Best Electric Cello Brands & Models 2023

Buying an electric cello is a great life decision. Electric cellos are stylish, “cool,” and downright fun to play. Since electric cellos are harder to find at local music shops and usually must be purchased online, we have consolidated a list below of the best electric cellos.

Shopping for an electric cello is a very different experience than shopping for a regular cello. Whereas sound quality plays a huge role in buying a regular cello, it is not as important of a factor for electric cellos because all of the sound travels through electric wires and is amplified anyway. Instead of just sound quality then, we evaluated each electric cello on the following criteria.

One final note before we get to our recommended cello brands: Shopping online for electric cellos is a relatively new phenomenon. We typically recommend going to a local music shop to try out cellos before you shop online for the best deal, but since electric cellos tend to only be sold online we recommend checking out Amazon’s return policy to make sure you’re comfortable purchasing online.

Don’t forget the amp!

Since these are electric instruments, you will need an amplifier to make sound. Make sure you buy a quality amp so that you get the best sound. We recommend the Fender Frontman. While it was made for guitars, it will work with cellos as well.

Best Electric Cello

One of the most stylish electric cellos on this list, the Yamaha SVC-110SK certainly has the best sound. Made with the quality only Yamaha can deliver, the SVC-110SK sounds almost like an acoustic cello.

  • Beautiful & realistic sound

  • Stylish

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Best Electric Cello for Beginners

A high-quality electric cello starter kit selling for a fraction of the cost of other big-name players. Great instrument to dip your feet into electric cellos.

  • Affordable

  • Starter kit

  • 1-Year Warranty

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Our Criteria

We looked at a lot of different electric cello brands and narrowed our list to only the top 10 electric cello brands by setting up relatively strict criteria to adhere to during the reviews.

Here is what we considered:

  • How other users ranked the brand (Amazon reviews, etc)
  • Brand reputation
  • Options and features
  • Price points
  • Usability

Even popular brands had to work hard to get our approval by providing great customer care and offering quality products.

We looked at how other users had reviewed the product to determine whether it was high quality.  However, being able to look at what others users had to say did not really drive our final opinion about any one brand, but it did help us to know what to look for in an electric cello that was either critiqued or talked about in the positive.

Options and features were things that we considered when we whittled down our recommended brands. Obviously, we wanted to be able to give buyers the most bang for their buck.

We did not focus on features alone, we balanced the features with the price points and usability to give you the best value for your money.

Best Electric Cellos

We listed the best electric cello brands below. They are not listed in any type of order, they are all equally good options and they all can easily meet your needs.

We did make comments about skill levels and price points to help you further narrow down the options based on your personal needs.

Recommended For: Beginner who needs all equipment

Cecilio is one of the most well-known student cello brand in the world. They also produce some of the best electric cellos. They produce quality instruments at a fraction of the cost of other big-name players.

Cecilio electric cellos are made out of hand-carved maple wood with a black metallic varnish. They have an ebony fingerboard, pegs, and tailpiece with mother of pearl inlay and four detachable fine tuners.

These electric cello outfits are also very generous. In addition to the electric cello itself, the Cecilio outfit comes with a well-padded lightweight soft-case, bow, rosin, aux cable, and headphones.

All Cecilio electric cellos come with a one-year warranty against manufacturer defects.

This is a great overall electric cello for any beginner just starting out who doesn’t have all of the electric equipment necessary.

Cecilio 4/4 CECO-4BK Black Metallic Electric Cello

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Recommended For: Player wanting a stylish electric cello

While on the pricier side of the electric cellos on this list, the Yamaha SVC-110SK is certainly the most stylish and highest quality. This is a great concert electric cello for a rock or Apocalyptica tribute concert. If you want more details, you can read our Yamaha SVC-100SK review.

Customers love this cello because of the high quality. Yamaha is well-known for making very high-quality electric instruments (usually piano keyboards).  Featuring a redesigned resonating chamber helps produce the most realistic and “acoustic-like” string tones and resonating sound, this cello is ready for the concert hall.

With Amazon reviews such as “Amazing. No other electric cello can compare” and “She sounds just like any good acoustic cello,” you can’t go wrong with this Yamaha electric cello.

