Ktaxon Full-Size Cello, Beginner Cello 4/4, Acoustic Cello Kit with Portable Bag, Bow, Bridge, Rosin, Adults & Kids String Musical Instruments(Nature)

I cannot fault this seller at all. The level of customer service is unmatched. Honest review, you are buying a cello that is 2-3x cheaper than other cellos. What do you expect? I needed this to take an intro course and I was perfectly fine, anyone who is having issues with tuning, there is a specific way you need to do it, I highly recommend finding a cello teacher or looking into cello fine tuning, my teacher was able to do it fine, and explained that since the instrument is wood it’s perfectly normal to need to tune more in different types of weather or seasons. The cello looks good and i get complimented on it. One word of caution, do not bang the cello at all. Cello repairs are extremely expensive and you’d likely need to completely replace it instead of repairing it because that would be cheaper. Lie the cello on its side and ensure it’s protected when not indoors. If you are cautious with it, this cello is a perfectly fine beginner instrument. Thank you seller!

Craftsmanship is a little here and there, but over all I didn't end up needing to replace anything and it sounds great, a little hard to tune as someone who does it frequently, lots of little adjustments to the bridge, but otherwise great!

It arrived as advertised, and was well packed for shipping. The bridge may eventually be a problem. As I was trying to tighten the strings, the low string kept slipping out of the groove. I eventually pulled out my pocket knife and deepened the groove. I may have to get a new bridge at some point. The tuning pegs slip very badly, even after applying peg drops. I may have to pull the strings off and pretty much start over with stringing. I have yet to draw a single note from it. Please keep in mind that I am an absolute beginner. As such, this is a little frustrating, but the price was where I could afford. Edit: It is now past the time when I would have been able to return this thing. It can't be tuned. The tuning pegs slip, and I've treated them all with peg drops multiple times. The bridge is most definitely a problem. It is not a nice, even curve with notches for the strings. It slopes towards the "C" string, and I had to take a knife to the notch to deepen it enough for the string to stay in place. As it's gotten closer to tune-able, it's gotten worse, Yesterday, while once again working with it, the bridge collapsed on me twice. I don't want an expensive and large item just for decoration in my home. I'm thinking if I wanted to keep it, at this point I would need to take it to a lutier, which will cost more money. I considered giving it to a local middle school, but that would be kind of cruel to start a youngster on an instrument with issues.

I've had this cello for less than 3 months and I noticed today that suddenly the neck appears to want to detach from the body of the instrument. To be fair, I can't completely rule out the possibility that this is just a very thick coat of paint/varnish cracking, but the cracks do look concerningly deep. This is after less than 20 hours of playing time, it hasn't ever left the house, and the temperature in here is always 65-70° with no seasonal changes. It's a shame because the tonal quality isn't too bad for a budget instrument. The sound post made it through the mail without dislodging, everything looked great upon initial inspection. The pegs are loose in the peg holes like other reviews have said, but this is easily remedied with a drop of peg oil. The included rosin is bad, definitely buy a different rosin. I was planning on upgrading the bow and the strings but I think I'll hold off for a bit to see if the instrument makes it through another couple practice sessions first. I'll update the review to a single star if it ends up becoming unplayable.

My previous experience with string instruments is a year or so with a Viola some 50 years ago, so I'm not a great judge of Cello quality. But it seem to me that Ktaxon has done a great job with this Cello. The finish is immaculate, and it sounds good when I don't screw it up. However, I think the bridge isn't curved enough (that might be me), and it's missing the tiny plastic bridge protector on the A string that keeps the string from slicing thru the bridge. I'm also not sure the Bow is high quality, but again, that might be me. Am I satisfied with the purchase? You betcha! It sounds good, and it's probably loud enough to annoy the neighbors (Bonus!). When you buy the Cello, and I urge you to do so, buy a mute with it. Edit after a few weeks with this Cello: I still like the Cello, but I've noticed a thing or two that needs to be addressed. If you look at the third picture on it's website, you can see the Nut (the part on top that the strings rest on) is huge. This matters because the A string is a thin steel wire that seems like it will slice your finger in half if you have to press very hard. And because the Nut is so high, the force you have to use is significant. Ouch. I took the Cello to a Luthier (stringed instrument tech/artist) to get it lower, and now it's much better. It looks like Ktaxon put a Nut that tall on because the Fingerboard is angled a bit too high, and it needed the clearance at the bottom. My second issue - which is too expensive to fix - is the Fingerboard is too high at the bottom, which requires the Nut to be high and the Bridge to be the maximum height. With the Bridge this high, the D and G strings need a good bit of precision on the Bow hand to avoid playing 2 strings at the same time. Which I don't have, but I'm getting there. My third and last issue is the strings. When I got the Cello back from the Luthier, I asked for a candid, no BS opinion on the Cello. He said the strings where "Terrible". I think that contributes to the issue with garrote-like tension of the A string. So, here's my 1 month-ish evaluation of this Cello: I still like it. I'm practicing with it almost every day, and I expect to keep practicing with it until I decide I need a better instrument, which I expect to be pretty soon. If you want to dabble in "learing" the Cello, this works, but expect to upgrade to a better Cello, or spend another $300 or so more to make this one worthy of an advanced beginner. Note on repairs: The Luthier charged me $70 to modify the Nut. I expect new strings to be between $100 and $200 dollars (Cello strings are expensive). Replacing or modifying the Bridge will be in the neighborhood of $170. And fixing the Fingerboard won't ever be worth it. Last note: Would I buy it again? Yes, I would. If you don't know how long you're going to mess around with Cellos, buy it, and mount it on your wall when you're done, it really is a beautiful piece. I wanted to start with the cheapest instrument so I could appreciate the better ones, and despite my criticism, it's been good to use it, curse it, and enjoy it.

I think this cello has fantastic tone, as others have said. Very beautiful sound. Also, very beautiful fit and finish. A great alternative to expensive rentals for students. I didn't mind it is basswood, I know that is a recognized "tonewood" in the guitar world, and the sound confirms it. A novice at cello, but the playability seemed fine to me, strings at right heights, etc. Importantly, it holds its tune well. One thing to consider, I'm fairly certain it is made in a laminate style - though still "solid" wood. That does not bother me as the sound is hauntingly beautiful and I have read laminates can be stronger, more resistant to cracking. Plus, it helps provide the low price. Setup was fairly easy and everything worked great. The only thing I'd like to improve would be the fine tuners someday, but, they work fine and do their job. I would definitely recommend this fine instrument for the price! In fact, I liked it so much I bought their other full ebony version, which is also fantastic. Great job Ktaxon!

Strings dont seem to stay tight at all and the "bow" is the lowest level of craftsmanship you'll ever find, after preparation the bow wouldn't work at all an literally was breaking apart while trying the first time. Wouldn't recommend at all.

A fine cello! Bridge seems as though it is a bit taller than it should be, but it is an overall lovely instrument for the price!