Why Buy a Vintage Saxophone Instead of a New One?
Walk into almost any saxophone shop today and you can choose from an enormous range of excellent modern instruments. They are generally well made, mechanically refined, easy to play and remarkably consistent.
So why would anyone choose a saxophone that is 50, 80 or even 100 years old instead?
For many players, the answer is simple: character.
A good vintage saxophone can offer something that is difficult to reproduce in a modern instrument - not necessarily something objectively “better”, but something different. A particular sound, feel, history and personality that makes the instrument enjoyable to own as well as to play.
That does not mean every old saxophone is a good saxophone, or that vintage instruments are right for everyone. But a properly restored vintage instrument can be an extremely rewarding alternative to buying new.
The sound of a vintage saxophone
Sound is probably the biggest reason players become interested in vintage saxophones.
Different periods and manufacturers developed instruments with noticeably different tonal characteristics. A 1920s Buescher True Tone can feel and sound very different from a Conn 6M of the 1930s, a Martin Committee of the 1940s or a King from the post-war period.
Descriptions such as dark, warm, broad, powerful, focused and complex are inevitably subjective, but there is no question that vintage instruments can have very distinct personalities.
Some players particularly enjoy the large, rich sound associated with older American saxophones. Others like the flexibility of an instrument that can produce anything from a soft, smoky tone to an enormous amount of projection when pushed.
Of course, the player, mouthpiece and reed ultimately have a huge influence on sound. A vintage saxophone will not magically transform somebody's playing.
But the instrument itself absolutely affects the way it responds and encourages the player to play.
That relationship between player and instrument is a major part of the attraction.
Vintage saxophones have individuality
Modern manufacturing is extremely good at producing consistency.
If you play several examples of the same modern professional saxophone, there may be differences between them, but the manufacturer is deliberately trying to make them behave in broadly the same way.
Vintage saxophones can be very different.
Two apparently identical instruments made in the same year can sometimes feel surprisingly different. Decades of use, repairs, setup and even small manufacturing variations mean that each instrument develops its own personality.
That can make buying vintage more complicated, because you cannot simply assume that every example of a particular model will be excellent.
But it also makes finding a particularly good one much more satisfying.
You are not simply buying a Conn, a Buescher or a Martin.
You are buying that particular saxophone.
The build quality can be exceptional
Many of the great vintage saxophones were extremely well made.
Manufacturers such as Conn, Buescher, Martin, King, Selmer and others were competing fiercely during the first half of the twentieth century. Saxophone design was developing rapidly and manufacturers were constantly experimenting with new mechanisms, bore designs and manufacturing techniques.
The result was some remarkable instruments.
Heavy brasswork, elaborate engraving, rolled tone holes, unusual key mechanisms, microtuner necks, snap-in pads and beautiful silver or gold finishes are just some of the features found on instruments from this period.
Some of these ideas disappeared because better alternatives were developed.
Others disappeared because they were expensive or complicated to manufacture.
That means vintage saxophones often contain engineering and craftsmanship that would be prohibitively expensive to reproduce on a modern instrument.
You can buy a lot of saxophone for your money
Vintage saxophones can also offer excellent value.
A new professional saxophone from one of the major manufacturers can cost several thousand pounds. Yet some superb professional-quality vintage instruments can be purchased for considerably less.
That does not mean every vintage saxophone is cheap.
Rare Selmers, desirable Conn models, exceptional Kings and certain other instruments can command very high prices.
But there are also many less fashionable instruments that are exceptionally good players.
Buescher True Tones, some Martin models, older Kings and a variety of lesser-known European and American saxophones can represent remarkable value when properly restored.
Part of the fun is discovering instruments that have not yet acquired the price tag associated with the most famous vintage models.
A vintage saxophone has already done most of its depreciating
A new saxophone normally loses some value as soon as it becomes a used instrument.
A saxophone that has already existed for 70 or 100 years is in a very different position.
Its value will still rise and fall depending on condition, demand and the market, and nobody should buy a saxophone purely as an investment. But desirable vintage instruments often have fairly established market values.
If you buy a good example at a sensible price and look after it, there is a reasonable chance that much of its value will remain.
In some cases, particularly with rare or increasingly desirable models, values may rise.
