Yanagisawa Vs. Selmer Paris - Which one should you buy? 

And it doesn't rust away like those Selmer saxophones, which have the quality of a 1970s Citroën 2CV.

I've got both, except I've got a 991 plus a 82z. None, imho are as good as either of the Selmer BA's I wished I still had. Oh, I had a MKVI once.... Right back of spanners that was. Awful thing not like my tenor or bari. I seem to be favouring the 82z more at the moment but that might change.

Richard, I like your description of your Reference - 'husky, dark and silky resonates with me! Jim

I Test played once a Ref54 alto Hummingbird model...oh man. What a Nice sweet Sound.

A good summary of events there, Dave. Cheers, Jim

After comparing every pro model I could get my hands on, I was finally able to try a selmer supreme. I bought it same day and have not looked back. I really encourage you to try one. Everyone is different and has different preferences, but I could not beat the wonderful feel and sound of the selmer supreme on any other pro horn. That yani is still a very good horn though so don’t be too disappointed with it! I hope you get to play a supreme some day, ask around your local music stores, call them and ask if they have any supremes you could try out.

Many thanks!

Thanks Martin

I love Yanis too! I will always be a Yanagisawa fan. I have a Yani soprano, a Yani alto, and if I had the right excuse to own 2 tenors, I would get a Yani tenor to go with my VI :)

Did you not like the supreme? Does yani have a better sound? I recently purchased supreme , so waiting for it to arrive. Aw02 i returned.

@@op14435 i personally didn’t like the supreme I love the aw010

@mkwd28 interesting. I tried the aw02 and returned it. Going to try the supreme.

Same here for tenor. Cannonball Albright special for alto

I always tell students and others that my 990u has a brightness like Canonball as opposed to a cheesy smooth jazz brightness which can easily be achieved on any horn with mouthpiece and reed I 'm happy to hear someone else make that observation which I feel is spot on.

Sounds like a plan!

Thanks! Mouthpiece is a refaced Meyer 7M and reed is D'addario SJ Filed

Yep. That's because the YAS-875 design & construction is the perfect blend of both of these saxes. The Yamaha 875 series has the ability to perform at all levels in a fluid manner. I have played them all (pre Supreme model) and had a Selmer Mark VII as a music major in college. I hated that horn. So many intonation issues and alternate fingerings required. I cannot understand the weird thinking that some players (yes, mostly Selmer guys) have where they claim that *working hard to get the horn to perform for you* is somehow why it is a professional horn. What?? That's just insanity. The whole idea & purpose of a *pro level product* is that it is supposed to make your job easier and more efficient to do. If not, use the cheap tool. 🙄 You don't hear that from professionals in other industries say, I paid top dollar for this truck (or tool) because it is professional grade since I can't just turn the key & start it up, but have to first manually open the fuel valve, prime the fuel pump, top off the oil level due to some usual leaks, check the transmission fluid because the seal has some problems, then make sure the electrical system didn't drain my battery over night, and THEN I can turn the key to start it before I can drive. WHAT?? My 3 year old Toyota Tundra work truck works better than my brother's new Chevy. Quality does matter. His truck is currently not working, sitting in his driveway - "like a rock" (Chevy) 😁. Let's be honest. Right now in the saxophone world (and vehicles) the Japanese quality (Yamahas or Yanis -- my soprano is a Yani) is 2nd to none. My YAS & YTS 875s saxes will do everything the Selmers can & more. Mouthpiece, ligature, reed choices and player are the key with them all. Play test them ALL, and do it BLINDFOLDED. Have someone help you do it BLINDFOLDED. Take the time. Record your play tests & sound samples. Make an informed choice based on your own sound, response, feel, and individual results. Then get what fits YOUR personal highest benchmarks and *that horn* is the horn for you -- even if it is a brand you didn't originally think would be "the 1". I will eventually try the Selmer Supreme. Maybe I'll add it to my stable. Other than the price, I'm not opposed to it, but didn't have results that were good enough to buy another Selmer so far. I'm not anti-Selmer; I just can't continue the sacred journey for the holy grail of saxes from someone's closet or attic for a Selmer that actually plays like a fantasy. A few exist, but are rare. Like cars with 400,000 miles still on the road in great shape - a few, but vary rare. (Most dependable high-mileage vehicles are Japanese manufacturers anyway, just saying.) That Yani IS looking very enticing as an addition for me, if an opportunity for a deal with a Woodstone Ishimori (new vintige/VL) horn doesn't pan out. Sax UK, thank you for an excellent review. Your shop's reviews are always very professional and informative.

