H. Couf Superba I bass sax (made by Julius Keilwerth)
Country of origin: Germany
Serial #: 871XX
Date of manufacturing: 1983
Date of review: 2021
Mouthpiece/Lig: 1. #5 Runyon bari sax blank customized for bass with Rovner Dark.
2. # 7 Runyon Custom bari sax MP customized for bass with Rovner Dark.
3. Geo Bundy pickle barrel bass sax MP with Rovner bass sax lig.
4. Riffault (?) pickle barrel bass sax MP with Rovner bass sax lig.
5. New Vandoren SM 560 bass sax MP with convention 2 screw lig that comes with MP.
Reed used: MS Carbon Onyx Fiberreed by Harry Hartmann.
In February I had the opportunity to play-test a H. Couf Superba I bass saxophone for the first time, and compare it to my beloved Buescher bass that I have had for over 20 years now. Before I tried it, I really wasn’t sure what to expect. I had gotten some information from my colleague, Uwe Ladwig, about these JK basses, but trying one in person is a far cry from reading about them—regardless how learned the writer of the review is. 😉
I should mention Uwe is the only person I know who has owned both a JK bass and a vintage American bass saxophone, so he is uniquely qualified to compare/contrast these instruments.
Specs
- Bb bass saxophone – 1 8va lower than Bb tenor
- Couf Superba I bass is a stencil of Keilwerth’s Toneking Special
- Vintage American style bass (long wrap)
- Range: low Bb to high Eb
- Lacquer finish
- Weight: < than the 18lbs. of the Buescher
- Fixed thumb rest
- Double tone arms on low C
- Articulated G# key
- Right-sided bell keys
- Sink trap neck
- Bis Bb key
- Bow to body connecting ring
- Soldered, straight tone holes
- Hand engraving
Tone
The tone from this Couf Superba I bass is what you expect from an American-style bass saxophone: big, fat, sonorous. When paired with my Runyon blank that had been customized for bass saxophone, the horn sounded huge. Although I did not have my Buescher there to compare it to, I have to say I didn’t notice a difference between the two in tone. The Couf is through and through a bass saxophone, and vibrated in my hands, through my body, and out through the room I played it in like a boss.
Intonation tendencies of the Couf
I had heard from Uwe that these JK basses play perfectly in tune. In under an hour of total playing time, I was able to achieve perfect intonation with no difficulties whatsoever.
Runyon blank 5 with MS Carbon Onyx Fiberreed
This is the MP that I tried first, and on which I achieved perfect intonation in no time. No fuss. No muss. No problems.
As the time progressed however, my reed grew softer, and intonation did begin to suffer. This result was the same on all the MPs I tried, which tells me I would need at least a M Carbon Onyx bari Fiberreed.
Vandoren bass MP
In the Couf’s case was a brand new, never-been-opened, Vandoren bass sax MP. These Vandoren pieces require a true bass sax reed. Also in the case was a box of # 3 Vandoren bass sax reeds. Sadly though, these #3s were way too hard for me.
I did try the Vandoren MP with the MS Carbon Onyx bari reed, and from what I could tell this is likely the MP that will allow the Couf to sound its best. All it needs is the proper strength bass sax reeds.
Response
The Couf Superba I bass saxophone by Keilwerth is a fantastic bass. When Keilwerth built it, they corrected a number of the issues that plagued the bass saxophones of American origin.
Vintage American bass saxophones are known for a stuffy sounding D2 and C2. The way we as players get around these notes is by using alternate fingers. Keilwerth fixed this problem. Both the D2 and C2 played effortlessly on the Couf Superba I. It was like playing any conventional saxophone.
The scale was quite even, and would likely be more even when the leaking was fixed. Yes, there were leaks. It was very noticeable once you hit the C1, but it is quite possible the leak is higher up in the body tube. However, without a leak light, and without taking off a key, it was not really possible to see where those leaks were located.
Despite its obvious need for what I call an overhaul light, the Couf bass was light and limber in its key work. It was obvious that this horn has not been in a shop for decades. The original grease on the rods is long gone, and the felts and corks are suffering from age.
