[ephalump]

Hi guys,

So, being just out of college and all, I don't have the money to buy a horn. But that doesn't mean I don't want to play, so I'm looking to rent a bari. My choices seem to be a Jupiter 593GL for about $120/month or a Saxophone.com horn for $85/month (or if I'm very, very patient, possibly an Olds - though I don't know what model - for around $60/month).

Thoughts? I've only recently switched to bari after many years on alto and tenor, and play in a community band/jazz jam band type setting.


first post-ily yours,
Stef.

 

[SuperAction80]

Welcome to the forum. I've never been a big fan of any saxophone by Olds. I've never had any experience with saxophone.com. From the reviews around here, some people love em, some people don't. I have played the Jupiter 593GL on several occasions and it is a very well built and well valued bari. You can get by with gigging on this horn if you had to and you wouldn't have any trouble doing so.

Since you already have experience with playing the saxophone and know that you want to play, I wouldn't recommend a rent to own plan unless you are planning to gig and would make more than $120/month playing. In your current situation it's probably best that you'd save $100 or so a month and buy a good used horn. You'll own the horn outfront and save money in the long run. I've been in your "budget" situation before and you will find that obligating yourself to $120/month on a payment plan really has the potential to bog you down financially. Besides you may come across a good old Conn or Buescher bari that cost half as much as the new Jupiter. This is just my $0.02 take it for what it's worth.

 

[ephalump]

You make some good points.
Plus, with the Jupiter situation, I'd probably end up paying out over $4k for a used horn that I could easily find for half that or less.

The part that I find frustrating is that I don't have reliable access to a bari otherwise, so if I'm not renting, I'm not going to be playing frequently.

Maybe I should just get a job that pays better.

 

[SuperAction80]

Maybe I should just get a job that pays better.

Haha, shouldn't we all?

Here are a few websites that carry Bari's. I would also recommend looking into Antigua Winds. I haven't played their bari yet, but their other horns soprano-tenor are great.

http://kesslermusic.com/html/saxophone.html

https://junkdude.com/Default.aspx

http://tenormadness.com/

You will find a few cheap vintage horns on eBay, but you can expect to dump another $500 into those horns to get them into playing condition. The Antigua and Jupiter horns are probably the best bang for the buck.