Tips for Improving the Sound of Your Violin

If you are a beginner violinist and want to improve the sound of your violin, you can find the answer in this article.

The violin is a delicate instrument that produces beautiful, complex sounds when played by a violinist. It can express people's rich emotional changes, ultimately infecting and moving the audience, allowing the performer and the audience to form an emotional resonance. It plays an important role in modern musical instruments and is known as the queen of musical instruments.

For a high-quality violin, it must not only have high-quality materials, exquisite craftsmanship, precise structure, and beautiful varnish but ultimately also have good sound. 

Next, I will introduce to violin beginners how to improve the sound quality of the violin and help them better understand and learn the violin.

Do you know how the violin makes sound?

If you want to optimize the sound of the violin, you must first understand the sounding principle of the violin.

The player uses a bow to cause friction between the bow hair and the strings, causing the strings to vibrate. This vibration is then transmitted to the violin's top plate through the bridge, causing the top plate to vibrate. The top plate transmits vibrations to the bass bar and sound post, and the sound post transmits this vibration to the back plate. The sound generated by vibration is amplified by the resonance of the violin body and finally transmitted through the F hole. This is how the violin produces sound.

By understanding the principles of sound production, we can find that the bow, strings, bridges, sound posts, and violin materials are the key to the sound of the violin. Of course, the player's performance skills are also critical.

Knowing this, we can improve the sound of the violin in a targeted manner.

Point 1: Improve your playing skills

The violin is an instrument, and it needs a violinist to give it life. So what you need in the end is to improve your playing skills. 

Many beginners do not have particularly good playing skills when they first start learning the violin, so even with a very high-end violin, it is difficult to produce a beautiful sound. With the same violin, different players can produce different effects. 

So if you want to improve the sound of the violin, the first thing you need to do is improve your playing skills.

Point 2: Check and set up the fiddle

If you purchased a violin online and upon receiving it you try to play it and find that it doesn’t sound very good, all you need to do is check that the violin is set up correctly.

Violins have certain standards. Take a 4/4 size violin as an example. The height of its four strings has a reference standard. For example, the height of the G string and the fingerboard is 5-5.5mm, and the height of the E string and the fingerboard is 3-3.5mm. If the strings are not tightened, the height between the strings and the fretboard will be off, and if you listen to the sound, the sound will be inaccurate. 

There is also the bridge, which also needs to be installed in the correct position. If the position is incorrect, the sound will be deviated. The same goes for violin sound post.

Therefore, you must re-tune the violin when you receive it. 

Some merchants will set up the violin before shipping it, such as Fiddlover Violin Shop. However, due to transportation reasons, the strings may become loose and the violin bridge may be deviated. 

Therefore, generally speaking, it is necessary to tune the instrument before playing, so that a more accurate violin sound can be obtained.

Tightening the strings is relatively easy. You only need to adjust the peg or the fine tuner. Remember that when adjusting the peg, you not only need to tighten it, but you also need to press the peg inward slightly with your hand, so that the strings can be truly tightened. In addition, When using the fine tuner, you need to put a cleaning cloth under the fine tuner to prevent excessive use of the trimmer from scratching the top plate.

If you need to adjust the bridge, you need to loosen the strings first, then adjust the bridge to the correct position, and then tighten the strings. Do not drag the bridge violently, as this will damage the violin top plate or the bridge.

If you need to adjust the sound post, it is recommended that you find a professional to install it, because installing the sound post requires professional tools and experience, but generally speaking, there will be no problems with the sound post.

After you make sure that the violin has been installed correctly, you will find that the sound of the violin will be greatly improved compared to when it was not installed correctly.

If you don't know how to adjust and set up, you can read the article The Best Violin Beginner's Guide: Strings, Bridges, and Tuning to learn more.

Point 3: Give the new violin some time

Generally, a new violin needs constant playing to fully realize its potential. At the same time, the user also needs to spend a lot of energy to give the violin life and vitality during this period.

From a technical point of view, generally, new violins will sound better and better after being played for a long time. 

This is because violins are composed of many wooden structures, which are combined with the exquisite craftsmanship of the violin maker. The violin is made together, but since the various parts are bonded together with animal glue, there is a force between the parts. Although it cannot be seen intuitively, it does exist. 

The easiest thing to understand is that the side plates are formed by bending wooden strips. They have a certain degree of elasticity and want to return to straight wooden strips. However, due to the structure of the violin, its natural elasticity is reflected in every part of the violin. When the player plays, the force generated by the vibration will cause the various parts of the violin to adjust very slightly, making the violin parts more harmonious. It can be understood that the force existing between the parts will become smaller and smaller. This way the violin will sound better and better. This is also the reason why many new violins need to be played accurately for some time before they will perform better. If you are interested, you can read the article Why do new violins need a break-in period? to learn more.

So, if you have a new violin, give it some time and it will get better and better in your hands.

Point 4: Replace accessories according to your situation

If you already have extensive playing experience and understanding of the violin, you can replace the violin accessories according to your situation.

First, you can change your bow. If you are a beginner and have purchased or used a cheap violin bow, the first thing you should do is replace it. A handmade bow made of Pernambuco wood and matched with high-quality Mongolian horse tail hair is sure to bring you a different playing experience. If you don't know where to buy it, then you can buy it at Fiddlover Violin Shop. We have a professional bow-making studio. They are a family with two generations with 40 years of production experience. Click on the link to choose a violin bow.

Second is the strings, which are divided into three categories: steel strings, nylon strings, and gut strings. Strings of different materials have different performances and will also significantly change the sound of the violin. So you can also adjust the violin sound by changing the strings on the violin. If you are a beginner, it is better not to change the strings easily, just use a set of strings, because matching and changing the strings by yourself requires rich experience sufficient knowledge, and of course sufficient funds. This is not very beginner-friendly.

Finally, you can change the violin bridge. Different quality bridges will also affect the sound of the violin, especially bridges that have been manually trimmed by professionals. The thickness and width of the bridge foot will have an impact on the sound. For example, if your violin is too loud and sharp, you can replace the bridge with a thicker and wider bridge, so that the sound will be gentler. On the other hand, if your violin sounds too deep, you can use a thinner and narrower bridge, which will make the sound louder and more powerful.

In short, if you are a player at this stage, then I believe you must have your own understanding of how to improve the sound of the violin. You can design it according to your own ideas, but I suggest it is best to make the violin sound more balanced, and then highlight the characteristics of each violin.

Conclusion

There are ways to improve the sound of the violin. The best way is to solve the problem in a targeted manner after discovering the problem. Of course, you can also buy a high-quality violin from the beginning, and you will definitely encounter fewer problems than a cheap violin. If you need to buy a high-quality violin, you can come to Fiddlover Violin Shop to choose the instrument you like. Not only the quality is guaranteed, but you can also enjoy free shipping.