Cheap vs Expensive Curved Soprano Saxophones 

Interesting fact ... because of those same packaging/space restrictions, a curved soprano flew on the space shuttle. Played by Ronald McNair during mission STS-41B. Sadly, he was later lost with the rest of the crew with Challenger, STS-51L.

Why do you exactly upload this during my search for a curved soprano 😳

I've been itching to find a pro sax player review the jean paul sop and my prayers have just been answered

I want a fancy lit shelf dedicated to mouthpieces haha

Nice to see the curved soprano getting some love! I’ve played one made by Yanagisawa for nearly 20 years now. I love how the sound comes back at you versus a straight model. Since it’s relatively unique, it generates questions from the audience too.

this video has come to me whilst i was looking for curves sopranos... it’s a sign!

If I was Jay travelling with one of the horns it would be the Singer's Day. It sounds pretty good (with the Jody Jazz piece) and won't break your heart when it gets stolen at the airport or out of your car. I have an Allora that sounded like a wounded duck with the stock mouthpiece. I got a piece from Soprano Planet that makes all the difference.

The sound of the Singer facinates me.

Of course, you sound fantastic on all sopranos. In the low/middle register I cannot tell the difference. In the upper range the sound of the Yanagisawa is much richer though. Great video!

Just bought another tenor myself and told my girlfriend it was 200 buck 😂😂

The Singer's day curved soprano seems to have more rounded sound, I will choose Singer's day

Thank you, my friend, for posting this video. I have no doubt that I am the only one who requested of you by e-mail this specific comparison of expensive vs inexpensive curved sopranos, so I feel honored to see that you should answer my request and so promptly. In fact, there are many mid-priced curvies out there that were not taken into consideration, (e.g., Phil Barone, International Woodwind, etc @ $1600-2500) so I would be curious to know whether they are any better than the cheapies that you have mentioned., but I am grateful that you have taken the time to make this comparison of three models. The problem is that one cannot just walk into a music store and expect to find and play-test a curved soprano, as they are usually special-order items, as you know. Then again, most players online do not seem to take them seriously anyway, but rather see them as cute little novelty instruments to complement their collection, and consequently do not address the usual intonation issue, but just try to compensate with the embouchure. Then, when you DO find someone online that owns one model or another, he is usually an intermediate-level player, leaving us wondering whether he is really able to make a good evaluation anyway. Since I sent you that e-mail requesting this comparison video to be made, back about March, I guess, I have since bought a Kessler Custom (a.k.a. Chateau) and a Jean-Paul (brass) like yours, and have been disappointed with both of them for the following reasons: 1. The neck angle is very important to me. The vintage curvies had a sharp angle, and was much more comfortable. Today the Yanagisawas and the Jean-Paul have a somewhat sharp angle, which is good, but the Kessler (Chateau) and most of the others out there opt for the shallow angle (like the Singer's Day), which is uncomfortable. To make matters worse, with the bell pointing upward as on an alto, the sound now comes back directly in your face, making it TOO loud in many cases, as others have mentioned. On the other hand, the jean-Paul and the Yanagisawa have the bell tipped further away from the player horizontally, and in conjunction with the steeper neck angle, the result is that they do not present the problem of giving "too much" volume feedback to the player, which is the one good point of the Jean-Paul. 2. However, intonation is more important than comfort. The Kessler intonation is "fair," and the Jean-Paul intonation is "poor." I was surprised to see that you did not hardly mention that issue. As I've said already, many musicians do not take curvies very seriously anyway as their main instrument, when they prefer to play tenor or alto for example, so they just learn to "lip up" or "lip down" the notes that play out of tune, and choose not even to mention the issue as a flaw. I am told that even the vintage curvies had this problem. Consequently, the SC991 and the SCWO10 are said to play in very good tune compared with most others, and especially the SCWO10. Do I just have a dud from the Jean-Paul factory or what? I mean, it is not noticeable to the average non-musician in the audience, but I am sure it is to any musician. I mean all notes might play well except for middle C, for example, or middle C#, which screws up everything. I never had that problem on other horns. Otherwise I have to push way in on the mouthpiece, and expand my oral cavity, and get slightly better results. However, my experience with the Jean-Paul, during the past five months of continual use, is that it has SERIOUS intonation problems, when not compensated with the embouchure. I had played an Antigua Winds straight soprano and a Yanagisawa s901 straight, and neither had intonation problems with any good mouthpiece, but the Jean-Paul does. And yes, I noticed the RH fingers colliding with the bell keys, as well. And, of course, be prepared to find yourself blowing out excess saliva from the palm key tone holes and from the two octave vents, throughout your performance, every 30 minutes. Something about the angle must be the culprit, because I did not have to clean out the saliva this much on the straight sopranos. But if the Singer'sDay has a shallow neck-angle, I'm afraid I'm not willing to sacrifice a sharper angle for better sound.

