If you’ve recently enrolled your kid or teen to a violin class or you’re a new violinist yourself, you might be on the market now looking for the violin for beginners.
This musical instrument is made of top-quality wood and materials, can produce an excellent sound, and is easy to adjust.
It will not also break your bank because it is affordable and is with heavy-duty performance.
To find one with all these qualities and more, we’ve come up with an in-depth review and buying guide on today’s top 10 beginner violin for beginner students.
Shall we get started?
Contents
Here are our top picks for the best beginner violins for students
- Mendini MV500 Violin
- Cecilio CVN-300 Violin
- Mendini MV400
- Stentor 4-String Violin
- Bunnel Pupil Student Violin
- Mendini MV300 Solid Wood Violin
- Cecilio CVN-500 Violin
- Crescent 4/4 Full Size Student Violin
- ADM Acoustic Violin
- Cecilio 4/4CVN-EAV+SR Violin
Runner Up | Editor's Choice | Also Great |
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A great affordable choice for absolute beginners. | A great option for those looking for great quality and an affordable price. | The best pick for those looking for a practice violin. |
Mendini MV500 Violin
With the price of the Mendini MV500+92D Back Solid Wood Violin, you can’t expect it to compete with high-end violins. Yet, this one gives an overall nice tone and pitch. It’s made of one-piece Maple wood with highly precise craftsmanship, which can be seen in its elegance and finish.
This is a 4/4(full-sized) violin with varnished hand-carved Spruce top and decorated with inlaid purfling. The ebony fingerboard, pegs and chin rest, which seem to be crafted carefully. The tailpiece has detachable tuners with mother-of-pearl inlay.
It comes with Cecilio 92D chromatic/string tuner with metronome. They sound fine, but, they’re quite when muted. It’s not a deal-breaker for me, though.
Mendini MV500+92D is a lightweight beginner violin, weighing only 5lbs. Yet, it’s smaller than my profile and so, I feel uncomfortable playing with it for longer hours. Just kicking this aside since it’s a personal gripe, it’s sturdy and good violin for beginners and students.
Pros
- Sound is perfect, not too bright nor too dark
- Easily holds the tuning for weeks, even if used daily
- Ebony pegs, fingerboard, and chin rest, seems a solid construction
Cons
- Extremely small, so it’s uncomfortable
- Bridge seems thicker than other models
Cecilio CVN-300 Violin
The full-sized Cecilio CVN-300 Violin could be a good violin for beginners. Like most entry-level violins, it’s made of Spruce top with Maple neck, back and sides, which are great at creating beautiful sounds.
Generally, this basic beginner violin delivers warm and pleasant sounds. It has a vintage look, especially the varnish finish and the inlaid purfling. The fittings, fingerboard, and pegs are made of ebony, which compliments the overall appearance of the instrument.
Pre-strung with D’Addario prelude strings, which are good in quality and provides the right amount of tension. The premium-quality nickel fine tuners can be used to tune the violin swiftly, but the problem lies on the pegs. These easily slips back after I tightened the strings.
To solve the problem, I tried pushing the pegs towards the hole to achieve the tightness I need. Of course, not too tight, because it’ll be harder for me to tune.
Pros
- Tuners are decent and help tune the strings properly
- Good resonance and tone
- Sounds great and comparable to more expensive models
- Superior responsiveness
- Looks nice, it doesn’t look cheap
Cons
- Pegs tend to slip in place, making it hard to keep the right tuning of the violin
- Need some minor adjustments
- Bows are of lower quality
Mendini MV400
With lively design and color, you’ll expect that Mendini MV400 Violin could offer you lively performances, too. With a vibrant and bright tone, you’ll want to play more. This is a full-sized beginner violin, which is perfect not just for kids, but for adults to learn on as well.
It’s easy to learn, play and extremely easy to handle. In fact, I love playing it for hours because of the adjustable shoulder rest. Though it seems cheaper, it still gives comfort to me while playing.
The MV400 by Mendini is a solidwood violin with hand-carved spruce top and hand-carved maple for the back and sides. The varnish finish and the purfling make it an exquisite-looking instrument. With his violin’s comfort and its looks, you’ll surely stand out on stage with your beautiful performance.
The built-in fine tuners, alloy tailpiece, and the ebony pegs keep the strings intact, so they stay in perfect tune.
Pros
- Plays remarkably well and I enjoy playing it
- Shoulder rest is extremely comfortable
- Construction is great and excellent
- Tone is smooth and bright, like how violins should sound
Cons
- A bit weak rosin
- It’s quite painstaking to tighten the strings and tune it for the first time
Stentor 4-String Violin
As a highly recommended beginner violin by teachers and violinists, Stentor 4-String Violin really has something to offer. It’s made of high-quality tonewoods — carved solid Spruce on the top and carved Maple for the back and sides. This ensures that the sound is powerful with better projection.
