[Turnaround]

I'm thinking of getting a B&S Chicago Tenor. Its raw brass from the factory. There is one up on ebay, but I found another at a better price. Any thoughts on this horn? I'd like to use it as my backup horn. I have a King S20 that I don't want to take out to the gigs. I hear they have a dark tone, but being unlacquered, it might brighten it up a bit.

 

[Rackety Sax]

UaWS, look through this (B&S) topic. There are lots of threads covering the various B&S brands and stencils, of which the Chicago Jazz Series is one.

 

[bbbouklas]

I always thought unlaquered are more resonant not brighter.. if we are talking about the same tenor then 1500$ is a great price for this kind of horn; it also seems to be in great condition (+ the seller is also a trusted person). I haven't played the chicago series but I have played the b&S meudsa (the same horn) and I found its tone not resembling any of the modern horns reminding me of a vintage horn but with great keywork.
I would have gone for it (it has been listed again and agian for quite some time) if I hadn't bought so many stuff lately..great horn! it might not have the tone quality of a S20 but it would be my choice if I was to buy a modern tenor (I have a yani 991 with a silver neck that is great for funk but when it comes to jazz I would prefare something darker... )

 

[Turnaround]

Would this horn work out for funk/rock music? Brighter might not have been the right adjective. More open sounding (resonant) is what I imagine an unlacquered horn might sound like. I don't want to start a thread on the effect of the lacquer though.

 

[bbbouklas]

of course it would! combined with the right mpc it can have a lot of punch and power that combined with the "dark" sound give an exellent result. B&S are better than cannonballs and Mauriats wich are too seeking for a vintage tone.
You could surely get a cannonball for much less than this in ebay. If I had the money my choice would definately be the B&S.
you really got me thinking about it now... GAS!

 

[Seasax]

in a local pawn shop there is a B&S tenor, i think its a medusa or something, really thin G sharp key, fairly new, for £275, anyone got any thoughts bout that?

 

[Saxaholic]

Yes, buy it. Buy it now. If you don't, give me a phone number.

Saxaholic

 

[dstack79]

in a local pawn shop there is a B&S tenor, i think its a medusa or something, really thin G sharp key, fairly new, for £275, anyone got any thoughts bout that?

Check the serial first and verify it's not hot.Somebody out there would REALLY appreciate it

 

[Ruediger Kramer]

in a local pawn shop there is a B&S tenor, i think its a medusa or something, really thin G sharp key, fairly new, for £275, anyone got any thoughts bout that?

that price? i can´t believe that this sax is a medusa... (might be a B+S series 500)


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[Rackety Sax]

that price? i can´t believe that this sax is a medusa... (might be a B+S series 500)


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In a pawn shop you never know. You might find ridiculously overpriced junk or an equally-ridiculously underpriced gem. Occasionally you may even find something that is fairly priced.

 

[Ruediger Kramer]

In a pawn shop you never know.

yes, that´s right...


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[Turnaround]

I saved the money up and got it. Actually sold a Conn 26M alto for about the same price. $1500. I think I got a good deal. Should be here next tuesday. Its bare brass, and I was a little concerned about the cleaning of it, but then I thought about my silver plated alto that I've had for about 20 years, so I must be doing something right. I've always liked the bare brass look. Tell you how it plays soon.

And yes, it was the ebay one. I just didn't want to spark someone's interest.

 

[Turnaround]

So I got the horn today. It smelled REALLY bad. I cleaned it with some Lemon Pledge and that made it bearable.

I've been playing it for a few hours now. It plays great. I put the mouthpiece that I use on the S20 (a WIll Grizzle) and it played a little darker. Then I threw a Lamberson Metal on it and it has all the bite that I would ever need.

The key layout is very compact. Feels very comfortable. Precise. There might be a few small leaks because the low notes don't speak as easily as they should. The high register is stuffier than the S20, but sounds good. Almost strained sounding in a nice way if that makes sense. The S20 has a brighter top end.

I will have my tech move the strap ring over to the left a bit. I think it will hang better. It has a plastic thumb rest for the octave key. I'll probably change that out as well. Other than that, I'm amazed at the workmanship. Much better than I expected. I can see why these horns started at such a high list price. There seems to be a lot of attention to detail. I think a fair price for a horn of this quality would be about 2000 - 2500. So I'm feeling like I got a good deal.

The S20 is not taking back seat, it has acquired a stunt double.

 

[bbbouklas]

how would you compare it to a modern yani or selmer?

 

[pth]

I have a CJS tenor. I also have a Buffer Super Dynaction, Selmer MkVI, Yani, and a very good Taiwanese prototype horn. The CJS seems to be the melding of the best attributes of all of these horns. I can only suggest that others give the CJS a try. For the money ($1500 - $2000 is what they seem to be going for) I think they are a TREMENDOUS deal. I have had my horn for about a year and am extremely satisfied.