Ferris EV-1 Electric Violin

The Ferris EV-1 was actually one of the cheapest new electric violins available from any on-line store ( £55 + £5p&p from Northern Ireland to England), seriously undercutting both similar models and even some with plastic bodies and fingerboards.

The scroll and neck are traditionally shaped and like the body are painted with a thick layer of glossy metallic turquoise polyester. The pegs appear to be good quality plastic and grip nicely. The fingerboard is probably stained hardwood - it just might be ebony but it certainly isn't plastic...

The body bears a white "Ferris" logo in script on the bottom bout - this is the importer's name rather than the manufacturer's. The body is solid maple in the form of a letter 'S', with the neck attached at the top and the black aluminium tailpiece at the bottom. The tailpiece is fitted with a full set of four fine-tuners (competitors please note!) and there is a sturdy plastic chin-rest fitted. The flat belly and back have an overhang suitable for attaching a shoulder-rest (not however included).

The pickup consists of a white plastic tray about 5cm x 5mm loosely attached to the violin's belly, and the maple bridge stands on it, held in place by the tension of the strings. On the right edge of the lower bout are a volume and a tone control, and on the back of the violin is a battery cover for the 9-volt battery (included) and a panel bearing a 3.5mm stereo jack for the headphones (thankfully included) and a 6mm mono jack for a standard guitar lead (also included).

The violin comes in a sturdy black semi-hard case with a wood and horse-hair bow, a block of rosin in a rather garish green plastic tub, a 9-volt PP3 battery, a cheap but adequate pair of stereo over-the-ear headphones that fits in the case around the violin's scroll, a carrying strap for the case and a straight guitar lead with one straight and one angled plug. You may wish to add a pitch-pipe or electronic tuner and a shoulder-rest - there's plenty of room.

I am a complete newcomer to the violin and am teaching myself to play blues and funk on it - I was very impressed by the ease with which I was able to get a good sound. The violin is slightly heavy, and I am going to buy a shoulder-rest - in my opinion this should have been included.

All in all, fantastic value for money. In any case, musical instruments in general have never been so affordable, so now is the time. Jump in!