Is a violin set for $100,- worth the money? 

Thank you so much! I get even cheaper violins off of eBay for my inner-city program--whatever I can find. I have access through various friends and shops for usable used strings and parts. I have a few organizations that help me with the finances. The bows are useless. One shop that has an agreement with Holtz bows, lets me "borrow" returned rental bows that still have some use before returning them for rehair. To start this, I purchased a set of used bows that are in constant rotation. I check the fingerboard--and use a black marker--and set the bridge. I need help with the sound post and need to learn more. I'll look through your videos. So the main use of a cheap violin is when finances are tight and demand is high. At least I can get an instrument into a child's hands with a little effort and care. And it's better than the box I start the kids on from the beginning. If the child progresses, the better violins are reserved for those who work hard to learn. I got a grant for an orchestra of Eastman 80. The pegs are a nightmare and don't stay in tune. They shrink and soon stick out the other side. Teaching kids and caregivers to tune over the internet has been a real challenge. I wish all my students could have some kind of mechanical pegs. But many of my inner-city students don't have enough to eat most days. We--the teachers--do what we can in our program. Parents: Don't go cheap if you can at all afford it and go to a reputable violin shop. My own children started on an Eastman 305. For two musicians and teachers, the price was a stretch, but we know the joy of a good instrument. My son and daughter are pursuing other careers in college, but they still love to play and achieved a high level of skill. My tall son switched to viola and received a substantial scholarship to play viola in his engineering school's orchestra.

What a simply beautiful job you did on your violin- you must be so proud

Thank you! I really enjoyed this! You are very skilled!

This is an invaluable video thank you!, expecially to see the importance of a good setup and service of a luthier. I wish i had access to a lutheir where i am. Even though I havw a more expensive instrument I have no way of knowing if it is anywhere near how it should be sounding and playing.

I bought cheap violins from Ebay and fixed them, but they sound rough. Then I made a violin. Making a violin was very fun and I made made mistakes and I prepaired them. Maple was very hard and I cut my fingers . However I like the violin I made, it is easy to play and it sounds soft and clear. Good video.

You are such an inspiration Maestro Kimon. Thank you for giving it to me straight. For Christmas our young son asked for a violin. This video makes perfect sense to me as I (guitar player) began to tune his violin for the first time. I believe that with my understanding of guitar setup for myself and this insightful video I can and will set his instrument up properly so he may enjoy the sound of his new found passion. In this video you certainly addressed each issue I noticed and you shared how to make the proper adjustments. Your gift of sharing is truly appreciated. Thank you.

I wish I know how to build violins. Now I am old “74yrs” an enjoy your channel.

That was really funny scraping and colouring the fingerboard with a Pentel pen 😅😅😅 but to be honest very impressive that it sounded significant better after the fix

Thank you!

I look forward to your student violin recommendation from Amazon. I recently bought two Stentor II’ s and my only complaint is the curvature of the bridge could be rounder. I am impressed with the overall quality and sound. I may buy a couple of bridges and a template to experiment. There are no violin makers within 150 km.

i purchased one for 350 dollars and it sounded really good, the case was so simple and had almost no space but the violin was really good

H Jimenez makes great Violins that include everything and by changing the friction pegs to geared ones it'll hold tune.

I bought a Glarry acoustic electric for just under $100 with all the fixings. It was not perfect, but with a little work it was playable. Sound quality isn't that important because my playing is still bad. I say until you know you really want to pay it's better not to spend a fortune, but be prepared to fix a thing or two. I bought a setup guide for under $10 and realized the strings were too close at the nut. I used super glue to fill the old notched then filed with a needle file. Then put new notches. It might not be for kids who are learning, but they aren't all trash. P.S. the electronics worked fine.