The Singer's Day SDSC-2013 Curved Soprano Saxophone is is my choice, I like the warm and focus sound !

I am using singer's day Alto and Curved soprano. Great to know you're reviewing singer's day. 👍

I play tenor as my main, and bari as my second in line. And over the past year I’ve begun to pick up a curved soprano and a clarinet and it’s so fun to double. Happy Saxophone playing everyone

Awesome video again Jay!!! I've been looking for an affordable and reliable curved sop for years now and am so glad you've decided to put up a comparison video. Sounding great by the way!

Great video. I played a curved soprano and the ‘feedback’ from the player’s perspective and the ergos of holding the curved soprano closer to the body made me fall back in love with soprano playing. I bought a Schagerl bronze curved soprano (Taiwan). It’s a wonderful horn.

I got one last year. I found as I get older, it got too painful to hold up a straight. With the curved my shoulders can relax. On a budget I got an allora, around the same price as the two you reviewed. With a Eugene Roseau mouthpiece and now the legere reeds you reviewed.... life changing. I can enjoy playing soprano again

Thank you Jay, I was waiting for such a video from you for a very long time! Looking forward hearing you playing more the soprano Yanagisawa. I also chose this soprano (SC-W20) mainly for it’s hand baggage size (next to its sound of course). ☺️

Just picked up a returned gold lacquer Jean Paul curved soprano for $300. Love that little rascal. Amazing how they can produce such a good horn for an affordable price.

Jay, you could play a sock and make it sound brilliant !

I have a curved Cannonball soprano. I play tested a curved back to back with a straight, and fell in love with the curved sax right away. I know from a distance they sound more or less the same, but for me (the one who's playing it), the curved has so much better feedback and since I'm almost always the only one listening to it, hard to say no. Also, Cannonball puts the bell keys on the opposite side, so you have no clearance issues what so ever with the right hand, which is nice.

Thanks for you wonderful and inspiring videos, also you are such a warm hearted man! sopranos: intonation on a soprano is such a difficult task in itself. The Yanagisawa is so much better, you hit the tune instantly right and no readjustment is needed, you sound so lightly and easy with the Yanagisawa, what i think is very important, and worth the price, also for beginners it is very frustrating to master the intonation on a soprano. If a beginner can afford a Yanagisawa, this would be a great help to get in love with a soprano

Ok, singer's day is the one to go for. the sound at this price point almost unreal

Thank you Jay! I am considering getting a soprano sax, and I decided on a curved ss, exactly for the reason you brought out -- size when flying! As far as the play test, I honestly could not hear difference worth $4000. I'm sure the Yani has a better feel, etc. Between the less expensive models I preferred the Singer's Day. I would consider getting a Jean-Paul or a Singer's Day, if I could find one I could play test before buying (-- not so easy in Romania). This summer I have the opportunity to buy a (Chinese-Korean-German) Karl Glaser soprano sax, which I would not do if I had to order it on-line, but I have the opportunity to play test it before purchasing. On verra!

YESSSS been waiting for this video forever!!!!

Finally!!! I play curved soprano mine is an international woodwind saxophone

I love the curved soprano sax. I’m so glad you did this comparison!!

Great video! Thank you Jay, curved soprano is my favorite sop.

I was legitimately thinking about getting the Jean Paul one for a bout a month now and this helped with my decision on whether or not I should get it. Thanks BetterSax! Curved soprano here I come😂

The Yani sounds the warmest. The Singers Day doesn't too bad, sort of a close second and it certainly is much better than the Jean Paul.

Jay: "You can't really hear much of a difference in the recording" Inevitably, some commenters: "Oh mY GoD, the YaNaGiSAWA sOUndS SO00OOOO much BeTteR" (mortgages house) Let's be real... the sound difference is so minimal. Unless you already are making a living playing soprano and need a work tool, you most certainly will best spend your extra money on a decent mouthpiece and some lessons. I'm not much of soprano player, but I spent something like $150 on the cheapest ebay curved soprano I could find, got it adjusted, and it's worked fine for the last 10 years or so. Sounds pretty much like any of the ones in this video (minus the whole skills issue, of course).

Jay you sound fantastic on soprano! You should play it more!