There is an exercise I do every time I warm up. I was given this Going Over The Break exercise by one of my teachers years ago. It is a fantastic exercise to make sure you are breathing properly, and for bari players this kind of stuff is a must.
You tongue the first G and then slur the rest of the notes. So it works on finger dexterity, breathing, and execution all at the same time.
Even though I hadn’t played the Couf before, I was almost able to play this exercise cleanly. I did not always play the D2 perfectly, and I admit I did crack the note about 25% of the time. However, given that I am out of practice on bass saxophones in general, and don’t know the peculiarities of a JK bass, I was most impressed. I know in no time at all I would be able to nail this exercise on the Couf.
Feel
There is simply no comparison between the Couf and my Buescher True Tone. None.
As noted above, the horn is light, limber, and quick in action and response… And this is even without it having been seriously worked on in a shop for decades—if ever.
Ergonomically the horn is quite well laid out. The large, deep MOP key touches are extremely comfortable for your fingers. The left and right pinkie tables are very well laid out, and respond quite quickly, despite having über long rods and needing proper lubrication.
The left palm keys are the only ones that are not as ergonomically easy to find as the rest of the horn. However, after a player spends a little time on the horn, they would come as second nature. Unlike the newer, SX 90 bass saxes that Keilwerth produces today, these left palm keys are not adjustable.
What is fantastic about the Couf, is that it simply feels like a saxophone. It is laid out like one and responds like one. It requires no more air—perhaps even slightly less—than my Couf baritone. Yes, you read this correct. It does not require a ton of air, even in its current leaking state. I can only imagine what it would play like after a visit to the shop for an overhaul light.
Build
Like all Keilwerth saxophones, the Couf is built to last. These are not horns that fall apart from use. These are true pro horn: Built for regular, heavy use. Built to sound and respond like a professional musician needs their horn to. Built to last a lifetime+.
As I have said many times before, I am not a tech, or do I play one on TV. 😉 I am a mere sax player with about 30 years on the instrument, who has spent hours hanging around shops while techs have worked on my horns. For serious reviews from a tech’s perspective, I always defer to Steven Howard.
In this case, Steven has not reviewed a conventional JK bass, but only a custom bass that was built to low A. I am not sure how much of the review applies to this 10 year older Toneking Special stencil, but some very much does. For those salient points alone, Steven’s review is worth the read.**
Features
The Couf Superba I bass has double arms on the low C key. In the photo you can also see the bow to body connecting ring, as well as the straight, soldered tone hole chimneys.
The Couf has only one bell to body support brace, but it is certainly a sturdy one. What I did find interesting is that in the old American bass saxophone cases there was a belt built in used to support the bell. The JK cases have no such belt. Keilwerth must be very sure of their single bell to body support.
Like on all Couf saxophones, the engraving on this Superba I was done by hand.
Like some vintage Conn bass saxophones, the Couf Superba I has what is sometimes called a sink trap neck. The darkening of the lacquer on the section with the water key indicates that it has likely been resoldered at some point.
Why? Don’t know. There is no evidence of repair anywhere on the outside or inside of the neck’s knee.
Finish
It needs to be noted that despite this horn being by definition what we call a closet horn, as evidenced in a number of the photos above already, the lacquer finish is suffering from what so many JK horns suffer from: some surface red rot.
“Red Rot” is commonly used to refer to any reddish patch of corrosion on a copper-based alloy, such as brass. However, this loose usage covers two distinct but related conditions, surface corrosion and deterioration of the alloy due to de-zincification.
Red rot is found in brasses, which are alloys of copper and other non-ferrous metals, such as zinc. As the alloyed metal, most often zinc, is corroded out of the brass, a lattice-work of copper is left which is reddish in appearance.
If this happens on the surface of the part it is relatively harmless. Only a very thin layer of zinc has corroded away, and the part will likely continue to perform well.
Source: hornmatters.com
Why is it the JK horns suffer from red rot? This I can’t tell you with 100% certainty.
