Kessler Custom Performance Series Soprano Sax – Dark Lacquer

1 review for Kessler Custom Performance Series Soprano Sax – Dark Lacquer

1. 

   Rated 5 out of 5

   britintexas1959 (verified owner) – April 22, 2024

   First, visually, this sax is absolutely gorgeous with the combination of the dark lacquer and the blackened mother of pearl key touches. The keywork is remarkably smooth, quiet, fluid and responsive, and the intonation is excellent throughout the entire range from bottom Bb through top F#, something that is notoriously difficult to achieve on soprano saxes as opposed to the alto and tenor. If there is any complaint, it is a minor issue; the neck cork is very thin and my own Claude Lakey mouthpiece slid right on without the aid of cork grease with the neck going all the way into the chamber of the mouthpiece (although to be fair, this didn’t happen with the Kessler custom hard rubber mouthpiece, it did with a Selmer HR mouthpiece) and while there didn’t appear to be any leak the mouthpiece did feel a little loose. Makes me think that my tech may need to replace the existing cork with a slightly thicker cork.
   I gave this a thorough workout playing a whole variety of smooth jazz by artists such as Grover Washington Jr, Walter Beasley & Euge Groove and it performed admirably, well above its marketing level of a “student” sax. While my Selmer tenor & alto are my primary instruments for jazz gigs, this sax is more than adequate for the few soprano pieces I do play. Tone-wise, I found it to produce a warmer tone than the standard lacquer finished saxes I’ve played, irrespective of the chosen mouthpiece and reed combination I was using, and the projection is excellent & with no problems with instantly changing from the loudest fortissimo to the quietest pianissimo. I am very confident about using this sax alongside my existing tenor and alto during gigs, it really is THAT good!
   On a pre-sales note, I found the Kessler team to be patient, honest and straightforward in my dealings with them; I guess that’s the advantage of dealing directly with the family-owned manufacturer rather than dealers of the major manufacturers.
   In conclusion, this is a sax that performs well above its price point, and I would highly recommend it to not just students but to musicians like me who primarily use a tenor and/or alto for performances but require a well-made and reliable soprano to complete their sax line up and musical repertoire.

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     David Kessler – May 4, 2024

     So glad you like the horn! Mouthpiece shanks on all saxes are far from “universal” in diameter, and small variations are far more drastic on soprano than the other saxes. This is one of the reasons modern sopranos are actually longer than their vintage counterparts – to force the player to push their mouthpiece on much further than the vintage horns so that the “shank chamber” size variations do not become part of the acoustic chamber of the mouthpiece. Unfortunately, that can be a nuisance to players (& techs). If you plan to use several mouthpieces that do not fit the same, keep a roll of “plumber’s tape” (teflon tape) in your case to quickly build up the cork/mouthpiece seal for a specific mouthpiece.