Where to buy an electric cello in Amsterdam
I recently received an email from a cellist who asked me for tips on places or stores in Amsterdam where she could try out some electric cellos, and brands that are on the not-too-expensive side that I could recommend.
I recently received an email from a cellist who asked me for tips on places or stores in Amsterdam where she could try out some electric cellos, and brands that are on the not-too-expensive side that I could recommend.
Hm, I thought. Great question regarding electric cellos. When I was looking to buy an electric cello, I discovered that unfortunately Amsterdam is not a good place to “try before you buy”. The music stores I know mostly stock guitars (Dirk Witte, Dijkman) or the big retailer Bax has a lot of guitar stuff and equipment for the studio like speakers, microphones, DJ gear and much more online, but no electric cellos.
So I struggled to find a store that had any electric cellos to try. There are no dedicated "string retailers" in Amsterdam. They mostly are ateliers who do repairs, and probably selling only classical cellos. Many years ago in Amsterdam I hired a Yamaha electric cello, but I'm afraid I don't remember which shop anymore.
The BEST recommendation I can give is to shop online at Thomann, which is a German online music retailer. They ship to The Netherlands. Unfortunately they do not have free returns, but their customer service is always very good! Here is a link of the electric cellos they have on offer: https://www.thomann.de/intl/thlpg_bhyy893m7x.html
Here are my top picks from their website:
MOST NATURAL SOUNDING - NS DESIGN CR SERIES -
https://thinkns.com/instrument/ns-design-electric-cello/
I have an electric cello from the brand NS Design, and I bought it from Thomann. NS Design has electric cellos ranging from 950 Euros to 3500 (from cheapest to best: WAV, NXTa and CR Series). Mine is the more expensive one (CR series). I like it because it sounds just like a classical cello and you can play standing up, which was my dream. I have a 5-string cello, and it’s also possible to buy a 6-string. If you'd like to try mine, please get in touch. (Read my review on the CR Series cello here)
MOST LIKE CLASSICAL CELLO - YAMAHA SILENT SERIES -
https://nl.yamaha.com/nl/products/musical_instruments/strings/silent_series/index.html
If you can afford something mid-price and prefer a brand well known, then go with a Yamaha cello, which range between 1600-2600 Euros. The cello shape mimics the shape of a real cello, so, it has the least barrier to entry. Many years ago, I tried a Yamaha electric cello (I think the SVC-110) and I didn't like the sound. it sounded very tinny and metallic. I haven’t tried the SVC-210, but since it is the best of the range and many famous cellists use it, I assume it sounds nicer. I preferred the sound of the NS Design cello much more than the SVC-110.
CHEAPEST
The cheapest one on the Thomann website is Harley Benton, but I don't know this brand.
MOST INTERESTING NEWCOMER - SBIP - https://sbip-instruments.com/sbip-cello
I saw a newcomer to the market: "sbip", which is around 1000 Euros, and I found someone in Amsterdam who has one of these cellos, so if you want to try his, then I can you can contact him: https://mrvanwalsh.com/. I contacted Stefan Beyer, the owner of sbip and he said that his cello comes with a magnetic pickup (not piezo like most others) and is supposed to be the electric guitar equivalent of the cello, therefore, you can expect a different sound and not trying to sound as close to the traditional classical cello.
In summary, I hope this helps, and I’m sorry that there is no “good” solution to trying an electric cello in Amsterdam. Let me know in the comments below if there is any tip you can give me!
Link to buy a similar electric cello as I have on Thomann: https://www.thomann.de/intl/ns_design_cr5_co_pb_low_f_cello.htm?partner_id=81398
Link of all Electric cellos on Thomann: https://www.thomann.de/intl/thlpg_bhyy893m7x.html
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Best octave pedal for electric cello: Electro Harmonix Micro POG vs. tc electronic Sub 'n' Up
I had so much fun comparing these two octave pedals with my 5-string electric cello by NS Design! After I give my review, I will reveal which pedal I ended up going with (sadly I couldn't keep both and the Sub 'n' up was borrowed from my classmate and bass player Fabian, thanks Fab!).
Buy Electro Harmonix Micro POG: https://redir.love/bKahYSXG
Buy TC Electronic Sub ‘n’ Up: https://redir.love/SJEoTXnX
Build: the Micro POG is definitely bigger and also slightly sturdier (better for gigs and no worries getting scuffed on the edges). I really liked the size of the Sub 'n' Up and it was not really cheaply built or anything but because it has the paint around the whole pedal, it looks prettier, but then there is more paint to scratch off. Micro POG wins.
Foot switch: the Micro POG (and also other Electro Harmonix pedals) have a very stiff foot switch. It has a big click and needs quite some force to click it. Sub 'n' Up just feels more friendly and sensitive. Sub 'n' up wins.
Tracking: both are fine, with a slight delay, but expected I suppose. So it's a tie.
Sound: Sub 'n' Up in general is a smooth-sounding octave pedal has issues with gain. Micro POG octave up sounds a bit bright, but it tracks very well and you have a lot of gain to play with. The octave up also sounds a bit organ-like on both, so I think there is no winner for the upper octave. Sub 'n' Up has a more rounded sound but doesn't really help the sound to stand out. Overall sound-wise: Micro POG wins.
Modes: Sub 'n' Up has a few modes, but I kept it in polyphonic, since the monophonic option tracks really slowly and doesn't suit the electric cello. The TonePrint function I didn't even try, so I can't say if it is really good or not. Sub 'n' up also has an option for a sub 2 octaves down, which is a very cool option, but wouldn't say it was a deal breaker if my octave pedal didn't have one. The cello plays very low already (and I have an extra lower bass string) so I don't really need it. I prefer having one octave up and one octave down for the cello. Sub 'n' up wins for extra functionality.