However, anyone who owns a JK from circa the late 60s onward, will attest to the fact that their horn has at least a bit of it—often in spots where no saliva or hand prints come in contact with the finish. At this point I can only surmise that Keilwerth changed the chemical composition of their lacquer sometime after the late 1950s, since we are unlikely to see red rot in the JK horns pre 1960s.
I should mention that even though red rot is most common in lacquer horns, even the 1968 Blackgold Couf bari I got that had been a closet horn, does have just a bit of red rot in a couple of the most unlikely of places. Strange, huh?
It would be curious to know why Keilwerth changed their lacquer, and when they did so. Seems to be research for another day…
Some more photos of the Couf Superba I bass
These photos were taken by the Brass and Woodwind Shop in Victoria, BC.
Bottom Line
I really didn’t know what to expect when I went to play this Couf Superba I bass saxophone for the first time. I just knew it was a once in a lifetime opportunity to try one when I saw it pop up for sale at the shop in Victoria. Given that Keilwerth only makes 2-3 bass saxophones per year, there are very few of these babies floating around in the wild.
Unlike the P.O.C. Jinyin-made bass I play-tested in 2016, this horn was built like and played like a dream. There is simply no comparison. The old adage: You get what you pay for has never been truer.
If you are a bass saxophone player, and you have the opportunity to ever play a JK-made bass saxophone—whether it’s for sale or not—you owe it to yourself to do so. These are unique instruments that are in a class by themselves. That said, finding one in your neck of woods is about as likely as winning the lottery, since the last estimate I saw from JK was that there are approx. 150 of these horns in the world. Now that number may be outdated by now, but still likely pretty close to reality.
Despite what my learned colleague Steven Howard wrote about the low A JK bass, these Keilwerths are as much a bass as a vintage American horn is. The big differences: The ergos are lightyears friendlier, and the intonation is 100% accurate.
So what happened in the end?
Well, it likely comes as no surprise to anyone that I ended up buying this Couf Superba I bass sax. I fell in love with it the first time I tried it. Despite having what turned out to be worn out reeds with me, I could hear the potential in the horn for the way I played bass.
I had been thinking of selling my Buescher for some time. The stars happened to align and the perfect buyer came along just as this Couf came up.
This week I was able to pick up the Couf and bring it to its new home. This particular horn has a very interesting history—one I will write about in the coming weeks.
In the meantime, I am playing the horn a bit before it heads to Matterhorn Music where it will get the same overhaul light that my Couf Blackgold bari did when I first got it. It will be stripped down; lubricated; felts and corks replaced; spring tensions adjusted; etc, etc.
Once that work has been done to it, I will begin to seriously work on getting my bass chops back to even better than they ever were before, and learning the intricacies of this JK bass.
A special thank you
I want to give a special shout out to Don & Susan from the Brass and Woodwind Shop. They have both been extremely accommodating and gracious to me during this process. I am especially grateful for the socially distant coffee Don served me during my two trips to the shop.
Note: This article was originally written in February, and updated with new information just before publication in May.
**Note: I totally disagree with Steve’s description of the JK’s sound vis-à-vis a Buescher TT. I would assert that the difference has to do with either: 1. Mouthpiece choices, or 2. The low A extension more than anything else.
Why? Because the more time I have spent playing the Couf, the more I have come to realize it sounds pretty much identical to my Buescher… At least with me playing it does. 😉 And it certainly doesn’t sound like a baritone. Sorry Steve… But really, a bari??? 😉 😛 😆
In case you can’t find exactly what Steve wrote, it went like this:
The short answer is…it sounded like a baritone.
As much as I’d like to wheel out the adjectives and rattle on about sonority and gravitas, it just didn’t have it. At least it didn’t have it in terms of what I’d expect from a bass. Make no mistake though, what it does have is impressive! That low A has to be heard to be believed – it fair rattled the woodwork in the workshop, and it slipped out with credible ease too.