Aside from the body, the scroll has a remarkable cut. The inlaid purfling is also worth mentioning because it adds to the stunning details of the violin. The golden brown finish perfects the picture for the traditional look of the instrument.
It has composite alloy tailpiece with integrated adjusters and ebony pegs. You’ve got ebony fittings, tuning pegs, and fingerboard, as well. The fingerboard, particularly, feels sturdy, since ebony is durable.
Since the adjusters and tuners are good enough, I would like to note that it has D’Addario Prelude steel strings. The violin stays in tune for weeks, but first, you have to break them in. New strings will still stretch over several days.
Pros
- A superior instrument in terms of construction and finish
- Playable and produces a nice tone
- The bow is of good quality and solid
Cons
- Issues with strings snapping
- There’s a need for small adjustment of the bridge
- Fittings are made of low-quality ebony
Bunnel Pupil Student Violin
No assembly required, this ready to learn and play Bunnel Pupil Student Violin sets you apart on stage. As a full-sized beginner violin, you’ll benefit from its hand-carved solid Spruce and Maple tonewoods for the top and back and sides, respectively.
Bunnel Pupil comes with steel-core D’Addario-brand Prelude strings. It features stainless steel fine tuners integrated on the ebony tailpiece. The tuning pegs are made with ebony, too. All these keep the tuning correct and reliable.
It’s kind of expensive compared to other beginner’s violin. However, it’s worthy of every penny you’ll pay for it. You get more perks when playing this violin, including the wonderful tones each time the bow “cuts” the strings.
Speaking of the bow, I would like to expound in this aspect. The Brazilwood bow for my violin is amazing. It’s pre-rosined and ready to play. It’s made with high-grade Mongolian horsehair that is known to produce excellent sound quality. And, I love its weight, too!
Pros
- Produce pleasing tones, warm and rich
- No need to set it up, playable right out of the box
- It has impressive resonance
Cons
- Some small players may find it hefty with 7lbs weight
- It’s pricier than other violins with the same specs
Mendini MV300 Solid Wood Violin
With impressive quality at an affordable price, Mendini Full Size 4/4 MV300 Solid Wood Violin is a choice of many violinists. It’s easy to play, easy to tune and produce bright, warm and clear sounds. You’ve got a hand-carved solid Spruce top, maple back and sides.
One thing that you should put in mind before playing any musical instrument is to check the instruction’s manual. I’ve tried to play it right away. Though it sounds plays, it’s not pleasant.
Actually, it is rare to find a violin that plays well upfront, even if you have the Brazilwood bow with genuine Mongolian horsehair.
The instruction’s manual gives you everything in detail on how to setup the violin to achieve the proper tuning. There’s no problem with the strings, they are D’Addario Prelude Strings. No issues with the alloy tailpiece with four integrated fine tuners and ebony pegs.
Pros
- Seriously gives more value, given its very cheap price tag
- Clear and warm sound production
- Sound quality is nice, especially for a cheap violin
- Simple, yet playable with the right setup
Cons
- Takes more time to break in or setup the guitar for better playability
- A few reported issues on strings snapping after a couple of uses
- You need to carefully follow the tuning instructions to achieve the perfect tune
Cecilio CVN-500 Violin
Advanced players need to have a more appealing instrument, in terms of playability and sounds. Thankfully, Cecilio CVN-500 Solidwood Ebony Fitted Violin comes with everything you need to level up your skills. Although it’s already a good guitar, it’s still better to set it up properly.
It’s crafted with hand-carved solid spruce top and flamed maple bottom and sides. It’s dressed with a satin antique finish with inlaid purfling on the edges.
Like the Cecilio CVN-300, this violin also has ebony fittings, including the fingerboard, chin rest, tuning pegs and tailpiece. As for the tailpiece, it features four nickel plated fine tuners, which are reliable to keep the strings in place.
Strung with the popular set of D’Addario Prelude Strings and it’s fitted with ebony tuning pegs. At first, the tuning pegs seem to slip out, but when you push it harder (not too hard) down the hole, it’ll keep the strings in-tuned for a while.
Pros
- Violin looks nice and surprisingly sounds good
- Bow seems reliable with good curve
- Fine tuners do a decent job keeping the strings in tune
- An appealing violin, especially the satin finish
Cons
- Tuning pegs may sometimes slip, so they need to be pushed harder
Crescent 4/4 Full Size Student Violin
Crescent presents a few full-sized beginner violins that’ll surely tickle your interest. One of which is the Crescent 4/4 Full-Size Student Violin. From the name itself, it’s primarily designed to cater to the needs of students. But, it’s also made for adults who just realized they want to play violin.
Like most beginner’s violin, it has a solid Spruce top with Maple back and sides. Still comes with alloy tailpiece that has four adjustable fine tuners integrated into it. Once you made the initial setup and secure a shoulder rest, you are good to go.