The outfit includes headphones, an aux out cable, and batteries. You will need to get a bow.

Yamaha SVC-110SK Silent Electric Cello

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Recommended For: Player who wants a lightweight cello

Stagg is a world renowned electric instrument manufacturer.  Established in 1995, Stagg has been dedicated to bringing high-quality musical instruments and accessories to musicians of all types, at the most attractive prices.

The Stagg ECL electric cello is one more excellent instrument by this company. A great fit for any cellist looking for an electric instrument that fits into a tight space.

The Amazon outfit only includes the instrument itself so you will need to refer to our checklist for buying a cello to determine what else you will need.

Stagg ECL 4/4 WH Electric Cello

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The Kinglos electric cello is a beauty in both visual appearance and sound quality.

Kinglos makes beautiful electric instruments which are hand-made by senior luthiers from Shanghai Conservatory of Music. This cello is made of traditional materials of plywood, maple and ebony to ensure its music performance feature. Patented painting technology guarantee resonance and intact tone which endows the cello with stylish and personalized visual effect.

This outfit includes everything you need to get started including extra strings, a bow, a case, and earphones.

Kinglos 4/4 Colored Solid Wood Electric Cello

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Cecilio is one of the most well-known student cello brand in the world. They also produce some of the best electric cellos. They produce quality instruments at a fraction of the cost of other big-name players and their electric cellos begin at only $300.

Cecilio electric cellos are made out of hand-carved maple wood with a black metallic varnish. They have an ebony fingerboard, pegs, and tailpiece with mother of pearl inlay and four detachable fine tuners.

The main difference between the CECO-3DW and CECO-4BK above is the style. The 3DW looks more like a traditional cello with a fully-rounded body.

These electric cello outfits are also very generous. In addition to the electric cello itself, the Cecilio outfit comes with a well-padded lightweight soft-case, bow, rosin, aux cable, and headphones.

All Cecilio electric cellos come with a one-year warranty against manufacturer defects.

This is a great overall electric cello for any beginner just starting out who doesn’t have all of the electric equipment necessary.

Cecilio 4/4 CECO-3DW Electric Cello

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Definitely the most unique looking electric cellos on this list, the NS Design NS NXT4  embodies world-class performance, features, design and craftsmanship.

The body is made with solid, straight grain maple, with maple face or flame maple face on body. A brass pin on the rear of the neck serves as a reference point corresponding to the heel of an acoustic cello. The fingerboard is made of ebony and has inlaid dot markers to reference where various notes are. The instrument is tuned with fully encased worm gear tuners.

A convenient switch on the side of the NXT allows you to select sensitivity for either arco or pizzicato play resulting in either more percussive response, or smoother and sustained response, adding a new dimension to what you can create musically.

The outfit includes a basic gig bag with the option to upgrade to a harder flight case. Other accessories, including purchasing the cello bow, are up to you.

A super-lightweight electric cello, the Yamaha SVC50SK weights only 41.6 lbs making it a great choice for traveling musicians.

Made with the high-quality known from Yamaha, the SVC-50 offers the natural feel and resonance of an acoustic cello. The additional chest support makes holding this cello during concerts extremely comfortable.

People love it, too! It has a 4.8/5 star rating on Amazon and the reviews can’t stop praising this instrument.

Although this is sold as an “outfit,” only the instrument is provided so you’ll need to buy a bow and other accessories.

Yamaha SVC50SK Silent Compact Cello Outfit

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Similar to the other Cecilio models above, the CECO-1BK is made out of hand-carved maple wood with a black metallic varnish. They have an ebony fingerboard, pegs, and tailpiece with mother of pearl inlay and four detachable fine tuners.

The main difference between the CECO-1BK and the other Cecilios above is the style. The CECO-1BK looks the most like a traditional acoustic cello. The edges are fully rounded out giving the appearance of a “ghostly” cello.

These electric cello outfits are also very generous. In addition to the electric cello itself, the Cecilio outfit comes with a well-padded lightweight soft-case, bow, rosin, aux cable, and headphones.

All Cecilio electric cellos come with a one-year warranty against manufacturer defects.

