How Good Is the BetterSax Alto?

[@FoolishFrankie]

My guess is that extra piece of cork is just in case any of the corks fall off you can slice a piece off and put some back on. Maybe not, but I had to do that with my Eastman and it came with a bunch of smaller pieces🙈 Great unboxing man!

[@knottednumber]

Yooo i love your channel

[@bassax7045]

not sure , maybe just Sweetwater to impress with extra cheap accesories,no white gloves though 🤣 , my better sax came without the extra cork ,rest was the same but no spare cork

[@rayjeezygames]

i remember you replied to my comment once

[@tafita_andrianasolo1512]

One of my friend use pièce of cork, like the one in the video, in order to let the hole open (i dont Know how to Write it in english) so that in doesnt stick

[@th3j0t46]

@@knottednumber same lol

[@bosephburcios]

i’m so happy you did a classical showcase i’ve been wanting to see one on the better sax for so long

[@AcevedoDMA]

This is what I need!

[@ed.z.]

The most amazing demonstration I’ve seen in forty years. And it’ll probably save sax students a fortune.

[@Harako15]

1:27 Hey look, a wild Mingus

[@LiamAnderson-kw7mp]

Always a good day when Nathan uploads.

[@directcurrent5751]

Even Jay's packaging is classy! We're lucky to have Jay in our life. Everything he does is top drawer. If he can make a high quality but very affordable saxophone, game changer! I think closest we have US matching those attributes is JEAN PAUL.

[@theyeak]

Hi Nathan! You have a lot of jazz tutorials, but do you think it would be possible to go over some classical saxophone fundamentals? Correct embouchure, tongue position, oral cavity, etc. Love the content man

[@Fshdoute]

Nice video. You inspire me to play. I joined the high school marching band this year. I dreamed of this durring 7th grade now im in 8th grade marching with other friendly saxophonists. I am so glad to be where I am today just because I watched a saxologic video.

[@jeffreyfelder7981]

Ive played a ton of saxophones, ive played expensive horns on gigs and $300 horns on gigs... it's not always the horn, when it comes to sound, your sound is your sound regardless of what horns you play... you sound great on all of them.

[@saxofonspelaren]

I am am very glad that you are back in saxbiz you are really needed. Bettersax horn is amazing for the price even the fact that you never fail!😄

[@shoelace6836]

Every upload of yours further convinces me to learn sax

[@clintwestwood1895]

Wow dude... a new star has been born. A few more weeks and I will be buying the BetterSax. I think Jay will go down in history for this one and rightly so.

[@stevelacatena]

I like the Mark VI best for both the jazz and classical things you played. It had that Mark VI core sound. The Yamaha seemed a little brighter to me with a very slightly thinner sound than the Mark VI. It seemed like the Better Sax modeled itself around the Mark VI sound. The Better Sax seemed like a fantastic choice for a beginner, intermediate, and even advanced before moving on to a fully professional horn.

[@TedMaciag]

Nice video. For me, a player of 60 years the YAS was the best overall. The Selmer was best on the classical passages, but I really liked the YAS there too. The BetterSax for the price is a great sounding horn. I could play that out and with a few EQ tweaks warm it up. It certainly is a good value horn. Nice job. Good luck to you.

[@toddjones6946]

I always look forward to seeing you play the sax, makes my day every time

[@chezswing]

Youre back! Good to see some new content. Also I love that you named your dog Mingus.

[@davidcooper3910]

YAS EXII: Very warm/rich tone with lots of clarity Selmer: brighter jazzy sound with slightly quieter keys BetterSax: beautiful looking horn with what feels like a bright sound as well. very well rounded for the price. W for all of them

[@braedenmorris3160]

It’s such a good surprise when u click on a saxologic video and realize it posted 2 hours ago

[@gusmarrero]

Awesome review/unboxing and your sound is superb. By the way, I can tell your muscles " I see you ...." Beast arms.

[@Saxologic]

Haha thanks Gus yes sir!

[@dk7472]

Honestly surprised how powerful sounding the yamaha is. You make all of those saxes sound fantastic!

[@fabio93bg]

yes the Yamaha was really presente, big

[@Beauweir]

I can fully respect a demo done using classical music. I've never seen that before on KZbin.

[@rhamses]

Hey Nathan! Nice video. I'm looking for my first saxophone ever and have been looking into this model but other videos have not been this good in compare it with other models, thanks for that.

