be appreciated. I've heard, mostly, that they're the best out of Taiwan. And I've heard they are the same horn as a few people make, but that the TM setup pushes them into another category of great.