Hi fiddlers.... I have an old, battered fiddle saved from the scrap heap that I like very much. Problem is that it also has an old, battered case that doesn't cushion it at all and I expect will cause it a lot of harm bouncing around in there if I try to carry the fiddle to sessions or lessons. I was wondering if anyone had any recommendations for serviceable but inexpensive cases, and if there are certain features I should look out for in buying a case. I went to sharmusic.com and saw an oblong case for $49, and I imagine the quality is not great but it says it has a "suspension interior". There are other cases in the $100-200 range that seem to offer slightly better quality, and also include features like hygormeters that I don't know anything about. (I am pretty ignornant about maintenance, I just brush the fiddle off with a cloth after playing.) How concerned should I be about humidity and is it worth it to get a fancier case with a h-meter etc.? (I realize that for expensive instruments there are expensive cases, but it cost less than $300 to restore the fiddle & buy a bow, and I don't have a lot of money to spend on the case, but I want to get something that will protect the fiddle for years to come.....
once it manages to CREATE A shell arOUnd your fiddle youre sorted. theres many a case that contains humidifiers and all tHat crap, but honestly, the best thing to have is a case that surrounds your fiddle and looks after it incase someone sits on it. your sorted as long as you look after it and play it often enough that it doesnt get neglected
I have seen Shar's cheapest student cases and one of those will do quite well if you really don't want to spend much money. They are black nylon pack cloth over a foam shell, zip all round, straps for carrying, fuzzy lining. It won't have the character of your old battered case, but it will protect your old fiddle. (I don't get a commission) : )
What sort of case you need depends on how much you want to protect your instrument, and generally how well you treat it in the first place. If you *never* leave it where someone might accidentally step, sit, or fall on it, then almost any case will do. But this basically means that your fiddle never leaves your house, certainly not to go to a session.
I think a hardshell case is wise. You can find decent oblong, hard cases (covered in the usual black cordura) for less than $100.
If you really want solid protection and better durability, spend closer to $200 for a Bobelock or similar case with "suspension." What you get is a slightly convex laminated wood top on the case (which withstands heavier objects), and some foam (the so-called suspension) between your fiddle and the outside world.
Most of the hygrometers that come with fiddle cases are cheap and not too accurate. You can always buy one separately for $10 to $20 at a music shop or pet store (I've had better luck with the ones from pet stores--they sell them for reptile tanks).
Chicago is probably humid enough in spring, summer, and fall for your fiddle's health, but you may get a better tone in winter if you add a little humidity to the case.
The other plus of getting a better-than-average case is that it will come in handy when you're ready to upgrade to a better fiddle. A good case will last decades (and you can have them recovered when the cordura or zippers wear out).
Definitely pay attention to humidity, especially if you live in an area where the winters are cold. The problem comes in when rooms or houses are heated in such a way that it reduces the humidity way below normal ambient humidity. When I lived in a part of the country where the winters much longer and colder than where I live now, we heated our house with a fuel oil-fired heater that ran warm water through a system of pipes and radiators. It was really good at driving the humidity way down, and as a result, the top of my guitar split open. A repairman in the city rehumidified the guitar, which swelled the top shut. It was a real wake-up call.
I'm sure there's countless stories of instruments of all kinds undergoing trauma of all sorts. Buy a decent case appropriate to your needs (e.g., don't buy a $400 case for a $75 fiddle), and pay attention to the humidity--and heat, cold, and sudden temperature changes. And keep your instrument in your case when you're not playing it!
