EVA-3

I bought this Eastar and a Mendini. This is the one we elected to keep, hands down! While there are some things that my daughter doesn't like/use, this is a great little fiddle, good sound, and an exceptional price! For what she doesn't like: her teacher (a professional musician and fiddler) likes only one of the two bows that came with the set. That bow as a nice bend in it. The bow he didn't approve of was stick straight. My daugher does not like the chin rest (some fiddlers don't!) and we removed it with no trouble. She prefers to use just the shoulder rest. It is not quite as easy to adjust as some shoulder rests, but once you get the hang of it, it was able to be set up well for her (her teacher noted that fact as well). One peg was not holding a tune very well, but a little peg drops and it is working great! (bought separately). The fiddle is beautiful and my daughter loves that it looks different than any of her friends' fiddles which are traditionally colored. The tuner does work, but it took her a bit to figure out how to place it on the fiddle and use properly. The case fits the body of the fiddle well and has a good quality handle. The finish of the fiddle was very well made and the joints look professional (cannot say either of those last 3 things for the Mendini model we bought at the same time!) I asked her teacher how long a fiddle like this would last her, or when we would plan to get another one. He said "Honestly, this little fiddle (it is 4/4 full sized) will last her about as long as she wants it to. She could get another one later, maybe even when she is an adult and wants to put more money into getting a high caliber one if she wishes to, but this will last her a good long time." He went on to say that many of these companies hire young instrument makers to make them and well, every excellent fiddle maker gets his or her start somewhere, so sometimes you get an extra-well made piece even at the reduced price. I don't know any of the other fiddles made by Eastar, but this one blew the Mendini we bought out of the water! Our teacher has a professional grade fiddle which is way way more money than this one. He played both for me one after the other to exemplify the difference. His is a little more sweet in the toning-- just a slightly different intonation that I don't know how else to describe, but both fiddles sang the same piece beautifully. You would have to really be looking for a very specific sound to want to spend a lot more money to buy the professional grade fiddle than this one. This is a wonderful piece!

Excellent beginner violin set! I’m very happy with this violin set. It comes well packaged and includes everything a beginner needs: the violin, bow, case, rosin, and extra strings. The sound quality is surprisingly good for the price, and the violin looks beautiful and well made. It was easy to tune and comfortable to play. This is a great choice for beginners or students who are just starting to learn. I definitely recommend it!

I bought this as a started instrument for my kiddo. I also purchased the thingy to dampen the sound (thankfully) because this thing is loud... and needs tuning periodically. So far it has survived the weekly trips to school and music lessons and all of the strings are good. I also bought replacement strings because I figured those would be the first to go - my kid gets a little excited about turning the pegs and tuning the violin. All in all, I'm satisfied with this purchase: it's a good value for money.