Some interesting thoughts there. This idea that some higher-level players prefer a natural resistance in the horn so they can mould their own sound rather just rely on the immediate response coming out of the horn is a finely balanced argument. The point you make about ‘pro level product…supposed to make your job easier and more efficient to do’ makes perfect sense and I agree with this. When it comes down to it I think there has to be an acceptable range of ‘resistance’ and I would put both of these brands into this range - just that Yani is at the easier end of it and Selmer is at the other end. I don’t think there’s a huge amount in it. There are other brands out there with different spec to the design - for example Rampone - that require a greater physical effort overall and these instruments, for me, sit beyond this range. But back to the two saxes in question, I think one deceptive factor is that the sound of the Selmer is not as ‘coloured’ and broad compared to the Yani so one gets the impression that it is somehow more resistant, whereas it is actually more about how you hear the sound - and when I play the Selmer I feel a defined ‘core’ in the sound that can lead to that impression, but when it comes down to it there are just different tonal characteristics going on. Cheers, Jim

@@JunkMailBoxStuff mmm.. not friend, don' t agree! Japanese saxes like Yam and Yani probably has the best mechanic.. and a great sound... but not the best. The best sound is by Selmer. Aand the Japanesse cars are one of the best in the world, yes.. but not the best. The best cars are Germans without doubts!

@@HonestSaxSound-unEdited- Should I trade out one of my current inventory for a Keilwerth? I tried the Shadow & wasn't won over. Same with the SX & it was oddly picky about mouthpiece choice. I wonder if rounded toneholes really make that much difference. 🤷‍♂️ P.S. - Had a 1982 Mercedes 240D when I lived in Lörrach, W. Germany. Solid vehicle, but nothing like my '79 Datsun 280ZX. Yes, apples to oranges -

@@HonestSaxSound-unEdited- Selmer is French, not German buddy.

Hows your supreme holding up so far? You regret buying it or no?

@@op14435 no issues with the mechanics. I do not regret it. But there are a lot of good saxes less expensive.

Yanagisawa 👏👏👏👏👏👏

​@@lucasax78mark vi 😮😊😊😊

I guess that's a video for another day - I wanted to pin down Yani against Selmer first as these are literally our two most popular saxes.

Why?

Refaced Meyer 7M and D'addario SJ 3S Filed

Ive heard incredible things about the supreme however, and that quality is far and above what the mark 6s were.

Good morning Dragon Lord .Your take on the Mark Vl is spot on. You actually made me laugh . For years l realised Selmers are overratedand overpriced horns.

People are willing to spend more for that brand name, that's it

@@johnm3844 Indeed… but Yany is better

I’ve never played on a non Yamaha but I love them so much. My YTS 200AD lasted me 5 years of marching band without a single time I had to take it in. Granted, I probably SHOULD have taken it in to get it checked, but that thing has been through hell and back and still is a great horn. I just started playing a YAS 480 and it’s so smooth and amazing to play on. It’s my school’s sax so when I graduate I have to get my own alto and I think I’m going to get the YAS 62III. I’m considering a Selmer and Yani but I know Yamahas to be reliable, affordable, and beautiful sounding so I think I’m sticking with that Yamaha. I barely considered a P Mauriat but they aren’t really considered as high end as the other three. Japanese and French made horns are typically the best

You are quite wrong . I’ve owned 2 matte lacquered Serie III alto’s and that matte lacq wears off at the touch points fast and the part(s) becomes shiny .

I looked it up online and ref. 54 has different matt finish than SA80III. It is called vintage finish. Also the horn I played was 20+- years old and heavily played every day and there were almost no signs of the lacquer wearing off. I think it could make a difference. The Selmer supreme looks like it had vintage finish too.

@@bxsoup The matte finish horns do play darker though. I am a tech and have played many many serie III SAT serie II satb serie 54 AT I agree with Petr

Well said👍👍👍

Thanks for your thoughts. The mouthpiece is a Meyer 7M (refaced) plus D'addario Select 3S Filed reeds. Yes, I really felt the extra 'presence' in the Selmer sound and that's what personally moved me. Jim

Yanagisawa

They don't call them Yamahahahaha's for nothing hahaha😮😅😂

Complete Bullshit. Yanagisawa produce probably the most refined instruments nowadays. Selmer lives from its past name and charges big money for that.

@@JustiaFiat I had Yanagisawa, it was terrible, a constant struggle with sound. It's a strange sound. When I changed it to a yamaha, I became happy, but the yamaha is very bright but much better, it's a saxophone, yanagisawa is a fake saxophone.

How much did selmer pay you to say that lol

@@TWO20 This is my experience, I was very disappointed. Yanagisawa is a good saxophone for people who are tired of normal sound, if you want something strange, suffer with sound and problems, then Ynagisawa is an excellent choice. I am writing this to warn other people against bad purchases. I would be very glad if someone had warned me earlier.

@@TWO20 I also like the Conn saxophone, it's a great sound and a Brilhart mouthpiece, maybe I'll buy a Conn 6m