AnnyJ, I'm not familiar with the Crystalcello violins, but I looked them up and noticed that they seem to carry the same model numbers as the Mendini violins, so perhaps they are really the same violin (sold under a different label)? My current violin is a Mendini MV200.

Anyway, it looks as though at a $150 price point, you probably got some features not present on the lower end models, including ebony pegs and fingerboard. Do your pegs seem to stay in tune fairly well without slipping? If you just started recently, your $150 violin may very well be able to keep you learning for a while longer. Upgrading the strings from the cheap ones that probably came with the instrument could also help improve the sound quality.

Of course, violins such as my Mendini and your Crystalcello cannot be expected to sound as nice as the better-made and more expensive instruments. But, my teacher can make the Mendini sound a lot better than I do! If you are getting to the point where you think the poorer sound quality is holding you back, it is probably time to investigate getting an upgraded instrument.

Do you have any kind of violin shop or even a general music store that sells violins within reasonable travel distance? Even if you have to travel 2-3 hours to get there, it may be well worth it to go to a shop where you can try out several instruments and get a sense of whether it sounds better than on your own Crystalcello. Even if you are not ready to purchase now, it would be helpful to try out several different violins.

If you are not ready to purchase an instrument at this time, many violin shops will rent a decent-quality student instrument (typically one with a purchase price around $400-600, at least in the violin shops around here) for a reasonable monthly fee, with a portion of the rental going towards purchase if you decide to buy it later. If you are nowhere near a violin shop, there are stores online that also provide rentals, though I'm not familiar with their terms.

AnnyJ,

You may be interested in a post I just made under the Violin Sound Challenge heading:

https://fiddlerman.com/forum/b.....challenge/

I played the same test pieces on my Mendini MV200 and on another violin. My Mendini is probably somewhat similar to your Crystalcello, although I think the Mendini MV200 is more of an "entry level" violin than yours.

I will leave it up to you to conclude whether the quality of a violin makes much difference for a beginner. Do both sound equally "squeaky" in the hands of a beginner, or does the higher quality violin sound significantly better?