Discount saxophones - what are your options?

If you are shopping for discount saxophones, you have several options. For one thing, you can choose a used saxophone. It can be bought at a local music store or pawn shop, or it can be purchased online through a service such as eBay or Amazon. Another choice is to simply buy a cheap horn. One more option is to try to locate a former school rental instrument, which can probably be purchased for the same cost as discount saxophones.

The least recommended of these options is to buy a cheap new saxophone. These imported discount saxophones are often very poorly made, and some even require repairs just to be able to play them. The metal tends to be soft and bend easily. Some saxophonists report that these imports are sometimes hardly even playable. If you are looking for a sax for a young beginner, such an instrument will prove to be a continual trial!

Buying discount saxophones through local music stores or pawn shops can be a satisfying experience and you can get a good deal. Along this same line is the option of finding a used sax in the want ads, and getting it for a song. Music stores are a little safer, since presumably the sales staff will know something about instruments and can help you determine the real value of the sax. If you can get a knowledgeable saxophonist to look the saxophones over before you buy, it will be a great help.

Buying through eBay or Amazon can get you a great low price, but you don't have much chance to get an expert to look the saxophones over before you buy. In addition, eBay is loaded with the cheap imported saxophones we've already mentioned. If you're really lucky, though, you might find a former rental saxophone that retailed for $2000, but can be purchased for $500 or less. This is a great deal, provided the sax wasn't abused too much by its former renters.

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