Kreddle Chin Rests

September 16, 2013 at 07:28 AM · looking elegant.

September 17, 2013 at 01:05 AM · I backed the project quite a while ago, perhaps close to a year now. From what I gather, some Kreddles have already shipped, but I still have not received mine -- am anxiously awaiting. As with most things relating to business, things always take longer than you expect.

Anyone received their Kreddle yet? What do you think?

September 17, 2013 at 01:25 AM · Not yet. Apparently at least 3/4 have shipped though. There are positive reviews so far in comments on the kick-starter site.

September 17, 2013 at 01:28 AM · I got mine. It's pretty sweet. It's light and I can get it higher than I had my old chinrest (But I have to take it off to fit it in my case, which is a very easy process). Because it can fit directly on the purfling, it seems to have opened-up my violin some. So far so good, and since I always seem to get tired of my chinrest, I can do a lot to make it feel better when I need to switch up.

The only issue I saw was that one or two of the holes on the clamp barrels was too small for a chinrest key. Luckily, the other holes sufficed. Just a small tolerancing issue.

It's interesting - Being how it is so modular, I could imagine at some point, alternate cups being created for different face structures. Maybe at some point, a center-mounted one could be made, for people whose violins prefer those.

September 17, 2013 at 04:50 AM · A very clever idea. How much do they weigh ? So they only cost $75 plus $10 for international shipping ?

Somebody will probably start offering a real wooden part for the chinrest itself if the design proves popular.

September 17, 2013 at 05:30 AM · I'm still waiting for mine :(

September 17, 2013 at 07:59 AM · This has been baked by a fellow Slovenian some 5 years ago. It's called VLM Augustin SAS chin rest. I personaly do not use it, but I do have VLM Augustin shoulder rest, which is lightweight and comfortable.

https://www.viva-sas.com/chin_about.htm

September 17, 2013 at 08:49 AM · Then the SAS is only "half-baked" by comparison in terms of promised adjustments. It also appears it would not be difficult to offer wood versions of the Kréddle in future.

September 17, 2013 at 12:26 PM · Ah, I see. the height adjustment. Ok.

The space age chin rest then. What next? Hexagonal fiddle?

September 18, 2013 at 12:28 AM · Height (although apparently details have been changed c.f. the original design), tilt (in all planes!), rotation and position of the cup. The SAS has a fixed height (albeit there are choices) and only side to side tilt AFAIK. Also it uses an unconventional bracket. One recipient's comment on the kick-starter site compares the two in favour of the Kréddle.

Not biased, but I have found the absolute worst issue for me has been finding a suitable chin rest (most are far too low) so this is very important to me and I wonder how many others do use a shoulder rest as compensation for an ill-fitting "default" chin rest (as I did). Some comments on the kick-starter site suggest others do. In any case it promises to allow some experimentation without forking out more and more money.

September 27, 2013 at 02:37 AM · I received my viola Kreddle in the mail today.

It's fantastic, exactly what the inventor promised to deliver. The range and ease of adjustment is incredible, and the fit and finish is superb.

It came with three "posts" of different heights (low, medium, and high) with which to mount the chin plate, and the only thing I'd love to see in the future is a larger range of these posts.

While the current price ($89, add $19 more for stainless steel fittings) might seem high, I spent several hundred dollars for the ideal setup for my violin, a hybrid Flesch/Guarneri model by Tempel (Germany). I didn't want to go through the cost and time searching again and the Kreddle does what I need it to!

Disclaimer: I play without a shoulder rest on both violin and viola.

September 27, 2013 at 05:02 AM · That is encouraging. Mine has been in transit for seven days, thus far. If it is good enough to solve my chin rest issue, I'll be very happy. I wonder if the longest post will do.

October 9, 2013 at 06:13 PM · Can someone who has the Kreddle measure its height at the lowest setting? (or point me to this information on the Kreddle website - if it's there, I didn't find it)

I love the idea of a tilt-adjustable rest, but the pictures look like it might be too tall for me. I suppose it has to be made fairly tall in order to have room for the tilt mechanism.

October 17, 2013 at 02:48 PM · The kréddle at it's lowest is 28mm, give or take a few depending on how you have the pitch adjusted. It'll go up to 38mm with one option in between.

October 17, 2013 at 08:56 PM · I received my Kreddle a few days ago, and it's great! I agree with everything Gene Wie says above (except I still do play with a shoulder rest).

October 18, 2013 at 12:22 AM · This is what my violin accessories shop (JPB) emailed me about the Kreddle: "No I am sorry we haven't heard of it, but I have checked and as they are selling direct, UK Importers will not be stocking them. Those that saw them at Frankfurt were concerned that the plastic parts were flimsy and that as it all revolves around a single plastic ball joint and arm, it would likely not last too long under arduous conditions". Have any of you who have received yours any reason to suspect that those concerns may be right?

Incidentally the brand name has an French acute accent over the first "e", thereby suggesting that it might be a snazzy way of spelling "cradle".

October 18, 2013 at 12:53 AM · John: You bring up a good point. I am also curious how sturdy users think the Kreddle is. It only has a 90 day warranty according to the "How To" book on the website.

October 18, 2013 at 02:08 PM · Thanks to Jordan Hayes for providing the height measurements. I will compare these against my current chinrest.

