The violin has an amazing warm and full tone but still has that Sparkling sound that I want in a violin. It looks very beautiful with the varnish not to shiny, I think is also the varnish that makes the tone so much warmer then you hear on other violins. The violin has Pirastro strings on it. It would have been nice if the description tells what type they are, and I am wondering if the violin will sound better if I put Thomastik strings on it. But for now I do not feel the need to replace the strings. The sound is beautiful as it is now. I have the feeling that I have a professional violin with this one and I think I won't have to upgrade for years.