{"id":19698,"date":"2010-06-11T10:17:33","date_gmt":"2010-06-11T17:17:33","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/bassic-sax.info\/blog\/?p=19698"},"modified":"2010-06-11T10:31:53","modified_gmt":"2010-06-11T17:31:53","slug":"finicky-hammerschmidt-key-heights-part-ii-turns-out-its-not-the-keys-its-the-neck","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bassic-sax.info\/blog\/2010\/finicky-hammerschmidt-key-heights-part-ii-turns-out-its-not-the-keys-its-the-neck\/","title":{"rendered":"Finicky Hammerschmidt Key Heights Part II: Turns Out It’s Not The Keys, It’s The Neck"},"content":{"rendered":"

Well I learned something very interesting, and very sobering, yesterday about some<\/span> of the Hammerschmidt saxophones. This information explains why I could not get my late model, nickel plated Klingsor to play 100% in tune, 100% of the time.<\/p>\n

I\u00a0believed it was a key height issue, so I had my tech try and adjust the heights. But in yesterday’s post<\/a> I described the frustration that we both faced two days ago when I took the horn in. When\u00a0playing around with the key heights\u00a0was unsuccessful, I emailed Uwe Ladwig, a tech in Germany with Hammerschmidt experience.<\/p>\n

Uwe has restored a number of Hammerschmidt saxophones, and has also written about the brand\u2014and many others\u2014for the German music magazine SONIC sax & <\/em>brass<\/a>. He\u00a0sent a copy of the Hammerschmidt article he wrote, in which\u00a0he describes a fundamental design flaw,\u00a0that can lead to spotty intonation.<\/p>\n

According to Uwe, most likely the underlying reason for the Hammerschmidt’s\u2014both alto and tenor\u2014intonation problems, is that the company copied an old version of a neck. This\u00a0neck\u00a0had been made of soldered brass. The new Hammerschmidt neck however, was made with brass pipe material that was blown\u00a0as one piece. Therefore, while the external dimensions were correct, the internal ones weren’t. On the end closest to the mouthpiece, the brass was too thick. While on the horn end of the neck, the material was too thin.<\/p>\n

All in all, this was not the news I expected or wanted to hear. However, I thought it was important to mention here as well. I know a number of\u00a0Hammerschmidt owners are currently in the process of rebuilding their saxophones.\u00a0Just being aware of this piece of information may save you\u00a0hours of chasing your tail, in a vain attempt of trying to figure out why things aren’t working the way they should, or the way you expect them to.<\/p>\n

Now I should stress, that\u00a0my Klingsor has been played, and obviously played a lot. The nickel plating has been worn over the thumb rest and hook,\u00a0and bare brass is showing. This has not been a closet horn.<\/p>\n

When I talk about intonation problems specific to my horn, these are issues that many a player could live with.\u00a0My Klingsor was not out more than 30 cents on any note, and most notes were actually in tune. So you’re probably asking yourself: What’s her problem?<\/p>\n

The problem is, I have really high standards. All my horns have to be able to play 100% of their notes in tune, 100% of the time. I’m in the front line of any band that I’m in, and solo a great deal. People hear me. Tuning is not optional.<\/p>\n

Some Hammerschmidt saxes may\u00a0play perfectly in tune. Others may not. When it comes to the Hammerschmidts, there are not absolutes. \u00a0<\/p>\n

I could think of many settings where\u00a0my sax would be totally acceptable\u2014I just don’t happen to play in any. I will however continue to enjoy the Klingsor in the privacy of my own home,\u00a0and will also experiment with necks. Perhaps I’ll hit on the magic formula by accident. I hope so, because I love the unique sound that the Hammerschmidt saxophones have.<\/p>\n

\n
…this is just my blog<\/em>. <\/span> My \u201creal\u201d <\/b> website is<\/span> www.bassic-sax.info.<\/a> If you\u2019re looking for <\/span> sax info<\/strong>,<\/span> you should check it out too.<\/span>There\u2019s lots<\/em> there! <\/span>\n<\/div>\n
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Well I learned something very interesting, and very sobering, yesterday about some of the Hammerschmidt saxophones. This information explains why I could not get my …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[19],"tags":[151,642,657,633,651,643,31],"class_list":["post-19698","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-hammershmidt","tag-german-saxophones","tag-hammerschmidt","tag-klingsor","tag-musings","tag-saxophone-repairs","tag-vintage-horns","tag-vintage-sax"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t