Inspirada
Sloan Canyon
St Rose
“DS Model”
The Eastman 52nd Street DS Model Alto brings in the DS enhancements to the standard 52nd Street design. Primarily, the DS updates are mechanical and ergonomic in nature, but there are also some acoustic and cosmetic enhancements that come along with the DS mechanism. These additions make a marked impact on the performance of the instrument and the feel to the player.
DS – Mechanism
The DS Mechanism is inspired around the concepts used in the high end professional flute industry. Saxophones have always relied on either adjusting screws or compressed materials such as felt and cork to regulate the mechanical articulation of the keywork. The DS model uses a series of thicker paddles with very thin silencing materials between them to articulate the mechanism. This allows for adjustments to stay stable and firm for players. So why don’t more saxes use this? The DS mechanism also relies on a higher end caliber of tone hole manufacture and padding technique. These require much more time and effort. Thankfully, as part of the 2nd Generation improvements done to the 52nd Street horns back in 2020, these improvements were already in place so that the DS mechanism could be added to these horns without issue.
DS – Acoustic
The Eastman 52nd Street DS Model Alto Sax also sees 2 acoustic improvements to the horn. These are in the necks and the resonators.
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- On the original 52nd Street horn, the S neck was standard and is a solid neck with a big, boisterous sound. On the 52nd Street DS Model, the tenor includes the original S neck but also a new H model neck designed in collaboration with Alex Hahn (H stands for Hahn). This new H neck adds a quicker response and attack to the broader tone of the 52nd Street sound.
- The DS Model also sees a switch from nylon resonators to an oversized, solid brass domed resonator. These add some additional weight to the horn but also a larger surface area for the resonator to interact with the vibrating air column. This gives more power, projection, response and resonance to this already outstanding sax! These are paired with the industry’s highest pad, the Pisoni Pro. This pad is also used on the 52nd Street 652 model, so the changeover is only on the resonators.
DS – Cosmetic & Ergonomic
The DS Model sees a few additional ergonomic changes as well as some cosmetic flourishes. Throughout the horn, these little changes make a big difference in the players interaction with the saxophone. The new sculpting to the octave key & rest, the palm keys, and left hand pinky cluster all look a little odd at first to players, but then they feel the horn and are shocked at just how smooth and natural these changes feel in their hands. Then they notice the changeover to metal finger touches inspired from flute keys rather than pearls. These give a little more “feel” of the vibration of the sax in the player’s hands, helping them to feel more in tune with their saxophone’s response. Finally, little flourishes like the braided look to the bell brace and more elegant clothes guard on the back of the right hand stack are in line with the elegant changes to the DS Model series.
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