List Price: $499.99
Sale Price: $132.57
Today's Bonus: 73% Off
- Size 4/4, style 1 electric / silent violin in pearl white varnish (full size)
- Hand-carved solid maple wood body with ebony fingerboard, pegs, chin rest and tailpiece with mother of pearl inlay
- Powered by a 9V Alkaline battery (included)
- Includes: lightweight hard case, Brazil wood bow with unbleached genuine Mongolian horsehair, quality rosin cake, a bridge, aux cable, and headphones
- 1 Year Warranty Against Manufacturer's Defects
Click Here to Read More Reviews >>
I've been playing the violin for almost nine years now, and I thought this would be a good present to myself for the amount of time I've spent on one thing, and I also got this because I've always wondered what it would be like to play an electric violin. I have a lot to say so I'll just lay it out into pros and cons (:Pros:
-It's just like playing an electric guitar, but it's a violin. You can use all the amps and distorters you want, and it sounds absolutely awesome.
-For the price, this is an excellent instrument. The strings are brand new, the finish on the violin is beautiful (I got mine in black metallic), and it has a great tone.
-It's very lightweight. It and the case together weigh less than holding my oboe (whilst cased).
-I received it within four-five days of buying it.
-The case was much better than I expected. It's actually a hard case (I couldn't tell from the picture) and has a pocket for storing things on top of it and a pocket/cubby inside to put your rosin in.
-If you don't have a bow or rosin, it comes with both. (I already had both, so I'm using my bow and my rosin because I prefer them, but it's all a personal decision, really.)
Cons:
-It's very hard to tune. When you get the instrument, the strings aren't tuned whatsoever (which is fine) but trying to tune them was a bit of a pain seeing as how the strings have not been stretched out yet. I keep having to retune every ten-twenty minutes. This isn't really a problem of the manufacturer, that's just how violin strings are, so if you're not aware of that/don't have much experience/are scared you'll break a string, you might want to do what I did and go to a music store that has someone who knows what they're doing in the way of stringed instruments and have them tune it for you. If you do this, it will still get out of tune, but it will take longer, and it won't go as flat. Eventually, it will cease to un-tune itself.
-You will need to buy your own shoulder rest. In addition to this, there is not really a good place in the case to put a shoulder rest. This isn't a big problem, however, and it's easily solvable. I just unscrewed the legs from mine and put the legs and pad next to the scroll (in the case).
Overall, one of the best purchases I've made as of late, and I can't believe I ever lived without an electric version of my favourite instrument!First off, I'm not a professional violinist, but I have played the instrument for a number of years. Also, I've only had this instrument for a little less than a week... but I WILL keep updating this review as time goes on. Finally, I ordered this off Amazon. I cannot speak to the products received from another company.
My bottom Line: To purchase this instrument at such a low price is a fantastic deal. Growing up, playing the violin, it was hard if not impossible to find a quality instrument at such a low price (I spent $125 on this instrument). Of course, this package does have some flaws. Below is an in-depth review, so let's get down to it.
THE INSTRUMENT
Pros:
This is a solid-body electric violin, meaning no feedback!!
The instrument has a sturdy, strong feel.
The bridge, tailpiece, & chin-rest are fantastic (no issues).
The pegs were not broken or damaged in any way.
Contains three perfectly fine 1/8" jacks (Line Out, Mic, Phone) on the underside.
Decent control knob for volume, another for tone.
9v Battery included in case (on/off switch located near battery compartment).
Acoustic production: This is indeed a remarkably quiet violin (when not listening to it through headphones or speakers, of course).
Plays well with others, you can plug it into your amp, your macbook, etc.
Garageband works great with this instrument. It's a lot of fun playing around with all the amps/stompbox effects, and this is something I'm still exploring. Absolutely awesome.
Cons:
Being a solid body, it won't sound the same as an acoustic. But if you have a fantastic pair of headphones with new strings (more on that later) this instrument can sound very, very nice.
To spoil your surprise, the included headphones are the worst of any pair I've EVER used (including airline-provided). I'm using Grado SR-80i headphones (which are amazing all on their own).
