When you’re a beginner at something, everything looks good enough to buy. You keep scrolling through hundreds of different violins daily, and you can’t seem to decide which is your best pick. 

You find a good one, but it costs more than $500. On the other hand, you may find one you like, but it’s too cheap for its own good. What do you do in this case?

Well, luckily for you, we’ll help you find the best beginner violin for adults by reviewing the best options on the market. It’s easy to get confused when you have hundreds of models on the internet staring back at you. However, when you only have three models to choose from, matters become much easier.

Our Recommendation of Best Beginner Violin for Adults

Your first violin is likely the quickest you’ll replace, so durability shouldn’t be a huge concern for you. Instead, you should make sure it’s easy to use and produces accurate sounds. In the end, you’re only using it for the learning phase, so you need it to be a reliable teacher.

With these considerations in mind, we rounded up the best options on the market. Scroll through the reviews and choose your pick.

1. Mendini By Cecilio Violin For Kids & Adults

Pros

• A complete beginner’s kit included
• Four sizes available for different users
• Rich, bright sounds for learning

Cons

• The bows aren’t of the highest quality.

The Cecilio beginner violin offers excellent value for money. When you start using it, you won’t believe it only costs this much because of how good it is. It provides warm tones, and it’s easy enough to use to improve your skills.

Cecilio doesn’t only offer the violin, but it also gives you a complete starter kit. The kit includes a hard case and an extra bridge, along with a chromatic tuner. On top of that, you’ll get two bows. To be fair, they aren’t the best out there, but their quality is enough for a beginner.

The violin weighs around five pounds, which is considered on the heavy side. However, it’s still reasonable enough for anyone to hold it comfortably.

The violin’s sound is rich and bright, and it comes with an instructions book to help you learn the basics on your own.

Moreover, Cecilio’s violin looks too good to pass by. It features a natural varnish color, giving it a vintage vibe. Plus, it’s equipped with maple and spruce, accounting for an elegant overall frame.

There are four sizes available from the violin, so you can find the most suitable one for yourself or for your kid. You may find it a bit expensive for a beginner’s violin, but that’s only because it offers unrivaled quality.

2. Cremona SV-130 Premier Novice Violin Outfit 

Pros

• Seven different sizes are available
• All of the components are of high quality
• Prelude strings available for beginners

Cons

• No tuner is included in the kit.

If you want your violin to stand out from the crowd, you may want to opt for the Cremona SV-130. It comes in a sparkling black color that’s not for the faint-hearted! The manufacturers designed it for edgy players who want to make a statement.

Of course, if you don’t like the black color, you can always get the standard brown version with its vintage glory. In addition, the violin is available in seven sizes, ranging from 1/16 to 4/4. This way, you’ll find a size that suits you, regardless of your age.

The Cremona starter kit doesn’t come with many accessories, but it’s enough to get you started. You’ll receive a hard case for traveling and storage, a bow, and a chinrest. Although they’re not a lot, all of the accessories come in high quality. As a result, you can expect the violin and its items to stay with you for a few years without showing signs of wear and tear.

Some users complained that the bow is a bit hard to use for tuning, but you’ll eventually get the hang of it with practice.

Generally, the Cremona violin delivers high quality, which is hard to find among beginners’ products. Unfortunately, that’s why it’s on the expensive side of the market.

3. Paititi 1/2 Size Artist-100 Student Violin Starter Kit

Pros

• Elegant chestnut finish
• Affordable price for users on a tight budget
• An extra set of strings is available with the purchase

Cons

• The case is of low quality.

If you’re on a tight budget, the Paititi violin starter kit for beginners may be your best option. The violin only weighs 3.2 pounds, making it easy to carry and handle. Most beginners have difficulties handling violins at first, but the lightweight of the Paititi will help you overcome that.

The Paititi features an elegant chestnut finish that’ll trick you into thinking it’s a high-end product. Its carrying case is also well-built and sturdy, and its bow is highly durable, so you don’t need to worry about breaking it.

But aside from the design, the Paititi violin offers a balanced, rich sound. As a result, it’s ideal for the learning phase, thanks to its warm tones that resonate at a reasonable level.

You may find the violin hard to tune at first, but most beginners have this complaint, and they get used to it later. Plus, Paititi offers a set of extra strings with the violin, which is nice on their part because beginners usually need extras. Not only that, but you’ll get a tuner as well.

Features to Consider When Buying a Violin for Beginners

Buying a violin for beginners isn’t easy because there are a lot of features to think about. You don’t know which is more important to consider, and you may get lost because of the variety of options on the market.

Here’s a roundup of features you need to consider when buying a violin for your learning phase.

Weight

In the learning phase, you can expect to hold the violin for extended hours. If the violin is too heavy for you, it’ll cause an ache in your arms, shoulder, and neck. On the next day, when it’s time to practice again, you’ll feel the discomfort when you hold the violin again.

That’s why it’s essential to consider the weight and compare it to your own. Violins weighing more than five pounds are considered heavy. If you’re petite, you may want to consider something around three pounds.

Construction

Most beginner violins are made of the same materials, regardless of their price. For example, the manufacturers create the violin’s top out of spruce because it looks good and it provides decent resonation. As for the back and sides, they’re often made from maple, which accounts for warm tones. 

If the violin of your choice is made from any other material, you may want to do some research before buying to avoid buying something of subpar quality.

In addition to that, make sure the fingerboard is made from solid wood. Ebony is the best choice, and most beginner violins have ebony fingerboards.

Bow

In most beginner violins, the bow is made from Brazilwood. It’s not a type of wood per se, but the term describes all woods that are imported from the tropical areas of the Latin American country. 

Generally, Brazilwood is suitable for beginners because it doesn’t cost much, but its quality is decent. If you want a higher quality, you can opt for Pernambuco wood.

The Final Verdict

The best overall beginner violin for adults on our list is the Mendini By Cecilio. For starters, it has sizes suitable for both kids and adults, so you can find the best size for you. Plus, its quality is better than most beginner violins in the same price range. All in all, it’s quite a decent bargain for the value it provides.

Once you get the dream of your violin, you may want to look for a microphone to record your performance at some point, be sure to check out this related article that we put together a list of microphone that we think they are truly the best for recording your violin!