This is a quick comparison between these two Tenors.
Bought the TWO1 late 2019 from Sax.co.uk. I just received new in the box Antigua Pro One tenor from EBay.
background..played SA80 Alto from early 80s till switched to Tenor about 6 years ago then Conn NWII > YTS621st gen >1936 10M > Yany TWO1
progression was to find tone that pleased me the Yamaha brought the ergonomics back in check but was too bright and I kept the 10M because it was golden in most respects. Went to Yany because it bridged new ergonomics and played darker than the 62 and is top for materials, key action and flexible tone.
The Pro One was an interesting piece to me and I was attracted to the Tone, most of its features vs the base Yany and its look.
I unboxed the Pro1 yesterday and gave it a good run last night.
Well packaged, case is nicely built, smooth zipper action, nicely sculpted and 2 pouches on front. The accessories are better than expected. Leather padded neck strap, and playable base mouthpiece with a 5ish opening.
Vintage Lacquer is very nice, engraving is Tastefully done and not over the top. So much better than the amateur train tracks on my expensive Yanagisawa.
Keywork has nice pearls throughout and a rounded Bis key not convex like on the Yany! For the record they were not sharp or edgy and feel great under the fingers. The left pinky table is linked like the high end WO10 series and works very well. The action feels very close to that of the Yany. The placement of the High F# feels better on the Yani and the palm keys also feel less cramped than the Pro 1. Honestly, I may get used to it because initially I Thought the palm keys felt awkward on the Yany but I learned to walk well with them.
After I removed all the corks holding down the keys I got out my leak light.
the pro one was set up better and closed flatter than my Yany that was checked over by Sax.co. I ended up bending a few keys and trimming some felt bumpers on the Yany. Not necessary on the P1 that was last seen by Antigua.
The P1 did play better as the night wore on and the pads and keywork finally saw some action! Not sure how old this unit is but it's likely a few years old and the pads were decently seated.
I started by quickly doing a run on the Yani and the started testing the P1. The tone is similar between these two, but the P1 seems more free blowing. The Bell is 6" on Yany and 6.25 on P1. The P1 sits higher in stand as the bore is larger as well. The P1 was a new dance partner and did its best to lead me along the way. The lower end of the P1 is fabulous and with the slicker pinky table it let me quickly flow smoothly between the lower notes. The ringed tone holes in the last 5 notes may give it an edge as well?
I didn't really A to B them in all respects. The P 1 was better in the low register and. Had a very sweet sound through to the top. The P1 did feel freer blowing and may have been a bit brighter than the Yani. P1 has metal Pisoni Resos while the Yany has plastic Pisonis. The P1 for sure had more projection. Intonation is excellent on both.
Yani is top notch build and the inside of the bell is polished where bell meets lower body. I could see the edge of the bell in the P1 and thought they could have done better here. Will I notice a difference in sound because of that?
In the end, and after sleeping on it I truly think that the P1 will be a better player for me. For some they will consider this a step down. The only downside to me is some fit and perhaps precision work in areas I don't see. What I do see is lovely vintage lacquer, nice engraving, well setup keywork, nice pearls including high F# and G #. A sax with solid tone, character and very high initial quality. The keywork was tight, very smooth and hopefully will remain that way for a long time.
The Yany is going up for sale….
Bought the TWO1 late 2019 from Sax.co.uk. I just received new in the box Antigua Pro One tenor from EBay.
background..played SA80 Alto from early 80s till switched to Tenor about 6 years ago then Conn NWII > YTS621st gen >1936 10M > Yany TWO1
progression was to find tone that pleased me the Yamaha brought the ergonomics back in check but was too bright and I kept the 10M because it was golden in most respects. Went to Yany because it bridged new ergonomics and played darker than the 62 and is top for materials, key action and flexible tone.
The Pro One was an interesting piece to me and I was attracted to the Tone, most of its features vs the base Yany and its look.
I unboxed the Pro1 yesterday and gave it a good run last night.
Well packaged, case is nicely built, smooth zipper action, nicely sculpted and 2 pouches on front. The accessories are better than expected. Leather padded neck strap, and playable base mouthpiece with a 5ish opening.
Vintage Lacquer is very nice, engraving is Tastefully done and not over the top. So much better than the amateur train tracks on my expensive Yanagisawa.
Keywork has nice pearls throughout and a rounded Bis key not convex like on the Yany! For the record they were not sharp or edgy and feel great under the fingers. The left pinky table is linked like the high end WO10 series and works very well. The action feels very close to that of the Yany. The placement of the High F# feels better on the Yani and the palm keys also feel less cramped than the Pro 1. Honestly, I may get used to it because initially I Thought the palm keys felt awkward on the Yany but I learned to walk well with them.
After I removed all the corks holding down the keys I got out my leak light.
the pro one was set up better and closed flatter than my Yany that was checked over by Sax.co. I ended up bending a few keys and trimming some felt bumpers on the Yany. Not necessary on the P1 that was last seen by Antigua.
The P1 did play better as the night wore on and the pads and keywork finally saw some action! Not sure how old this unit is but it's likely a few years old and the pads were decently seated.
I started by quickly doing a run on the Yani and the started testing the P1. The tone is similar between these two, but the P1 seems more free blowing. The Bell is 6" on Yany and 6.25 on P1. The P1 sits higher in stand as the bore is larger as well. The P1 was a new dance partner and did its best to lead me along the way. The lower end of the P1 is fabulous and with the slicker pinky table it let me quickly flow smoothly between the lower notes. The ringed tone holes in the last 5 notes may give it an edge as well?
I didn't really A to B them in all respects. The P 1 was better in the low register and. Had a very sweet sound through to the top. The P1 did feel freer blowing and may have been a bit brighter than the Yani. P1 has metal Pisoni Resos while the Yany has plastic Pisonis. The P1 for sure had more projection. Intonation is excellent on both.
Yani is top notch build and the inside of the bell is polished where bell meets lower body. I could see the edge of the bell in the P1 and thought they could have done better here. Will I notice a difference in sound because of that?
In the end, and after sleeping on it I truly think that the P1 will be a better player for me. For some they will consider this a step down. The only downside to me is some fit and perhaps precision work in areas I don't see. What I do see is lovely vintage lacquer, nice engraving, well setup keywork, nice pearls including high F# and G #. A sax with solid tone, character and very high initial quality. The keywork was tight, very smooth and hopefully will remain that way for a long time.
The Yany is going up for sale….