Peters Electric Violatar, Arpeggione, fretted cello cellotar, bowed Guitar

Introductions-             Guitarviol  

This violatar, like other instruments I have made, was born from personal need. I enjoy writing songs and recording, and I wanted to get realistic solo string sounds at home. I messed around with violin and cello a little bit, but did not have hours a day to devote to practice. I looked into midi options but most solo string vst's sound like junk, and even the really good ones still sound cheesy unless you spend a lot of time automating. That's pretty time consuming, and even after all that effort you can still tell pretty easily that they aren't real strings.

 Even if you set all that aside, from a writing standpoint there is no comparison between plunking out string lines on a keyboard, and actually picking up a bowed instrument. Simply put, I almost always like what I write on the Arpeggione more than what I come up with on vsts. That's why I first started developing the acoustic version of this instrument, and now I'm offering the electric version as a companion to the acoustic, and also as a more affordable entry point.

Audio Clips-  See the end of the photos for a few audio clips. 

FAQs-

In an effort to save time answering questions I have tried to include a lot of details. Before reaching out to me please look through the information below to see if your curiosities have been addressed. thanks!

Specs-

Body- Black walnut

Neck- Walnut

Pickups- Piezo mounted under bridge. Passive

Controls- Direct output std. Onboard preamp with volume and two band eq

End pin- Stainless steel

Number of frets- 27

Tuners- Gotoh

Bridge- Quarter Sawn Rock maple with thumbwheels for height adjustment.

Fretboard- torrefied red oak

Tailpiece material- to match fretboard

Strings- D'Addario flat wound jazz strings . D'addario helicore strings are available for an additional fee.

Neck joint- bolt on

Finish- hand rubbed and polished varnish.

Bow- middle of the road carbon cello bow and rosin are included  

What is it?-

An arpeggione is an instrument that is similar to a cello, it is held between the legs in a seated position and played with a bow. Unlike the cello or other members of the violin family however it has frets, it is tuned in fourths instead of fifths, and it has six strings instead of four. In short it is a bowed guitar, the six strings are tuned in std guitar tuning, and there is no need to learn to play fretless. If you can play guitar you should be able to play this, all you need to learn is how to hold and use a bow

Build Timeline-

These are made to order and take at least 6 months to complete, from the time I start the build process, but can take longer depending on my work load. Please contact me prior to purchases to discuss my work load and get an idea how soon I might be able to start on your build as it can range anywhere from a couple weeks to several months. Just to reiterate, this is made to order, you are not buying the exact item photographed

Shipping-

These instruments are expensive to ship. This is in part because they must be shipped fully insured, however, the shipping cost is also inflated because they must be packaged very securely. They require the addition of plywood panels and other framing to give the box enough rigidity to keep the instrument completely protected and secure in transit. These additional packaging materials and labor add to the shipping cost.

Returns-

  Because these are made to order and require a tremendous amount of time and effort to produce returns are not accepted, however rest assured that I stand behind my work and will do everything in my power to ensure your satisfaction with your purchase.

Thanks for looking! if you have any other questions please don't hesitate to ask. Have a good Day!