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Commitee I Tenor

4K views 15 replies 9 participants last post by  JayeLID 
#1 ·
I have a Handcraft Commitee I Alto and i love the Sound from this Sax.
Now im wondering how the Sound from a Comm I Tenor is.

Can i expect a different Sond from a Comm I Tenor, i still have a Buescher Aristrocrat 1 and 157 and a conn 1957 10m and Martin Indiana Teneor.
 
#2 ·
Well...it won't sound like the Conn or the Buescher. It will be more focused than the Indiana.

It's a pretty classic Martin tone. The 10M is darker, the Bueschers are...just different.

If you can get a hold of a mid'30's Handcraft or HandcraftImperial, the sound is very similar to the Comm I's. The body design didn't change substantially until the Comm II's, I believe....
 
#3 ·
If you like the alto tone, you will like the tenor as well. Warm and dark, but edgy when pushed. Somewhat open mouthpiece with a larger chamber and a softer reed will make it subtone sublimely, but then you will have plenty of volume when you really want to wail.
Sax magic
 
#4 ·
Yesterday i finish my Commitee I projekt.
The Cleaning was difficult, after washing the Sax Body in hot Water parts of the lacquer peeling off. and now it is 70% bare Brass.
I set it up with Saxgourmet Pads with Maestro Star Airtight Solid Brass Resonator.
I think the Martin is my main Horn now. What a amazing tone.
I play it wit a Jody Yazz HR 8*

http://s980.photobucket.com/albums/ae283/ploing333/Martin Handcraft Comm1 Tenor/
 
#7 ·
The 1930s Martins have a decidedly vintage tone, and yes, the Martins have their own sweet, dark thing that doesn't really sound like anything else. The answer is the same one that I always give on these threads: What kind of music are you going to play with it? I think this is important because from my experience it is difficult to coax a more modern sound out of these horns than it is with a vintage Selmer or King. In other words, a Comm I would not be my first choice if I wanted to play smooth jazz. If you're looking at Martins, I would consider a "The Martin" tenor first, with a bore design that can produce a little more modern of a sound if desired. In fact, the 1960s RMC Martins are probably the most versatile in this respect, especially the Magna of "The Martin."

After buying and trying vintage horns of every make and model over the last decade I've finally concluded that I'd rather have a versatile horn that can cover all the bases, rather than one that does vintage thing really good, or say, a new Yamaha or Taiwanese jobbie that can do the really modern thing but lacks the vintage warmth and character I desire.

Of course, the ultimate example of what I just described is the 5-digit Selmer Mark VI. :bluewink:
 
#8 ·
Did Martin change the bore and taper on Comm I - Comm III? I have Martins Comm I, II and III and I can't see or notice any differnces. I think I have the same tone on all of my Martins. The setup (keyheigts, resonators ...) is the same on all my saxes. Modern pads with modern resonators. The design of the keys are of course differnt. I have a more contempoary feeling when I play my "The Martins .... ".

I think Martin CommI-III sounds in the same way. A Martin is a Martin. This goes for the Indiana saxs to. At least the Iniana who is based on the Comm I taper and bore.

This was not the case with my King Super 20 tenors. I've owned three, -51, 66-67 and a late one from -82. Same name, but IMO three diffent saxes. Among the four American manufactors it was just Martin who did improvments over the years so the became better instead of worse. Ok the dropped the solid nickelsilver keys, but otherwise it was pretty much the same quality and manufactoring methods. It was a pro sax to the bitter end!

I use my Martin saxes for Rocksax music (Blues, R&B. R&R ...).

Thomas
 
#10 ·
You're right about the end of the bell. It's 144 mm on my 128XXX Martin and 157mm on my Magna 208XXX. That makes IMO the horn llouder. But the rest of the sax bell and bow is the same. To do this comparison you must take some saxes apart and mesure them up.

Thomas
 
#12 ·
I agree with Bruce on this one. The Martin Comm 1's smaller bell is a "terminus of the flare" rather than an actually smaller bell than later Martins. The primary difference in the tone seems to be more "focus" to my ears in the Comm 1 (Handcraft Searchlight), and more "spread" in the Comm 3 (The Martin Tenor). Both are darker than other saxophones, IMHO, but the focus of the Comm 1 is more analogous to the focus of the Selmer Mark VI, whereas the spread of the Comm 3 is more analogous to, say, the 1950's Buescher tenors. Note that "focus" and "spread" are relative terms, like "bright" and "dark" tones are relative. The Comm 1 is dark and focused to my ears.
Sax Magic
 
#13 ·
I currently own a 1937 Martin searchlight and I love the sound so very much!the only thing now is getting new pads and cork. I'm wanting to clean it but I know that it could possibly change the sound. It was a garage sale find and I want to play it as much a my selmer. I played it the first day but the smell from the case was like...ok this was stored in a closet for years. It also came with vintage ivory reeds it was truely a treat. If u have information I can use I'd really appreciate if you have any points of wisdom :)
 
#14 ·
I really want to Renew my case it is the original for my 1937 Martin #122426 it is a beautiful green. And the tenor is in good condition but every pad and 50% of the cork. I'm afraid of sending it to someone and I know how to set pads on my selmer. Is there a different technique?
Cassandra
 
#15 ·
You know, when I got my "The Martin," the case smelled like mold, so I just threw it out and got a Pro Tec! Incidentally, I threw a bunch of scratch-recordings and some live footage up of my "The Martin Tenor" in action in this thread. And if you're after a fantastic Martin in perfect playing condition... (shameless, I know, but the audio files are a nice segue, right?!)
 
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