At the 117th edition of the NAMM, 7,000 brands of musical instrument are on display ranging from the ancient to the new, but the one which really stood out from the crowd is the 3D printed violin known as 3Dvarius.

This past Thursday, musicians from across the spectrum of sound gathered in Anaheim, California for the 2018 NAMM show. The annual event features over 7,000 brands of musical instruments, tech, and gear from over 120 regions.

As the organizers of the event describe it, the NAMM show is “the world’s largest trade-only event for the music products industry”. To give you an idea of the magnitude of this show, the convention center expanded from last year, adding an extra 200,000 square feet.

However, the instrument which really caught our eye at this year’s show is the 3D printed electric violin hailing from Toulouse, France. This spectacularly sleek instrument, known as 3Dvarius, manages to fuse a futuristic look with inspiration that dates back to the 17th century.

Laurent Bernadac came up with the idea of the 3D printed violin in 2012. He is both a violinist and engineer, and so he decided to bring his two passions together.

He quickly moved through ideas, from creating the violin in aluminum to developing a first prototype in transparent polycarbonate. Finally, he settled on using SLA 3D printing technology and photo-reactive liquid resin.

3Dvarius – The World’s First 3D Printed Electric Violin, Made From Centuries of Inspiration

The violin is printed as a single piece and, as a result, weighs just over one pound. 3Dvarius claim it’s the first electric violin created by 3D printing technology. While we can neither confirm nor deny that claim, we do know that additive manufacturing has been used to recreate this classic instrument on numerous occasions.

The 3Dvarius violin doesn’t come cheap, and costs a hefty $7,000. But, as you can hear from the video above, it is capable of orchestrating beautiful sounds and also looks unlike any other violin on stage. The price is also a reflection on the “several hundred hours of painstaking work” required to create the violin.

According to Bernadac, his aim was to create a 3D violin which could fulfill all of a classical musician’s needs. Its design was also inspired by an old Stradivarius, which refers to the violins and other stringed instruments created by members of the famous Italian family Stradivari in the 17th and 18th century.  The violinist and engineer wants this 3D printed violin to be in “perfect symbiosis” with the musician that is playing it.

Therefore, he’s made it possible to customize your own 3Dvarius the way you see fit. For instance, customers can choose from either four or five strings, engrave a custom message on the body, and even select your own bridge and tuning pegs (both of which have been moved to the bottom of the instrument, adding to the instrument’s aesthetic).

Visit the 3Dvarius website for more details on how you can personalize your own 3D printed violin.

However, if you don’t have a spare $7,000 but do have some time to spare, you might want to consider 3D printing one of your own instruments. Don’t know where to start? No worries, we’ve got you covered: 15 Groovy Ideas for Homemade Musical Instruments to DIY

Source: The San Diego Union-Tribune