[@thepianokid27]

Amazing value from the BetterSax! Sounds absolutely fantastic for its price!

[@manuelvalencia9407]

From what I can see and hear, for the price, you can't go wrong. $900. Cool deal! Thanks for your video. It sounded like the Better Sax was similar to the Mark VI.

[@kooky74]

The sound comes mainly from the player and the mouthpiece. You are a good player and it seams you used the same mouthpiece. Then all are nice. Thx for the video

[@cardboardmusic]

I don't know if it's the same company anymore, but Bundy used to make great plastic clarinets (and probably other stuff too). I played several of the instruments for ages, as they were good 'doubling' options - nice bass clarinet as an example. It's fun to see they still make good quality 'cheap' stuff. Also for the story (of your testing ideas), I know that John Ruocco (famous sax player and teacher in northern Europe) plays a very cheap 500€ sax nowadays. It sounds really good, and I guess if he sold off his Selmer, he's enjoying the extra cash and still making great music.

[@johnthomson2377]

It's great that you were able to come out to my hometown to visit Sweetwater!

[@anthonydevenuto6881]

This man deserves 10,000,000 views so good

[@garyboyd3255]

I like my original issue Bettersax horn better than my others. I have played Yamaha, Yani and Selmer. The Bettersax is lighter and is better in tune. I got a special setup by Sweetwater, which probably made the difference, and it was at the end of the first run of no F-Sharp. But with a Meyer's style mouthpiece, it has been great with two-years of use. A better horn than most vintage horns will be without Matt Stohrer next door.

[@mrm2579]

Ps. Thanks for visiting Fort Wayne, Indiana and the Sweetwater headquarters! Come back soon.🎷🙌🏽💫🎶

[@ds1755]

⁠The better sax sounds really good. One thing I did noticed when you were playing it was it looks like that horn requires a lil more air/effort to blow. Maybe it’s the mouth piece or neck or maybe a combination of both. In the end I understand it’s a beginner sax but a good horn to start on. Thanks for the demo.

[@bilbostoy]

Yamaha sounded great. All the horns sounded great. It's the player who is responsible for the sound. What is amazing is that the Better Sax is thousands of dollars cheaper than the Mark VI and the Yamaha and sounds good along side those great horns.

[@seandennis3148]

Well done! For my sound concept of an alto, the Better Sax was surprisingly good in that company. I think that the only example the Mark VI outplayed it, for me, was the slow classical. To what I want sound wise from an alto, the Yamaha 875EX was delivering fabulous results and consistently outperformed both the others. I realise that at only 15% the cost of the 875EX the BetterSax horn represents excellent value. Thank you for the brilliant playing!

[@cookieman136]

I agree completely. The Yamaha performed best.

[@Jack-Barton]

The one bag with the cork was packing materials that originally came with the sax. When it came out of the Conn-Selmer warehouse, the cork and foam cubes were likely pressing some keys down for transportation. Since Sweetwater does an extra inspection at their warehouse, they probably removed them from the sax, but put them back in the case for some reason.

[@Jack-Barton]

@saxologic. Hooray!

[@DustinKreidler]

To replace my Selmer Model 22 (ca. 1927) which was woefully underpowered for leading a big band (having played bari for the past 20 years), I bought the Better Sax pack (alto, Burnin' mouthpiece and the ring ligature) from Sweetwater, assuming worst case scenario, I could just return it because Sweetwater is awesome. No need. This horn rips, plays effortlessly in tune, and as this video demonstrates PERFECTLY: The Yamaha and the Selmer might be "better" horns... but they are NOT 5x or 7x better. So what does that extra $4K or $6K buy you, exactly? Name recognition? If that's worth it to you, by all means. Me, I'm holding out hope for a BetterSax bari. And if I ever need to replace my Martin Committee II tenor, I'm going straight to the BetterSax tenor. (Note: the one thing that I heard clearly was the Yamaha has the quietest key action of all three. Both the Selmer and the BetterSax had a lot more pad-clank on the classical piece than the Yamaha. I went back to re-listen, but the Yamaha was clearly the quietest horn, mechanically-speaking. Stuff to keep in mind depending on the style of music you're looking to play)

[@dominikn19]

Man, I don’t know a thing about saxophones, but I really enjoy watching nerdy saxophone videos a lot! 😂 Especially when they’re played that well! 🙏 Always gonna watch your wonderful content, Nathan! 🔥

[@paulgentile1024]

nerdy ?....this is hip

[@dominikn19]

@@paulgentile1024 Of course it is. By nerdy I mean "into detail". Non-saxophonists wouldn’t talk about all of this. Nerdy is kind of a synonym for passionate in this context. Have a good one!