Thanks all. Vic, the old case certainly has character! And when I got it there was an ancient cracked lump of rosin in it stuck to a bit of felt and a hairless bow that looked at least fifty years old. The fiddle still plays though, despite its battle-scars. It was certainly a cheap fiddle when originally made a good long while ago and probably doesn't have nice tone or whatever a good instrument is supposed to have, but I am sure that a good player could make it sound great anyhow. But the lady I took it to said it would probably sound better fixed up than if I bought a new fiddle for the same price because ithe old one had been played a lot at some point and that makes an instrument sound better. I don't know if that's true, but I'm happy with the fiddle in any case so I am glad I didn't get a cheap new one. Will, that about getting a hard case sounds like a good idea. I guess I was only thinking of something to carry it around in and to keep it in to keep the dust off at home. It hadn't even occured to me that anyone might land on a nylon case after a few too many and crush it or anything! I like the look and feel of nylon better, I think, but maybe to best protect the instrument I should get a hard case. Thanks Zina for the link to the other discussion. I had been thinking about an oblong case for more storage room (to put in a very small tape recorder to record at sessions to learn new tunes), but maybe a shaped case would be better, to deal with another kind of storage problem. Hmm.
Here's a completely unrelated question. What does it mean if the fiddle starts purring? Where it gets this sort of vibration going, and almost sounds like a cat purring?
Sounds like something's starting to come apart. The purring could be from the vibrations of a loose joint. I'm a great advocate of taking any instrument to a decent luthier for a check-up on an annual basis. The luthier can make adjustments to make an instrument more playable and have better tone, and suggest repairs and/or additions or changes as necessary or appropriate. This can make a huge difference in the playability and sound of an instrument.
Well, 2nd, I now have one of those oblong cases, and haven't really had any problems with it fitting, although I've gotten a couple of sour looks from people when they open up the bin trying to find somewhere to put their bags only to find a fiddle taking up a good deal of the space. Overall, it's been fine.
A flight attendant *did* once put my case behind the last row of seats, though, to make more room for some of the other computer type cases. I think that's against regs, but she probably had heard one too many complaints about sardines in planes.
Something I thought about when I bought my last case was making sure that the pocket on the outside was big enough to hold whatever music I might want to carry without folding it up.
In motor racing they say you should spend as much on your helmet as you think your head is worth.
When buying a case for a fiddle I'd say spend as much as you think your fiddle is worth. Some $75 dollar fiddles are absolutely irreplacable for one reason or another. Value is not synonomous with *price.*
Then there's the fact that even if it's just a $75, factory made Chinese jobber that you can replace at any two bit music store you *still* suffer the loss of being able to play if someone sits on it at a session, or God forbid when you're gigging on the road. The loss of a "road axe" can still be a critical loss, and being more assured of being to play may well be worth some expense.
And the loss of $75 is still the loss of $75. Do that a couple of times that a good case would have saved you and you might just as well have had the good case in the first place.
And don't forget that a $75 dollar fiddle is a $75 dollar fiddle *plus* whatever setup work you've had put into it. Easy enough to replace a Chinese fiddle, not so easy to replace it with the pegs, bridge and soundpost properly fitted.
And as noted a good case will last you decades. Perhaps even your lifetime plus your kid's lifetime. It's an investment that may well end up costing less than several students cases over the long haul. That reduces the question to a mere cashflow issue. If you've got the cash, and you're going to spend it, why not do it now for a quality item and enjoy that quality item for all those years?
All that said, right now my fiddle is in one of those $25 tapered cordura "student" cases (my fiddle isn't what anyone would consider valuable, or even irreplacable, but I've still got far more than the cost of a good case into it. Stuff over the purchase price adds up), and yes, they do work just fine as long as you are absolutely parnoid about your fiddle while using one. It teaches one not to put the fiddle where someone could sit on it in the first place. Never *ever* actually rely on your case for accident protection. It's emergency gear (of course simply getting on a plane with a fiddle is an emergency situation just waiting to happen). Of course I've been carrying my guitar in a soft gig bag for 20 years and I'm already well trained at this. (A Tough Traveler, the absolute Queen of gig bags. 20 years old and I expect to get at least another 40 out of it, and it hasn't exactly been treated with kid gloves. Not even a minor hardware failure to date. I wish they made a proper violin gig bag, but all they offer is a cordura case cover. I'll have to talk to them about that. They're right up the street from me and I've been buying their stuff since before anybody had ever heard of them. No. I'm not an endorser. Just a very satisfied customer. I'd be happy to be an official endorser and still *pay* for their bags)
There are two primary weaknesses to the student case (beyond not being elephant proof):
The first is that they obviously have to cut corners somewhere. They do it with the hardware. You can't put $50 worth of hardware on a $25 case. It'll tend to fall off. When it does replace with a quality piece and you're good to go. When it's the zipper that goes it's time to get a new case (or some velcro straps, or a roll of duct tape).
