Can you hear a difference?

I heard some differences but I am not sure if I could attribute any differences to the bows or her playing.

I was listening through my laptops speakers.
 
Just listening on the iPad and it was quite difficult to make out a difference. Did not even know 160K bows exist - and I’m not sure I do believe it either [emoji3].


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
 
I heard differences. My computer system is not horrible by any means though. I use a NuPrime IDA-8 Integrated Amp/DAC and Selah Audio SA-2 speakers (pic below). One of the reasons I upgraded the computer audio system is that I'll extract DSD files from ISO files I burn on the PS3 and also do file conversions for music for my vehicle. So I broke down over the last year and upgraded the system.

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I was sold on the $500 dollar bow, until the last & then I wanted the $160'000, why does this always happen???
 
Many years ago I went into Thorougbred Music in Tampa to buy a Fender Stratocaster guitar on a slow day during the week. I tried out about 15 mid to high end Strats. I honestly did not think I would find a huge difference in sound as they were all Fender and all Strats and electrics! Likewise I would have never thought a violin bow would have different sounds.
My wife or kids would never have discerned the differences between those guitars!
It was a magnificent shoot out and one by one I would eliminate them. The one I chose for the sound I preferred was not the prettiest (read almost fugly) but was one of the more expensive ones......of course....a Fender Custom Shop blonde crafted by J Black who had fame of being Eric Clapton’s Luthier. I sold the puppy years later for twice what I paid and funded a Martin D45 Brazilian.
The care and passion put into a craft seems to always shine thru!
 
Kuoppis said:
Just listening on the iPad and it was quite difficult to make out a difference. Did not even know 160K bows exist - and I’m not sure I do believe it either [emoji3].


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
Click to expand...

As a fellow guitar player I know you do in $160K guitars though!:mock:
 
Just listened to the video. I could hear a difference between each bow. The $500 bow is junk. All other bows sounded great. My favorite was the $90K bow, it was the most expressive. I really liked the nuance it brought forth.

Having been a Cellist, I know how important a great bow can be. However, if you’ve spent over $20K, you’ve spent too much. You can find a terrific bow in that price range. Save the rest of your money for the instrument. It is far more important.

Ken
 
Clear differences in the speed and smoothness of transitions. Also, the cheap bow created some "slipping" sounds during direction changes and when reapplying the bow after lifting. In addition, the better bows (especially the most expensive one) increased the loudness and/or dynamic range of of the instrument (assuming similar technique on each time) without requiring excessive bow pressure.
 
The Sandman said:
Clear differences in the speed and smoothness of transitions. Also, the cheap bow created some "slipping" sounds during direction changes and when reapplying the bow after lifting. In addition, the better bows (especially the most expensive one) increased the loudness and/or dynamic range of of the instrument (assuming similar technique on each time) without requiring excessive bow pressure.
Click to expand...

Excellent observations, Howard!

Ken
 
I wasn't going to click on Mike's link, that is until Ken mentioned a beautiful girl. That made me click. :cool:

First things first, Ken is right, Esther Abrami is lovely. So is the incredible 1690 Stradivari.

After listening to the three bows I felt the $90K bow was smooth and clear. The extra $70K for the $160K bow is not justified from what I could hear. Perhaps if I experienced the audition live it might be different. The $500 bow sounded grating and harsh, although it is probably a decent bow for a beginning student of the violin.
 
On the slow piece the $500 sounded dull in comparison with the others. On the fast piece I felt that the higher priced bows had better differentiation of the notes and felt more dynamic/alive. I am sure that a professional violinist would be willing to pay the price.
After all any Strad violin cost several million dollars today. Would you put a $20 cartridge on your $10k vinyl rig?
I read somewhere that today many Strads are owned by private collectors who can’t even play a violin. Instead, they loan the instruments to selected musicians.
 
Dguitarnut said:
As a fellow guitar player I know you do in $160K guitars though!:mock:
Click to expand...

Haha, so funny. I do have many guitars but none on the very expensive side. What I would perhaps invest in is a 50s-60s original strat, their sound and sustain in phenomenal.

On the bow thing, I did not even properly listen to it, just watched the video on my iPad. What made me wonder whether the thing was some kind of hoax was when the girl said she’s there in the shop with her Stradivari to shop for a bow. I don’t believe it.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
 
nicoff said:
I read somewhere that today many Strads are owned by private collectors who can’t even play a violin. Instead, they loan the instruments to selected musicians.
Click to expand...

What you said is absolutely true. The owners loan these Strads to talented musicians who could never afford to purchase them. I got to hear a local Cellist perform on a Stradivarius cello. It sounded amazing! The other reason these instruments are loaned out is because it is very good for them to be played. Letting a wood instrument lay around stagnant is the worst thing you can do to them.

Ken
 
I would like to hear the 160k bow on a 500 dollar violin...

For the record I thought the difference was more apparrent on the fast track but the 40k and 90k bows sounded decent enough to me...
 
Now, now, let's be fair. The bow was 500 Euros. That's a good $625 US. :P
 
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