Acoustic sound: The sound quality is not very good without headphones or speakers that are loud enough to cover up the acoustic production. That being said, it is an electric violin.
It is just a tad bit heavier than my acoustic violin.
The pegs slip. Others claim they don't, but perhaps it's because I live in a tropical environment. Regardless, when I'm tuning the instrument or replacing the strings, I don't want any slippage period. Fortunately, I knew of this issue before buying and picked up "The original peg drops by ardsley" here on amazon for $7.45. Once I applied a drop, the issue went away instantly. I'm extremely glad I bought the peg drops, and I imagine I'll have them the rest of my life.
I'm not a fan of the included strings. They sound weak and loud. I substituted them with D'addario's Pro Arte medium tension perlon core string set, which have a much fuller and richer sound, in my opinion.
Someone mentioned paint coming off (I ordered the black model). I noticed some very tiny black specks on my fingertips, but this is minimal.
No shoulder rest included (but that's expected).
Overall: Changing strings and applying peg drops requires a certain comfort level, but I'm sure you could bring it into any violin shop worth their salt and they could change the strings for you for free if you so desire (provided you purchase new strings from them). The instrument is really what you pay for, and it's still a steal if this was all you received at a little over $100.
THE BOW
Pros:
Good arch in the stick.
Perfectly good horsehair (no adhesive present in the horsehair).
Screw/mechanics of bow worked perfectly.
Overall, I'm very surprised and impressed. I was expecting a worthless bow, but this is in fact a much higher quality bow than what I received in rental packages as a kid.
Cons:
None, just make sure you apply some rosin!
ROSIN:
Pros:
Fine quality rosin.
Cons:
I received dark rosin instead of the light rosin which was pictured.
CASE:
Pros:
Room for two bows.
Compartment for rosin, peg drops, etc.
Cloth to cover violin included.
Compartment on outside to store music, shoulder-rest, etc.
Has backpack straps.
Cons:
Zippers are cheap.
No locks, just velcro overflaps and zippers to secure violin in case.
No room for shoulder-rest on the inside, must squeeze it into the outside zipper compartment.
Cloth to cover violin contains no cushion.
ACCESSORIES:
Headphones are terrible, don't plan on using them.
The 90 degree 1/8" male plug to 1/4" male plug aux cable has completely stopped working after a few days. This is unacceptable, but somewhat expected. I'm currently contacting customer service so that I may receive a new one to use and review. Will keep you updated.
OVERALL:
You will need new strings, peg drops, an extension cable (I purchased a 20 ft female 1/4" jack to 1/8" plug at radioshack for about 10 bucks), headphones/earbuds, and patience. That being said, this is still a fantastic deal. This instrument is way more than playable.
**Update** 06/13/2012
Concerning the faulty aux cable, I contacted Cecilio Musical Instruments and I promptly received a helpful response. They sent me a replacement for my faulty cable at no charge, and it just arrived today. After testing the cable, I can say it is completely functional.
I'm continuing to enjoy this violin, and I will provide a further update to this review in a few months time.And it's not just the looks, this electric violin sounds surprisingly good when using headphones or amplifier. The bow is nice. It definitely needs a shoulder rest, some better rosin and a better set of strings, but for the price, this is wonderful. The line out jack does not seem to work (or I couldn't figure it out), but the phones jack works just fine for the amp. The price was even better after google'ing it ;) Nice as a gift to my dad.I bought this violin so I could practice quietly in my new apartment, since I have neighbors on both sides. It does the trick! I would never use it for performance, simply because the sound quality isn't awesome, but it is perfect or practicing. The headphones are absolute junk, so I don't use those, but I use my bose headphones. The strings understandably stretched quite a bit at first, so it was hard to keep it in tune, but after about 3 days, we were good to go with just minor adjustments. I like the fact that I can use my regular shoulder rest with it. My fingers did turn a little black from the fingerboard or strings at first, but that is minor and didn't last. Overall, I feel that I got quite a bargain, but again, it is perfect for practice but not at all a performance instrument.
Edit: An Amazon rep is requesting me a refund for the bow and cable!
0 comments:
Post a Comment