Conn made some really great saxes. However, if your husband plays in a rock and soul band, he would probably rather have a tenor sax...

As was mentioned, a Tenor Sax may be more in order. I found out something recently that I never would have believed before, as far as tight budget horns. A few Taiwanese companies, or perhaps manufacturing plants there for American companies, are now turning out really decent horns. P. Mauriat pro models are quite well made at perhaps $2500 new and $1600 nice used. The Steve Goodson line of saxophones should be considered at about $1900 new. The Winston pro models are well made and sound good, if a bit bright, for perhaps $1500 new and $1000 for a nice used tenor. The copper plated Winstons are maybe a bit less bright in tone, but still not vintage dark. And of course if you're buying used, you might well get a lightly used recent Selmer-Paris pro model for around $2000-$2500. Please beware the $500 and less wonders that are permeating the market. Good Luck.

I forgot the most important part of my comment. I would not want to be surprised with a new horn, anymore than I would want someone to pick out new shoes for me. The shoes might not fit right and the horn might not either. He should try out a lot of horns, vintage and modern, and see what he likes. Find a large music store with a good used inventory. He'll need to take his own mouthpiece and reeds and cleaning materials. It's possible you could find a decent used vintage horn for less than $1000, but not too likely. A 1950's or early 1960's Conn 6M (alto) or 10M (tenor) could be a budget concious choice - but he would sure need to test it first. If you could afford a late 1930's model, it would be more certain to be a great horn. I heard these started getting variable in the 1950's and unusable in the late 1960's. A late 1940's or 1950's Martin pro model might be obtained in good shape for $1000 or less. I passed on a 1950 The Martin tenor recently at $850 - good horn, not enough dough.