The second is as noted above. The pocket size is pitiful. You'll get a cleaning rag in there and that's about it. Bound music is out of the question. If I didn't always travel with my guitar as well ( I can live out of my guitar bag for days at a time) I would get a different case just over that issue alone.
If I were you (which I'm obviously not) I think what I'd get is the oblong Toshira student "Cross Country" case that Shar has for $70. Looks like the "I don't want to spend an arm and a leg" case sweet spot to me.
". . . it would probably sound better fixed up than if I bought a new fiddle for the same price because ithe old one had been played a lot at some point and that makes an instrument sound better. I don't know if that's true. . ."
No, not as phrased it's not. Oh yes, an instrument that's *being* played a lot has better tone. The museum that houses Paganini's Amati and Strad takes the risk (these are irreplacable and "priceless" instruments) of having people come in and play them on a regular basis, just so they don't go all to hell as musical instruments.
And there's the rub. An instrument that isn't being played quickly looses that tone. I've had call to play loaner instruments over the years and their owners almost always remark how much better they sound after I return them and ask me what I did.
Well, I *played* the thing for 2 to 6 hours a day for the past month or six, while you have had it locked up in the closet/attic for the past year or six. Or in one case 60.
I don't even understand owning an instrument and not playing it. My own grandmother even did this. Went from being a first violin in Boston to stuffing the fiddle in the attic and never playing again, or letting anybody else play it.
What a waste.
(Oh, my cousin got the fiddle when she died, because he had a music degree, while I was only a working folk musician. He's got it stuffed in a closet somewhere. I guess I'm the black sheep of the family)
I have a Travel Lite oblong case and like it very much. It wasnt expensive, about $56.00 and seems sufficient for just going to and from my lessons. I could use a little bigger storage compartment for my shoulder rest but other than that I find it quite serviceable. My fiddle teacher commented on it being a nice case also.
Thanks again all for the help. I'm sorry KFG to hear about the ancestral fiddle tragedy! Maybe my best solution is just to play the fiddle so much it's hardly ever in its case. (I wish!)
I'm a school orchestra director and so I've seen lots of cases come and go. My current favorite is an inexpensive, durable SKB Sculptured 4/4 Violin Case that has a molded plastic outside, opens with latches, lifetime warranty, with a nifty large compartment inside for that weirdly shaped shoulder pad that keeps getting lost. I've used mine for about 5 years and it's indestructable, easy to open, and relatively cheap. (under $100.00?). It looks a little too "modern" to really catch on in the retro world of violinists, but I love it.
I'm not good at making links, but here's the SKB site with a description. Mickyman
shhttp://www.skbcases.com/product/band_orchestral/string/skb-444.html
fiddle case
fiddle case
Hi fiddlers.... I have an old, battered fiddle saved from the scrap heap that I like very much. Problem is that it also has an old, battered case that doesn't cushion it at all and I expect will cause it a lot of harm bouncing around in there if I try to carry the fiddle to sessions or lessons. I was wondering if anyone had any recommendations for serviceable but inexpensive cases, and if there are certain features I should look out for in buying a case. I went to sharmusic.com and saw an oblong case for $49, and I imagine the quality is not great but it says it has a "suspension interior". There are other cases in the $100-200 range that seem to offer slightly better quality, and also include features like hygormeters that I don't know anything about. (I am pretty ignornant about maintenance, I just brush the fiddle off with a cloth after playing.) How concerned should I be about humidity and is it worth it to get a fancier case with a h-meter etc.? (I realize that for expensive instruments there are expensive cases, but it cost less than $300 to restore the fiddle & buy a bow, and I don't have a lot of money to spend on the case, but I want to get something that will protect the fiddle for years to come.....
