3/4 cello - primavera 200 or stentor conservatoire? Westbury?

[littlepeas]

I appreciate there is currently a very similar thread about violins, but I was hoping that someone with knowledge specific to cellos could help.

My dd needs to upsize from a 1/2 cello to a 3/4 - this is the first time we have needed to buy one, as we've borrowed from her cello teacher up to this point.

Dd is currently working towards grade 4 and has suddenly become really quite good - it seems to have clicked for her. We are expecting the cello to last about 3 or 4 years, so needs to potentially take her to grade 6, or maybe even 7.

Strings will be upgraded in either case (Jargar or Larsen). Is the extra for the stentor conservatoire worth it? I'd like to get her the nicest instrument we can within reason - absolute maximum budget of £1500 though (to include bow, case, etc), not going to be silly about it.

Also, if we go for the Stentor, are the fine-tune pegs worth the extra £135? At the moment I tune the cello, or her teacher does, but she will need to do it herself at some point.

Primavera 200 - £745
Stentor Conservatoire - £1130 (with finetune pegs, £995 without)
Westbury - £1350

All with strings upgraded to either Jargar or Larsen and includes case and bow. Also prepared to buy her a new bow if she doesn't like the ones that comes with it.

Does spending more always equal better with a cello? I'm a pianist with no idea about strings - I have always found that better instrument means a nicer experience of playing. But is there any point spending a lot at the level she is at? Especially as this is only a 3/4 and she will need another at some point in the future.

Of maybe one of these:

www.cardiffviolins.co.uk/beginners-to-intermediates/en/c126/p/31/i/282/desc/andantino/

I can’t help with brands because this size is when we stated borrowing. Just wanted to say that my daughter played a 3/4 for less than a year before moving to a full size and she is now an extremely petite full grown person with tiny hands. Could you hire one for a bit as they don’t really hold their value bought new? Elida violins have a good reputation and do part exchange though I think.

Or there are are instrument hire schemes for talented children eg. Benslow.

My daughter is a violinist but has found the fine tune pegs so useful!

@SwayingInTime

I can’t help with brands because this size is when we stated borrowing. Just wanted to say that my daughter played a 3/4 for less than a year before moving to a full size and she is now an extremely petite full grown person with tiny hands. Could you hire one for a bit as they don’t really hold their value bought new? Elida violins have a good reputation and do part exchange though I think.

Thank you - I did wonder how long she’d realistically have this cello for but her teacher thinks it will be quite a while. Dd is also petite and has small (but hypermobile) hands. Her teacher is petite and uses a 7/8.

The Cardiff place does a trade in for the next instrument, which would potentially take the sting out of her outgrowing it more quickly than expected!

dd also spent a v short time on her 3/4 cello; we bought from Stringers as they also
does trade in as they grow. a huge benefit for us as trying to sell a 3/4 cello when some many kids rent through teachers at that age would have been a nuisance.

My dd started cello last October. The information from this post is so useful. It is eerie to think how expensive the instrument cost lies ahead

Similar story here, we had to buy a 3/4 cello when my daughter was about grade 3. We went for quite a cheap option (hidersine vivente with string upgrade) and were pleasantly surprised! It is a lovely instrument with a beautiful tone (teacher agrees!) A year later she is now doing grade 5 on it.

I think I’m going to go for Stentor conservatoire with Larsen strings. Caswells (our nearest) does 50% trade in within 18 months, so we can do that if she grows enormously. It’s a tough balance between knowing it’s only a stopgap but not really knowing how long that stopgap might be!

We got a Jay Haide 1/2 in this price range. It's fabulous. Everyone always comments on it...

I have a Stentor 3/4 cello sitting doing nothing...shame you’re not in Scotland! Think it’s just the student one though.

I would try to rent one from a string shop. They don't stay on a 3/4 for very long.

My daughter started on a 1/2 size Primavera 200 ( her cello teacher preferred this to the basic Stentor). As she moved up the grades and needed a 3/4 cello, we bought a second hand Jai Haide which had been recommended by the cello teacher.

Go second hand best brand within your budget plus best strings. Make friends with other families with kids who do music and sell/swap amongst each other. Second hand played in tends to have a nicer sound and better resale value. You spend once they reach full size and are still serious about the instrument. Hire schemes can be great when they are growing quickly if from a specialist.

May be worth looking at a secondhand one - perhaps ebay if it is local to you and the teacher would go and look at it for you. Does the teacher not have a recommendation?

Mine had a Westbury for a 3/4 which we bought secondhand and then sold to a cello teacher for a pupil and got more than our money back.

I'd certainly go second hand. You might get a nice old instrument. They are not easy to sell on (she says 17 years after buying a 3/4).

I bought a decent 1/2 violin for my daughter at grade 2/3. She had a entry level one and I was going to wait and get a better 3/4 but it was just a bit too big, and I wanted her to have a better instrument at this stage as it suddenly started clicking for her too. I'm sooo glad I did as it made a huge difference to her enjoyment of playing and how she sounded. She is actually comfortably still on it a year later but even if she had outgrown it already I wouldn't have regretted it.