Kade1301 wrote:
What stringed instruments have you had bad experiences with? I'd love to know how the violin-shaped objects play and sound that are sold with bow and case for € 100... Though recently in the music shop the boss was demonstrating ukuleles and I was positively surprised by the sound of the entry-level ones at about € 60! Nothing toy-like about them... (apart from the looks
)
Hmm... well, I had a banjo student once who bought a new Fender 5string banjo and it started falling apart within two months, tuning gears breaking and falling apart, plastic head separating from the rim, tailpiece broke. That'd be enough to discourage anyone! I believe this was after Fender was sold off to a mass producer.
Apple Creek brand mountain dulcimers (made in a Romanian factory) sell readily on Amazon and Ebay because of their very low price. They look nice in the pictures. But on my dulcimer site I have seen
dozens of people over the years who are unable to play them- get them looked at by experienced dulcimer players who find the action so high that it's virtually impossible to fret the thing. Plus the frets are not properly spaced for good intonation. Any beginner would figure they just didn't have what it takes to be a player. These beginners I have seen were sometimes in tears, so discouraged. It should not be this way- dulcimers are normally easy to play! The reality is that the instrument totally BITES. lol
18 years ago I played a Kentucky entry level mandolin in a music store that had action so high as to be impossible- this is really painful on an instrument with a short scale like mandolins. Longer scales like on banjos are a little more forgiving with high action. I think Kentucky brand improved over the years after that though.
Ukes - easier to make decent ukes at a low price than violins, right? OTOH...it used to be that cheap Chinese violins were always horrible. But now there are some very nice ones out there! (according to some of my skilled fiddling friends)
I know nothing about recorders except that i
love to listen to them, especially when playing Baroque, Renaissance, and medieval music.
On the other hand... the relatively inexpensive Deering 'Goodtime' banjo is considered middle entry level quality and price but is well built, sounds nice, and is smooth playing for even the newest beginner. Same can be said for Goldtone's cheaper model banjos. Same goes for David Lynch's and Doug Berch's 'student' model mtn dulcimers- very low price and modest materials but they play well and hold up. So, cheap does not always mean badly made, and expensive does not always mean well made I guess.