# Posted on January 29th 2005 by 2ndFiddle
Re: fiddle case
once it manages to CREATE A shell arOUnd your fiddle youre sorted. theres many a case that contains humidifiers and all tHat crap, but honestly, the best thing to have is a case that surrounds your fiddle and looks after it incase someone sits on it. your sorted as long as you look after it and play it often enough that it doesnt get neglected
# Posted on January 29th 2005 by dollyparton#1
Re: fiddle case
I have seen Shar's cheapest student cases and one of those will do quite well if you really don't want to spend much money. They are black nylon pack cloth over a foam shell, zip all round, straps for carrying, fuzzy lining. It won't have the character of your old battered case, but it will protect your old fiddle. (I don't get a commission) : )
# Posted on January 29th 2005 by adam b
Re: fiddle case
What sort of case you need depends on how much you want to protect your instrument, and generally how well you treat it in the first place. If you *never* leave it where someone might accidentally step, sit, or fall on it, then almost any case will do. But this basically means that your fiddle never leaves your house, certainly not to go to a session.
I think a hardshell case is wise. You can find decent oblong, hard cases (covered in the usual black cordura) for less than $100.
If you really want solid protection and better durability, spend closer to $200 for a Bobelock or similar case with "suspension." What you get is a slightly convex laminated wood top on the case (which withstands heavier objects), and some foam (the so-called suspension) between your fiddle and the outside world.
Most of the hygrometers that come with fiddle cases are cheap and not too accurate. You can always buy one separately for $10 to $20 at a music shop or pet store (I've had better luck with the ones from pet stores--they sell them for reptile tanks).
Chicago is probably humid enough in spring, summer, and fall for your fiddle's health, but you may get a better tone in winter if you add a little humidity to the case.
The other plus of getting a better-than-average case is that it will come in handy when you're ready to upgrade to a better fiddle. A good case will last decades (and you can have them recovered when the cordura or zippers wear out).
# Posted on January 29th 2005 by Will Harmon
Re: fiddle case
BTW, happy birthday, Will, in case I miss talking to you tomorrow.
http://thesession.org/discussions/display.php/1529/comments#comment25942 -- but I did end up getting a much nicer case a year or two back. Here in Denver, it's considered smart to have the humidier thingies in your case.
# Posted on January 29th 2005 by Zina Lee
Re: fiddle case
Definitely pay attention to humidity, especially if you live in an area where the winters are cold. The problem comes in when rooms or houses are heated in such a way that it reduces the humidity way below normal ambient humidity. When I lived in a part of the country where the winters much longer and colder than where I live now, we heated our house with a fuel oil-fired heater that ran warm water through a system of pipes and radiators. It was really good at driving the humidity way down, and as a result, the top of my guitar split open. A repairman in the city rehumidified the guitar, which swelled the top shut. It was a real wake-up call.
I'm sure there's countless stories of instruments of all kinds undergoing trauma of all sorts. Buy a decent case appropriate to your needs (e.g., don't buy a $400 case for a $75 fiddle), and pay attention to the humidity--and heat, cold, and sudden temperature changes. And keep your instrument in your case when you're not playing it!
# Posted on January 29th 2005 by Audeamus
Re: fiddle case
Thanks all. Vic, the old case certainly has character! And when I got it there was an ancient cracked lump of rosin in it stuck to a bit of felt and a hairless bow that looked at least fifty years old. The fiddle still plays though, despite its battle-scars. It was certainly a cheap fiddle when originally made a good long while ago and probably doesn't have nice tone or whatever a good instrument is supposed to have, but I am sure that a good player could make it sound great anyhow. But the lady I took it to said it would probably sound better fixed up than if I bought a new fiddle for the same price because ithe old one had been played a lot at some point and that makes an instrument sound better. I don't know if that's true, but I'm happy with the fiddle in any case so I am glad I didn't get a cheap new one. Will, that about getting a hard case sounds like a good idea. I guess I was only thinking of something to carry it around in and to keep it in to keep the dust off at home. It hadn't even occured to me that anyone might land on a nylon case after a few too many and crush it or anything! I like the look and feel of nylon better, I think, but maybe to best protect the instrument I should get a hard case. Thanks Zina for the link to the other discussion. I had been thinking about an oblong case for more storage room (to put in a very small tape recorder to record at sessions to learn new tunes), but maybe a shaped case would be better, to deal with another kind of storage problem. Hmm.