[@PierceG-z4f]

Let’s go the legend is back!

[@yoshitravelsjapan]

Nice to hear how it sounds with classic setting🎉

[@lauracollins5298]

Great musicianship friend!

[@yothisiselmo]

as a drummer who just started sax, i was like, man this guy looks familiar for some reason. lol cool channel

[@ISLEaxe]

Great sax comparisons. Im mark six and yanagisawa fan however the better sax does give a good rivalry. Thanks for great demonstrations.

[@patrickflores6880]

I think the craftsmanship from the BetterSax is just as exceptional compared to the more expensive Yamaha Custom EXII & Selmer Mark VI. However all they three of them have a certain character that the listener could tell the horn would perform excellent on; for instance, the BetterSax displayed excellent projection during your jazz part in the video (and even sounded great with the Ferling etudes!), alongside with the Mark VI. The Yamaha can sound nice on jazz, but the overall timbre of the instrument wants to lean more into a classical setting in which it performs exceptionally well. No surprise to the Mark VI performing great with classical (but it was surprisingly nice to hear that you can make equipment -the BSS neck - sound great on classical)! Overall, great job displaying a comparison between these three horns!

[@TarzanTheGreat17]

I've put in my entries to the giveaway. This would be a really cool horn to have alongside my YAS-62 that I've had for almost 6 years now. The BetterSax sounds like a nice and darker contrast to my normally brighter sound. I would love to invest in a BetterSax Tenor or Soprano if those get made in the future!

[@thelookingcat]

Playing classical on the Mark VI gave me a good chuckle. They all sound fantastic though. Def gonna pick up a Better Sax though.

[@bccoregon]

Selmer wins every shootout ive ever listened to. How does Selmer manage to sound so much better than any competition? Everybody wants to know.

[@Michelle-bn1fu]

Selmer is super pitchy in this demo.

[@bambino100011]

The Selmer VI has that classic jazz sound that I really like. =)

[@michaelbednall2610]

Mintzers got some tasty lines in his solo on Mosaic, nice one 👍

[@brittanyatterberry]

That horn is amazing!!!

[@arnaugarrofe3559]

I dig this Bob Mintzer Solo! Yeah man!

[@brandonforster8635]

I'm saving hard for a better sax and burning mouthpiece combo!! They look amazing!!!

[@Ramcazz]

Great comparision! That bettersax sounds good☺️

[@yddra1732]

Loved your video as always! Just had a thought though, do you think it would be possible to add the name of the pieces your playing excerpt of somewhere ? I have very little knowledge about the classical saxophone repertoire and it would be lovely to be able to find the whole thing that you are showcasing. I know it would probably be a lot of additional work for only a small amount of people interested in, so I totally understand not doing it, but I'd love it!

[@Thejet9750]

The goat is back 🥳

[@Radiosabines]

Thx for the video that confirm that the sound comme from the player, and your sound is very good, , on 3 sax, Better SAx from bundy seems reallly well made , vive la Musique!

[@JoJoRock197]

How does it compare to the Jean Paul AS 400?

[@DoJ22]

love these videos, keep em coming man 👌

[@mcruz9063]

HE'S BACK

[@MichaIsraelKovler]

Dear Nathan Perhaps you would consider sharing with us your amazing musician side on your next videos, not just your merchant side... With love!

[@jpdj2715]

All sound great, in your hands and mouth. Where the differences would likely be greatest is at the upper and lower end of the ranges of these instruments. They might not be identical in range, also?

[@WilfredCamacho]

Excellent review. Bravo!

[@AbnerBrijesh]

Hello Nathan, I had a quick question about the bettersax saxes. I’m considering buying my first tenor sometime soon, and I’m currently looking at the Jean Paul TS-400. I’m mainly a classical player but I wanted something on the cheaper side that is of good quality as I start to play more jazz. Based on your experience with this bettersax instrument and the Jean Paul alto, do you think it’s worth paying an extra 400-500 dollars for the bettersax (estimated release date in the fall) or is the difference not worth the extra money. I know this comparison isn’t perfect since you’d be basing it off the altos but if you had to say, what would you recommend. Thanks :).

