Jean Paul AS-400 Alto Saxophone - Golden Brass Lacquered

I played alto sax in elementary, junior high, and high school, first chair in all bands as well as playing a stage band, a Dixieland band, and solo performance, but gave up sax after high school graduation. That was 52 years ago. I longed to return to the sax but found that reconditioning my old alto would cost as much or more than a new one so I decided to do some research on what might be a good new sax to invest in. After weeks of reading reviews, watching videos and comparing prices, the Jean Paul AS-400 seemed to be the sweet spot between affordability and high-quality, so I took the plunge. Less than a day with my new sax and I could not be more pleased with my purchase! It is everything the dozens of great reviews claim it to be and right out of the case, I started feeling at home, again, with an instrument I once loved and felt guilty for abandoning so many years ago. I should note that I remained a musician, mostly on piano and voice, but I have also picked up flute and clarinet along with guitar and a bit of violin. But it is good to be back home in Saxophone Land and with such an immediately comfortable and excellent-sounding horn. My only disappointment is not in the sax, itself, but rather, the neck strap which I am expecting a replacement for that I ordered yesterday. But for anyone wanting to start out on the sax or who, like me, wants to dive back into it, please do consider the Jean Paul AS-400 as a choice you can be confident in. At its price point, I cannot imagine a better quality instrument and considering a number of the reviewers stated it performs better than their more expensive student or intermediate model, I'm able to understand just why they make that claim. I've got a lot of work to do to get my embouchure back and more agile fingering and technique, but it certainly is going to be a pleasant journey. Beyond just the sound of the AS-400, the fit and finish on a very solid instrument are excellent, as well.

Back in 1996, I played in College on my baby. A YAS 62 purchased in 94.In the intervening 24 years, I haven't gotten to play at all, and I lost my "baby".I've lost 100% embasure(sp?) and 80% of my fingering muscle memory. But mentally, I still know alot about the instrument.I finally have the time to try to get music back into my life, and rolled the dice on this very affordable student saxophone.I am, frankly, in shocked awe at this instruments fit and finish.Other than the lowest few notes, and the altissimo range(which is probably due to my lack of mouth muscle tone) only the D is 1/8 of a note flat. All of the other notes are in tune with each other. I was NOT expecting that.The right hand index finger side key, only used for a few notes in the upper register, clicks a little, as it contacts the key below it.Also. The one thing keeping this from being 5 star all around, is bottom post on the D# key(r hand top pinky key, see picture) has had the soldering fail. The case holds the instrument securely enough that I do not believe this was transportation damage. (After I have time to register the instrument and contact the company, I will update this review based on the results of that contact.)Other than that, all of the keys are the same height. All of them have the same tension. All of the little cork and what looks like silicone pads on all of the keys are attached well, and are even slanted to make flush contact with the body when depressed. This is something that is as good or better than when I got my YAS 62 so many years ago. Some of the springs on the low (left thumb) notes, are even bent to allow for clearance of the other keys to be at the same height, something I remember being very much a problem on my first beginners Saxophone in the mid '80's....and is something I thought would not possibly be done on this instrument, given it's price point.I had read some of the bad reviews, and I scoured this saxophone for scratches, water damage, or water marks on the cork, and it is clear this is a new instrument.I ran my finger along the holes for as many of the holes as I could reach, and I found no dents or burrs. Though the bottom (r hand bottom pinky key) hole has a bit of a rough spot that might wear the pad in time.The swab that it came with is high quality. The neck strap it came with seems cheap but is very comfy. I do wish that it came with a swab for the neck, and that will be my important first purchase before I play the instrument much.I remember reeds being a low% hit and miss thing, back in the '90's, so I did not have much hope in the one that comes with the instrument, but mine was actually quite good, with surprisingly even grain that makes me suspect it was hand picked by someone who knows what to look for. I may be wrong, it may just be luck of the draw.The mouthpiece it came with fit very nicely on the neck's cork.For me, it seemed as if either the reed was too soft, or the mouthpiece gap (distance from the mouthpiece to the reed) was too small, or both...as I found myself squeaking alot. But it is also likely a result of 2.5 decades of not playing. I do believe that the smaller opening and softer reed is a good idea for children just learning.The case seems to hold the instrument securely, I can not speak to it's durability. It has some nice features that my yas62 case in the mid 90's didnt come with.I plan on putting a number of hours of work, re-learning scales and muscle tone, over the next few weeks, and will update this review with durability information. (Pending repair requirements for the popped post solder)But as it is, I think any beginning player (or old man trying to recover some youth in a mid-life crisis like myself) would be lucky to have an instrument like this, even if it was at double the price.(It is my assumption that the post soldering is an easy, inexpensive fix, that might be just a few minutes with a technician.)****post Customer service update****After registering my Saxophone with Jean Paul, I sent an email with a photo of the popped solder. They sent me a pre-paid label, and I sent it UPS to they service center in Miami. They let me know when it was shipped back, and I received it back today in wonderful condition. It plays like an instrument worth much more money, which I attribute to their technician's setting up the keys correctly.To be honest, I was going to just pay a local shop for the solder job. But because of the covid, it would have been in quarantine at the local shop longer than it took to send it back to Jean Paul to get it fixed for free.Due to the positive interaction I had with their customer service, I'm increasing my review to 5 stars.

I'm not an expert in alto saxophone. I bought it for my son who is starting saxophone classes. I made it revised by the music profesor, who inspect and play it, and he say that it came in excelent condition and it is a good saxophone for beginers and students. It sounds better with the mouthpiece that is included in the saxophone case than if you use it with other mouthpieces from other manufacturers. We notice that when you play it, the instrument gave a clear and loud sound, even when you play the instrument with very low notes. The appearance and color of the instrument is very beautiful. The case Include several accesories for the alto saxophone. The cleaning cloth included in the saxophone case don't include the string, so it is difficult to use it to clean inside of the instrument. In conclusion: it is a good instrument for students