Vibratosax

The Vibratosax is a plastic saxophone model released in late 2010.^[1] Its body is made of polycarbonate and abs plastic.^[2]

History

The Vibratosax is designed and manufactured by the Vibrato Company Ltd. of the Bang Khen district of Bangkok, Thailand.^[3] It was invented in 2008 by Piyapat Thanyakij, the current president of the Vibrato Company.^[4] The first models were released for sale in late 2010.^[1]

Models

The Vibratosax currently has two models: the A1 and the A1S alto saxophones.^[5]^[6] The A1 is made of Bayer's blend, a blend of polycarbonate and ABS plastic.^[7] The ABS gives elasticity and flexibility, while the polycarbonate provides resonance.^[7] The A1S is made of solid polycarbonate.^[7] This denser material gives extra resonance, and a more projected and focused sound.^[7] The A1 has a darker and warmer tone when compared to the A1S.^[7] The "S" in A1S stand for solid, in reference to the A1S' denser and more solid design.^[6] The instrument is available in differen Colours and even in a transparent Version.

Design characteristics

The Vibratosax has several unique characteristics which distinguish it from a traditional brass saxophone:

The Vibratosax alto saxophone, at a weight of about 850 grams,^[4] weighs far less than a typical brass alto saxophone. A brass alto saxophone typically weighs more than 2000 grams.^[8]
The rods are manufactured out of brushed white aluminum.^[2]
The pads made out of silicone plastic.^[2]
The pads are self-leveling. They move on a pivot to better cover the entire tone hole with less finger pressure required by the player.^[9]
The pads are gimbal-mounted and can be easily replaced.^[9]
The springs are coils, giving the saxophone's action an analog quality.^[10]

Analyses of the Vibratosax

A review of a pre-production unit

On January 12, 2011, saxophone repairman Matt Stohrer released a YouTube video where he analyzed a pre-production unit of the Vibratosax from a repair perspective. The video can be viewed here. In Stohrer's analysis, he came to the following conclusions:

One potential problem with the pre-production version of the Vibratosax is an inability to adjust the relationship between certain keys to better tailor the saxophone to an individual user.^[11]
The pre-production Vibratosax's keywork is more flexible than that of a brass saxophone. This could be problematic if the force of the player's fingers alter the relationship between keys by bending them as they are playing. This could have a negative effect on the correct sealing of the pads to the body of the saxophone.^[11]
The pre-production Vibratosax's body tube is assembled from many sections, and each section is reinforced with a thicker portion where the sections meet. The reduction in the tube's inner dimensions at these meeting points could cause potential intonation problems.^[11]

Matt Stohrer has relayed his analysis to Piyapat Thanyakij, the president of Vibrato Co.,Ltd.^[11] so that his recommended improvements could be incorporated into the production version of the Vibratosax.

Tonal qualities compared to a brass saxophone

Tonal qualities are subjective, but a direct comparison of the Vibratosax's tonal qualities to that of a brass saxophone could be made by having the same player play both instruments. The most effective comparison would be made if the performer played the same song, using the same dynamics and phrasing in both performances. On November 19, 2011, saxophonist Jim Cheek posted such a comparison in the form of a YouTube video.^[12] In the video, Cheek first performed a song on the Vibratosax A1S alto saxophone, and then performed the same song on the Yanagisawa A901 alto saxophone, a traditional brass saxophone. The video can be viewed here.