This attractive learning violin has smooth and glossy finish. By the looks of it, you might be deceived that it’s an expensive one. Though it’s not on par with premium violin, at least it plays and sounds better than its competitors.
The beginner violin has rich and smooth tones that even students can get without problem. Thanks to the excellent bow that offers a secure grip and “cuts” the strings more efficiently.
Pros
- This violin seems solid with cute colorful finishes
- Bow is excellent, nice, and smooth
- Durable solid spruce top
- Easy to set up with a comprehensive guide to achieving the right setup
Cons
- Some complaints about the rosin arriving cracked
- Tuning may drop out too quickly
ADM Acoustic Violin
A quality handmade violin is reliable in producing the classic tone premium violin are known for. The solid full-sized ADM Acoustic Violin is among the cheaper beginner violins you can carry around with ease. The bright tone with clarity and smoothness seems music to my ear, very soothing.
Made with quality woods — solid tight-grain Spruce top and exquisite flamed maple back and sides – you are assured of a well-built violin. The transparent varnish finish really makes this classy and vintage-looking instrument.
You’ll find a composite tailpiece with four integrated fine tuners. The strings, a set of Red Label strings, are sensitive and reliable.
Although the tuner and strings are great, tuning of the violin can be affected by its setup. Since the initial setup can be tricky, so, keeping the violin in-tuned is also tricky. Unless, you follow the instructions religiously, which we often skip purposefully.
Pros
- Exquisite design with a unique style and finish
- Tuning is a breeze because of the digital tuner included
- Lightweight (with durable case), a perfect travel companion
- Low-cost beginner violin that offers good tonal quality
Cons
- Fittings are made of blackened wood, you’ll rub off the finish
- Not that efficient in keeping the violin in tune
Cecilio 4/4CVN-EAV+SR Violin
This isn’t the cheapest beginner violin, but it can produce decent sounds. Cecilio 4/4CVN-EAV+SR has hand-carved solid Spruce top with solid maple back and sides, which is painted with antique varnish finish. The material and the finish help you achieve durability and better playability, respectively.
Whether you’re a beginner or an advanced player, there’s enough room to discover insider the Cecilio violin. The ebony fingerboard is perfect, which delivers better performance with the Brazilian Wood bow that has unbleached genuine Mongolian horsehair.
Like most violins, you’ll have a tailpiece integrated with four nickel plated fine tuners. The tuning pegs are made of ebony, but they sometimes slip out the hole. Perhaps, you can apply peg oil, push the pegs down harder or buying a new set of pegs.
The Oblong Deluxe Case serves me well when I bring this violin with me. It’s solid and lightweight, yet, it gives enough protection for the violin inside.
Pros
- Easy to play and accommodate serious players
- Can pull out some nice tones after correct setup
- Violin itself is beautiful and of decent quality
Cons
- Tuning pegs might be too loose and might slip out
- Stock strings come with poor quality, need to replace them
Buying Guide
If you would like to find the perfect beginner violin, consider some of the guidelines found here. Here is a quick look at how to find your perfect beginner violin.
Tonewood
We highly recommend looking into the tonewood, which has to do with the quality build of the violin. However, tonewoods vary from one product to another, being maple sides, backs and necks and spruce tops as the common ones.
For example, spruce is a favorite for soundboards for its density and stiffness. Its density can make for a better resonance versus porous woods.
Student-specific violins
Generally, student violins involve less handwork and are of lower wood quality. They may also have plastic chinrests and tuning pegs and may be good for those still testing the waters and unsure if they’d keep playing or not.
Size
Check the size of the violin. Do not go for a too big instrument. Or else, choosing the improper size can affect the technique. It may also contribute to back, neck, and arm pain or injuries.
There you have some of the things to check when buying a good beginner violin that you need to know for reference.
Quick View: Best Violins for Intermediate Students
How to Choose the Best Beginner’s Violin?
There are different factors to consider when selecting a beginner violin:
Sizing your Violin
If you are older than 11 years old, then you will need a standard-sized beginner violin, which is 4/4. Children will require something smaller, which can be measured with the help of a violin instructor.
Here’s a good infographic to explain the sizes better:
Quality
There are different kinds of tonewood that make the violin sound the way it does. I highly recommend that you get soundboards made of spruce and ebony fingerboards for a stiff and dense sound, made of quality handiwork and quality material for the violin to last for a longer time.
Price
Consider how much your budget is for a violin. A good beginner violin is usually made of lower-quality and made for students who aren’t sure of playing it for the long-term. These range between $100 to $400, which is a good price already.
Read our Guide: What To Look For When Buying a Violin?
Editor’s Choice
Mendini MV500 is our best violin for beginners choice. This full-size violin from Cecilio is packed with features at a cheap price that is suited for any starter. It has an ebony fingerboard, pegs chin rest, and a tailpiece with 4 detachable fine tuners.