Tonewise it was hugely interesting to contrast the Keilwerth’s response to that of the Buescher. I think what I was looking for, hoping for, was the sort of response I’d written about in the Bass Sax article in the Notes section, which refers to a Pan American (Conn) bass:
“I think the overwhelming impression was that of wistfullness. The bass sax is, in fact, a crooner – as mellifluous as any of Bing Crosby’s best boo-boo-booing, and with a lightness of tone that belies its great size.”To the True-Tone’s equally mellifluous ‘Boomp Boomp Boomp’, the Keilwerth went ‘Bloort Bloort Bloort’.
Bags of attack, huge resonance, but not as much depth as the Buescher, and nowhere near the roundness. We experimented with mouthpieces, but as much as these changed the sound on both basses, the difference remained.Source: Keilwerth SX90 bass saxophone (non production model, handbuilt by Martin Grünewald)
Happy to see this nice review.
I am a little surprised to see nothing about the shank size. So many old bass saxophone mouthpieces were made to fit a shank scarcely larger than a bari’s, where the mouthpiece that came with my somewhat older H Couf – Zinner with no marking? – is much larger. I currently have very thin cork that barely allows a Woodwind bass sax mouthpiece, but am going to recork for the Zinner, a more modern style mouthpiece that I think works better here.
I think I managed to make some kind of store bought harness almost work, but it was so tight it cut off circulation to my arms. What I use is a sling, zip-tied to the body below the left thumb rest and below the bell/body joint. It’s comfortable, no trouble to play “marching” (walking around, really, here in Seattle), the only trouble I’ve had was when the neck fell off.
Hi Donn. Thanks for your comment. Sorry I am replying so late, but I have a lot of stuff going on.
I didn’t notice anything about the shank size vis-à-vis MP fit. Sadly, my Couf didn’t come with its original MP. I have no idea what MP the previous owner may be used on it, since he didn’t really play the horn much—if at all, based on its condition. I do know few things:
1. The previous owner–who was a well-known pro player here in Canada–had a vintage American bass that he used for performances, and I don’t know what MP he used on that.
2. A vintage Riffault MP was found in the bow, by the music store that was selling the horn on consignment. The Riffault is certainly a tighter fit on the current cork than the Paul Coats customized Runyon bari piece that I am using. Yes, its shank is indeed smaller, but works on the current cork with more grease.
3. It does appear that the neck cork has been replaced. I am guessing it was done by the shop I bought the horn through.
4. The shop I bought it through had purchased a brand new Vandoren bass sax MP, lig, and cap to go with the horn. I am not 100% sure if they replaced the neck cork to fit this Vandoren piece, but it does fit. I am just not loving its tone as much as that of Paul’s bari piece he customized for bass using Santy Runyon’s specifications.
Re: Wearing the horn. I will never do it! 😆 I used to have custom-made harnesses for my Buescher that would have worked for the Couf. That said, I included them with the sale of the Buescher b/c I knew I would never use them again with the bass. I am just not interested in wearing a nearly 20lb horn on me. My low A Couf bari is heavy enough. 😆
Re: Neck falling out. Yes, the sink trap neck is something I am concerned about. It took me a bit to learn how to insert it cleanly. Then making sure it is not over or under tightened is the next thing to consider. There is certainly a learning curve with them.
Whenever you have a bass sax, you have to have a good relationship with your bass-competent tech. Keeping an eye out on the tension on the neck, and making sure there is no expansion/shrinkage in the tenon/socket is critical on not only the JK bass saxes, but also the Conns with sink trap necks. This is where you tech’s eagle eye is critical as well. Regular visits to the shop should catch things before they become problems–in theory. 😉
For those interested: I may have one or two Couf/Keilwerth Bass Sax mouthpieces to sell. Also check out the Gemini Sax Harness — the best one for Bass and Bari saxes (and tenor and alto too) http://www.saxharness.com. I’ve used my Gemini Sax Harness on my Keilwerth Bass for 20+ years now, and on Bari 30+ years. Cheers! -Ernie.
Email sent
Congratulations Helen. Good ludk with your new horn.
Did you consider keeping your custom Bass Case and swapping it with the JK coffin case?
It crossed my mind for a fraction of a second. Problem was, I had to sell the Buescher to buy the Couf, so that really wasn’t an option.
