Craftsmanship is out of this world, just perfect! No additional sanding needed. The straight handle is different than in Violin - it is not so round as in Violin, instead, it is flatter, so the cross-section is more oval-like. Surprisingly, the handle feels very well in the hand - for me, much better than Violin. The head is just a little larger than standard, but it plays a role and you may have strange feeling of balance especially if you change from small attacking blades. That also shifts the gravity center towards the head just a bit. If one puts some heavy rubbers on it, one can feel it (the blade itself is more than 90g) – the setup may become heavy and awkward if you are not used to that. But the interesting side effect is that if one hits/blocks with the center, the control is superb and the pace slows nicely down. Strokes done with the tip of the blade are surprisingly fast! I believe this is due to the blades’ flexibility (5.3 mm thickness tells me that the blade should be flexible) that adds some power to strong loops. Generally Violoncello feels softer than Violin; it also has a longer dwell time. I play allround style so I paired it with Nittaku Factive 1.8 for BH and 2.0 for FH. This setup plays like a dream for my style - much better than on Violin ( I didn’t like hard feeling of Violin, also first loop was more difficult). I think the Violoncello is very much underrated, not well tested and therefore unknown, mostly because everyone goes for fast carbon blades and everyone wants Acoustic - good, let it be, it this is your playing style. It also has the marketing label of a defensive blade. Well, it is not exactly a defensive blade, it has a lot (!) of attacking potential - of course not that much like Acoustic. It is not a defensive blade so if you always chop, take something else. It is not an attacking blade so don’t expect kill shots from every ball. But if you play controlled allround style with blocks (excellent, even in an emergency), occasional chops, precise placements for drives and pushes (both go like a dream), and controlled loop/attacks (yes, there is enough power for a kill-shot), you can give it a try. You will be surprised how good the Violoncello is and how it can support allround style! As for today, the Violoncello is the blade of choice for me.
