I recently purchased the Cecilio Electric Cello Outfit CECO-3, in white, from Fiddlershop. First, as always, the service from Fiddlershop was exemplary. I was not sure what to expect, other than the great customer service, because it was a Cecilio brand and they are sent directly from the Cecilio warehouse. Therefore, I was not sure how much of the Fiddlershop great customer service would be visible. I knew it would be there, the question was how far into the process. The Fiddlerhop does not setup the Cecilio instruments, from what I know. But, they still did the tracking and all the other great customer service they do with every other product they sell. So, the Fiddlershop end of this purchase what terrific.

Now for the Cecilio service and the product.

My cello came in perfect condition and packed very securely by the folks at Cecilio. The white cello with the black fingerboard and tailpiece is extremely attractive. So, shipping, delivery and packing was perfect.

The cello is absolutely lovely. You cannot beat the price and the quality. The sound is great with my Sony headphones. I have had these Sony headphones for decades and they work perfectly with my cello. I do not have an amp, and don’t plan on getting one. I did not purchase it for performing for am audience.

The strings, although they are Cecilio provided, are really nice. I did not have any breakage when I tuned my cello, as other people have stated. That can happen with any brand and should not be a mark against Cecilio. Plus, at this price, you are not going to get D’Addario Kaplan cello strings. The cello is very well built and sounds wonderful.

The tone adjustment knob on the back is great. Really enables you to change the tone if you want. I do that just to change the sound of repetitive playing when I am trying to figure out fingering. Makes it more fun.

The Issue that was solved

The shape of this model cello is the reason it was purchased. Let me explain for those who may also have a hip issue. Once in a while my hip will act up. It is painful to hold the cello during those times. I saw this cello. The lower bout on the left side is not there. Both upper bouts are there, along with the thumb catch at the neck for upper registers. This was important for me because I need the reference for upper registers, and that E reference at the upper bout area. The modern looking electric cellos would not work for me, being a student.

The left lower bout not being there allows me to hold my cello during the times my hip is acting up. It is perfect and very comfortable. I play it even when my hip is not giving me issues.

Another benefit is that I do not feel like I can’t play the cello when I want to because someone else might be in the house. It also lets me do a song or scales over and over and over without worry that I will be bothering someone with the constant repeating.

This electric cello has greatly enhanced my enjoyment, quality, and quantity of playing time.

This will not replace my acoustic cello. That is just a preference, and has nothing to do with quality sound issues. I just like acoustic. I just want to point out that playing the electric cello has not affected my acoustic playing. I use the acoustic for lessons and my major practice.

I do practice my vibrato on my acoustic, not electric. That is because it is difficult and I want to learn vibrato on one cello first. There isn’t much difference between playing the two cellos, but that little difference, and the fact that vibrato, for me is difficult, I would prefer to learn the feel on one cello. Since I use the acoustic for lessons, I am using my acoustic to learn vibrato. Other than that, anything I play on my acoustic, I can do without issue switching between the acoustic and Cecilio Electric. This money well spent for a good quality electric cello.

I just wanted to shore what I see as benefits of the electric cello if you have some issues that prevent the holding of the huge acoustic cello. I also wanted to point out that even with the Cecilio being only around $350 (as of this writing), it is an excellent electric cello. Also, even though they are shipped directly from Cecilio’s warehouse, Fiddlershop still maintains their excellent customer service when ordering and tracking.