Also, since the case was made for the Buescher, and was so specifically made for it, I am not even sure the Couf would even have fit it. It might have. But since I really just wanted to ensure a sale on the Buescher–b/c I really wanted to get the Couf– made the decision to include all its accessories. I even included the original stand I got from Paul.
The young fellow who bought it got a smokin’ hot deal. I threw in a bass MP of his choice (he chose a 1920s Conn Eagle bass/bari MP), both custom harnesses I had made, plus a new Harry Hartmann reed. I did not make any $$ on the sale that’s for sure. Actually lost given the value of the US at the time I bought it–I am just writing off the travel expenses to New Orleans as a vaca at this point.
I could have sold it for a lot more, but I didn’t want to ship it, and selling during COVID with the US border closed was not fantastic. Had I been able to open it up to the Seattle market, it would have sold for more.
On the other hand, the people selling the Couf had the same problem. So I paid less for the Couf than I would have had the border been open. They too didn’t want to ship the horn due to its outstanding condition.
Taking all this into account, I decided to go with a relatively local buyer who could come and pick up the horn in person for a couple grand less than I would have gotten otherwise, knowing I was saving on the other end too.
Regarding shipping, I agree. I sold my Bass last year to a SOTW member from Pennsylvania. I really did
not want to ship it, so I drove half way to Danville Connecticut and met him there, about 3 hours. Worth it.
We hear so many stories of horns being destroyed by shippers. It is actually very sad.
The shop I bought this bass from was adamant they weren’t going to ship, because they sold a bass a number of years ago to a buyer in the US, and it was destroyed by the courier company along the way. Due to the shop being in Canada, and the customer being in the US (not to mention the $$ value involved), the paperwork took forever to clear up.
I forget now how long Don said it took before they got their $$ back from, but it was a long, long time. It was well over a year IIRC. They haven’t shipped a bass since, and never will. Add to that the excellent condition of this Couf, plus it being a consignment horn, and the buyer had to be local.
I was just fortunate enough to have the stars line up. Since the horn was on Vancouver Island, and the US/Canada land border was closed, and travel within British Columbia was restricted due to COVID-19, the pool of potential buyers was very small.
I was fortunate enough to have a buyer for my horn who could travel to see me, which left me free to buy the Couf. Win/Win. To quote Oprah: You get a bass sax, and you get a bass sax. 😆
Really enjoyed reading this review, Helen. Believe it or not, in February of this year I purchased a Couf Superba I bass saxophone, serial number 87xxx! So we have the only two Couf bass saxophones made that year (in all likelihood). I too am coming from a Buescher bass and agree with your assessment 100%. The Couf feels more like a “regular” saxophone than any vintage bass I’ve ever played, while still retaining the big, warm tone of the old American wrap horns. And it’s such a relief to not rely on alternate fingerings for middle C and D, although I still generally use the alternate D fingering as it does speak a little better. Now that I have the Couf I don’t feel a need to look around for an upgrade. Kudos on the new horn and let me know if you have any questions about mine or would like to compare.
Ryan
Hey there Ryan! Fantastic to hear from you.
What a coincidence. I tried my Couf bass on Feb. 17 for the first time. Then went home to think about it. (It was about a 4 hour trip away from me.) By the time I finalized the sale of my Buescher and had a chance to get back to Vancouver Island,—thanks COVID—next thing we know it’s May 4.
Did you by chance get the bass that JL Woodwinds had on their website?
Re: D2. My tech noticed something really interesting about the 2nd octave pip. Take a look at the opening of the one located near the upper bow and compare it to the other one. That larger opening is why those problematic notes are so much easier to play.
I have photos of it from when my horn was completely taken apart a couple of weeks ago for its first ever maintenance. I plan to write about that in the coming weeks.
I am really glad you reached out to me. It will be interesting to compare notes going forward. What MP/reed combo are you using on the Couf? What did you use on the Buescher?
Keep an eye out for an email from me. I am curious about the exact serial # your horn has. I am wondering if they did them sequential. I will send you my # and let me know what yours is.