[@bxsoup]

BettterSax is currently in the process of making the tenor version . You may want to wait a bit .

[@saxplayer377]

I would have a problem being satisfied with anything with Bundy stamped on it.

[@maximoose935]

I loved your comparison!! I was wondering if you could share what you were pieces you were playing?

[@Mythosaur-r2f]

The case reminds me of the the Selmer AS111 Student Alto Saxophone.

[@juliocesarvargas6665]

I will always say that it is not the instrument that's the instrumentalist..! ✌🏻 😎

[@Maria-In-Motion]

Love it. Is the contest closed?

[@fortunaa_]

i love seeing mingus in the background

[@francismadale8525]

I'm hoping to win the that horn. I really enjoyed your contents. I love watching your videos especially when you mix it with a bit of comedy haha.

[@chrisperyagh]

I had to do some repair work on a BetterSax alto the other week as it got kicked over by a kid at a wedding which shunted the high E and F# pillars at the top end right into the body, bent the main body tube and twisted the bell out of line as well as other usual damage resulting from a fall. I had to unsolder the socket, the lower 8ve vent and the pillars which are mounted on a baseplate as well as remove the bell so I could get a body mandrel inside as the body was also banana-shaped. It all straightened out easily enough as the metal is much thinner and softer on these saxes compared to a Yamaha or other saxes, the dents pushed out easily leaving hardly any stretch marks on the lacquer and everything got soldered back together without any lacquer damage which is always a bonus. The honey coloured lacquer on these saxes is TOUGH! The bell was sealed using some sort of dark grey silicone sealant/caulk stuff which I had to completely remove all traces of (which wasn't easy) in order to epoxy the bell to bow joint which is structurally stronger than silicone and can always be separated without any lacquer damage. I know some people prefer to solder the bow to body joint on saxes with removable bells (US finished Selmer saxes were soldered which is a pain in the arse), but that just defeats the object of having a removable bell and the risk of lacquer damage is greater. The owner had previously brought it into me just after he bought it for setting up as he was finding it wasn't speaking too cleanly in the RH notes and low D as he wanted, so I opened up the RH main action and the low C and bell key ventings up to Yamaha specs and that sorted it out. The LH main action and palm keys were fine. One thing I don't care much for is the design of the G# key overlever as it has a strange curved shape and it's too long, when a straight one that's around 2mm shorter will work better.

[@dagadbm]

do you recommend the bettersax or a yamaha student one?

[@chrisperyagh]

@@dagadbm It depends on your budget - if you can stretch to a Yamaha, then go for that. If you haven't got enough for a new Yamaha and want something that's better built than a cheapo Chinese sax where quality control is minimal, then these BetterSax altos should be fine provided they've been set up well, or if you can factor in the cost of having them set up should you need to. If anything, brand new Selmer saxes (SIII, Ref.54, etc.) costing 10x the price of a BetterSax aren't well set up or have all that great quality control. Yamaha saxes from all their various factories (Japan, Indonesia and China) all have the level of quality control you'd expect from Yamaha as they have a reputation to keep.

[@brittanyatterberry]

The LOOK @7:13 😂😂😂 I busted out laughing

[@benderbi]

Am I wrong if I say that I loved those classical stuff on the Mk VI? 😍

[@dragonquestfan2002]

I thought the same thing, it sounds so warm and soft

[@benderbi]

@@dragonquestfan2002 agree. I think it was beautiful.

[@donaldphillips2648]

Thanks for your wonderful Alto BestSax comparison video! I was on the fence about getting this horn but your video made up my mind and I'm going to get it. Would you say that Amazon or Sweetwater is the best place to get this horn? The price is the same so it's a matter of service, I know about Sweetwater but have never purchased from them before. Any thoughts about it would be appreciated!

[@mikebell4674]

Dude, I'm sold. I getting a Better Sax. My Wife broke my Jupiter. I'm going to replace with that. Thanks 😢

[@vespass225]

I by far preferred the Yamaha sound, followed by Selmer, and then Bettersax

[@fbales]

Very cool. And thanks!

[@richardcasey7521]

All three sounded great to me. Any differences in sound is splitting hairs. For $900 I would buy the Better Sax. Of course how any horn feels has a lot to do with the choosing process.

[@travisshrey6720]

Maybe it would sound different in person, but I like the way you sound on the BetterSax more than the mark 6 (ducking from projectiles of all the mark 6 fanbois).

