Soprano Saxophone?

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I'm really toying with getting one.

One stipulation - I DON'T want it to sound 80's (no Kenny G). I'm looking for one that sounds more trumpet-ish, ie right for mid to late 50's jazz or big band era (or just really crackly vintage dancehall/reggae); ie. something that sort of nostalgic mystique.

I see they range from $300ish to $10,000.

Is there something under $1,000 that has that sort of character more? Does anything under $1,000 sound remotely decent for that matter?

Just curious because I haven't even been out to check anything, just pondering cost-effectiveness and figuring out whether or not I'd really want to dabble.

Personally, I'd rent one from a music shop for a while and see if I could learn to play it first before spending that much money on purchasing one. But, if money is not a concern, more power to you.

Thanks to your post I had a dream last night that I invested in a 'musical' brass whistle the size of a Chipotle burrito that had a cray paper mouthpiece. Even the professionals were lucky to get a few working notes out of it and many who tried to give auditions just cried and ran off the stage.

Ideally if they all sound close enough I'd rather buy something in the $300 range specifically because I don't feel like spending money on it if I try it and am less wild about it than I'd hoped. If it takes putting in over $1,000 or even much over $500 to get a decent starter then forget it.

i dont think you'd get anything remotely decent for under $1000, unless you get them from ebay, but then still.
the $300-$800 models are usually entry-levels that are used for the first half year of practice, to see if talent and real interest are there; alos, the lack of decent sound isn't noticable yet at that level, becouse the player has no real skill to make a good one sound nice.

that said; as posted before, make sure you try out the instrument before you buy; if you buy frim ebay, make an appointment with the seller and try the instrument at his house.
if you are buying from a store; they usually have this 'try before you buy' action, you take one home (after paying some deposit), keep it for a week or two to try, and then swap it out for another one, usually giving you the choice from 4 or 5 different instruments.
musical instruments are expencive and type, sound, build and feel are very personal, the only way to know if it suits you is to try, just as a shoe or a 3-piece suit

izzeme, I just wanted to verify something, very noobish question but I am curious. Is it the same as with the trumpet where you need to provide the....err...sound source and oscillation with your lips (don't know the proper technical name for that) or is there a filament in the mouthpiece that assists that process?

get a load of THIS-
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0C8EkNeKJlo[/youtube]
sub-contrabass sax versus soprillo [above a soprano] sax.

^^^
i beg to differ, a clarinet and a sax sound as different as a piano and a harpsichord. clarinets are cylindrical-bored giving them a more closed-off sound, compared with the bright brassy sound of the conical-bored saxes. an alto sax and a Bb clarinet occupy roughly the same pitch range [the clarinet goes way higher due to its harmonic structure] but that are the only similarities between them aside from the single-reed mouthpiece.

Lol, that can't possibly be true.