I still love this video! Helped me purchase my curved soprano a year ago! I actually liked the Singers day sound the best in the blind test. I didn't like the straight neck on it though. The Jean Paul had low quality sound imo. Even though it had the more curved neck and cheaper price I couldn't buy it. I ended up purchasing the Conn SC650 Curved Soprano for $714. It was listed over $1,000 on another site. It has great ergonomics and sound. The only complaint I've had is one sticky key that messes with part of the octave key. But I'm happy that it had the best of both worlds and still the same price range.

The Singer's Day really fills up the room with sound. It really sings.

What a beautiful melody!!!

I picked up an excellent condition SC992 on reverb for 3k.... Bronze bell-- LOVE it!!!

Always helpful and well produced content! Congrats. The Yanagisawa stands out specially in the upper range. Surprising how small the diference is considering the price range difference though. The blind test made it a bit clearer to me, but still...

This was awesome!!! You make the cheaper ones sound expensive.

I've been playing the Cannonball sopranos for almost 20 years now. It is a mid grade version, less than half the cost of the Yani, but I really like the ergonomics as I am getting more arthritic, and I have always liked the way they play and sound. I play an arc rather than the curve and always use the curved neck for the richer tone. I also love the Jody Jazz mouthpiece.

It's kind of funny how I made my way back to this video. The time goes by so quickly. I started my son playing with my old Bundy alto, which should have had a complete repad/adjusting the day it was given to me. I had it completely gone over and it never played that way for me before that. But he wa asking me if we could get a better sax (no pun intended). I told him we couldn't afford it at the time. A bit later I pulled it out and was playing some Dave Koz music and really having some fun. He came to me with his jaw on the floor and said he never knew that Bundy could sound so good. The teaching moment! It isn't the instrument that makes the musician, it's the musician that makes the instrument (you all understand what I'm saying). A good musician can make practically any playable instrument sound good. My son finished his degree in music and is now teaching. 😁 He learned a great lesson that day.

omg i love this videos o make comparing sax prices and quality! will you do one for tenor sax?

The fact that most Soprano have a straight bell is what attracted me to it. Even a used Yani is over 2K which is out of my price range since I am a novice and that's why I wouldn't be able to tell the difference in a blind test.

The Yani and the Singer's day sound almost identical, only thing is the Singer's day sounds like it's a struggle to play high notes. Yani all the way. Jean Paul is a bit darker then the other two. I play a Jean Baptiste and had it for over 9yrs and still have it. 🎷

A "curvy" has been on my wish list for a while, and I've always had a thing for a silver sax. To me, the Yani does stand out in the first full demo when you take it up the register, where the JP and Singer sound just a bit stuffy up there in comparison. But to your point, almost imperceptible among the three. Very tempting since the JP and Singer are about the price of a new smartphone. Thanks for doing this video.

The travel restrictions to carry-on luggage apply sometimes but I have been able to get through multiple airports and fly internationally with my Alto Jean Baptiste saxophone. Maybe I won't be able to get away with it on a tenor but I find that a nice smile and a good attitude opens many doors with the airport 😁 authorities and anyone in general. Side note, you never posted which sax was which on the blind test. Great video 📸 🎷😊

I’ve recently purchased a Jean Paul curved soprano, and I love it. It fits my fingers well and I can get a really nice sound out of it. The model I have costs about A$1115 without shipping which is the most I would pay for it. I’ve played sax for about 15 years now and in my opinion the Jean Paul USA saxophones are amazing for their price.

Great video Jay !!! I have gone through the same thing as you did. Btw, almost no difference in sound, but you looked more confortable on the Yany. Thank you !!

Currently I'm playing a Lazarro Sorpano Sax with a Jody jazz HR * mouthpiece. Jay it's the player and the mouthpiece that makes the difference man.

Jay , ;) I have a very vintage ( 1915 ) York & Sons ) Curved Soprano Sax...... AND I am simply thrilled to own it , as well as to occasionally - playing it ..... I also have the Alto , Tenor as well as the C-Melody ! + the Bari !! All of them being of the York family .

ABSOLUTELY LOVE your content! Thanks for the great video as always. Have a great day! And I think I know where your going. The JodyJazz factory in Savannah, Georgia?

Since I went Yani, I haven’t looked back. Got SC992 7years ago for the same travel portability and ‘in-your-face’ feedback reasons among others like built quality, ergo, tone etc. I love the warmer tone of the bronze too. Maybe some pro players stick with straight sop for their pro (sax) ‘look’ and unspoken image (among colleagues) on stage. I love my Series III as well but not not more than 992. You can guess what my next bari brand will be next month....shi...don’t tell my wife 😉

Beautiful video! You explain the complicated world of Curved Soprano Saxes very clearly. In fact, we go from a multitude of economic (Chinese) tools to professional ones, and there is little or nothing at an intermediate level (and even price). I have a straight professional sax and would also like a curved one, but without spending a fortune. I'm in serious trouble. I would be grateful for a suggestion.

