Kurzweil MARK 3

Advantages: An amzing vintage instrument, with that classic sound which most saxophone manufacturers strive to achieve.
Disadvantages: Its hard to find these saxes in good condition for sale, and if you manage to find one it'll probably cost you near to £3000!

...I have been lucky enough to play two Mark VI saxophones, 1 with its original lacquer, and one which had been relacquered, and I must say that they were both absolutely fantastic saxes! The Mark VI's were handmade and engraved by Selmer (Paris) in the late 1950's and early 1960's. They are reckoned to be the best saxophones in existence, and almost all of the major jazz saxophonists played on them (john coltrane, wayne shorter, stan getz, michael brecker, sonny rollins played one at one stage and the list goes on.) The main feature of these saxophones is their incredible tone, which is deep and rich, and these saxes are also easy to play. Intonation on these horns is also surprisingly good for horns of this era, but it is obviously not as good as modern saxes. They also have an exquisite hand engraved pattern on them, which has... Read review

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Advantages: Great feel, Tips are perfect, Good Weight
Disadvantages: Get cut up by cymbals.

...I've been playing drums for about 9 months now, and ive had a variety of sticks, ranging in wieght and size. Ive invested in the Ahead Joey Jordison Signiature Sticks, but found them very heavy, and robust. The next pair of sticks i bought were the Pro Mark 5A sticks, and i soon realised i'd made the right decision. The Tips are perfect for double strokes, and the stick effortlessly fits in your hand, offering great control, allowing you to maintain fast beats for alot longer. The only critisism of this product that I have so far found, is their duribility. After about 50 cymbal hits, I certaintly noticed the massive chunks dented around the stick, a problem i did not have for awile with the Ahead Sticks. All things considerd though, these are great sticks for practice, as they offer a great feel, and a beautiful bounce, allowing... Read review

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Advantages: Light, good quality sound and recording
Disadvantages: Not very large memory cards(2Gb maximum)

...The R-1 is a portable MP3 player with a high-quality MP3/WAV recorder for music lovers and provides a good recording quality in a portable device. The R-1 can record and playback at clear, 24-bit audio resolution without compression. Audio is stored as files directly onto removable cards, allowing maximum recording time. Up to nine format modes are provided, from 64 - 320kbps MP3 compression to 24-bit linear WAV format(mp3 is not so clear) The R-1 comes with a intergrated microphone for quick recording and because there are no moving parts there is no noise for the microphone to pick up if you are in a quiet area. Other features include one-touch recording - just press the REC button, the level indicator comes up on the lcd display, and you're ready to record. The R-1 can be used as an MP3 player and runs on two AA batteries... Read review

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