[jojosax]

Hi every body.
After many years on a YAS 23 and one year on a YBS32 with my band(nearly 10 years ago now), I would like to buy me a brand new bari. After reading many post and asking a lot of people I have now in my shortlist the B901 and YBS32.
I am not a pro player just a good amateur I think.
According to you what are the main differents between those two sax (tuning playability etc) I already know that the YBS as just a high F key and no engraving.
Has the B901 a double octave key?

I am looking for a sax easy to play in tune with good response, great reliability
(with no gimmick)
Thank you for your help.

josselin

 

[ianhart]

What do you mean by double octave key?

And on the lower saxophones, it is easier to get out F# using the High F (front F fingering) and side Bb keys, at least in my experience. Someone correct me if I am wrong! And then again, WHY would you go so high on bari? :wink:

No matter which way you go, you will be satisfied with your purchase, I believe. Just don't forget to try them out first!

 

[Chris J]

Both reviewed by Steve on his web site
http://www.shwoodwind.co.uk/Reviews/Saxes/Bari/Yamaha_YBS32.htm
http://www.shwoodwind.co.uk/Reviews/Saxes/Bari/Yanagisawa_901_bari.htm

 

[sycc]

Get the Yani. Feels like my Selmer S-80 series I. Sounds similar too but a w/dryer tone. I really liked the 901 I tried at USA horn!!!!

 

[sycc]

Yamaha uses too octave vent keys so the high register doesn't sound as thin.

 

[SOTSDO]

All saxes (at least all of those that I've ever seen or read about) have a "double octave key" system. The early horns from the Dinant works had a pair of "octave keys" with two touchpieces for the left thumb. Later on, the system was mechanized with the different vents opening in conjunction with the number of "finger holes" that happen to be open at that time. You may not notice this (a good sign that someone thought it through well) but it is there on every modern horn.

The good folks at Yamaha took a slightly different approach to all of this. A Yamaha sax has not two but three octave vents, all controlled by the same single "octave key" for the left thumb. The "high vent" operates the same as it does on all saxes, and is located just below the neck insertion point at the end of the "crook"

The other two vents are both for the "lower" portion of the upper register. They are operated by the now-standard linkage to the "finger hole" keys, the same as on other saxes, but the upper one of these employs a clever (and not at all obvious) system that allows it to open a fraction of a second after the lower one. (The mechanism is actuated by a leaf spring attached to the lowest vent's key pad cup; the upward motion of lower pad opens part way by itself, then the leaf spring's tension comes into play and gradually and successively opens the upper vent.)

This little bit of Japanese cleverness is located on the upper side of the horn just under your eyes, and it (at time) distracts me when playing as it goes through its little dance. Not as badly as the Selmer "rocker arm" located in the same area (which used to drive me nuts back in my Selmer playing days of my youth, but it's still there, just out of your peripheral vision's "clear sight" area.

The Yamaha mechanism can "fool" a less than comprehensive repair person, and I have received the sax back from an emergency adjustment in a strange town where the spring has been displaced from its proper location and has gone unnoticed. It's easy enough to fix on your own, however, once you know what to look for.

If I had to choose, based upon my experiences with both Yani and Yamaha baritones, I'd go for the Yamaha. You might not have a choice with a horn like a baritone, especially if you are not paying the freight...

 

[swinginnice]

I have the B901 and I love it. I know another professional bari player who plays on it as well and loves it. The Yamaha is a great horn too, but the moment I played the Yani I had to have it. Just try both of them and go with the one that you prefer. You can't go wrong with either.

 

[MPL]

If the YBS32 is the equivalent of the YBS52, then the Yanagisawa is built a little more ruggedly. I think the Yamaha feels like it has a little quicker key action, but I prefer the B901 for its durability. They're both great horns.