Fender Electric Violin

Glenn Austin · Post by **Glenn Austin** » 28 Dec 2002 10:25 am

I'm planning on buying an electric violin, and I'm wondering if anybody has any experience with these Fender fiddles. There are none that I can try around here. Thanks

Kevin Hatton · Post by **Kevin Hatton** » 28 Dec 2002 10:36 am

I tried one a couple of weeks ago. They seem just fine. I wish they offered them in some different colors, but they played and sounded fine to me. I am looking into a Rogue. I don't want to bring my 100 year old fiddle onm stage anymore. Its been damaged twice already.[This message was edited by Kevin Hatton on 28 December 2002 at 10:37 AM.]

John Steele · Post by **John Steele** » 28 Dec 2002 11:32 am

Glenn, have you ever tried a Zeta ?
A friend showed up to a jazz gig with one a while ago, and I was expecting the worst. It sounded great to me !
-John

Del Rangel · Post by **Del Rangel** » 28 Dec 2002 2:59 pm

Ummm. Zetalicious. Look at their website and see if they have any good deals in their attic. Their pickup systems are the sweetest. Another option would be to buy a decent fiddle and a Barbera bridge-pickup. Barbera are the next best thing going in my opinion.

Glenn Austin · Post by **Glenn Austin** » 28 Dec 2002 3:01 pm

I was looking at the FV3 model Fender. It would cost about 900 cdn.I have heard of Zeta, but they are around 2 grand. My main reason right now for getting an electric, is so I don't drive everybody nuts in my house when I practice. I've got a nice antique violin, but I would never gig with that. I'll add that I'm a long way from actually doing a gig on fiddle. John, did your friend Matt ever get that Emmons p/p? Just curious.

Tom Olson · Post by **Tom Olson** » 28 Dec 2002 11:22 pm

I've never played an electric violin, so this is not first hand information -- but I've read reviews on the Fender electric fiddles that said the sound quality wasn't the best. Supposedly, the output on the Fender is very weak and the tone is somewhat hollow. I understand that there are some electrics out there for slightly more dough that have a lot better sound. Just my 2 cents

sylvainvallieres · Post by **sylvainvallieres** » 29 Dec 2002 7:19 am

Salut Glenn
As-tu essayer celui de France quand vous étier a Ste-Marthe,il est tres satisfait de son Fender,moin de probleme de son et de feedback avec celui-là,avant il utilisait un acoustique avec pick-up mais maintenant il préfere celui-ci
will be at Ste-Eustaches ,resto bar centre-ville 10-11- january come to see France,he let try you
a bientôt,Sylvain

Glenn Austin · Post by **Glenn Austin** » 29 Dec 2002 10:17 am

Salut Sylvain, J'ai essayer celle de France, mais juste pour 30 secondes a Ste Marthe. Ca passé dans le systeme de son, et je ne voulais pas clairer la salle

J'aimé ca, mais j'aimerai essayer celle qui est moins chere pour voir la difference. Viens me voir chez nous, J'ai tout refait ma push pull comme neuf. Je vais aller te voir au Centreville cette annee, et la bonne fin de semaine aussi!

A bientot. Glenn

CrowBear Schmitt · Post by **CrowBear Schmitt** » 29 Dec 2002 1:02 pm

ça alors les gars, ça me rechauffe le coeur de vous entendre parler Français ici

Vive les Acadiens et les Cajuns !
Bonne et Heureuse Année a vous tous

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Steel what?

John Kavanagh · Post by **John Kavanagh** » 2 Jan 2003 10:42 am

You might check out http://www.vectorinstruments.com/
I have an electric upright bass made by Nick Tipney in Nova Scotia, and it's wonderful. He uses Barbera pickups (they ARE the best), and is a very pleasant and obliging guy, as well as an excellent craftsman.

In my opinion, his are better than Zeta, much better than Fender, and fairly priced, especially for Canadians.[This message was edited by John Kavanagh on 02 January 2003 at 10:43 AM.]

Michael Haselman · Post by **Michael Haselman** » 3 Jan 2003 7:08 am

I would just get a decent acoustic fiddle and add a Fishman pickup. That's what I've been doing for the last 10 years and it works great. Just get the Fishman preamp also.

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Marrs D-10, Webb 6-14E

Jerry Hayes · Post by **Jerry Hayes** » 3 Jan 2003 11:53 am

Hey Glen,
Kevin mentioned a Rogue violin. They're carried by Musician's Friend and are actually a pretty good electric fiddle. They're shaped like a Fender but are regular violin wood colors. They have the ebony fingerboard as well and are about a hundred dollars cheaper than the Fender. One guy who lives around here has one and I've gigged with him and it sounded pretty dang good. He was playing it through a Nashville 400 amp.

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Livin' in the Past and the Future with a 12 string Mooney Universal tuning.

Glenn Austin · Post by **Glenn Austin** » 3 Jan 2003 1:20 pm

Thanks, I was checking out the Rogue too. My main reason for getting an electric is so I can practice (learn) without driving my family crazy. I usually do my woodshedding at night, so I'm probably going to go for something under a grand to start with. I'd really like to hear if anybody has any experiences with the Fenders. I can order one quite easily here, but nobody has them in stock.

John Kavanagh · Post by **John Kavanagh** » 4 Jan 2003 9:36 pm

A friend of mine had a Fender, and it really sounded poor. Now he wasn't much of a fiddler, and neither am I, and this was on the mid-70s, so perhaps they've improved, but... I'd never recommend one. If you just want to practise quietly, you can get a heavy metal practise mute. (Which is not to say you have to play heavy metal music when it's on, yuk yuk.)

Some great players (Stuff Smith, Joe Venuti) have been satisfied with really crappy-sounding amplified violin tone, but honestly, there's good ones out there now, and why spend your money on something junky when for half again as much you can get something worth waiing for...

MUSICO · Post by **MUSICO** » 5 Jan 2003 5:02 am

For almost silent practicing I have been EXTREMELY satisfied with the Yamaha Silent violin. It works through headphones, you can add reverb and it's even got a line in socket so you can mix in a backing track CD with your violin output and hear it all in your headphones.

Now if you REAllY want people swooning while you are on stage then go see
http://www.woodviolins.com/

The chest support system seems a wonderfull idea and the 6 string fretted violin is the violin equivalent of a Universal 14 string 10+10

Jeremy Williams
Barcelona Spain

Joel Glassman · Post by **Joel Glassman** » 6 Jan 2003 12:20 pm

I've written an article on amplifying
violins. IMO a Baggs pickup on a decent
student acoustic violin will give a much
better sound than the Fender. Be
sure to user an acoustic preamp. --Joel http://shoko.calarts.edu/~chung/gear/vioamp1.html [This message was edited by Joel Glassman on 06 January 2003 at 12:21 PM.]

gene brown · Post by **gene brown** » 6 Jan 2003 2:19 pm

I have a white electric Alveraz,and a nice case I would sell. Let me know if you are interested. I play a Barcus Berry on stage,and I really like it.