This is a great overall electric cello for any beginner just starting out who doesn’t have all of the electric equipment necessary.

The ammoon 4/4 Solid Wood Electric Cello outfit is the most complete electric cello outfit you can get. Not only does it come with the basics like a bow and case, it also includes extra strings, a tuner, rosin, a rock stop, headphones, and a cleaning cloth.

The body is made with maple wood and an ebony wood fingerboard. It also includes an ebony tailpiece, brazilwood bow and high-quality steel strings.

We highly recommend this electric cello outfit for beginners.

ammoon 4/4 Solid Wood Electric Cello

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Certainly the most stylish electric cello on this list, the Bridge Draco is an excellent performance instrument. Designed for professional performers, the Draco offers an easy transition from an acoustic cello, with the benefits of low volume for practice, and high volume for performance with no feedback

It responds to varied bow strikes with varied harmonic content and can go from a whisper to a scream, all the while supplying an even tone across the range of the instrument.

We highly recommend this electric cello for the professional looking to impress their audience.

Bridge Draco Series 4-String Electric Cello Blue Marble

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What Else You May Need

While most of the electric cello outfits below come with everything you need to get started, make sure to check out our checklist for buying a cello. Electric cellos need all the basic equipment we recommend there such as rosin, a rock stop, a bow, etc., but they may also need electric amps.

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9 COMMENTS

  1. This article is really helpful for me. I have been gone through other articles as well. They are also very interesting. I am confused between Cecilio 4/4 CECO-1BK and ammoon 4/4 Solid Wood Electric Cello Violoncello.

    Kindly Guide me.

    • If you’re deciding between those two, I recommend the Cecilio 4/4 CECO-1BK. It’s a lot more reliable than the ammmoon and the sound quality is much more refined. Again, these are both beginner electric cellos, so they do not have the same quality sound as say the Yamaha on this list.

  2. Some people mentioned that anything below $500 risk getting flimsy and poor sound pickup. However, I am not ready to spend this much yet. Hence, Yamaha and NS are ( I guess ) out of range. Can you advise if this comment by others are correct? I don’t care much about brands and origin, just quality and price balance. Kindly guide me.

    • What you’ve heard is correct. There aren’t any really mid-range electric cellos available. If you are concerned about price and own a regular cello, you could buy a cello pick-up instead. These are a cheaper alternative and sound as good.

  3. I just received my ammoon cello and there is one major difference right off. As you can see in both pictures, there is a brace / bracket on the back of the upper bout of the instrument. This is that almost “S” shaped piece visible in both pictures. On the ammoon, the right hand side of this brace points down, and appears much ‘pointier’ than on the Cecilio – on that one the brace is more rounded and the right side points up. This may not seem like a big difference, until you flip that brace up into playing position and start trying to play. That brace is supposed to give you the width of a ‘real’ cello; getting the instrument far enough away from you to allow you to play comfortably. When that brace is up, that sharp point of the ammoon stabs you in the sternum. The Cecilio, because that brace is facing the opposite way, puts a rounded edge against your chest. But don’t automatically assume that makes the ammoon a lost cause – I got mine brand new, all the stuff included for $133. More than half off the price listed for the Cecilio. I intend to cut a brace out of some similiar wood and customize that part. (The brace is held on with two screws, so it should be easy. Next up-‘maple wood’. That’s what they claim, but mine is a plywood laminate, and I suspect the Cecilio is the same. “Hand carved maple wood’? No, spare yourself that illusion right off the bat. As to whether one sounds better than the other, If you ask me they were made by the same people in the same factory. The ammoons in one room, the Cecilios in another.

  4. I am an adult player with unusually small hands so I still play a 3/4 instrument. I have been unable to find a manufacturer who makes a 3/4 size electric cello. Do you know of any?

    • I’ve been looking hard for a 7/8 for the same reason. Haven’t found ANYthing! My luthier says he can cut one down to 7/8 for me but that sounds terrifying.

  5. Do they make electric cellos smaller than 4/4? I have rheumatoid arthritis & scleroderma, so I can’t finger a full size Cello like I’m supposed to. I’m 47 yrs old and play on a 1/8 size Cello. Thank you

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