Take care & stay safe… helen
Hi Helen! Congrats on your Bass Sax! I’m the leader and Bari/Bassist in the Royal City Saxophone Quartet, based out of Guelph, Ontario. Feel free to check us out — our website is out-of-date and being updated, but I have lots of Bass Sax experience. Mine is a Keilwerth from about 1995, so very much like your Couf Superba I. Please email me your mailing address and I’ll send you one of our CDs with lots of Bass Sax on it. Cheers, -Ernie Kalwa. 🙂
Hi there Ernie. Nice to hear from you!
So you too play an JK bass. I would love to compare notes with you once I get to know mine a bit better.
Thank you for you kind offer for the CD. I will email you.
Take care & stay safe. In JK bass solidarity 😉 …. helen
OK, sure!
A lacquer based intermezzo regarding red rot dots on closet horns.
The main change in clear lacquer in Europe in the second part of the last century is a change to water based lacquer. This was mainly to end the disease called “painters dementia”. It was discovered that the water based lacquer dried faster which made it also interesting for the industry. The early water based lacquers where not without problems and gradually improved. Red rot dots could be one of the problems.
Denmark was an early adopter around 1970. It is unknown when Keilwerth changed. Lacquer on brass is not the most easy paint job. When the brass is slightly oxidized the lacquer will not stick. So you need a well defined process of buffing, painting and drying to get a good result. My USA Conn (last year of production) still looks better than Taiwan made saxophones 40 years younger.
When the lacquer on your saxophone is not water based a small change in the lacquering process is enough to results in red dots years after production. Increasing the drying temperature to speed up production is one of the possible small changes. Summer saxophones have more freckles?
Interesting Theo. Thank you.
If we want to know when Keilwerth changed to water-based lacquers, I bet all we need to do is take a look at when their horns started to develop surface red marks.
It would take a bit of time, but pouring through some of the thousands of JK photos I have in my hard drives would likely pin it down to within a few years. My bet would be mid 60s. But that is just a guess without any actual looking at photographic evidence.
As a start, no red marks on my 1970 Van Hall tenor saxophone( 658xx).
Huh. Interesting, since that one falls clearly within the suspect lacquer era.
I started looking at the SX series of horns. The lacquer must have been changed again, since they too are missing the JK signature red stains of the 60s-80s.
I have literally thousands of pics to look through. I haven’t really spent much time on it, but I am starting to see a pattern. I am needing to do some research on the SX series to find out more about them.
My visual skills are not good so I took a more statistical approach to solve the question which brands of saxophones are more or less associated with red rot than average. This could be in the form of dots or in the form of small areas.
Google gives 83.000.000 items for the word saxophone. When adding red rot around 1.5% remained. This doesn’t mean that 1.5% of all saxophones suffer from red rot.The brandname added to the term Saxophone (without red rot) gave the next order of items found on Google:
Martin (surprise)
Yamaha (no surprise)
Selmer
Buffet Crampon
Jupiter
Conn
Yanagisawa
Keilwerth
Holton
Buescher
Rampone & Cazzani
I couldn’t use King because there are a lot of Keilwerth saxophones with that name.
When adding red rot to the string Saxophone + brandname the order changed slightly.
Martin and Rampone & Cazzani stayed in place. Five brands where less associated with red rot: Selmer, Buffet Crampon, Keilwerth, Yamaha and Yanagisawa. So Keilwerths problem with red dots seems manageable.
Is there a significant weight difference between your Buescher and the Couf bass sax?
I do find a difference. I would guess the difference to be about 2 or 3 lbs. The Couf is lighter in weight. I can easily wear it on a harness or strap if I had to.
But… Here’s the interesting part: The location of the strap hook and the location of the neck/MP make it impossible for me to use my regular bari harnesses. They are all too long. Go figure! I can’t even use my regular ergonomically perfect bari strap from Germany. This bass by JK requires a strap of the same length I would use for a tenor.
At present I am using the adjustable bass stand from Andreas Kaling. However, I am going to do some research and see what I can find out getting myself a harness that will support the horn’s extra weight, but is tenor sax short.