Cecilio Instruments?

Question:I am a tenor and alto saxophone player, and was interested in getting a soprano sax. My alto is a Selmer, and my tenor is a Yamaha; I wasn't looking for a big brand soprano like those. I was only focused on getting one at a low price that would play well for what I paid. I found my way to a Cecilio, which is what I ended up buying. I've heard bad things about these, but will it be good enough to play without having a horrible tone?

Best Answer - Chosen by Asker: I am a tenor and alto saxophone player, and was interested in getting a soprano sax. My alto is a Selmer, and my tenor is a Yamaha; I wasn't looking for a big brand soprano like those. I was only focused on getting one at a low price that would play well for what I paid. I found my way to a Cecilio, which is what I ended up buying. I've heard bad things about these, but will it be good enough to play without having a horrible tone?

It is not so much the tone that is the problem. When these cheap instruments break you cannot get parts for them. They just cannot be fixed.
Always stick with the big name brands.

And they do not take long to break either !.

Well, it won't last. These are trash - meant ot be disposable. Many shops will not work on them - they are made of soft metal, the pads are often poor, and it won't hold any adjustment. Enjoy it today - make it into a lamp tomorrow. You'd be better off getting a used soprano sax in a decent brand, and then selling it when you tire of it, or move up.

Related to this is what I can tell you from 18 years experience. The soprano will barely get used. I've played (and still play) in many big bands, wind ensembles, and I've read over 600 pieces of music that could easily be written with a soprano saxophone. I've seen maybe 20 that have needed it. That is just over 3% of the total music. In talking with other saxophonists, they agree that the demand is literally nil. Unless you are writing and performing your own music with soprano saxophone, it isn't worth spending the money to get one, even a crappy one like a Cecilio, because most of the time it will just collect dust.