Mendini MV400 Ebony Fitted Solid Wood Violin with Hard Case, Shoulder Rest, Bow, Rosin, Extra Bridge and Strings - Size 3/4

Having never played violin before, I wanted to purchase a combo kit that wouldn't break the budget if I ended up regretting undertaking the endeavor. This Mendini package fit the bill perfectly. As someone who is teaching himself the art of violin, these are my observations and recommendations to anyone looking to try this instrument for the first time and are considering buying this set. Most importantly: -Purchase new rosin! Having never used rosin before, let alone knew what it was, I had to assume that what was included would be average quality to allow me to start playing. But after watching videos, learning how to rosin a bow and how to "break in" new rosin, I spent days attempting to get my bow to make anything resembling a sustained note across the strings. After much frustration I purchased a new stick of beginner level rosin from a different vendor, and the difference in quality and performance is TREMENDOUS. I cannot stress this enough. Three swipes with the new rosin after proper preparation and the violin sounded beautiful. Had I known the quality difference before hand, I could have saved myself a week of frustration. This in my opinion, is this combo set's biggest flaw, and is easily remedied by an approximately 3 dollar stick of quality rosin. -The violin itself is visually beautiful (nothing to compare it to) and tuning would have been much easier with a tuner. For the first week the violin would not stay in tune, I assume because it was being pressure held and the strings were new. This issue has resolved itself after the first few weeks. The fine tuners are greatly appreciated and allow you to get close with the tuning pegs, then slowly refine. A nice addition if you're a perfectionist. -The case itself is beautiful. It has a red interior and matching cloth cover to protect the violin. According to other reviews the case alone is worth the price. If this is true I'm unsure, but it is of sound quality and protects the violin nicely. I can safely say that the case is of higher quality than the violin, and you will likely replace the later long before needing to replace the case. The accessories I'm going to lump into a single category, as I don't know enough, even after observing to comment on their quality. The bows work as intended, I noticed no defects but again I have nothing to compare to. The strings make sound, which is a bonus, and the bridge that came on the violin hasn't snapped on me yet. Having a backup is a benefit if it should ever fail. The shoulder rest, I do not use, but it seems like an entry level piece and I simply don't use it out of preference. So to sum things up: This is an entry level violin, perfect for learning. Buy new rosin, accept that you will be tuning frequently for the first week, and you'll enjoy your purchase.

This is the first violin I have ever bought, and I am a complete newbie to playing the violin. I decided I should give it a try since I have a few years of guitar experience and want to learn something new. Package came in the mail today and I'm extremely impressed with what I got. I'll write a very detailed review because I did a whole lot of research before buying a violin, and I think that anyone else shopping for their first violin should know everything they need about the product they are planning on buying. The violin case is very high quality, medium pocket in the front to hold accessories, but too small to hold any sheet music. The main compartment is secured by a zipper and a single velcro tab by the handle. Upon opening the case the two bows are securely held in place by a rotating l shaped plastic piece. The violin is under a violin shaped velvet cover that Isn't held in place by any velcro, but the neck is secured by a velcro strip. At the top of the main compartment is a small door with a compartment where the strings, bridge, and rosin are found. The violin was severely out of tune out of the box (as expected) and, as always with a new string instrument, took a while for the tuning to stay put. Some tuning pegs are a little hard to turn, and others rotated back to where they were originally, but I figured out that pushing them in or pulling them out affected the stiffness. Is this normal for a violin? I discovered the fine tuners worked wonders because it was hard to get the right pitch. The surface of the violin had no scratches or visible damage anywhere, The only thing I could see a person having a problem with is that the neck is made of a much lighter colored wood than the body, they don't match at all. The included rosin worked as I would expect rosin to. After scoring it with a knife as a few reviews here suggested, it was not too hard to apply it enough for the bow to grab the strings enough to easily make a sound. I had a hard time figuring out how to work the shoulder rest, but that isn't too much of an issue. all in all, it is a beautiful instrument and I am very, very satisfied with the tone and quality. If you are planning on buying your first violin, this set will be the easiest and cheapest new violin you can find. I highly suggest this violin. (

I wasn't expecting much for the crazy low price of this instrument, but hoping to get something functional for my daughter to begin learning on. The violin itself is exactly what I hoped for. The Body: There are numerous little dings and imperfections in the wood, glue showing at the seams etc., but the finish looks pretty good. More importantly it really doesn't sound too bad. The body resonates with a fairly warm tone, and if we really need to improve the sound of the instrument then we will just replace the cheap strings it comes with. The Pegs: Very tight and stiff, one of them is so difficult to move I'm worried I'll break it. However, for the price I can live with that. It stays in tune reasonably well (even without breaking in the strings yet) and the fine tuners will usually suffice. Other points, the action is a little high, the bridge and soundpost arrived correctly placed, the chin rest, tail piece and fingerboard all seem fine. The Bows: These are comically bad. I don't know where to begin. The camber is not even close, they twist and bend in random places, are kind of lumpy and are not strong enough to put tension on the hair. The better of the two bows is almost useable, but the frog looks like it will break loose fairly soon. Shoulder rest: It's very cheaply made but will probably be OK for now. The Case: Quite good considering the overall price and has backpack style straps for carrying. We will be getting a new bow and probably new strings and shoulder rest before long, but considering the price we got what we expected and can't really complain.

Lo strumento è arrivato in perfette condizioni ed è molto valido e bello. L'insegnante di violino conferma che lo strumento è ben fatto. Ottimo suono.

I bought this violin for my 9 year old girl for christmas. She had been asking for one for a long time. I paid around 120$... it came with 2 bows, the resin , the shoulder rest and a set of cords.When we opened the case we were pretty amazed at how nice it looked. The sound was really nice too. When her violin teacher saw this violin and herself played with it ..she couldn't believe it came from amazon for that price and that it sounded that good and also that it kept it's strings in tune. Naturally, this is for a beginner violin , but does the job REALLY well. She has been playing everyday since the month of May(when she officially started her violin courses) and it's keeping up (pegs, bows , resin, ) We just had to change the strings because they are pretty cheap..but for that price I just bought better quality ones. For Quality AND Price this deserve a huge 5 star.

Very impressed with violin, looks great, excellent finish sou. nds great, after I tuned it up, came in a very nice case with 2 bows,extra strings rosin. An excellent deal for any beginner,would probably sound better with quality strings, but for now I am happy

Preso per mio figlio minore che ha iniziato da 7 mesi le lezioni. Direi che è completo di tutto. A giudizio dell'insegnate dice che è più che adeguato per 'età e le rifiniture. Buona l'accordatura.

A decent buy for its price. Good if you are a begginer like myself. Wanted to give 5 stars but there are a few things that kept it down. They are as follows. 1. Factory strings are not good. Change as soon as possible. $10-$30 on a new set will make a big difference. 2. The bridge is set very high. More than standard I believe. Which makes the strings a little painful to press down over continued use. Reccomend you have the bridge lowered (as a carpenter I researched how andndis it myself) 3. The Nut is also slightly too high, which also causes the problem above. Also decided to lower the nut myself. 4. The tailpiece was plastic. A bit dissapointed with this but not a huge issue. As weight is the main thing. (I will upgrade this and the fine tuners) EDIT: Upgraded this to real Ebony and some better Tuners. Picture reflects that. Those things aside. I was impressed with the Pegs. Not slipping for myself. The color of the violin is gorgeous. And it sounds and feels great with the new and lowered strings. The chinrest is nice and comfortable. And the Violin came with all the mentioned accessories. Two bows. A set of Cecelio strings. Rosin. A second Bridge and a Shoulder rest (not very good) Overall very pleased.