Here's a completely unrelated question. What does it mean if the fiddle starts purring? Where it gets this sort of vibration going, and almost sounds like a cat purring?
# Posted on January 29th 2005 by 2ndFiddle
Re: fiddle case
Sounds like something's starting to come apart. The purring could be from the vibrations of a loose joint. I'm a great advocate of taking any instrument to a decent luthier for a check-up on an annual basis. The luthier can make adjustments to make an instrument more playable and have better tone, and suggest repairs and/or additions or changes as necessary or appropriate. This can make a huge difference in the playability and sound of an instrument.
# Posted on January 29th 2005 by Audeamus
Re: fiddle case
Thanks high strung. It only happens once in a while, but if it gets worse I'll take it in for a checkup.
# Posted on January 29th 2005 by 2ndFiddle
Re: fiddle case
Well, 2nd, I now have one of those oblong cases, and haven't really had any problems with it fitting, although I've gotten a couple of sour looks from people when they open up the bin trying to find somewhere to put their bags only to find a fiddle taking up a good deal of the space. Overall, it's been fine.
A flight attendant *did* once put my case behind the last row of seats, though, to make more room for some of the other computer type cases. I think that's against regs, but she probably had heard one too many complaints about sardines in planes.
# Posted on January 29th 2005 by Zina Lee
Re: fiddle case
Something I thought about when I bought my last case was making sure that the pocket on the outside was big enough to hold whatever music I might want to carry without folding it up.
# Posted on January 29th 2005 by carly
Re: fiddle case
"e.g., don't buy a $400 case for a $75 fiddle"
In motor racing they say you should spend as much on your helmet as you think your head is worth.
When buying a case for a fiddle I'd say spend as much as you think your fiddle is worth. Some $75 dollar fiddles are absolutely irreplacable for one reason or another. Value is not synonomous with *price.*
Then there's the fact that even if it's just a $75, factory made Chinese jobber that you can replace at any two bit music store you *still* suffer the loss of being able to play if someone sits on it at a session, or God forbid when you're gigging on the road. The loss of a "road axe" can still be a critical loss, and being more assured of being to play may well be worth some expense.
And the loss of $75 is still the loss of $75. Do that a couple of times that a good case would have saved you and you might just as well have had the good case in the first place.
And don't forget that a $75 dollar fiddle is a $75 dollar fiddle *plus* whatever setup work you've had put into it. Easy enough to replace a Chinese fiddle, not so easy to replace it with the pegs, bridge and soundpost properly fitted.
And as noted a good case will last you decades. Perhaps even your lifetime plus your kid's lifetime. It's an investment that may well end up costing less than several students cases over the long haul. That reduces the question to a mere cashflow issue. If you've got the cash, and you're going to spend it, why not do it now for a quality item and enjoy that quality item for all those years?
All that said, right now my fiddle is in one of those $25 tapered cordura "student" cases (my fiddle isn't what anyone would consider valuable, or even irreplacable, but I've still got far more than the cost of a good case into it. Stuff over the purchase price adds up), and yes, they do work just fine as long as you are absolutely parnoid about your fiddle while using one. It teaches one not to put the fiddle where someone could sit on it in the first place. Never *ever* actually rely on your case for accident protection. It's emergency gear (of course simply getting on a plane with a fiddle is an emergency situation just waiting to happen). Of course I've been carrying my guitar in a soft gig bag for 20 years and I'm already well trained at this. (A Tough Traveler, the absolute Queen of gig bags. 20 years old and I expect to get at least another 40 out of it, and it hasn't exactly been treated with kid gloves. Not even a minor hardware failure to date. I wish they made a proper violin gig bag, but all they offer is a cordura case cover. I'll have to talk to them about that. They're right up the street from me and I've been buying their stuff since before anybody had ever heard of them. No. I'm not an endorser. Just a very satisfied customer. I'd be happy to be an official endorser and still *pay* for their bags)
There are two primary weaknesses to the student case (beyond not being elephant proof):
The first is that they obviously have to cut corners somewhere. They do it with the hardware. You can't put $50 worth of hardware on a $25 case. It'll tend to fall off. When it does replace with a quality piece and you're good to go. When it's the zipper that goes it's time to get a new case (or some velcro straps, or a roll of duct tape).
