[Teflonic]

Stradivarius knockoffs coming soon...

[Mr. Brightside]

And "Chemicals" are probably what made the Grateful Dead's music sound better than it actually was.

[1rudeboy]

Wal-Mart!

[Don Corleone]

It must be nice to have nothing better to do for 30 years. Who paid him?

[Lee'sGhost]

I once saw a show that claimed that the sound was produced bec of the wood used. What made the wood unique was that it came from timber floated down river. During the weeks it was immersed in water the timber would become infested with very small worms that burrowed into the the interior. The boards or planks cut from the timber and used to make the violins vibrated differently because of the almost microscopic holes.

For some reason I like this explanation much better.

[ZGuy]

Antonio beckons

[Issaquahking]

Knock offs? I know of one maker here in the southwest, and he would never copy a Stradivarius...check out his website here. The wait is at least two years from ordering. A good violin isn't made overnight

[Young Werther]

I have a Sears "Strad" manufactured in the 1903-4 time period. If I'm not mistaken there was an article in SciAm which attributed the Strad's sound quality to the veneer that was applied. The "Red Violin" is a good flick about violin veneers!

BTW I saw "In the Good Old Summer Time" starring Judy Garland and "Chuckles" who has a Strad. This movie has been made several times, Earlier with Jimmy Stewart and most recently with Meg Ryan "You've got Mail!"

[ConservativeDude]

WAL MART BABY!!!

[ItsForTheChildren]

I'd hate to have paid several million for a Stradivarius or Guarnieri when they start turning them out by the thousands for only a few thousand bucks.