Reviews
by Chris Guin
Bridge Golden Tasman 5-string violin
Is there a market for an electro-acoustic violin in the $4,000 price range? Can any acoustic-electric really be that much better than its $2,000 and under competition? These are two of the questions that initially made us skeptical towards the high-end Golden Tasman electro-acoustics from Bridge Violins in the UK.
Now that we’ve had a chance to see, play, hear, photograph, and finally sell the four-string, five-string, and octave Bridge Golden Tasmans, we can no longer doubt. These high end electro-acoustic violins won’t be for everyone, but for players who’ve been consistently disappointed with the amplified tone of every electric violin or acoustic-electric violin they’ve tried, for anyone who can afford to say that exceptional tone is more important than price – and mean it – the Golden Tasmans are a fantastic choice.
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Tags: acoustic electric, bridge
Posted in Reviews on May 27, 2013
by Omar Lopez
Omar Lopez with Fourness Fuse
As someone who swore by the sound and build of my Zeta Jazz Fusion 5-string violin for over ten years, I stayed loyal to Zeta through several years of what seemed to be their most difficult financial times and a lot of turnover within their shop. I have to admit I was pretty bummed when Zeta closed down, but I first heard about Evan Fourness in October 2010 through a friend on the Fiddle Forum, so I got in touch with him immediately and I’m so happy I did. Therefore, this review not only talks about the quality and superb craftsmanship of the instrument I purchased, but also of the great experience I had in dealing with Evan and the great customer service and personalized attention he gave me as a buyer of his product.
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Tags: fourness fuse, omar lopez
Posted in Customer Testimonials, Featured Artists, Reviews on May 14, 2013
CodaBow is proud to announce its most recent addition to the CodaBow family of fine performance bows.
The CodaBow LUMA bow features specialized performance both timeless and rare. Inspired by the historically remarkable bows of Voirin, Lamy, and Thomassin that possess both light facility and rich tonality, CodaBow’s design team combined the skills of master makers, leading scientists, and professional artists to create this enlightened design. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in Reviews on October 11, 2012
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The little things sometimes make all the difference. Given the number of instrument cables used by a typical band, if you can bring more pleasure to plugging in (literally!), then you’ve got more energy for your musical expression. The new Planet Waves American Stage cables are not only made in the USA, sound great, and are reasonably priced, but also offer one of the nicest in-hand feel of all cables I’ve tried! The wire is flexible, with a small profile that coils easily, and the Neutrik plugs feel great in your hand. If it was a car, it would combine the feel of a luxury sedan, the handling of a sports car, and the utility of a pickup truck!
Here are the technical innovations (designed and made in the USA): Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in Reviews on January 31, 2012
When we received the following message from a customer who had recently purchased a J.T. Jet violin bow, it reminded us once more of how fundamentally useful the Jet is as a great sounding, responsive utility bow for players of any level:
“Hi EVS,
Just wanted to say thank you for selling me the JT Jet Bow. It’s a great spare for when I can’t get my Coda[bow] re-haired in time! The [video] below is of me using it for a live performance with my indie-rock band.
Thanks for your help!
-Renee [Izzi--The Winter Sounds]“
The genius of the J.T. Jet is that in addition to drawing a great tone and feeling quite responsive, it is virtually indestructible and incredibly inexpensive! Given the following examples of its utility, I imagine it would be MacGyver’s bow of choice were he a violinist (or Bear Grylls’, for our younger readers 
) Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in Customer Testimonials, Reviews on January 30, 2012
Hi – my name is Susie Sneeringer, and I’ve been with Electric Violin Shop for over a year now. I’ve played in a number of bands with various types of amplification for my violins. Needless to say, some have worked better than others! Over the last ten years or so, I’ve gone from playing my acoustic violin outdoors at the San Francisco Ferry building in a bluegrass and old-time band (salt air, I found out, is not great for your acoustic violin) to using a stick-on guitar pickup in a blues band, to using a replacement bridge on my acoustic violin in a local country band. After all of this, it’s such a relief to have instruments – and sound — that do what I want them to do when I show up for a gig. I play in a fiddle band and a full-blown rock band, and while I’d like to have one of everything in the building here at EVS, this is a reliable setup that works well in most of the medium-sized venues I play with my two bands. It’s like a car that is fun to drive AND gets great mileage. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in Buying Guides, Reviews on January 16, 2012
Hi–Duncan here, from Electric Violin Shop. I’ve been with EVS since 2008 and have probably considered every violin we carry my favorite at one time or another. There is so much variety in our line that choosing just one is nearly impossible. However, if forced to decide I would probably own…
Violin: 6-string Vector Prodigy Pro with Barbera Twin Hybrid pickup. Nick Tipney’s violins are minimal, almost rustic in their design, yet the lines and shapes have a real elegance about them. The Vector Prodigy is among the very lightest weight violins on the market and the Barbera Twin Hybrid pickup bridge is agreed by most professionals to be one of the finest sounding transducers available. Nick has made a few of the 6-strings for us and our customers over the years and I’ve always enjoyed playing on them, finding the neck width and fingerboard curvature highly navigable considering the extra strings. And for as great as the Barbera bridge sounds anyway, something about the resonance of the Vector’s (Nova Scotia-grown) maple top adds a gorgeous character to the tone. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in Buying Guides, Reviews on November 26, 2011
As the old magician’s adage goes, you should never perform the same trick twice. In this case, musicians should be thrilled to hear that Fishman has done just that! The new Fishman Loudbox Artist amplifier brings the tone and portability of our best-selling Loudbox Mini to a more professional level. A power increase to 120 watts makes the Artist ready for most of the loud stage volumes a string player will encounter, and gives the cellist more oomph. The natural tone quality can be tweaked to your taste with very functional EQ controls.
To go beyond that, a nice variety of effects (including delay and flange) are easy to use, and flexible in assigning different sounds to each channel. Both input channels will accept an instrument or mic input, and phantom power can be switched on if needed. All this in a compact 24 pound box makes the Artist a multi-purpose tool for any performer!
The Fishman Loudbox Artist is available and ready to ship today. Add one to your instrument purchase to get the most out of your tone without going over budget!
Posted in Reviews on October 6, 2011
Versatility, portability, scalability, affordability—these combined make the Powerwerks PW100T line array the perfect small PA system for a band, quartet*, or electric ensemble on a budget. Solo acts and novice bands alike can now get great sound reinforcement inexpensively; then, as your act (and budget) grows, you can add new components for even better stage sound! You can start as small as one or two line arrays, adding the PW112-S sub-woofer if you need more bottom end for bass or keyboard. Or, if your band already has a PA, the Powerwerks doubles as a 100-watt personal amp as well (more on that after the jump) Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in Reviews on September 1, 2011
A new independent electric violin maker has arrived on the scene — Evan Fourness is a highly trained and skilled luthier, having once served as head luthier for ZETA. Since that company’s dissolution Evan has applied his knowledge and skills towards creating his own line of instruments and pickups. We now have the first fruits of his labor and are happy to report that the Fourness Fuse clears the bar once set by ZETA with ease!
Imagine the classic ZETA Jazz Fusion violin re-interpreted by an individual craftsman with greater attention to detail. Add in upgraded components and reliable service after the sale as well, and you have the new Fourness Fuse violin. All of the components of the Fourness Fuse are newly made from scratch, to a high level of fit, finish and function. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in Reviews on July 29, 2011
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