The second is as noted above. The pocket size is pitiful. You'll get a cleaning rag in there and that's about it. Bound music is out of the question. If I didn't always travel with my guitar as well ( I can live out of my guitar bag for days at a time) I would get a different case just over that issue alone.
If I were you (which I'm obviously not) I think what I'd get is the oblong Toshira student "Cross Country" case that Shar has for $70. Looks like the "I don't want to spend an arm and a leg" case sweet spot to me.
But ya pays yer money, and ya takes yer choice.
KFG
# Posted on January 29th 2005 by KFG
Re: fiddle case
". . . it would probably sound better fixed up than if I bought a new fiddle for the same price because ithe old one had been played a lot at some point and that makes an instrument sound better. I don't know if that's true. . ."
No, not as phrased it's not. Oh yes, an instrument that's *being* played a lot has better tone. The museum that houses Paganini's Amati and Strad takes the risk (these are irreplacable and "priceless" instruments) of having people come in and play them on a regular basis, just so they don't go all to hell as musical instruments.
And there's the rub. An instrument that isn't being played quickly looses that tone. I've had call to play loaner instruments over the years and their owners almost always remark how much better they sound after I return them and ask me what I did.
Well, I *played* the thing for 2 to 6 hours a day for the past month or six, while you have had it locked up in the closet/attic for the past year or six. Or in one case 60.
I don't even understand owning an instrument and not playing it. My own grandmother even did this. Went from being a first violin in Boston to stuffing the fiddle in the attic and never playing again, or letting anybody else play it.
What a waste.
(Oh, my cousin got the fiddle when she died, because he had a music degree, while I was only a working folk musician. He's got it stuffed in a closet somewhere. I guess I'm the black sheep of the family)
KFG
# Posted on January 30th 2005 by KFG
Re: fiddle case
I have a Travel Lite oblong case and like it very much. It wasnt expensive, about $56.00 and seems sufficient for just going to and from my lessons. I could use a little bigger storage compartment for my shoulder rest but other than that I find it quite serviceable. My fiddle teacher commented on it being a nice case also.
Mary
# Posted on January 30th 2005 by Antikhntr
Re: fiddle case
Thanks again all for the help. I'm sorry KFG to hear about the ancestral fiddle tragedy! Maybe my best solution is just to play the fiddle so much it's hardly ever in its case. (I wish!)
# Posted on January 30th 2005 by 2ndFiddle
Re: fiddle case from SKB
I'm a school orchestra director and so I've seen lots of cases come and go. My current favorite is an inexpensive, durable SKB Sculptured 4/4 Violin Case that has a molded plastic outside, opens with latches, lifetime warranty, with a nifty large compartment inside for that weirdly shaped shoulder pad that keeps getting lost. I've used mine for about 5 years and it's indestructable, easy to open, and relatively cheap. (under $100.00?). It looks a little too "modern" to really catch on in the retro world of violinists, but I love it.
I'm not good at making links, but here's the SKB site with a description. Mickyman
shhttp://www.skbcases.com/product/band_orchestral/string/skb-444.html
# Posted on January 30th 2005 by MickyMan
Re: fiddle case
Close, Micky!
http://www.skbcases.com/product/band_orchestral/string/skb-444.html
# Posted on January 30th 2005 by Zina Lee
Re: fiddle case
I've bookmarked SKB for when my case falls apart but it looks like the storage area may not be wide enough for string packets. Is that so?
I never use the long tube for strings that goes in the bow area of mine and keep old strings in packets for emergencies.
# Posted on January 30th 2005 by edl
Re: fiddle case
The SKB one shure looks like a great case. But even more important than strings, will my hip flask fit? :P
# Posted on January 30th 2005 by Pontus Adefjord