Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

I do not own one, but as a music teacher and a instrument repair technician I had many chances to work on Mendini violins and violas. I felt compelled to write this review due to some really negative reviews that have nothing to do with the instrument quality, but rather with the instrument SETUP. Stringed instruments (violin, viola, cello) are notoriously difficult to set up. Seldom will instrument be shipped with the bridge and strings on. This is a standard precaution to avoid the damage. Strings are slack, tucked under the fingerboard while bridge is kept in the little compartment where rosin is normally kept. The pegs are held in place by means of friction. If not careful enough, one can really jam the pegs so hard that they cannot be turned at all, or if not pushed in properly, they remain loose. If the pegs tend to stick then a pencil graphite can be applied to either the peg or the hole to serve as a lubricant. To add more friction, usually a rosin dust is applied to pegs or holes. The bridge has to be placed exactly perpendicularly on the top. If not, it may bend or warp and eventually break Some instrument technicians will take the advantage of unsuspecting customers and charge huge amounts for a basic setup that should not cost more than $20. Of course, they may also tell you that your instrument is messed up and that you will need hundreds of dollars to have it "repaired" There are millions of excellent and informative web sites and youtube videos that can walk you through the basic setup. Learning the mechanics of the instrument is just another skill that needs to be learned - apart from playing.