There is a lot to like about this violin package. I highly recommend it to anyone, really. Not only great for beginners, but it's also just fine for anyone. I am a working musician (well, until all gigs got canceled...), and I can already see this becoming my "daily driver." It is too easy for a thief to steal your expensive violin; so it really gives peace of mind, to know that if the thief strikes, you are only out $90! Even so, this violin sounds good enough that you can use this for a gig, and you don't need to risk taking an expensive instrument out to a bar or club where it could be damaged or stolen. FINISH: I'll start with the finish. I love the finish on this violin. Eastar has adopted a thin matte finish (in contrast to the thick , shiney plasticky finish which is found on most violins of this price range. This finish will allow the wood of the instrument to breathe naturally, and the tone of the instrument should increase with time just like any fine instrument. BRIDGES: I received 2 bridges with my violin, and both of them were perfectly cut to match the violin. This is an important point, because it is expensive to get a violin maker to cut a bridge for your violin, but unless the bridge is perfectly fitted, then you will never get a true tone from the instrument. My bridges were fitted with a slight slant to the feet. this is a new style of bridge fitting which will keep the bridge from warping over time, and it also increases the surface area of the bridge where it touches the top of the violin. This can give a fuller tone. I was impressed to see this. TONE: As for the tone of the violin, itself. It has a soft tone which ***doesn't try to be a stradivarius***! In my opinion this is a feature. Too many cheap violins try to provide brilliant, loud projections as you would find with a fine, italian solo violin... but the end of the day, they are just loud. Instead, Eastar has done their own thing with this violin, and they are to be commended for that! This violin will blend well with other instruments, and it will also make it easy for the player to explore soft, subtle tones, but it will still play loud when you push it. It will be a great violin for playing in a chamber ensemble or for playing in a group masterclass with other students. Also I have to mention that harmonics ring true on this violin all the way up the fingerboard. Even the highest harmonics and false harmonics ring just as they should. This is unprecedented for a violin which only costs $90! STRINGS: The strings included on the violin are pretty darn good. Normally, strings on a cheap instrument are trash, but these are very serviceable. The tone is nice and even and the strings hold their pitch pretty well (i've only had the violin for 2 days, so i don't know how long the strings will last). The midrange sounds good, as do the highs. (the E string is great!) I would like a little bit more oomph from the lows, but the tone is very balanced overall. I am used to playing with strings which are a bit thicker; so that is probably the reason I feel this way. Strings are one of the most noticeable upgrades for a violin. I have no doubt that some Thomastik Dominants would sound excellent on this violin. Maybe even try some gut strings or a hybrid gut/synthetic blend, if you are looking for a more unique tone. ROSIN: I actually LOVE the rosin that came with this violin. I was totally amazed when I applied it, and i got a good tone. I've been using Anton Breton rosin, recently, and the rosin that came with this violin is BETTER, i think. In fact, i would say that it is very similar to Pirastro Goldflex rosin in the tone that it produces. It is a high dust variety of rosin, though. So you will want to have a clean, dry, oil and lint free cloth, and take care to wipe the strings and the body of the violin after playing. Also, you may want to take care not to over-rosin the bow, because it would be easy to do with this rosin. (although you could probably make a cool looking dust cloud, while playing, if that's yer thing! :D) Also, be careful not to expose the cake of rosin to high temperatures (over 80 degrees F) or direct sunlight. It has been my experience that light-colored rosin will quickly develop a scratchy tone if exposed to heat or light. You won't be able to tell a difference by looking at the rosin, but your ears can tell. If this happens to your rosin, replace it immediately, and you will be much happier. TUNING PEGS: The tuning pegs seem to fit quite well, and they seem to grip without sticking right away. just be sure to push in while tightening or loosening them. I had no trouble tuning the violin with the pegs. FINE TUNERS: I have mixed feelings about the fine tuners. On the one hand, I love the range and travel, and love how big and easy to grip the tuning knobs are. I feel like they give you just the right amount of pitch adjustment for each turn. What i DON'T like about the fine tuners is the large metal feet on the underside. It would be easy to accidently over-loosen a fine tuner and damage the top of the instrument. Please be very careful about this. Also, if something were to strike the instrument from above, or if the bridge were to snap or fall over, the fine tuners will damage the top of the instrument. I will probably replace the fine tuning mechanism with one that is curvier on the bottom, and made of softer material. SHOULDER REST: I hate shoulder rests. i don't use them, but this one looks pretty decent. I feel like it's better to place the violin directly on your shoulder; so that you can directly feel the vibration of the violin. CHIN REST: The chin rest is very nice and very comfortable. Just like shoulder rests, i actually prefer not to use a chin rest so that i can feel the vibrations directly while playing. But i will probably leave this one on until it falls off, and then i probably won't bother putting it back on. (but i'm weird) TUNER: The tuner that came with this is very simple, clip on tuner. I learned how to tune a violin by ear (and all violinists need this skill), but it can be nice to have a tuner, especially for initial tuning, or if the violin goes way out of tune, or if you are in a loud bar, etc... This is a Donner branded tuner. (Donner and Eastar are like sister companies). It works great for tuning the violin. I have another, different Donner tuner, and it doesn't work well for tuning a violin; so, i was glad this one worked just fine. When the string is on pitch, the entire screen lights up, so it is very easy to tell when you have the correct pitch... even if the lighting isn't good where you are. 2 things which could be improved about the tuner: 1. it uses non-rechargeable battery (like the ones that go in a key-FOB for your car). It would be better if it had a rechargeable battery and a micro USB charging cable (my other Donner tuner has this) 2. the pitch of 'A' is not adjustable from 440 Hz. (my other Donner tuner also has this feature). It is fun to experiment with alternate tunings, and you can't do that with this tuner. Also, some orchestral music may sometimes be written with alternate tunings specified. And of course, any good flat-earther or dirty hippie will tell you that mother Gaia cries in agony any time an musical instrument is tuned to anything other than A == 432 Hz. I'm just sayin. THE BOW: Eastar has adopted a very interesting design with the bow, which i have never seen before. The end of the bow (where you hold it) is octagonal which provides a nice grip, but the rest of the bow is round in shape. i've never seen this. Also, the frog of the bow is BEAUTIFUL. the bow is nice and balanced in weight, and it should be sufficient for most playing styles. I like to keep a Shar Fusion bow in my case, also (for when i want something a bit bouncier). EASTAR: As i mentioned before, Eastar and Donner seem to be the same (or at least sister) companies. In fact, that's how i found out about this violin. I was looking for a violin, and i was familiar with instruments and other equipment made by Donner, and I have constantly been amazed by the quality and pricepoint of Donner equipment. Eastar has been producing violins for a while, but they just recently began shipping them to the US. I asked them to notify me when they began shipping violins to the US, and they did. I was very curious to see how well they compared to both Donner equipment and other cheap violins. The violin can be a tricky instrument to ship overseas and have it arrive in playable condition. It seems that these violins are being produced in ShenZhen, China, and then Eastar has contracted or setup a facility in Kentucky, USA, to setup and ship the violins to the customer. So far they are doing a great job! COMPARED TO MODERN INEXPENSIVE CHINESE VIOLINS: I have a Mendini violin, which cost twice as much, and I have owned Cremona violins that were 2 to 3 times more expensive, and this one is easily better than all of those. COMPARED TO OTHER VIOLINS: Every other violin I have owned was at least 100 years old; so, it is very difficult to directly compare an old instrument and a new instrument. I feel like this violin is roughly comparable to the Sears-Roebuck "Jacobus Stainer" style violins which were produced in the late 1800s in factories in Austria/Germany. Those violins were inexpensive when produced, and today they will fetch a price anywhere from $300 to $2000 depending on the specific model, and how well it has been maintained, modified, or upgraded. This violin sounds different from those (as i mentioned, Eastar has adopted a unique style rather than just attempting to copy Stradivarius or Stainer), but it's basically the modern equivalent of those. This is a great way to spend $90! I will post pictures and videos soon!

