Noblet (Beaugnier) Vito alto saxophone

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Noblet Saxophone Serial Numbers List; B&s Saxophone Serial Numbers; It seems that this oval Noblet emblem was in use from the 1940s through about 1962, then use of the diamond logo extended to about 1990. But starting around 1972 both the diamond logo and the newer TV screen shaped logo were used, depending on the model number. Noblet Alto Saxophone. Condition is 'Used'. Shipped with FedEx Ground or FedEx Home Delivery. An exquisite horn. I have played it on numerous gigs and it songs across the full range from lows to altissimo notes. Made in France in the mid-1960’s in accordance with the serial number I researched (serial number shown in one of the photos). Saxophone.org - created by saxophone players for saxophone players. Features an active saxophone forum, buy sell trade your sax, saxophone museum, sax teachers and more. Sep 05, 2019 Noblet Saxophone Serial Numbers Vintage Original Lacquer Noblet Paris Tenor Sax, Serial #8744. This is a vintage Noblet Paris tenor sax in original lacquer, serial #8744. If you are looking to get into a nice French tenor at a budget price the Noblet is a great way to go. Oddly, the build and serial would seem to bear this out: the serial number, instead of being cross-ways on the back of the lower stack, was incised longways on the side. Penzel Mueller was the only company I know of that did this, and the serial would date a PM to the late 30's/early 40's.

Origin: France
Guide price: £450
Weight: 2.4kg
Date of manufacture: Late '50s (approx) (serial range: 15xxx)
Date reviewed: December 2015

It's a Vito...but which one?

If you're a prospective buyer, looking around for advice about buying your first saxophone, it won't be long before someone suggests buying a vintage horn.
It's not a bad idea on the face of it, an old horn that once cost a very great deal of money can often be bought for very much less than a new modern horn of the same quality. Trouble is, lots of other players have had the same idea - and it's not uncommon to see sought-after vintage beauties fetching eye-watering prices.
The best way to get around this annoying problem is go 'off brand' - to seek out those less well-known horns that aren't so popular, yet that have undiscovered potential.
This area of the market can be tremendously rewarding, and with a bit (OK, a lot) of research and some luck you could well end up with a 'Selmer killer' for less than the price of a professional quality mouthpiece. Thing is though, you might equally end up with a proper pile of junk - because even in 'the good old days', they still turned out some right lemons.

To be fair, it's seldom the case that even a bad vintage horn is completely crappy. The build quality is usually at least decent, and I guess there's a certain amount of inbuilt character simply by virtue of the sheer age of the instrument - but then again the design of the keywork probably won't win any awards for ergonomics, there might be oodles of wear and tear to contend with, and at the end of it all it may well be the case that horn simply doesn't play that well. Never did, never will.

One way to mitigate some of that risk is to look for stencilled brands. A stencil horn is one that's made by a particular company and branded with another's name...in the same way that the VW Golf is available from a number of manufacturers. The shape and specs might be a little different, but underneath it all you're still buying into a known quantity (or at least you hope so).
Seeking out such horns requires even more research than hunting down off-brand goodies - because the retailers who sell stencilled horns can change their suppliers on a whim. What was made by Company X one year can be made by Company Y the next. Same name on the bell, completely different horn.
What often compounds the problem is that retailers are even less likely to keep records of who made what, and when, than manufacturers are...and the manufacturers aren't exactly very good at it either.
The information is out there, on websites and forums, but it's sometimes sketchy and contradictory if not downright subjective at times...but it's what you'll have to wade through if you want to buy such a horn. Stencil surfing, I call it.

Noblet Saxophone Serial Numbers

And what we have here is perhaps the very definition of a stencilled horn - the Noblet Vito.
Nailing the true identity of this horn was, shall we say, a trifle difficult.
Brand identity is, generally, a good thing. If you find a product you like - be it a tin of beans, a car, a horn etc. - there's a certain expectation, a comfort even, in the assurance that if you bought another of the same product it'd be the same. Sure, time moves on and products get updated, but your experiences with a brand may well sway you when it comes to choosing a replacement. You at least have a fair idea of what to expect.
Manufacturers sometimes get it wrong - a small tweak to the recipe of, say, a biscuit or a fizzy drink may well result in a chorus of protest. Even the change of a name might cause some indignation (and no, I refuse to buy anything called 'Snickers').
But for a 24 carat, diamond encrusted example of 'brand dysphoria', the Vito range beats all other candidates hands down.
The bloody things were made all over the place; France, Japan, US, Timbukbloodytu...and all by different manufacturers.
There was also a range of models - but there doesn't appear to be much standardisation. Some had this feature, some had that. The bell keys switched from the left hand side of the bell to the right with seemingly carefree abandon - and it's almost as though whichever company was making the horns at a particular time simply banged out any old horn and stuck the Vito name on it.
I always like to preface my reviews with a little bit of history. Not too much (I'm really not that into it), but at least enough to put a horn into some kind of perspective. After a couple of hours of searching forums, serial number lists, ebay auctions etc...I gave up in despair (and boredom) - so if you're after a Vito (of any sort) you'll have to do your own research. The best that I can do is point you to Google with a cheery 'Knock yerself out'.

What I can tell you about this horn is that it was very probably made by Beaugnier.
This is a relatively unknown company with a reputation for turning out some fine horns - but not everything they made smelled of roses. In my quest for details I found numerous articles, but nothing particularly cast iron. I can only guess at the year of manufacture and I can't put a model name to this horn - so we'll have to do this the old-fashioned way...by taking it apart, putting it back together again and then giving it a damn good blow...

In terms of construction the Noblet's pretty typical of the sort of horns that sit between the last of the golden greats (the Conns, Kings, Martins etc.) of the '40s and the 'new young upstarts' in the shape of the Selmers. That's to say that there's a bit of crossover - with modern features sitting cheek by jowl with archaic ones.
This often results in quite a curious mix, but it also means that you'll often find one or two odd features that don't quite fit into any kind of chronological progression. Trying to be modern for the sake of it is a pretty good description - but a better one is imagining your granddad breakdancing.
For example: The body features drawn toneholes and single pillar construction - but the bottom bow joint is neither soldered, glued or clamped on...it's bolted on. Seriously- there are three bolts holding it on, along with a dollop of sealant.
There's nothing essentially wrong with this design - it might well not have the strength of a soldered or clamped joint, but it's at least a step up from a glued one. It just looks a bit...industrial.

There's a static brass thumb hook, a simple round thumb rest fitted with a slightly domed pearl and a modern-looking set of bell key guards with reassuringly large stays...though none of the bumper felts have adjusters fitted.
And then there's the bell brace.
This is strictly vintage - the dead giveaway being that in terms of functionality it meets the design criteria (i.e. it holds the bell onto the body) but makes no concession for what happens if the horn cops a whack to the front of the bell.
What's slightly unusual about this example is that it's detachable - which is ve