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Step Up from a VSO - Stentor?

From Lily Morris
Posted June 5, 2012 at 04:33 PM

I'm going to go into my local violin shop (Strings of Penn) later in the week and have a chat about the options, but I was wondering whether the, say, Stentor Conservatoire/ Conservatoire II outfits (at just under £200 and £250 respectively) would be worth it? I'd probably go for the latter I think - would that be a sizeable step up in quality from the Chinese one, which I'd have to put good strings on anyway to start with. (We had some cheapies on to make it playable at all, always knew I'd have to upgrade soon but not having touched the violin for seven years I didn't want to spend too much initially).

Tl;dr: I'm just restarting on a Chinese VSO-ish instrument we had in the house (which I could YouTube a video of?) and am considering upgrading to the Stentor Conservatoire II - opinions?

Go onto eBay and see what the seller Yitamusic has to offer. Their T20 line has some "real" violins in your price range.

Cheers Carlo

Thanks for the advice :) are their standard bows/'strings serviceable?

And from those are there any that are particularly good or should I just choose based on looks/ price?

http://stores.ebay.com/uk-old-violin-house/Pro-/_i.html?_fsub=2586518013&_sid=1073685103&_trksid=p4634.c0.m322

(Copy and paste into yor browser, I can make violins, but can't put a link)

Cheers Carlo

So it seems it's a toss-up between
the Old Violin House one
and
the Yitamusic one

Also, here's a YouTube clip of the current instrument.

Cheers Carlo

The Yitamusic violins seem to be properley set up and ready to go. I have not bought one myself but others speak highly of them. I will eventually be buying one of their T20 models as per your link. Expect to pay about $500.

If the Stentors are properley set up then they are pretty good. The music shops here sell them and the music teachers quite like them although I find them a bit 'uninspiring' for want of a better term.

NOTE : Why is there a link around the words 'built' and 'expect' ? I did not put that there.

Cheers Carlo

Cheers Carlo

The real VSOs, in my opinion, are the factory made German and French violins made in the late 19th century. Heavily wooded and sealed in hard varnish they sound feeble. Modern Chinese violins have reduced their commercial value to almost nothing as they sound very good in comparison.

Finally, there is no need to swear on this website even with Xs. You dilute your argument, show your prejudice against modern instruments, and sound racist.

Cheers Carlo

Cheers Carlo

carlo its not you im insulting, its your ears......

About the violins on eBay, do they have warm and mellow sounds? I want a new violin but can't stand anything that's bright.

I don't think price is the only indicator of a violin's quality. For the past 2-1/2 years I've been playing a violin that retailed at a little over $600 (USD). I decided to purchase a lower-priced instrument as a more "rough and tumble" companion for some of my more adventurous musical outings, so I wouldn't be putting my primary violin at risk. The violin I just purchased retails for $300 (although I bought it used, so didn't pay that much). Guess what -- the lower-priced violin is FAR more playable, based on comfort, tone, versatility in dynamics, etc. It'll never be more than a nice student-level violin, but that's all it needs to be. I'm VERY happy with it, and it's gotten very good reviews from other violinists who've heard it.

I think Lily is demonstrating a lot of wisdom in her choice of the Stentor. She knows her financial situation best, and saving money now toward buying a better instrument when her lifestyle is more stable seems to me to be the best path to follow.

The poster of this thread was asking for advice on buying a violin at a specific price point, which I gave. I believe that Chinese made violins from Yitamusic would suit her well, sound very good, and are bargain at the price. I have heard you rant about modern violins and Chinese instruments on other threads before now. Prejudice and xenophobia come to mind.

On your bio you do not say you are a violinist. I do not wish to be rude, but I wonder if your playing ability is sufficient for YOU to be able to judge a good violin?

Cheers Carlo

Haven't had anyone covering their ears or fleeing to the parking lot yet! My orchestra conductor and violin teacher both like my older violin. Neither has heard the new (used) one yet (I've had it less than a week), but there was highly favorable reaction from a chamber group I played with yesterday. Could it be that your definition of a VSO might be too all-encompassing???

@Raymond. I would describe the sound as powerful and full. In the examples I have seen and played, the colour has tended towards the brighter end of the spectrum.

Cheers Carlo

.