Thanks so much for the video because I didn't realized about the different neck curvatures. I'm very much in the market for a curved soprano, but the the choices are overwhelming (Windcraft, Allora, P.Mauriat, Cannonball, Kessler & Sons, Growler, Oleg, Musikwerks, Avalon, Sky Music, K. Blumen, Schiller, Jean Paul, Singers Day, Yany).

Excellent information

They're so small, so cute🤗

The Yani sounds the best to me, the Singer comes in a close second

I really love my singer's day straight soprano. Glad to hear their curved model is pretty good too. I'm hoping to pick up their tenor sometime soon (it's the only sax I don't own) so if you ever get a chance to review their tenor I would love to see that!

I much prefer the sound of the curved soprano. Great to know it fits carry-on! 👍 I'd be happy with either of these.

I play a Vento curved and with my latest recorking the neck with the mouthpiece/ ligature combo and a La Voz 2 I am liking the sound more than ever.but I do have to.lip a lot to stay in tune still

I have a Cecilio curved soprano saxophone in black lacquer. It's price tag is fairly reasonable at approximately $300.00 - $400.00. I also added a "klanbogen" by ReedGeek (around $100.00) which has really enhanced the resonance.

I play a lovely Rampone and Cazzani curved soprano!

I play on yanagisawa sc-9937 in orchestra and it's a nuclear bomb in curved soprano, especially good for jazz music compared to my selmer serie 3. Thanks for the video,Jay!

I bought one straight from a Chinese factory via AliExpress, no problems or leaks as far as I can tell. I figured it went well with the tenor and "little sax" as they're all in Bb.

The Yani and Singers Day sound similar but the Yani has a better sound overall but in the blind test, I couldn't really tell which was which. I got a curved soprano recently as I wanted one for ergonomic reasons as I don't like the weight of holding a straight soprano. my main saxophone is a Yanagisawa AWO2 and I play alto more than soprano, but I always wanted a soprano sax and having played a Conn-Selmer Avant DSS-200 for a year and not liking the weight of holding it, I wanted a curved soprano, so I sold it and after searching around I decied to get a Windcraft WCS-210 from Dakwes Music in the UK. It is made in Tawain and comes with a Yamaha 4C and standard brass 2 screw ligature and x2 Gonzalez reeds. The case is quite nice, and reminded me of a Yamaha saxophone case. I only had it a few days but it seems well made with no key movement. I have to get used to the left hand pinky keys as they are mre angled to the left so they are in the same position as the left hand side palm keys which is different than most other saxophones I have seen or played. I played it for two days and it plays well and is freeblowing with a warm sound using a Eugene Rousseau Studio Jazz SJ6 and a Selmer Concept. I find the curved sopranos have a fuller tone than straight sopranos but the tuning takes more work as you have bends in the body compared to a straight soprano. The only issues I had with it was that the left hand pinky keys and the neck didn't seal well causing an air leak so I had to send it back to get fixed before I can play it properly but it has a 1 year month warrenty amd a 14 day return if I didn't like it, which is good.

Hi Jeff. Well, I travel since 2017 around Brazil playing with my alto on my unicycle. Caring in it makes me think about buying one Curved Soprano, thinking about selling then my alto and only travel caring the soprano, but... I bout one curved soprano "Mitchell" obviously Chinese... and now... I travel with bought!!! Lol!!!

Of course the Yani has a great tone, Singers Day would be my second choice. The S.D. Is close second. I’m hearing a little bit more whine in the Jean Paul that I don’t care for in a soprano. But for 700 bucks you can’t seem to go wrong with the Singers Day for a budget Dax.

Update over a year later: I purchased a Yani SC-WO20 and am very happy with it. I've been on the hunt for a Curved Sop for the same reasons that you have yours, it's a great travel size. I'd like to try a Yani. The key thing to me is ergonomics and the trouble with that is everyone's hands are a different size. So what's great for you, may not be great for me. I've tried a bunch already, I've found some that had great right pinky positioning but terrible left pinking positioning and then some that were opposite to this. I need to find something that has both covered well for me. I'm hoping the Yani covers that for me because it's about the last of my choices. The main reason ergonomics is important because I won't be playing it a lot, I don't want to have to relearn muscle memory because this one has something in a weird position compared to my other saxes because I won't be playing it a lot. So I just want to be able to pick up and play and not have to fight the instrument because that just won't be fun.

