Yamaha YBS62E baritone saxophone
Origin: Japan, assembled in Europe
Guide price : £3000 approx
Age of review model : New
Date reviewed : June 02

Description : A professional level baritone sax, featuring low A key. The E stands for assembled in Europe.

It's good. It's very, very good. I could end this review right here, but in fairness to other instruments I've taken apart on both the bench and in the review section I feel I ought to at least find a few things to say about this model.

I'll start with the negative points. Well, OK, the negative point. It looks as though the engraving has been done over the top of the lacquer. What this means is that where the horn has been engraved there will be bare brass - chances are that this is an ideal place for oxidisation to take place... and that can work its way under the lacquer in time. It's probably a cost saving idea, but I really do prefer horns that are lacquered over the engraving.

And now the good points!
I was particularly impressed with the substantial, and double, bell to body brace. It looks as though some thought has gone into the design here, with two mount points on the body. One would have been ample, but two means that the load will be spread in the event of a knock to the bell. You might still damage the bell, but you're far less likely to damage the body - which is a huge problem on baritones, requiring the body itself to be dismantled. This is not such a big deal on the Yamaha, having a removable top and bottom bow.

The rest of the body was up to the usual Yamaha standard, nicely put together and neatly assembled - and a high standard of finish.

The keywork is notable - the double arm on the low C key will help to ensure the key cup stays in alignment against the stresses imposed upon it. Likewise, the low A mechanism has a dual arm action which ensures a better closure when not using the left hand bell key cluster in unison.
I did note a small reservation here - the low A is only available via the thumb key. All the low A baris I've played have given the option of fingering the low A by means of an extra key situated below the low Bb spatula on the bell key cluster. It feels ever so slightly unnatural to move the thumb for a low note, but I guess it's something that you'd get used to in no time at all.

There's a dual octave key system too, or rather the upper octave key vents at two places. This is presumably to improve tone and tuning of the upper register. I did have to re-balance this mechanism, so we'll knock off a point for factory setup!

I've also noted a number of owners have had problems with this dual key mechanism failing. It's due to the small flat spring that sits underneath the lower of the two key. What happens is the small screw that secures the spring works loose, allowing the spring to wobble. It then falls off the spring channel and the mech ceases to work. You can see in the photo that the flat spring has dropped out of its channel and is now just dangling from the key. The fix is to tighten up the screw - and to apply a very small drop of threadlock to it to keep it secure.

Under the fingers the action felt relatively light, almost tenor-like, with the keys sensibly spaced and balanced - the overall weight was none too exceptional for a baritone, and the horn felt nicely balanced on the sling.
Tonewise it was all you'd expect from Yamaha. Bright, crisp and clear with lots of body and an evenness of tone and tuning across the board. I did feel that the upper notes were less nasal than is common with many baritones, and this may be due to the double octave key arrangement.
The one thing I look for in a baritone's sound is 'bounce'. It's hard to express what this is - but with many bass instruments there's a tendency for the tone to 'fuzz' around the edges, leaving you with the impression of a sluggish response. The Yamaha had bounce a-plenty - even a hardened bop altoist wouldn't find much to complain about.

The whole thing comes in as substantial a case as you could wish for - though if you intend to do any serious walking with your bari then you might want to consider a shaped fibreglass case.

All in all a very fine instrument indeed. If you're shopping for a top-line baritone and this one isn't on your list - get a new list!

Guidelines for ebayers and other auctioneers