As soon as my daughter opened it for Christmas. The string broke. She started crying before even opening her other presents. I assured her we could fix that and it was fine. Upon her playing it a little after, the bridge then broke. Looked like a beautiful violin, but it’s either poor quality or we got a dud. I returned it. They were gracious and I received a full refund back.

The product is not up to standard

I’m at my 20s and recently I thought about picking up a new hobby and my interests on violin brought me here! It was great! Aesthetically pleasing, really love how the violin looks! And it doesn’t sound crappy, sounds elegant just how I picture my first violin would be, worth the price! It got you everything you needed for starter, great one! Really recommend👍🏻

Objective : Music lessons our 8 yr old grand daughter. Sturdy case. Beautiful inner lining to case. Came literally in days.

I am very impressed with this violin. It arrived exceptionally well packed which is so important, as violins need to be handled carefully. The shipping packaging helped ensure this and the actual instrument case is much higher quality than I had expected to receive with a violin at this price - it is strong and sturdy with handles and shoulder straps for easy carrying. Opening the case showed that the violin was shipped with the strings loosened and the bridge removed. This is sensible as it is less likely the bridge will be damaged in transport but does then require some assembly before being payable. The bridge must be placed correctly, which is not tricky, but can require a little care and concentration to do properly. If you have not done this before there are plenty of easy to follow tutorials online (or any music shop should be able to set this up and tune the violin for you without any problems). Violins are considered one of the toughest instruments to tune, but I found assembling the bridge and tuning very simple with this violin - the pegs stay in place well and using the included electronic tuner with the fine tuning pegs makes it very easy to keep the violin in tune. I am no professional, but even with my less than perfect playing the sound is clear and crisp and the violin has a great rich resonance. This is a perfect violin for me - as someone returning to this instrument with only some limited memory of the way to play - and also for someone starting out (I handed this to my nine year old daughter and she seems to have fallen in love with it already). This is a complete package with everything needed to get going. The electronic tuner is a great addition in the kit and a very important item to have. The included shoulder rest will be very useful for many people, although I prefer to use a simple cloth over my shoulder (I have not played the violin for many years and did not have such luxuries back then, so using a cloth is probably more out of habit than anything else, but having the rest as an option is a great bonus). Including two bows is also really useful. It is so easy to catch the bow on the violin body when starting out that having a ‘spare’ - in case one needs to be repaired - will be indispensable to me over the next few months I am sure. The bows are definitely new as there is no rosin on them when they arrive. This meant they required a good rubbing on the rosin block to achieve any sound. The rosin block provided is a light rosin - perfect for violins - and required only light scratching to adhere well to the bow hair. This kit even contains a set of spare strings which meant I was a lot less worried when tuning the violin (should I have broken a string at least I had a spare available immediately). Each of these items would have required buying anyway, so it is great to have them all together at no additional cost. This is a very well made violin with great sound and everything needed to get going. I don’t think I could have asked for anything more at such a reasonable price.

è di scarsa qualità, ma per cominciare va bene, è abbastanza completo