The charger: I wouldn't usually need to mention such a trivial thing but one big 'con' about the Micro POG is that it uses a very big and heavy adapter with a very thin cord which is 220V and not recommended to be used with a 9V daisy chain. It's really something I hate about the Micro POG.
Overall: in the end I chose the Micro POG because of the sound. It felt more raw, and analogue, and consistently loud on both sub and octave up. Sub 'n' up sounded more digital, smooth, safe, and the sub was loud but not defined, and the octave up was not loud at all even at the highest gain.
The cello in the photo is the NS Design CR5 5 string electric cello by Ned Steinberger.
Buy Electro Harmonix Micro POG: https://redir.love/bKahYSXG
Buy TC Electronic Sub ‘n’ Up: https://redir.love/SJEoTXnX
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Best reverb pedal for electric cello: Eventide Space vs. Strymon Big Sky
A few weeks ago, I met an electric violinist who told me about the Eventide Space reverb pedal she was using for live performances. Immediately I was curious and bought one to try with my NS Design 5-string electric cello. The first impression was pretty good, but after some research online, I discovered that there were more people who were raving on about Strymon Big Sky and other websites doing head to head reviews on these two top-class reverbs. So I bought the Big Sky as well, just to see what the fuss is about and not to miss out on something potentially better!
Here is my (humble) take on both:
Build: Eventide Space is built with rugged edges and knobs, fit for on the go and on the stage. Big Sky doesn't have rubber feet, corners or knobs and feels more like a studio pedal than for the stage. The knobs on the Big Sky are more delicate and unnecessarily raised a few millimetres above the pedal, which adds to it feeling. Space wins.
Look: The display on the Space is big and red, very 80s, while the display on Big Sky is much smaller and has less characters. Space wins.
Ease of use: Navigation on the Space seems easy, using presets from 1-100. Each time you land on a preset, it flashes momentarily the reverb type that it is based on. On the Big Sky, you can see what reverb the preset is based on because of the green light. Each reverb is named on the pedal with a light. Both are equal.
Sound: Now, sound-wise, this is where it becomes most interesting. For experimental and ambient digital reverb sounds, the Space wins, but for the sound of a real-life reverb, Big Sky is clearly the winner. The sound is just so pure. I can imagine that the Space sounds amazing as an effect for synths, and for specific studio recordings, but I think Big Sky is just an amplified musician's dream to play live with.
Conclusion: overall the Eventide Space is more user-friendly, better built and better all-rounder, but purely from a sound perspective, Big Sky is the ultimate top class reverb pedal and cannot be surpassed.
The cello in the photo is the NS Design CR5 5 string electric cello by Ned Steinberger.
Buy Strymon Big Sky: https://redir.love/BDsJbbpI
Buy Eventide Space: https://redir.love/zfMOttsg
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REIVEW: NS Design CR series 5-string electric cello
One year ago, I saw Clean Bandit perform live for the first time. Grace Chatto, their cellist had the most amazing electric cello, which was on a stand and she could play and dance to the beat of the music. I loved that! Immediately I had to find out which brand it was, and found out it was the CR series Poplar Burl model by Ned Steinberger, or otherwise known as NS Design.
Buy NS CR5 (in 2015 I bought it for €3190,-) https://thmn.to/thocf/bhyy893m7x
Click here to see more electric cellos: https://thmn.to/thocf/bhyy893m7x
It took me one whole year to save up to buy the cello, but finally, I did it! I decided to get the 5-string edition (F-C-G-D-A), so I could have an extra bass string handy. I also bought the Frame Strap System, which is a wooden belt/harness so you can play the cello attached to your body instead of on the stand. More on this later.
Here is my humble take on it:
PROS
The sound is amazing! For an electric cello, the sound is rich, natural and is the best sounding electric cello on the market in my opinion (better than Yamaha.. yes, I said it).
The two tone controls (treble & bass) come in handy when you don't have an equaliser around and your speaker isn't the most flattering.
The tuning pegs are like ones found on a guitar. They are smooth and work very nice.
There are 3 modes for the pick-up: one for pizzicato, one neutral and one for arco. In pizzicato mode, the cello sounds very much like an electric bass and the notes pop out much more than any classical cello can with a piezo pick up or microphone.
The build is very sturdy. It feels strong and well made.
It is not too heavy.
CONS
The need for 2 x 9V batteries! I'm not a fan of batteries in general for sustainability reasons, but in this case I think it's not safe to do a performance when there's the risk that the batteries go dead. There is also no battery monitor so you don't know that the batteries are going dead until you hear it going fuzzy.
The dot on the back of the neck to show you where the 5th note is, is so tiny you can barely feel it as a reference. It may have been better to have a line not a dot. You can also buy a specific 'thumb stop' in case you really need it, but I think there's a beauty in having such a long and free neck.
The strings are NS Electric Cello brand and once I replaced the A and D string with my preferred Larson and Spirocore tungsten strings and immediately the sound was better.
The Frame Strap System is terrible! It is not built for different sized people and it is not adjustable in the right way so that the cello is able to sit comfortably away from the body.
The bag on the Thomann website is incorrect. That is the bag for the bass version, which has a separate bag for the stand. The cello version doesn't have a bag for the stand.
OVERALL: an amazing investment, which has changed the possibilities to perform live in an amplified situation and to be free to move while playing instead of sitting down. I have a love-hate relationship with some of the peripherals, but because of the natural and beautiful sound of the electric cello, I stand firmly behind the NS Design CR series electric cello!
Buy NS CR Series electric cello: https://thmn.to/thocf/bhyy893m7x
Click here to see more electric cellos: https://thmn.to/thocf/bhyy893m7x
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