Send the Yanagisawa back make your wife happy. Take her on a nice vacation with the price difference. Sound wise, here in my recording studio, there are minor differences but none that would warrant one to cost, more than a few hundred dollars at most, more or less than the other. They sounded wonderful. So go surprise your wife.... take her on a Cruise even with the money you saved.... possibly and probably you both might be happier!!....??? : ) Singers my choice!

I always have a 'mid-price' curved soprano (I've tried a few !) hiding behind my bari in the big band - nobody ever expects a curved sop solo from the bari player, heheh... ;-) They all need good embouchure control, and usually a bit of lipping at the extremes... Great video, thanks !

I have a really cheap Vento, bought it new in 2016 for $600. It's sound it super bright more like the 3rd one you tested.

The Monique curved soprano I bought off eBay 24 years ago is still holding well. Only one adjustment was needed after 10 years in. Not bad for $800 bucks!

Yes

A Yamaha 4 or 5 C mtpc works fine for me. I might upgrade eventually- not sure to what though ? Maybe a Vandoren, Meyer or Otto Link

Can't wait for when you review bass saxophones, have to do them all.

Hi Jay! This review was helpful for me. I recently bought a Karl Glaser curved soprano sax for $400. I listened to a number of clips on what to look for and the potential weaknesses, which were helpful before buying. I play tested 2 of the same model: 1 was horribly out of tune, the other had a sticky bis key, but cleaning the tone-hole solved the problem and it played really nice! So I bought it and I am very happy with it!

This video couldn't have come out at a better time! Just 2 days back I was going through the Jean Paul and Thomann websites comparing their models. The Thomann TCS 350 looked like a pretty good comparison against the JP and I was trying to find more in-depth reviews online. Thank You sir Jay for your amazing work and impeccable timing ! 😀

I would love to see a video about the bari sax by jean paul

All three sound sweet

Jay, awesome comparisons. But would really like to see a comparison with Kessler ($800-$900) as a cost alternative.

Perfect timing... my aliexpress soprano is in the air and should be next week. The hard part is picking out a mouthpiece.....

Would be interesting to see how these compare to the inexpensive Ammoon soprano, especially since I took a gamble and picked one up last year and lucked out, it was even nicer than the one you got.

I’m still waiting for a better sax straight alto

Sounds almost same, but I tink yanagisawa 1 , Jean paul and third single day ... greetings from California ✌🏻👍🏻

Think you will get around to reviewing the Jean Paul bari sax?

I Like the brightness of the Jean Paul; it sounds more like a soprano.

I really like what you play and how good it sounds, but to guess maybe the Z soprano A is the most expensive. There is a Z sopr called Unison I`ve heard. You should try also.

Hi, i prefer the sound of thr jean paul, it sounds more Jazzy than all the others. The yanagisawa i would use if playing blues

Thanks for the video, im guessing that "C" is the Yanagisawa. Its initial note seemed clearer and more responsive. Being at the lower note range I hypothesize that the expense makes this difference. 8>)

The Singer is my favourite. It has a much "jazzier" sound to it. I bought myself the Muriat semi-curved.

I have a Gary Sugal curved soprano. I can't intonate worth a S%^t with it. Picked up a friends Yamaha YSA62 soprano. Immediately, I fell in love with it. Perfectly in tune all octaves. Now if I can just get him to sell it :-(

I recently picked up a Vito VSP curved Soprano at a good deal (under $500l. My VSP Bari is a Yani but I don't the Sop is. It's fine (I don't play much Soprano either)

Hi jay, You should have gone for the bronze model a smoother sound

I love curvy sopranos!

SDSC-2013 Singer´s Day.. sounds good..

It would be interesting to do a comparison with a vintage horn. I bought a curved 1922 Buescher a few years ago which has a great sound but is very difficult to intonate so I bought a Yanagisawa recently (2nd hand) which plays much easier but which has a slightly less "interesting" sound

Thank you so much for all the info, what do you think of the SML SC-620 ? Ever tried it ?

You seemed to have a lot more control over the yani. The Jean Paul was pretty bright in comparison, and the signers day wasn’t that bad, although you didn’t seem to have the same consistency in the tone

You should make a video over a sax that improperly set up with several Loose fitting keys , to show how some one that is practicing on there beginner sac that might not be set up as well ,what effect it could have on your tone and telling the difference between a sour note and a leaky sax

My Oddessy has been brilliant for the money, and sounds great with a nice tone. Less trouble than my Yamaha, and the finish and operation cannot be faulted so far (12 months)