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Hello Everyone!
I got my new electric violin. I had a mini disaster ordering from a "looser" on Ebay. The violin was either a fake or a resell or something. I was foolish, since they had a few violins, I thought they were an outlet. Thanks to the buyer protection program, my money was returned (not soon enough) but it was returned. ugh...enough of that... I haven't even been able to leave feedback for that as it was disturbing.
DISCLOSURE> I would have bought from Fiddlerman but I wanted Roses. I did even contact him to see if the Cecelio was available in pink. I support the Fiddlerman Shop.
Anyway.. I still had my heart set on Roses... and I contacted the manufacture Kinglos from their website. I got great emails back and I got a good feel for the company. I then ordered direct from the manufacturer in China. Once my violin shipped out of Shanghai March 17th, I got it March 23rd. It was very fast service.
I am so happy. I haven't had much time to do much except put on the bridge and tune...tune... and I know nothing of my amp stuff... but she works and is fun fun fun.
Here is Evie2.
Vibrato Desperato.... Desperately seeking vibrato
Honorary tenured advisor
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Well, that's definitely got some flowers on it and it's very unique. Let us know how it plays.
There are a lot of inexpensive amps out there. The cheapest, decent one that I know of is the Danelectro Honeytone. About 20 bucks. They have a belt clip so that you an walk around with it on. They are meant for guitars, but I'll bet it would work pretty well for a fiddle too. It runs on a 9 volt battery or 9 volt adapter. They are plenty loud enough for playing in the house. Not fancy, but they do work pretty well. You'll need a cord too, of course.
Well, how about that I was able to find a video of a guy playing an electric fiddle through one. He's got the gain turned all the way up, which makes sense, because he's trying to play Jimi Hendrix's Purple Haze. You can tell it can be played pretty loud. If one doesn't turn the gain up like that, it has a nice warm tube amp sound -- unless, of course, that you're working on a fiddle rendition of Voodoo Chile.
A positive attitude may not solve all your problems, but it will annoy enough people to make it worth the effort. ~Herm Albright
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I think it looks cool, Toni. Like I mentioned while you were waiting for it to finally arrive, I thought about getting the exact same model earlier in this year when I was considering an EV upgrade. Spruce body, maple neck, ebony fittings.. There's plenty worse out there. I think the roses are one of their best looking ones, personally.
Danelectro's Honeytones.. Eh.. Well maybe the ones with speakers in them are better, but I have one of the headphone models with echo/delay built in, and I've never been too impressed with it. They are inexpensive, though.
"This young wine may have a lot of tannins now, but in 5 or 10 years it is going to be spectacular, despite the fact that right now it tastes like crude oil. You know this is how it is supposed to taste at this stage of development." ~ Itzhak Perlman
LOVE it! WOW
so just a suggestion, look into the Wood electric just something to think about
but seriously, love the violin. You need to post a video playing it, soon!
Honorary advisor
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Thanks everyone! It is fun to play. The most beneficial thing for me is having the sound not in my ear.. .across the room. My accoustic practice last light seemed so loud.
I do have an Amp. I like it. It is a California Amp / 15 watt. Mine is a pale orange.
15 Watts guitar amplifier by California Amps. Featuring 7" high output speaker, dedicated clean/dirty channels, EQ. Unique Orange vinyl finish.
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So far I am pleased with the Electric Violin. Strings are stretching like crazy... I am not used to that. Pegs seem to be nice and fit well. The finish is nice and my shoulder rest fits well. However I need to get another shoulder rest as I Need the rest to be a bit taller for the EV. And I like to switch back and forth.
Fun fun fun.... for those that have been wanting an EV... well they are fun.. its fun to hear the violin amplified and also hear from 8 feet away.
Vibrato Desperato.... Desperately seeking vibrato
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Well, the strings may not be as nice as you are used to, or the instrument itself may be settling a bit, considering it was just shipped in from overseas. I'll bet it will be fine within a week, maybe two.
Switching back and forth between electric and acoustic is fun! Mostly they are similar, but sometimes a song or part will sound better on one than the other and sometimes because of balance differences and etc, some specific song or part can be easier to play on one than the other.
Since, so far as I know, you haven't played amplified instruments before, I'll offer a few basic words of advice.
Assuming you probably set the amp on the floor, you may want to put a small piece of wood or something under the front feet to tilt it back just a little. There's a few reasons. Firstly, most of the sound violins make is in the midrange and high frequency ranges. In those frequency ranges, sound is more directional, like a flashlight beam. If you have it aimed at your shins, you can't hear it as well, and the amount of sound that goes beyond the room (that neighbors or others in the house hear) may be louder than you would think it is. Tilting the amp back just a few degrees can get it aimed more at your upper body when you're standing a little ways back from the amp.
Where you put the amp in the room also has a pretty big effect on the sound. Most people don't think any more about it than they do when deciding where to put a stereo or home entertainment center. But because of the shape of the room and the sort of furnishings that are in it reflecting and absorbing sound, the place that seems the most convenient or nicest from a decorator POV is often not a spot where a speaker can actually sound good in the room. Fortunately, with a little amp like the California, it is pretty portable. It can sit somewhere that looks nice and isn't in the way when you aren't playing and be moved to any spot you find where it may sound better for when you play.
I'll avoid going in to the complicated stuff about how it can theoretically all be figured out, since it is more practical in most cases to just try a few different places around the room where the power cord will reach without making a stumbling hazard for you. Try tilting it back, as I already mentioned. Try putting it on a chair. Different places on the floor and "aimed" in different directions around the room. Some locations and positions will sound better when you listen from where you want to stand when playing than others will.
