This is my newest addition givien to me by my
lovely wife on my 40th birthday - WOW what a woman! Thanks baby!
This is my newest addition givien to me by my
lovely wife on my 40th birthday - WOW what a woman! Thanks baby!
Well what can I say - she's a 1950's jewel. Like a nice Corvette - clean, lean and mean she is very similar in sound to my lacquer version below... The sound of these in good shape is definitely on the same par as the Conn tenors of the 30's. Big solid core with a resonance that shakes your body. But here's the good part - the ergonomics are far superior to the Conn. No aching right thumb from the in-humane thumb rest of the Conns. The neckstrap loop is in the correct position so the balance of the horn is perfect. The Norton screw-in springs do not slice you open when taking the horn apart for service. And the keys fit so naturally under my fingers. A tribute to Gus Buescher(pronounced "Bish'-ur") who actually designed all the Wonder-ful Conn saxes then later went out on his own - and am I glad he did.
I have never played the '400' series but cannot imagine that it would play much different than
these very undervalued horns. If you can find one of these babies with all her snap-in pads, buy it
and a good repair man fix it up - you'll be years ahead of the Jap horns and richer too! These old
horns have THE SOUND!
The engraving on this horn is very crisp and since it was stripped and silver plated by Charles Fail, it has all of it's thick brass underneath the plating. It is very important for vintage horns to not been buffed as to remove the brass. If susbstantial amounts of the original brass are removed during buffing (to remove old lacquer) the sound of these great instruments is altered and sometimes killed.
You want the brass on these babies like a cheeseburger - thick and juicy!
You will notice that the bell keys (B and Bb) are located on the left hand side. In my younger days, I used to think this was a sign of a horn to avoid... silly child.