Also, le plan is to bid on a couple of the Yita ones and see if through luck I can get one at the price of the Stentor (I know I won't, don't stress naïveté xD ) amd then as I probably won't be able to, go for the stentor

Warmth and sweetness, on their own, are not positive traits that professional violinists are looking for. Those characteristics are better suited to the amateur player. Maybe, as you are not a professional violinist, you may not understand this.

However, let's call a truce. Let us both stick to what we know best. I'll go back to, what we in the business call, playing the violin; and you go back to fixing eBay wrecks and repairing at the lower end of the market.

@Lily. Zeller, in my opinion, is not better than the Stentor model that you were looking at. Re bidding, the best way to bid is to use sniper software that bids in the last couple of seconds of the auction. You can find this online. Don't bid early as you will just push up the price. Good luck and let us know how you get on.

Cheers Carlo

Cheers Carlo

Cheers Carlo

I am stereotyping three different types of violin -

Violin A -
Warm
Sweet
Rich
Full
Rounded

Violin B -
Powerful
Brilliant
Focused
Deep
Clear
Robust/Muscular

(muscular is more full, robust is more transparent)

VSO -
Nasal in the Bass
Piercing/Tinny in the Treble
Bright

So these are my definitions. My violin has all the qualities of a VSO, but not as extreme. The A and D string are more on the sweet side, but the E string is piercing and the G string is slightly nasal. So, my violin is half-VSO.

Which violin do you guys prefer, A or B?

Powerful. A violin must be able to play loudly. However, it needs to be able to play all dynamics from pppp to fffff.

Clear. The sound must not be wooly or fuzzy in any position. You need to be able to play to the top of each string without the sound cracking or becoming choked.

Projecting. The sound needs to carry past the first three rows of seats even at pppp.

Malleable. It can't be a one trick pony. The violinist needs to be able to change the tone colour. I don't look for sweetness and warmth in a violin. I can make any good violin sound sweet and warm myself.

Comfortable. Well set up to play in any position with correct string clearances. The neck needs to suit you as does the size of the instrument.

Beautiful. It has to look attractive. I spend a lot of time with my violins. I want to appreciate their looks as well as their sound. (I used this when I got married also)

It's starting to look like your list B!

Cheers Carlo

We are getting slightly off topic :-)

Cheers Carlo

Well...let's just leave it at that, as far as choosing a spouse goes. ;)

Frankly, if the seller wrapped the instrument properly, and the sound post still came loose, I think it's now your concern. He took reasonable care, and soundposts do come loose regardless.

It's not a huge expense to have it reset.

Your comparison between violins and wives, combined with the information in your other posts has me curious about a number of things:

What is the minimum one needs to spend to get a wife with good function, as opposed to ending up with a WSO (wife shaped object)?

If a wife is a "screamer", is this necessarily an undesirable trait, or does it depend on the circumstances under which they scream?

Is an old German woman a better value than a newer Chinese one?

Are Italian women overpriced?

Since the average marriage lasts only nine years, which kind of wife has better trade-in value? Or is it better to keep the old one around as a spare, or for times when you don't want to use your "better" one, like for outdoor gigs?

Since there are also female readers here who doubtless have similar questions, will your answers apply to husbands too, or will that need to be addressed separately?

Cheers Carlo

I realize you were only trying to help.

And what about a man who lets out an occasional Tarzan yodel? (not like we haven't all done it, maybe when we thought no one could hear)

Cheers Carlo

Would that be a wolf note you'd be yodelling instead perhaps? Slightly less embarrassing than the impersonating the great Tarzan, all by yourself on the couch, of course. ;P

Who ended up paying for it, and how much was it? Just curious...no need to answer if you'd rather not...

Let us know how you find it, as you get some time in on it...

I just bought what I have to think is a Chinese violin and case off the local craigslist for $30. Sounded screechy. Pulled the bridge, cut it down, tweaked the sound post, cut the nut properly, did a little planing on the fingerboard, and replaced the strings. Now while not the most beautiful sounding instrument ever made, it plays quite nice, is very responsive, and sounds pretty decent for an investment of one hours work and $60 out of pocket.

I guess my point is, with the budget you are looking at, I would be more prone to find a luthier to give your current fiddle the works and make it the best it could be, and in the mean time continue to save for a true step up, and get a bench made instrument from a lesser known maker.