Corners and with the back too close to a wall are a couple of places people often put amps where they will usually not sound their best. They can still be great places for the amp to "live" when you aren't using it, though.
So what does "bad" sound like? Lots of things. It can sound muffled or harsh. Too close to a wall or corner can make it sound like it is playing in a cardboard box.
I mention it mostly because I have known people (not all of them beginners) who thought they had a crappy sounding amp. Sometimes they brought it to me to see if I could do anything to fix it. And I'd set at a good spot in a rehearsal or recording space to see what the problem was, and it would sound fine. Much like with an acoustic violin, what room you are in and where you are standing can have quite an effect on how good it sounds.
It may seem like kind of a fussy point when you are first starting out. But I've known quite a few people over the years who thought their amp was "crap" and that an upgrade would fix it when the problem was that actually they didn't have any idea where to place it in a room or how to set it to get it to sound near it's best. Electric instruments and amps are great, but they aren't "automagic". Just like with acoustic instruments, they sound better when used some ways than they do others.
"This young wine may have a lot of tannins now, but in 5 or 10 years it is going to be spectacular, despite the fact that right now it tastes like crude oil. You know this is how it is supposed to taste at this stage of development." ~ Itzhak Perlman
@DanielB - Very very cool! Thank you so much.
I will seriously look into you suggestions. The amp is not to big... I want to say 12 x 12... but maybe that is over. And it is a pale orange that blends into the flowers or front room decor. The first time I used it I, unplugged and put it away...last night I left it out and plugged in.
I will experiment with places, and tilt up the sound and see what works and let you know.
Thanks for the tips.
Always can take any tips anyone has to offer.
Vibrato Desperato.... Desperately seeking vibrato
@DanielB ... I forgot to add..... the little fakey vibrato that I get on the E-Violin is kinda too cool for school.
I mean it is the same movement I do on my acoustic... it just makes the right sound on the electric... OH ha ha ha.. hahaha.. YES>>>>> YES!!!!
Vibrato Desperato.... Desperately seeking vibrato
Members
Balance and weight of the instrument are a little different, which will make some things a little easier on one and some things a little easier on the other.
But I would bet that now that you're getting some vibrato going on the electric, soon you'll be doing it on acoustic as well. I find that the two instruments kinda work together that way, and it can help with getting past that "Dang it, why can't I do this??" frame of mind and in to "I know I can do this, do it all the time."
That change in headspace can make all the difference on getting some breakthroughs.
"This young wine may have a lot of tannins now, but in 5 or 10 years it is going to be spectacular, despite the fact that right now it tastes like crude oil. You know this is how it is supposed to taste at this stage of development." ~ Itzhak Perlman
Thank you Barry... I think it sounds really nice but I don't have a lot to go on.
I have been playing with the Gain, Volume, Treble and Base... but I don't know much about it all. My Violin has volume and Tone controls on it. The volume works really good... I am not sure what the tone means. (even after it was explained.... )
I am experimenting.... and of course I am cheating.. because Friday is my Electric day.. and I have been learning and testing the Electric for about 30 minutes each day.
BUT... true to my word, I am playing my accoustic and working on.. my songs.. my bowing..and fiddle stuff.
Can I say... "I am in heaven..?" YUP... Music heaven.
Vibrato Desperato.... Desperately seeking vibrato
Members
You can think of the tone control on most electric violins as a "warm/bright" knob. Turn it one way (usually clockwise) and the sound will get brighter. Turn it the other way and it gets warmer. Too bright and it can sound a bit harsh. Too warm and it may sound too muffled.
It's all about personal taste and what you decide you want at the moment.
"This young wine may have a lot of tannins now, but in 5 or 10 years it is going to be spectacular, despite the fact that right now it tastes like crude oil. You know this is how it is supposed to taste at this stage of development." ~ Itzhak Perlman
Hi Shane.
I don't know exactly how the violin is coated... it is all wood. I was told how it was done by Denny. He seemed to know the word for it.
It is very very cool. My botched version of the explanation "It is like the paint/decoration etc. is floating on top of water or something like that and the violin i is dipped in and the color adheres to the wood. and then dries to harden."
I am impressed with it.
It was not expensive, I expected a bit more of a cheap violin... I don't feel it is cheap or poor quality in the least.
Vibrato Desperato.... Desperately seeking vibrato
Regulars
@coolpinkone Very pretty!! Have you posted a video? I would love to hear her sing!!
Violinist start date - May 2013
Fiddler start date - May 2014
FIDDLE- Gift from a dear friend. A 1930-40 german copy, of a french copy of a Stradivarius. BOW - $50 carbon fiber. Strings - Dominants with E Pirastro Gold string.
@Schaick
I have not made any recordings. (I will) Which is surprising for me. I have a bit of shyness/lack of confidence right now. Instead of pushing myself to do something.. I am giving some time to calm down. And just play the violin.
That being said... I have had really awesome practices the last few days on both violins... and I have some newer to me songs that I am playing and I am feeling good about things.
I got brave to play with some of the effects and experimented and even have been having a bit of fun.
It is funny how after I play with the electric violin.. it's so cool and fun.. and then when I get back to my acoustic, it is like home... things feel right and I have to continue to work with my posture, fingers, bowing etc.
Last night was the first time I took just the Electric violin with ear phones in my room and played and that was good. I could hear really close in my ears and I felt happy to be in the "zone" with the electric violin. It was after 10 pm and I am sure the dog was pleased not to hear me screeching past bedtime.
Vibrato Desperato.... Desperately seeking vibrato
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