Jen500 Posted November 25, 2011 Share Posted November 25, 2011 . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StephanieZ Posted November 25, 2011 Share Posted November 25, 2011 $800-$2000, depending on your budget and how lucky you get. FWIW, Shar's Lamberti violins are pretty nice little violins for the $. Shar is also a nice company to deal with. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cindy in FL. Posted November 25, 2011 Share Posted November 25, 2011 I think we paid $1,600 a couple of years ago for the violin, bow, and case. We went to a small violin shop near us and my son got to play several different violins to see which we liked. Then the owner made ds turn his back and he played the top three picks to see which one ds liked the sound of best. It was not the most expensive one! I'd try to go to a store where you can actually see and play the violins if possible. Cindy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HollyDay Posted November 26, 2011 Share Posted November 26, 2011 we bought this one for dd several years ago. She loves it: http://www.sharmusic.com/Shop-Shar/Instruments/Violin/Beginning-Violins/Franz-Hoffmann-Maestro-Violin-Outfit-with-TC66-Case---4-4-size.axd Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Splash Posted November 26, 2011 Share Posted November 26, 2011 $1500 and up. We used a violin broker out of Chicago(Michael Becker) who sent a variety of instruments to violin teacher. She also ordered a few from Shar as well. They took a week playing each violin, used different bows, etc. Son's 3/4 violin was $2500 plus bow. We traded that in when he needed a full size for full value and purchased $5000 violin, plus bow and case. This will be what he needs for college and any other future needs. Most kids looking at the same time though she kept under $3000 as she said they didn't need such an expensive violin yet. Others spent between $1500 and $3000. Honestly cost isn't an indicator of the quality. One violin ds tried that was $5000 was awful, another that was $1800 sounded beautiful. Also every violin sounds different depending on who is playing it. Ds played a violin and we didn't like it at all. Sarah played same violin and it sounded beautiful. Play before you buy and try lots of bows to find the perfect match for your son. Have fun shopping. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amo_mea_filiis. Posted November 26, 2011 Share Posted November 26, 2011 :eek: Maybe I should be glad that dd doesn't practice out of love! LOL. Her violins each cost about $100, including case, bow, stand, and a few other things. Maybe she's not too thrilled with playing because of the cheaper quality? Hmmm. I should take her to a music store and see if a "real" violin interests her (not that I'll be getting one any time soon, but I can ask for help.). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bassoonaroo Posted November 26, 2011 Share Posted November 26, 2011 My two oldest dd's are the concertmaster and 2nd chair in the youth orchestra here (not bragging, but saying that they are serious and practice a lot and have been playing about 10 years). They are very happy with their $500 or so Eastman violins we bought locally as well as their bows (sorry, don't know the brand names and we're on vacation without the violins) that were about $100. Those violins and bows should last through college and beyond. I don't remember the model of the Eastman violins but they are like their second least expensive, I believe. And they sound wonderful. So, maybe $400-$800 is what I would say, recognizing that many of the violinists in the youth orchestra have violins that are $1000 - $10,000. Not us though -- not in the budget. There are good violins to be had at the lower price range. Each violin is different and each person is different so work hard (with a teacher? with a luthier?) on finding that great match that sounds good and is within budget. If your budget is not there yet, work with the teacher and see if either the current violin or bow is really good. If so, replace the other first. So if her current bow is decent, replace the violin. If the current violin is pretty good, splurge on a good bow for it (I'm guessing this is more likely the case). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paula in MS Posted November 26, 2011 Share Posted November 26, 2011 :eek: Maybe I should be glad that dd doesn't practice out of love! LOL. Her violins each cost about $100, including case, bow, stand, and a few other things. Maybe she's not too thrilled with playing because of the cheaper quality? Hmmm. I should take her to a music store and see if a "real" violin interests her (not that I'll be getting one any time soon, but I can ask for help.). You know, I took violin lessons for a year from a man who was second chair viola in our city's symphony orchestra. He swears that price doesn't matter so much with a violin. I spent a little over a hundred dollars on a handmade violin from Japan (including shipping). He bought one as well for an extra for his studio. When I broke my first string, I bought a really nice set of strings for it. He can make any violin sound like a million bucks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KarenC Posted November 26, 2011 Share Posted November 26, 2011 Ask your music teacher if she knows someone who sells and repairs violins. You can find some great deals that way. Karen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mom2jjka Posted November 26, 2011 Share Posted November 26, 2011 We took my DD to a string shop earlier this year for a new violin. I was really expecting to have to pay upwards of $1000 (and get a German/European made instrument) but we were shocked after trying several of the violins out that we all agreed the one with the best sound was a $600 Chinese made instrument. (Sheng Liu brand) DD loves her new violin - (and any doubt that we made a bad purchase was taken away last spring at her solos & ensembles event. Her judge (a concert violinist) asked to borrow her violin to play back a section of the music to her...and when she played it she said, "Wow....you have a really nice violin!") That was music to MY ears! :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Susan in TN Posted November 26, 2011 Share Posted November 26, 2011 What is a reasonable amount to spend on a full sized violin for an advanced beginner (Suzuki bk 4) who will play at least a few more years? FWIW, if you are "trying out" violins, let the teacher have a strong say in what you go with. I remember when I was trying out violins - I had really no idea what I was looking for and neither did anyone else (my parents). It didn't occur to us to have my teacher play a few of them. :confused: If your child is very serious about violin, it may be worth it to do some test runs on $1,200+ violins. But if you're just moving up in size and don't know how far you'll be going with it, I'd go with a reputable Shar violin set-up. You also may find something decent on Craigslist, but that gets tricky if your teacher can't go along to try it out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jen500 Posted November 27, 2011 Author Share Posted November 27, 2011 Thanks for the input everyone.:nopity: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zaichiki Posted November 27, 2011 Share Posted November 27, 2011 What is a reasonable amount to spend on a full sized violin for an advanced beginner (Suzuki bk 4) who will play at least a few more years? At my kids' music school -- $2K - $8K is average according to what the other moms have said... for that level/size. Eek, huh? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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