Student Cello Showdown | Amazon's Choice vs. Amazon's Bestseller (both $269!)
Today, I’ll be pitting the Cecilio Student Outfit cello against the Eastar EVC-1. I previously reviewed both these beginner student cellos in previous posts:
Cecilio Student Outfit
Easter EVC-1
I purchased both cellos on Amazon at $269 (they may vary in price currently).
Right off the bat, I will let you know that I chose the Cecilio Student Outfit over the Eastar.
We are going to look at both instruments under four main categories, starting with the most important category and working our way down to the least important.
Without further ado, let’s jump right into it!
Category One: Sound
Sound is king. It’s why we adult learners are enticed into learning to play the cello in the first place.
To keep as much control in the experiment as possible, I tried both cellos with the same $70 carbon fibre bow that I use for outdoor playing.
Both instruments were surprisingly loud under the ear when I tried them, almost as if they were mic’d from inside.
With the Cecilio, I found the sound surprisingly pleasant and relatively even across the strings.
An even sound across the strings is desirable so that there isn’t a jarring difference in timbre every time you switch from one string to the next.
With the Easter EVC-1, I unfortunately did not have as good of an experience. On its own, I would probably be impressed with it since it was only $269.
But compared to the Cecilio, the Eastar was much less even across the strings and overall seemed patchier in terms of the amount of resonance I created; certain notes on the fingerboard seemed less resonant and duller than others.
My wife, a professional violinist, was in the room during all of this and noted that the Eastar also seemed to resonate in a much less pleasant way than the Cecilio. She said it sounded mic’d from within but in a false way, leaving the tone somewhat empty sounding to her ear.
Sound Winner: Cecilio
Category Two: Playability
If sound takes first place in my hierarchy, then playability is a close second place.
Simply put, I define playability as how hard or easy I find it to play the instrument.
I had an instrument in the past that sounded beautiful but was very difficult to play; let me assure you that playability is a major factor in your ability to progress and to enjoy yourself as you start your cello journey!
I found the Cecilio quite playable. All four of the strings were responsive and the bridge was shaped well so that clean string crossings with the bow were not a concern. The height of the bridge was also comfortable enough so that I didn’t feel like I was overworking with my left hand.
With the Eastar EVC-1, the playability suffered mainly due to the bridge it came with. There were two main problems with the bridge.
First, I found the bridge height way too high for the instrument.
As a result the distance between the strings and the fingerboard was much higher than usual and my left hand was working way too hard to stop the string to play notes.
This type of bridge situation could easily lead to overuse injury if uncorrected, so I recommend you take any cello you purchase online to a violin shop and have them check the bridge height for you to make sure you are not going to be struggling unnecessarily.
The second issue with the bridge was that the top of it had been shaped poorly.
As a result, it would be very difficult not to graze nearby strings accidentally. For example, if playing on the G string, it was difficult not to brush against the D string unintentionally.
Playability Winner: Cecilio
Category Three: Appearance
For me, this category is at least two quantum leaps down in terms of importance, but it brings up an important difference that I want to mention.
The Cecilio Student Outfit and Eastar EVC-1 are about as far in appearance as you can get.
The Cecilio is a very bright shade of red-orange and has an extremely thick, glossy coat of varnish on it that amplifies the color even more.
On the other hand, the Eastar cello has a completely matte finish and has a color that runs from brown to extremely dark brown.
It’s a matter of personal taste which cello looks better to you, but one aspect I didn’t like had to do with Eastar’s fingerboard and the little circular discs that are inlaid as a guide for the fingers of the left hand.
Personally, I’m not a fan. I don’t believe these dots would prove to be that helpful for a beginning cellist; I would prefer him/her to simply apply strips of tape as a temporary guide for the left hand position.
More importantly, those little dots are not removable, which means that even after you have progressed beyond the need for any kind of extra help finding the notes on the fingerboard, you will still have have a cello that says to everyone, “hey, my owner is a beginner.”
If I thought the dots on the Eastar’s fingerboard were helpful, I wouldn’t mention this at all, but since I don’t think they are, that helped me pick a clear winner in terms of appearance.
Apperance Winner: Cecilio
Category Four: Accessories
Both the Cecilio Student Outfit and the Eastar EVC-1 come with a nearly identical set of accessories that to me seemed completely equal in quality.
Along with the cello, you get:
-Thinly padded soft cello case/bag
-Wood bow
-Rosin
-An extra set of strings
-Cello stand
Along with these items, the Cecilio also includes a cloth to wipe of the instrument and bow after practice sessions.
To me, this final category is a wash. Instead of analyzing all the items and hunting for minute differences, I want to give three suggestions as to how you can spend just a little more money to have a much better experience with either of these instruments.
Rosin: I would get rid of the rosin in either outfit and pickup a cheap cake of the real stuff for $2-3.
Strings: Both outfits come with very inexpensive strings that sound pretty metallic. On both cellos, the A string is particularly harsh and tinny sounding.
I recommend picking up a Jargar Medium A string, it will sound worlds better than your current A string on goes on sale often for ~$20.
Bow: While the wood bows that came with the outfits were totally functional, I have to say that neither was balanced particularly well.
A $70 wood bow is likely to be balanced poorly or difficult to handle in a way that will create a beautiful sound.
I recommend buying a cheap carbon fibre bow for ~$70; it is most likely going to feel much better balanced and even from the frog to the tip, and having a balanced bow makes a huge difference when learning how to maneuver the bow and draw out a beautiful tone.
Accessories Winner: Neither (or both?)
So there you have it. For the reasons above I chose the Cecilio Student Outfit Cello!
If $300-400 is your total budget for your first cello, then I think buying (not renting) is the way to go and I think Cecilio is a good option.
As I mentioned in my previous review, my first Cecilio came with the sound post dislodged (which rendered it unplayable).
I ordered a return and replacement online and my replacement arrived the next day, so my experience regarding customer experience was pretty excellent.
Below are unaffiliated links to the cellos being compared, as well as to the upgrades I suggested:
