COPYRIGHT 2010. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. This saxophone is *NOT* for sale. The demo video is to show you the characteristics of a vintage 'Pan American' alto, made by C.G.Conn in Elkhart, Indiana. It's a late-production Pan-Am dating from circa 1948 and has "Pan American Elkhart Ind USA" on the player's right-hand side of the bell. The Conn name doesn't appear on these horns because they're "stencilled" saxes. The intention was to differentiate Pan-Ams from Conn's first-line horns i.e. the 6M and 26M. Conn 'Pan American' altos made between the 1940s and 1950s are sometimes referred to as "Cut-price Conn 6Ms" because there are similarities in the general appearance and tone-colours. It's no coincidence that this sax has the classic vintage Conn sound i.e. tonally dark and slightly "booming", with plenty of punch. The video you're watching was recorded using a digital stills camera with a tiny microphone, so the sound quality isn't marvellous. Even so, it should be obvious that this instrument has a dark, rounded tone compared to some modern altos, which can sound quite bright, edgy and thin by comparison. That's because the body, bore and bell are designed differently, and thicker metal was used. When all these factors are combined, the result is a rich, dark, vintage sound that's got "1940s Conn" written all over it . As a bonus, these old saxophones are fun to blow. If you've got good chops you can really make them sing. Like any vintage instrument that's over 55 years old, they give you a different playing experience. Different isn't better or worse, it's just... different. Conn Pan-Am saxes offer good bangs-per-buck because you can buy them for a fraction of the price of a Conn 6M "Ladyface" alto. So, does it mean they are every bit as good as a Conn 6M with rolled tone-holes? No, obviously the Conn 6M is much superior - but that's missing the point. The nice thing about Conn Pan Americans is they give you that vintage Conn sound, plus some of the characteristics of a Conn 6M - at around 70% of the price. If you doubt what I'm saying, listen to some YouTube videos of real Conn 6M altos, compare them to the sound of this humble Pan-Am sax and then decide for yourself. Given the inflated prices that genuine Conn 6Ms routinely sell for, the much lower purchase cost of a Conn Pan-Am alto is a strong persuader - particularly for those on a budget. However, if buying via eBay remember:- caveat emptor! Incidentally, Conn also manufactured Pan-Am tenor saxes, which are regarded as "Cut Price Conn 10Ms". My comments about the tonal characteristics of Pan-Am altos can also be applied to Conn Pan-Am tenors. Again, they're good value for money, and whilst not on a par with real Conn 10Ms you're unlikely to care - given that you can probably buy yourself a Pan-Am tenor for around 25% of the price. Click here to view various photos of the actual Conn Pan-Am alto which is being played in this demo:- http://yfrog.com/61p1070095jx QUICK HISTORY LESSON In 1955 Conn rebranded their 'Pan-American' alto as the '14M Director' model. Therefore, by definition any Conn Pan-Am sax you see pre-dates 1955. The '14M Director' alto is sometimes referred to as the 'Shooting Stars' model because of the stars on the side of the bell surrounding the Conn logo. The only difference between a late-production Conn Pan-Am alto and an early Conn 'Shooting Stars' alto of the 1950s is the engraving on the bell. In all other respects they are absolutely identical. Here's a video of a Conn 'Shooting Stars' alto from 1955 being played by an expert. It's further proof that late-production Conn Pan-Ams (around 1945-1955) and early-production (i.e. pre-1960) Shooting Stars altos are good value for money:- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4nd4xYzKAg8&feature;=related There are more photos of 1950s 'Shooting Stars' alto saxophones here. One distinctive feature of Pan-Ams and early Shooting Stars altos and tenors is that they have the classic "Mercedes-Benz" style keyguard over the Low-C key. Study these photos and you'll see what I mean. Later versions of the Shooting Stars alto and tenor have a different Low-C key-guard design made from stamped metal:- http://www.saxpics.com/?v=gal&c;=548 Here's a close-up photo which shows the "Mercedes-Benz" type Low-C keyguard on a Pan-Am alto:- http://yfrog.com/jcp1070073aj The quality of Conn saxophones made between 1914 and the 1950s ranges from good to excellent. Unfortunately, the company went into a gentle decline starting in the mid-1950s. With that said, Conn saxes were still reasonably good until the early 1960s. Sadly, the quality of Conn saxophones nose-dived around 1970, when Conn moved from their long-time HQ in Elkhart down to Nogales in the south. That's where the "Mexi-Conns" of the 1970s were made. I'm being charitable when I describe the quality (i.e. design, construction, and tonal characteristics) of Mexi-Conns as mediocre.

• published: 11 Sep 2013
• views: 1176