Welcome to our forum. A Message To Our New and Prospective Members . Check out our Forum Rules. Lets keep this forum an enjoyable place to visit.
Log In
Register
Home
Topic RSS
(0 votes) 
violin sound challenge:
download Audacity (hit transport, then record, then stop, then file, then export) (or similar) without any effects (reverb, etc.) play the fingering on each string (the tune is "Love Me Tender") the notes on the d string are: dgf#gaeagf#ef#g.
Tell us about the violin and the strings used.
This is not about perfect playing, this is about hearing the tone of the violin and the sounds of the strings.
1.Jane, the $30 Crescent violin with $5 china strings
2.Vanessa, Mendini 650 with Dominant gda and Jargar e
3.Maggie, Fiddlerman Soloist with Pirastro e, Jargar a, Prelude dg.
Offline
Hello .. Nice to see you.
I listened to all of them three times.
I kept going to Vanessa for my choice, consistent good tone.
Maggie's tone seems very rich also... There seems to be a depth of sound.. lingering vibration
Jane .. not bad at all either. Maybe a bit quieter?
I don't have the right words or terms or even ears.. but I enjoyed the samples and listening. 
Vibrato Desperato.... Desperately seeking vibrato
I listened to them four times, the third and fourth time I listened to each strings (As from all three violin etc,) instead of all strings from each violin. (Since I like blind test, I wished you had not told us what violin and what strings you used, but I did not look any way) here are my thoughts:
1. The first violin sounds open.
2. Both second and third violin sound nasal to me, as if they haven't not been played long.
3. I felt the E string on third violin choking, like someone who can't sing high notes trying to sing high notes.
4. I think the second violin has dominant strings.
5. I think the first violin has steel strings since it sounds a little brighter and not as warm as the second violin.
6. I don't know what strings the third violin has, but it sounds close to dominant strings, but it is very nasal and choking. (I have only used steel, dominant with gold label E, zyex, corelli, pro arte, my voce, red label, and have heard evah pirazzi a lot, so not enough experience)
7. I felt the second and third violin may have potential to get better sound if they are played on more.
8. the third violin may need sound post adjusted.
9. In general, I like the sound and tone on the second violin better.
10. I would like to hear the sound of all three violins again, if you use same strings and same bow (I think you did use same bow).
Thank you for sharing! I enjoyed it, it's fun! (Now, I am going to see what violin they are and what strings they are:))
Thank you both for your time and your responses. What I was hoping to start in this thread was a single place where one could come to hear all the different violins and strings on this forum and be able to compare each by everyone playing the same notes. I believe to someone wanting to upgrade their violin, that having such a comparison available would be a benefit.
Regulars
Offline
In order to do a good and honest test with strings, they would need to be played on the same violin. Your Medini violin with Zyex strings might sound terrible, but putting them opn my 130 yr old violin might sound incredible. (no offense)
The ability of the player has a lot to do with how the strings sound as well. A very experienced player, like Pierre, could make a $5.00 set of Chinese strings on a $100 violin sound great! Just sayin'
"If you practice with your hands you must practice all day. Practice with your mind and you can accomplish the same amount in minutes." Nathan Milstein
Regulars
Offline
I think it will be a great resource to have examples from various instruments and strings available for people to hear. Of course it won't be as rigorous a comparison as if the same person were playing on each of the instruments, but it will nonetheless give some idea of the potential of a particular model.
Will work on this and try to post my examples soon. It will be a good motivation for me to do some more 4th finger work!
Regulars
Offline
For those who like to see music notation, here is the test music as an attachment. It's just the opening four bars of Love Me Tender (Aura Lee), played successively on each string from G to E.
Thank you for that pdf. That will help some people. And I will wait for your violin sounds.
Regulars
Offline
Okay, here is the sound challenge as played on two different violins. I don't actually name violins, but for purposes of this post I've assigned temporary names: Adelina and Doina. For each test piece, Adelina was played first and then Doina, as in the order the mp3 files are listed. I placed the description of the violins under the “spoiler” section so that you won't see it right away if you prefer to listen blind.
I played the Aura Lee / Love Me Tender test piece suggested by @MrYikes, starting on the G string and ending up on the E string. Using the 4th finger is very new to me and I don't always hit it correctly, so I also did another test piece on each violin. The additional piece was Twinkle Twinkle Little Star played successively in the keys of A, D, and G. Upon listening to the recordings I realized that I didn't always hit the correct notes on Twinkle either! - but hopefully it will serve for the purpose of comparing the two violins.
One of the violins is the same one I've been using since I started learning a few months ago and the other violin is a short-term rental that I am evaluating for a possible purchase, so I would very much appreciate your thoughts on how the two instruments differ in sound.
Spoiler (Violins unmasked) below:
The Adelina violin is a full-size Mendini MV200, purchased for less than $55 as part of an outfit with case, bow, rosin, extra bridge, extra strings, and shoulder rest. The strings are the same Cecilio steel strings that came with the instrument.
The Doina violin is a Romanian-made instrument with the model name Bianca. I am testing the 7/8 size, at my teacher's recommendation that this size may be a better fit than the 4/4. It retails for about $400 as part of an outfit with case, bow, and rosin. The strings are steel, but I don't know what brand. The instrument is new, so the strings are probably the workshop default.
Hi, and thank you. My idea here was not really to compare violins, just to be able to have a place where you could hear the sounds that a violin makes.
But you asked to compare and so I will. You are very comfortable on the first violin and it is heard in your playing. You know where to place your finger. I listen mostly to the open string sound and the cgda sound. The cecilio strings are bad strings and the company should be ashamed at providing them on their violins. The violin has a pleasant d string and a string and the e string sounds really nice. Keep this violin forever, don't let it get away from you.
The second violin is better sounding. The g string is clearer, the d string is very nice, the a string sound is and will be smooth, the e string sounds crystal. And understand when I say d string, I am talking about the sound coming from your violin on the d string, etc.
1 Guest(s)
Mouse
ELCBK