The Keilwerth SX90R is an amazing, amazing horn. I love mine so much, and have had the chance to compare it to a few vintage Selmers side by side. Except for one of those horns, which was a regular Balanced Action 23XXX (or maybe it was 26XXX I don't remember), the SX90R is what I prefer over just about every Selmer I've tried. Plus you can find used ones around for like 2600 bucks in good shape, and I doubt you'd find a good MKVI for that much.
As far as feel goes, the Keilwerth is going to feel a little different in your hands because of the larger key pearls and the different key positioning compared to other brands, but the latter could probably be said for anytime that you switch to a different brand horn.
The overall core sound of the SX90R is really big, and one time when I tried my friend Mike Ruby's MKVI (Mike is a great Canadian tenor player that lives in NYC), the SX90R had a much bigger natural core sound than the MKVI. Also, the black-nickel lacquered one has a nice, dark but powerful sound.
I believe I saw someone selling one, maybe 10Mfan, in the for sale section recently for a very reasonable price. Might be worth investigating.
For whatever it's worth, the SX90R is the only tenor I have and there are some sound samples on my websites if you're interested in hearing them to help you decide.
One thing - sometimes a new/used sax can be a little out of adjustment. It might be best to take it to your tech when you get it just to make sure the simple stuff like the RH stack pad timing, Bb bis/C key pad timing, G# pad cup bumper timing, and Bb-bis/RH stack pad timing is all in correct adjustment. This stuff can make a world of difference when it's set up to play easily, and when it's out of adjustment any horn becomes pretty difficult to play.
Hope you enjoy the horn whichever way you decide. Just a word to the wise - the Keilwerth is a little different than a Selmer. If you're used to a Selmer, you may or may not like the Keilwerth. The bore on the Keilwereth is a little bigger. However, I love that because it seems to give you a really big sound and the horns are easy to play when in adjustment.
Best thing to do is not to buy a horn you've never tried though. If you order a new one from WWBW you'll get a trial period but that is probably going to mean that the horn is gonna be more expensive. Maybe you can find one for sale within driving distance of where you live and give it a "test-drive" before you make the final purchase. Even though $2,600-$3,000 is a really good deal for a used top-echelon pro-level tenor sax (and I'm pretty sure I've seen used black-nickel SX90R tenors in that price range), it's still a lot of money to spend so it's probably best to make sure you're gonna love the horn before you drop the dough.
Have fun.
As far as feel goes, the Keilwerth is going to feel a little different in your hands because of the larger key pearls and the different key positioning compared to other brands, but the latter could probably be said for anytime that you switch to a different brand horn.
The overall core sound of the SX90R is really big, and one time when I tried my friend Mike Ruby's MKVI (Mike is a great Canadian tenor player that lives in NYC), the SX90R had a much bigger natural core sound than the MKVI. Also, the black-nickel lacquered one has a nice, dark but powerful sound.
I believe I saw someone selling one, maybe 10Mfan, in the for sale section recently for a very reasonable price. Might be worth investigating.
For whatever it's worth, the SX90R is the only tenor I have and there are some sound samples on my websites if you're interested in hearing them to help you decide.
One thing - sometimes a new/used sax can be a little out of adjustment. It might be best to take it to your tech when you get it just to make sure the simple stuff like the RH stack pad timing, Bb bis/C key pad timing, G# pad cup bumper timing, and Bb-bis/RH stack pad timing is all in correct adjustment. This stuff can make a world of difference when it's set up to play easily, and when it's out of adjustment any horn becomes pretty difficult to play.
Hope you enjoy the horn whichever way you decide. Just a word to the wise - the Keilwerth is a little different than a Selmer. If you're used to a Selmer, you may or may not like the Keilwerth. The bore on the Keilwereth is a little bigger. However, I love that because it seems to give you a really big sound and the horns are easy to play when in adjustment.
Best thing to do is not to buy a horn you've never tried though. If you order a new one from WWBW you'll get a trial period but that is probably going to mean that the horn is gonna be more expensive. Maybe you can find one for sale within driving distance of where you live and give it a "test-drive" before you make the final purchase. Even though $2,600-$3,000 is a really good deal for a used top-echelon pro-level tenor sax (and I'm pretty sure I've seen used black-nickel SX90R tenors in that price range), it's still a lot of money to spend so it's probably best to make sure you're gonna love the horn before you drop the dough.
Have fun.
