Yanagisawa A-880 Alto Saxophone

Description

This is a freshly-overhauled 880 alto with a little bit of lacquer wear. If you read around on here, you’ll know that I think that the 880 is one of the best alto saxophones that you can buy for a number of reasons (great tone, great ergonomics, great build quality, great intonation). This horn sings with a medum bright tone with a nice substantial core to it. It has a beefy kind of core to it, and it sounds great for a wide range of styles of music, a lot like a Mark VI. The intonation is excellent, as is the build quality generally. It has a high F#. The ergonomics are modern and very comfortable. This horn will do it all, and it’s quite a bit cheaper than most other altos of this calibre.

It has a fresh overhaul with all new pads, felts and corks, done by Steve Collins. Steve’s specialty is modern altos like this, and he really did a great job on this one. It feels just how it should under the fingers, responds effortlessly, and just plays great. This horn is currently missing the small pants guard on the back, and I’m looking for another one. Of course, the horn plays the same without it!