[@MaximPustovit]

Absolutely different embouchure work in different styles. Wow! How it possible to control? 🤯

[@samucaeosmano9207]

Can someone pls tell me what song he played at 7:35

[@ekesamuel8795]

Pls do a comparison between the better sax tenor and the nexus tenor

[@jpdj2715]

That piece of cork, is it intended to keep the octave hole open, when you're not playing? They other tone holes will be open when you don't touch the instrument, but the octave key is normally closed and the pad consequently under pressure.

[@JazzbLu]

Are you using the same mouthpiece for all horns? If not then are you using the mouthpiece that came with the sax? My favorite is the Selmer, to which I own one. Then I would go for the BetterSax I think. Very tough decision between the Yamaha and the BetterSax.

[@samucaeosmano9207]

dude youre so good too its unfair

[@HarryScholar-ut1lv]

If only KZbin had existed when I was in high school, I might not have given up after I graduated...

[@catherineforestier4580]

Ton niveau musical te permet de faire sonner n importe quel instrument! Meme une carotte sonnerait avec toi !😅 Merci pour cette video. Cathi

[@robertzantay5923]

Your cost estimate for the Selmer Mark 6 is not in line with my experiences. I bought my Mark 6 in 1965, used for $250. I should say that my father was a successful lead alto, clarinet, flute at the Roxy and the Copa Cabana nightclubs. He told me that I had found an exceptional saxophone and I would never need another alto. He was correct, I still play that horn everyday. I bought a tenor mark six about twelve years later, for $350 from a well regarded collector in Massachusetts. I sold the tenor four or five years ago for ten thousand dollars. I included the original wooden tri-pack case, and a form fitted Manning sax case. I have been offered thirteen thousand dollars for my alto which will be great for my daughter when she sells my instruments after I have left the building. If you own a Selmer Mark Six in good condition, you can set the price pretty much wherever you want to. Mark Six Selmers are not being made anymore.

[@davidclaro152]

Wow! Amazing horn ata great price!

[@DaveKGold]

Overall, I definitely liked the sound of the Yamaha the best. At times I liked the Better Sax better than the Selmer, especially in the later excerpts you played. Considering the price, the Better Sax is pretty dang good. And one never knows that with a different mouthpiece you may very well end up with even better sound, because you really sort of need to match the mouthpiece to the horn. I would buy one if I was in the market for an alto and didn't have a bunch of cash for it. Thanks for playing some classical stuff along with the other pieces. I really appreciate that. How's the regulation on the Better Sax out of the box? And after maybe some tweaks? Wondering if we can convince Jay in to making a Bari....! How's the regulation on all three with a tuner?

[@Nn-uh2kb]

Great video! Truthfully, the Yamaha and Mark VI both have their merits, but the Better Sax sounds significantly worse across the board. Still, for the price? What a great instrument.

[@palletcolorato]

The Better Sax has a tin-like ring to it. The Yamaha sounds very good, and the Mark VI sound is amazing!

[@rickspyder6159]

Glad I got the yamaha Is all I can say

[@EdgarByars]

yes sir

[@EdgarByars]

@saxologic.wow! this is the greatest day of my life!

[@DrThornton1]

Soooo.... where does the Nexus fit in a comparison like this? Or do you not have the Nexus any longer?

[@davidclaro152]

Where are the giveaway instructions? I’m interested!

[@iambeckypan]

The cork might be used to prop up the G# and C# keys like key leaves

[@episodicstudiosllc]

I don't know if I missed it in the video, but what is the lick you are paying first? It sounds similar to Paul Desmond on "Maria"

[@donnicholson3200]

Wow, unabashed advertisement for BetterSax :) The 875 blows the Selmer out of the water and the Selmer blows the BS out of the water. Only the 875 is left in the water. Nice playing, dude.

[@samuelsullivan9546]

I'm a total beginner at 78 years of age. I bought the BetterSax a little over a week ago. This makes me feel great about my decision. However, your sax sounds better than mine. Why?😁😁

[@tomnicbl367]

it probably sounds different because he has a better trained embouchure and technique

[@tomnicbl367]

@saxologic. 💀💀

[@dagadbm]

i think the problem is the mouthpiece. It comes with a pretty terrible one from what I understand

[@CodyCook-z1t]

can anybody inform me as to what the classical piece he was playing was? it sounded awesome!

[@timbersax]

Mark VI simply the best sound 🙌🏻🔥