Cello Practice Mute (Japan Import)

I've never gotten a mute before because I thought I'd rather just miss time playing while away than have an awful muted sound. But this mute allows a lovely quiet tone! And very easy to put on and remove. I love it!

I sought out this mute after already owning the thick rubber mute. I live in an apartment and even with the rubber mute I felt self conscious about bothering neighbors while I practiced and didn’t sound pretty. I was pessimistic that any mute could do much better, even after seeing YouTube videos of people showing the Artino- but I was wrong! This mute IS significantly quieter than the rubber mute, and I think I am now muted well enough to safely practice in my apartment without bothering any neighbors! Game changing for expanding practice opportunities. Besides this, it is nice and sturdy and has that protective rubber coating as described. Also a tip- you don’t have to push it down hard on the bridge. It goes on very gently still sticking up a bit, such that you would think it isn’t going to work, but it does! So don’t force it down or anything.

You don’t want to push this down on the bridge and risk cracking your top. Put your thumbs inside the bridge facing up and your index fingers on top of the mute and squeeze them together. Also, no, the screws are not to loosen it; that’s how it is put together. It is tight. It is supposed to be tight. It still works even if you don’t get it way down. Trust the mute. It diminishes the volume to half, or better. Much better than the ubiquitous rubber-only. Get it.

It works well. The only thing is that because of being stiff, it doesn't fit the bridge smoothly (unless your bridge is very thin. Mine is not and it looks like the mute could fall out, which would certainly cause damage to the varnish and the wood). In any case, it does well the job. I haven't checked yet, but perhaps it's possible to loosen up the screws holding the two halves of the mute. If it doesn't end up too wobbly, it would then, better fit a thicker bridge. But attention, as I said I haven't tried it yet. I am not even sure that those screws are supposed to be touched. The mute comes in a nice little box.

It mutes a good deal of the sound, more than a performance mute, as it is supposed to.It is sturdy, it fits snugly, I haven't had any problems with it vibrating loose while I'm playing.It is important to note that it doesn't need to be forced into the bridge. Easing it on is best.It hasn't stained my bridge and doesn't have an offensive rubbery smell, like some other mutes.It works as it is meant to and I have had no problems using it.Worth the price. Good PRACTICE mute.

Alright, title aside, five stars because this product does exactly what it's supposed to: it provides a significant reduction in sound. I would say it is about a 50%. Perfect for apartment-dwellers. Don't misconstrue my flippant remarks as dislike of this product, I really like it. I just want to emphasize that it is not magic: it will change the sound and feel of your cello rather significantly, while in use.The change in timbre is rather profound (especially on G and C string notes). You can't expect to put a heavy weight down on the bridge and have it sound the same. To quote my roommate "wow, that makes it sound like crap!" Haha, yes, the fact is not lost on me. It will make your cello sound really whiny and thin. I found that the change in timbre can kind of mess with my sense of pitch at times.The construction seems to be better than other practice mutes on Amazon, although I can't really offer a comparison on muting effectiveness because I've only used the Artino.

Seems to work well. I like that it didn't have the strong rubber smell like one I had tried and threw away because I could smell it unless I had it ziplocked in an air tight bag. Does fit tight on the bridge and I didn't force it down.

I cannot speak for other instrument mutes, but as a new cello adult student I found the Artino Mute gives very good tone quality while using the Artino Mute.

初めて使いました。かなり消音できるので満足です