Mint Condition Used Yanagisawa AWO2 Pro Bronze Alto Saxophone

Intermediate or Professional?
In the past (and still to this day), companies did advertise the A902 (the predecessor to the AWO2) as an “Intermediate” model which would then lead people to think that the replacement AWO2 should be too. However, the truth is that the A902 was NEVER an “Intermediate” sax and neither is the AWO2! This is all due to MANY years ago when the Yanagisawa distribution was handled by Leblanc (Yanagisawa is now distributed by Conn-Selmer, Inc. in North America). They would list all of the 90x series instruments (alto, tenor, soprano & bari) as “Intermediate” models to help justify the price difference for the more expensive 99x series models. This was one of the worst marketing flubs we have ever seen.

The Yanagisawa A902 and the current AWO2 are Handmade Professional Saxophones! Anyone who tells you different simply doesn’t know their Yanagisawa saxes!!! This is one of the reasons why Yanagisawa adopted the new “Professional Model” and “Elite Model” branding in the WO Series. You will find that the single post models (AWO1 & AWO2) are the “Professional Model” and the heavier ribbed model AWO10 and higher models are called “Elite Model”.

Why Bronze?
Bronze gives the saxophone a very unique tone. Bronze is a heavier alloy compared to brass. Standard brass is an alloy comprised of Copper & Zinc, with about 70% of that alloy being copper. Bronze is an alloy that consists of Copper & Tin but with around 88-90% of it being copper. The copper is the primary focus here as it adds more mass to the alloy. The use of bronze helps give the AWO2 a richer, lush tone compared to the brass equivalent model (AWO1).

On the Professional Model, single post horns, we find that bronze can be a wonderful option. Bronze tends to be a hair more resistant due to its increased mass, but the lighter weight construction of the single post horn helps to negate that issue giving instead a sax that is free-blowing, quick responding and wonderfully rich in tone! For many players, especially the hobby player or the adult amateur, the AWO2 is the most impressive overall model due to quality of tone and ease of play that it offers!

Professional Setup
Every horn we send out to a customer is not released from us unless it has been completely setup in our shop first. This is because the setup on the horn is of the utmost importance! Sometimes, a saxophone (regardless of who the manufacturer) comes in needing 20 minutes of adjustments and then the very next one can require 2 hours! So if you were to get 5 of the same model right out of the box, they will all play different. This leads players to believe that they are “good” or “bad” saxes. The reality is that the one that was the best out of the 5 was likely the one that needed the least amount of work and the “bad” sax was the one that needed 2 hours worth of adjustments!

Once the same 5 saxophones are properly regulated and adjusted to perfection, they become near identical saxophones. Even the pickiest of players would be challenged to pick a true “favorite” horn. However, since most stores do not or even can not perform this setup, the player never knows this and is simply relying on the luck of the draw. This is why we perform our setup (in our www.SaxophoneRepairs.com ProShop) on them before delivering your new sax to you. You trust us with your purchase and we want to make sure that you are rewarded by giving you your ideal saxophone setup flawlessly!