Weltmeister Saphir

[SteveH]

Hi, Friends --

I'm wondering what the community thinks of Weltmeister accordions, especially the Sapphir. I'm trying to decide on a new instrument, and I'm currently leaning towards a Scandalli Air IS, but the Weltmeister would save me some money. Any thoughts?

Thanks!
Steve

 

[JerryPH]

Well, generally speaking, you get what you pay for and comparing brands, Scancalli makes a better accordion than Weiltmeister.

My advice is that if you are serious about your accordion, save a little linger and get the Scandalli, however if you are doing this just to play around with an OK accordion for personal pleasure and you don't do anything professionally and you like the sound snd feel of the Weltmeister, pick that one up.

Have you tried both? That is probably the most important thing to do before spending a penny.

 

[landro]

I`d be willing to bet that model Weltmeister is made in China. Just saying.

 

[Thomas N]

I had always heard that the bass mechanism on Weltmeister accordions was a nightmare to work on. I have no other data to prove that fact other than it's something I recall and even if anecdotal, it still makes me cringe every time I hear the name!

Scandalli make very good accordions and have been around a very long time.

 

[JeffJetton]

For what its worth, I own a Saphir and thinks its just fine for the price point. Decent build quality. Nice action. Has held its tuning for several years. Definitely a step up from my previous Hohner Bravo at least. If I had to do it again Id probably have gotten the musette tuned a bit drier, but thats about it.

As far as I know, all Weltmeisters are assembled in their factory in Klingenthal, Germany. Heres a video: I went with the Italian reeds option on mine. Not sure where the reeds would come from otherwise.

I actually had to do a quick repair on it a few months back that required removing the entire bass machine. I was dreading it! But it turned out to be super-easy. Remove two screws and the entire thing comes out as one piece.

I think Weltmeister sometimes gets bad rap because for a long part of their history, back in the GDR days, they were a state-owned company. The quality, apparently, was not always that great. (Most of the used Welties that you see on eBay these days are from that era.) Now that they have to compete in the free market, theyve stepped up their game.

 

[JackieC]

Weltmeister accordions are not made in China. They are made in Klingenthal, Germany. The reeds are made in Czech Republic. My CBA accordion was made in Germany by the Harmona company, which is who makes Weltmeister. I think the Weltmeisters have a warm and pleasant sound, in my opinion. I think their quality is good and the price is more affordable. I owned a Weltmeister Achat 72 several years ago, and regrettably, traded it for something else. Now, I miss it and wish I still had it. It weighs about 17 pounds and is easy on the shoulders. I will probably purchase another one sometime in the future.