I am so glad there is a luthier in walking distance from where I live. My first violin was a vso I bought on Facebook market place, my upgrades I bought from the luthier except for one violin I bought on Facebook market place that was listed as old violin but I saw it as an antique to treasure because the seller knew nothing about violins. I took it to the luthier and he said I was very lucky to find it and it was a rare lucky find.

thank t v much waiting for more vedios

I made a mistake trading a nice fender guitar for a violin without looking at it a little more ,the neck has to be reset ,im going to attempt to do this ,I work on guitars so I do know what needs to be done ,thanks for your videos

Gluing up those cracks should help too

In this video you measured the distance to the F hole notch. You said it was right on. What is that measurement and what are the other measurements you use , the distance from the nut to the front of the bridge and the measurement where you set the bridge. Thanks in advance.

Wittner makes tailpieces that don't have fine tuners for if you have fine tune pegs.

It's a good deal if you're an interior decorator and you'll use it to hang on a wall. What a lot of people forget is that you also need a good BOW.

It sounds great, but I think this is just because you play so well.

it's often better to buy an old second hand violin and have it checked over by a luthier like maestro-Kimon. The wood is often of better quality and would be more resonant especially if it has been played a lot. I have a few old violins (one labelled violin dating from 1905), my violins have a lot of scratches and dents and they do look old but they sound very good compared to what you would get for a new violin of the same price.

Where did you get that amazing tool to put the string positions on the bridge? Did you make it?

Will you be doing a cello series soon? You spoke of it a month ago or so! thank you! -your friend paul

A very interesting article. Again I have enjoyed your video very much. Do you have a web site I could view as I would like to make an inquiry regarding having a violin I recently purchased restored. Kindest regards from Austraila

I can remember my first violin looked almost identical to that one you have. When I put the rosin on the bow the rosin started to crumble. I had no idea I was playing on an awfully shaped bridge. 5 weeks in and my G string snapped. I was expecting the E string to snap first having experience from previously playing on a guitar. I decided to go to a teacher and she referred me to a luthier to get a new bridge made.

I wish you would review an entry level carbon fiber violin. Since carbon fiber is both molded and stamped instead of carved (the bridge is stamped but it's resin), the CF violin has a very different feel from something carved.

I have a wittner tailpiece on 3 of my violins.

Nice videos. What is the violin set you recommended for around $300?

I bought a Mendini and the neck just fell off about a month after I had it.

do you do repairs if shipped from the usa?

'You pay for what you get'

Is your next video about a tower strings violin from fiddlershop?

Non classical musician $100=it's just sound lika a violin $1000000=it's just sound like a violin :😌💔

buy cheap, so buy twice..... i think that for a beginner this would be ok. they could upgrade if they keep playing. I'm just glad i have the violins i inherited from both my grandfathers and do not have to buy new ones now. no idea about their quality, but to me they sound good.

If one drop a violin, what are the things to be worried about? Violin sounds ok in my hands that have known violin two weeks for now. 300€ student violin She is, my child named her Harmony Lammas. I dream to build a violin, you have really inspiring content in your channel!

The Glarry models that go for about $100 seem to be a better choice. Better violin, better bow, better case, and more accessories.

In INR it would be 75000 rupees. Cost almost five months of salary.

Its okay my first violin was 30 bucks

hello

100$ for the violin and 300$ more to make it playable. I am thinking. It hurts.

Το κατάλαβα από την προφορά είσαι Έλληνας 😁

Lots of inexpensive vintage violins on ebay or elsewhere. I'd rather go for those.

I disagree with your conclusion. I bought a very cheap violin set for $50 (Glarry GV101). I didn't spend another penny. I did all the setup myself (bridge resizing, changing height of string over nut etc). It was all pretty simple DIY and now I have an excellent violin, and I enjoy playing it. Steel strings, original bow etc were perfectly fine and I see absolutely no need to replace them. I enjoy playing my $50 violin much more than my older "real" violin bought from a violin shop for much more money. Cheap doesn't mean bad, it actually can be pretty good!

I'm about halfway through the video, and I am already thinking 'What a horrible piece of junk!' The shame about these 'instruments' is that they are so bad that anyone who tries one may be discouraged from ever trying the violin again.

This instrument (a VSO, violin shaped object) sounds like a corrugated cardboard box. Very unbecoming.

best thing would be a violin-for-rent for a beginner. i can totally understand that nobody wants to spent a lot of money on an instrument. but playing on a 100$ violin is not fun at all. everything sounds like shit.