October 18, 2013 at 09:40 PM · I have been using my Kréddle for just over a month (I must have received one of the earliest shipments). It has made a big difference in my comfort level—and comfort improves my playing. I was one of the people on Kickstarter, and I know that the inventor took a long time and a lot of effort to make sure of the quality of the device. I have so far discovered no weaknesses or points prone to failure. It seems sturdy and dependable and is not overbuilt. This is a rave review.

October 19, 2013 at 07:40 AM · Regarding the comments from JPB accessories shop above: but just how much do they think people 'press' on their chin rests? I mean, if you press always hard on your chin rest to be 'worried' it is not 'strong enough' at the ball joint then you really ought to take a look at your posture/technique as you may not have a very long healthy violin-playing-life (ie injury will strike).....

I have bought the kreddle, it is great (however I already had a chin rest which was perfect for me and still use that one), having looked at it I really do not think it would break/bend etc at the ball joint under normal daily playing conditions.....I can't see how it would to be honest. But then thinking about it, if anything 'went wrong' with it say 5 years after you bought it, if it's really the chin rest which solved your posture/playing problems then 5 years of healthy playing to me it's worth it and I'd buy another one 5 years later.

October 19, 2013 at 10:17 AM · Plastic does not necessarily equal flimsy. The fact that it has some give is a good thing...you can tighten it to a certain point without it cracking. What do they want to make it out of instead? How will that affect the price?

How often are you going to adjust the Kreddle? Well, mine is in place and I haven't adjusted it since...

October 22, 2013 at 04:34 PM · Hi Everyone!

to John Rokos:

Yes, your shop is right. For the time being we are only selling direct. This is mostly because I simply do not have enough stock to work with distributors right now. I hope to work with suppliers in the future, but keep in mind we only launched the business a month ago.

As for the speculation of flimsy-ness. I decided to go with a carbon fiber composite, which costs twice as much, but which is also significantly stronger than the material that was being recommended to me. My engineer and the shop both thought the use of the carbon fiber composite specialty material was a bit overkill, but I feel better about the added strength. So far, there are somewhere over 400 kréddles out, and I have not received any reports of any part breaking. I would never say that a part will not break sometime in the future, however, I agree with Jo Parker in thinking that one would probably need to go well beyond 'normal' playing practice to do so.

And yes, "kréddle" should be pronounced "cradle." The idea was a combination of "fiddle," and "cradle." Also, the 1st person to figure out what the inspiration for the "K" logo was, gets a 20% discount code.

October 22, 2013 at 06:38 PM · Jordan, the inspiration for your logo was the shape/silhouette/outline of the Kreddle chin-rest. If you tilt your head to the left as you look at the logo you can see it looks just like your chin-rest :)

October 22, 2013 at 09:00 PM · Indeed Jo! I know you already have one, but please email me through the contact form at info@kreddle.com, and I'll send you a code. I'll leave it up to you to gift/use it!

October 23, 2013 at 01:38 AM · When Jo has to lead an orchestra in a concert including Danse Macabre ...

(The Scottish tartan manufacturers have yet to come up with one for the Macabres)

October 29, 2013 at 03:45 PM · Hi All,

I wanted to let everyone know that I put together a blog post about how I think we should start to find our set up for the kréddle and for violin playing in general. Check out the post here: http://t.co/FQkC7Mdpic

Happy Fiddling!

October 29, 2013 at 08:21 PM · Thank you Jordan. What you wrote leaves me wondering what to do as a beginner, when you do not yet have a clear picture of the motions you want. I am enjoying reading about setup anyway, and experimenting.

My Kréddle is held up in customs, this could take another month. In the mean time I am still wondering about its height. Could you please tell me what the maximum height of the Kréddle is? I read the website and the pdf, but could not find this information.

October 29, 2013 at 08:38 PM · Hi Zina, the kréddle adjusts from around 28mm to around 38mm, give or take depending on how you have it sitting on the ball. I certainly hope it doesn't take another month to get through customs!

October 29, 2013 at 09:43 PM · Have had mine for 3 weeks. I use the highest setting. What I can say is

1) a slightly higher post would not go astray for me

2) I leave the post in the chin plate and put on this combination and take it off again each day so the violin fits in the case. It takes a few seconds, is easy and I have had no problems with the components.

3) I have the chin plate rotated so that it juts out beyond the violin on the bass side which fits my jawline better and is something I could not do before.

January 19, 2014 at 07:00 PM · Jordan,

I just sent you an email through your page. Please, please find a way to build the Kreddle higher. I need 55mm above the top of the instrument out of my current setup....being able to adjust tilt pitch and torque may take some of that off, but not 17mm. I play in pain; my current setup isn't perfect, it's just the best I've been able to build. The thought of having something like this enough to bring tears to my eyes. Please offer your prototype, for people like me.

Maria Nicholas

January 27, 2014 at 07:46 PM · I just received and installed my Kreddle. I think it will work out very well. My neck is long: 4 1/2 inches from collarbone to chinbone. I had a chin rest custom-built for me over 15 years ago: the maker added 3/4 inch to a standard rosewood Guarneri model, and I spent hours filing and sanding the cup to my satisfaction. The problem is, it is so damn heavy. The Kreddle is lightweight, and the tilt adjustment will help keep my violin flatter.