That should be regarded as a bonus rather than the reason to buy one.
The best reason to own a vintage saxophone is still because you enjoy playing it.
The history is part of the appeal
There is also something undeniably enjoyable about playing an instrument that has survived for generations.
A saxophone made in the 1920s may have existed during the birth of the jazz age. It may have been played in dance bands, theatres, clubs or orchestras long before any of us were born.
Occasionally an instrument still carries clues to that history: an old dealer stamp, an original case, handwritten labels, repair marks or unusual engraving.
You may never know exactly where it has been, but that sense of continuity is difficult to get from a brand-new instrument.
For many owners, a vintage saxophone is both a musical instrument and a small piece of musical history.
But vintage saxophones do have disadvantages
It is important not to romanticise them.
Modern saxophones have benefited from decades of ergonomic development.
Key layouts are generally more comfortable. Intonation is usually more predictable. Modern instruments often require less adaptation from the player and replacement parts are generally easier to obtain.
Older saxophones can have unusual keywork, particularly around the left-hand little-finger table and right-hand side keys. Some early instruments have limited key ranges compared with modern saxophones.
Intonation characteristics can also be different.
That does not necessarily mean an old saxophone plays badly out of tune. Good vintage saxophones can play extremely well. But the player may need to understand the instrument and make small adjustments rather than expecting every note to sit perfectly on a tuner without intervention.
Players who switch frequently between several modern instruments may therefore prefer the familiarity and consistency of contemporary keywork.
Condition matters far more than age
This is probably the single most important thing to understand when buying vintage.
A wonderful saxophone with leaking pads, badly regulated keywork or mechanical problems can be miserable to play.
Conversely, a well-restored instrument that is nearly a century old can play beautifully from top to bottom.
When evaluating a vintage saxophone, I am far more interested in its mechanical condition than simply how shiny it looks.
Pads need to seal properly.
Keys need to be regulated.
Corks and felts need to be correct.
Mechanisms need to move freely without excessive play.
Springs need to operate correctly.
Tone holes, posts, key guards and the neck should be checked for damage or previous repairs.
Cosmetic wear is often relatively unimportant compared with mechanical condition.
A saxophone covered in lacquer wear may be a superb player. A beautiful-looking saxophone with leaking pads may require considerable work.
That is why knowing how an instrument has been prepared is so important.
What about relacquered instruments?
Original finish is important to collectors, but it is not necessarily important to players.
A heavily polished or poorly relacquered saxophone may be worth less than an equivalent instrument in original condition. Excessive polishing can soften engraving and, in extreme cases, affect details around tone holes.
But a professionally refinished instrument can still be an excellent saxophone.
Likewise, a saxophone with substantial lacquer loss may look less pristine while playing every bit as well as a museum-quality example.
If the intention is to play the instrument rather than display it, mechanical condition should normally take priority over cosmetic perfection.
Are vintage saxophones suitable for beginners?
They can be - but I would choose carefully.
A beginner generally benefits from an instrument that responds easily, seals properly and does not make learning unnecessarily difficult.
A poorly maintained vintage saxophone is therefore a terrible beginner instrument.
A properly set-up example can be completely different.
Some vintage saxophones are remarkably free-blowing and easy to play. Others require more familiarity with older ergonomics and intonation.
For a beginner interested in vintage instruments, the important thing is not simply buying something old. It is buying an instrument that has been properly checked and prepared.
Should you buy vintage or modern?
There is no universal answer.
If you want perfect familiarity, modern ergonomics, predictable intonation and easy access to replacement parts, a modern saxophone may be the sensible choice.
If you enjoy individuality, history, craftsmanship and the distinctive character of older instruments, vintage can be enormously rewarding.
For many players it is not really a question of which is better.
It is about which instrument makes you want to pick it up and play. I personally own saxophones from nearly every decade since the 1900's, each is unique and each I enjoy for different reasons.
A good vintage saxophone should not feel like an antique that happens to produce notes.
It should feel like a musical instrument first - one that happens to have spent the last few generations waiting for its next player.
At Vintage Sax Studio, the instruments I offer are individually inspected, serviced and play-tested before sale. You can see the current selection of vintage saxophones for sale.