Dear customers,
The holiday promotions are closing in, and we’re preparing to kick-start the season with a bang!
Just a reminder though, be sure to come back on the 17th for promotions not to be missed.
See you soon!
-TheStringInstrumentShop.com Team
“Instruments for Life”
Yes! It is that time of the year again! Christmas is, as we know it, the perfect time for giving and sharing. With only a month to go from now, we are gearing up for the season. The best deals await you this Christmas season. Find out this 17th December!
-TheStringInstrumentShop.com Team
“Instruments for Life”
Dear valued customers,
We are proud to announce that we have been granted dealership status for the Classique Primo brand of string instruments, which are touted for their solid craftsmanship and superior customer service.
We will begin taking in stock for these instruments in the first week of December, so do come back for updates.
We sincerely believe, like all musicians, that buying a string instrument, especially your first one, is an investment to be taken seriously. We understand the pain that people go through especially when they buy an instrument that is improperly set up or one that is below standard.
We give you our assurance that our instruments:
With these in mind, you can be assured of years of musical enjoyment with our instruments.
To us, our brand is more than just a brand. It symbolizes our commitment to delivering only best, to serve your needs. Think quality & reliability. Think Classique Primo: Instruments that make a difference.
Dear friends and valued customers,
Please be informed that there is a persistent bug with Google’s browser Chrome. The product catalogs (www.thestringinstrumentshop.com) do not display correctly with this browser. To rectify this problem, please use Microsoft Internet Explorer or Mozilla Firefox. We will rectify this problem as soon as possible. We apologize for any inconvenience caused.
Sincerely,
Lionel Lam
Choosing the right violin is an important step if you intend to take music seriously. The right violin will offer a lifetime of musical pleasure, while choosing the wrong one can be crippling on your playing skills. This guide is intended for people who have little or no prior knowledge on how to buy a violin.
Most violin guides will tell you to spend hours testing out many violins in a shop. You can do this, but you will spend a whole lot more money and time (and you will have to deal with those pushy salespeople). If you are a beginner or intermediate player, this is usually unnecessary.
There are number of differences between a professional and student violin, and one way to gauge this is the amount of work that goes into the making of the instrument. As such, professional violins usually cost significantly more than student violins, but you do get what you pay for. Professional violins are hand-crafted from the highest-quality woods, hand-varnished, and meticulously set up. Student violins, on the other hand, are machine-made, finished with a machine-sprayed lacquer, and set up quickly or possibly not set up at all. Please consult your teacher for recommendations on the best violin that suits you, or you may contact us and we will respond promptly to your questions.
The quality of the wood used is the most important factor in how a violin sounds. Most violins have a spruce top and maple back, neck and sides (often called the ‘ribs’). The wood types rarely vary. The difference in price reflects the difference in wood quality. The difference can be big, and for very good reasons too. The perfect piece of wood for a violin will be flamed or quilted, over 200 years old, grown at high altitude, cut in winter, and store for a good 20 years or more. A flamed maple back, ribs, neck and scroll (the pegbox of the violin) are usually signs of a high-quality violin.
A violin with well-flamed maple parts
Important!
A well-flamed violin is not always indication of a high-quality instrument. Some cheaper violins are synthetically ‘flamed’ by having a chemical applied to the wood to give the appearance of an expensive instrument. It is possible to tell if the flaming is genuine by tilting and moving the flamed surface against a fixed light source (sunlight is good enough). If the flaming changes pattern, then the flaming is genuine, otherwise it is fake flaming.
The quality violin’s spruce top will have very fine grain, as shown in the picture below. The finer the grain, the better, as this is sign of dense wood.
The spruce top
Of course, it is not always necessary to have a violin made of the best quality woods, as you may be a student just starting out on the violin. You may want to consider a basic violin outfit as a beginner’s choice.
Choosing the right-sized violin is important, especially if it is for a child. Violins come in various sizes, as indicated in the table below.
| Violin Size | Arm Length (Inches) |
Age (Years)
|
|---|---|---|
|
4/4
|
23
|
12 and above
|
|
3/4
|
22
|
10-11
|
|
1/2
|
20
|
8-9
|
|
1/4
|
18-20
|
6-7
|
|
1/8
|
16-20
|
5-6
|
|
1/10
|
15
|
4-5
|
|
1/16
|
14
|
3 and below
|
In order to determine the correct violin size for yourself, or for your child, just follow the steps below.
If you are a beginner violinist, you should start off with basic violin outfit. When your confidence grows, and when your playing proficiency picks up, you may want to consider an intermediate or advanced violin. Starting off with a beginner violin outfit often has an advantage from a cost perspective, but if you get to start off with a better quality instrument, the learning experience may be less frustrating, and the more likely you will stick with your instrument. Furthermore, investing a bit more for a better violin may help in the long run as it will be longer before you need to upgrade to a better instrument.
For more information, please check out our company knowledgebase.
Dear friend, Malaysia’s first online store specializing in string instruments and accessories is now open for business!
Choose from our selection of finely-crafted instruments or browse through our instrument accessories, strings, as well as student materials. We stock only the best instruments and accessories while offering you the best value for your money.
So what are you waiting for? Become a member today!
-Lionel Lam Song Poh
Co-founder/Director,
TheStringInstrumentShop.com