NS Design WAV Cello Amber

I love this cello! It is beautiful for sure, quiet enough that I can play without bothering others, and stays in tune really well. I use it with a Vox Clean (model AP2-CL) headphone amp when I take it somewhere else, which works great for use with headphones (but make sure you have good headphones with quality bass). For home play I have a Fender model Mustang LT-25 amplifier and am very glad I spent the money for something a little more than the basic. Some people are bothered by the movement of the cello when it's on the included stand and they're doing vibrato. It's not without movement, but for me it isn't too much to be bothersome.

I purchased this so I could have a practice cello. It feels fantastic to play, and overall has a much better quality than the other electric cellos I have tried, including those made by versatile motorcycle manufacturers. The electric tone is great when plugged into a guitar or bass amp, and really shines with an acoustic guitar amp. Playing with headphones is fine, if you have an amplifier, but I usually just play and listen to the raw string sound from the instrument itself. The cello is responsive and I can tell when I've got good bow technique even without drawing a rich tone - the feel is still present. The instrument is extremely easy to pack up and transport, and the included case works wonderfully to carry a stand and bow too.

I find the dots on the fingerboard somewhat distracting. It's hard for me to ignore them and focus on feel and sound for good intonation.

I'd love an accessory that would mimic the shoulder of an acoustic. I find that I use the shoulder for shifting to help me land on the right spot. I do like that I don't need to jump into thumb position for higher pieces, but I don't want to develop bad habits for my primary instrument.

The stand isn't great. It's really awkward to play totally stationary. I never really realized how much I'm moving the body of the instrument with my knees and chest. It's also difficult to properly sink your weight into the fingerboard and bow without pushing the instrument over, since it kinda floats over your shoulder without any contact on your body. I'm waiting on the endpin stand to come in stock so I can play more naturally.

I think the NS Design is a fantastic instrument in and of itself. It's not trying to be an acoustic cello - it's more like how an electric guitar is a different (but related) instrument to the acoustic guitar. And it makes a pretty good practice acoustic cello if you primarily want to play acoustic, though it does take some additional investment (still cheaper than the competition).