Ultra Viola Practice Mute - Rubber
Medium-strong muting effect. Made of firm rubber material that provides a bit less clear tone than metal mute, but rubber has less risk to the instrument if the mute should fall off accidentally. Grips entire bridge.
What Should I Look For in a Mute?
All string players should have at least one mute, and there are three important factors to consider. First and foremost, ease of use. How quickly can the mute be put in place or removed? How important is this to you? Orchestral players sometimes only have one measure to install or remove a mute. Secondly, sound quality. The goal of the mute is to lower the volume only, not dampen the good quality of your instrument. Regarding overall sound quality, the degree to which a mute "rattles" when not in use but still on the strings between the bridge and tailpiece is important as well. Third is aesthetics. Truth be told, many players consider the importance of overall look and feel, trying a variety of mutes to find out what works and looks best on their instrument. Fortunately, mutes are not too expensive, so this is a relatively low cost endeavor.
Ratings & Reviews
Too Small
This mute doesn't fit a 16" viola bridge. Maybe it would work on a smaller viola.
Do Not Buy - Won't Fit Viola
This product doesn't fit any of my three violas. Totally worthless piece of junk. Can't give it zero stars, so I gave it one, although it isn't worth one.
Better for smaller violas
I bought this practice mute to use on my 16.5 viola and it does not fit at all. I have one for my full size violin and it fits and works wonderfully so I figured for a few bucks it would be worth a try on my viola. Well I guess a future viola student of mine with a smaller viola down the road will end up with this mute. If this manufacture ever makes a larger mute in this style I would buy it. Until then the quest is on for a better practice mute. I rate it a 2 star because it does not fit. If it fit my viola it would easily be a 4 star.
Works well, but...
I'm very pleased with how well this mute works, but I've had some size issues. it fits the bridge of my current 15" viola perfectly, but I've tried to use it on larger violas (16-16.5") with slightly larger bridges and found that it doesn't fit on the bridge. Maybe this is just a problem that varies from viola to viola, but it's a little frustrating.
Only for very small instruments
I should have listened to the other reviews... it doesn't fit my 15.5" viola. The bridge is too wide for it. I can get it on partway, in a slightly sideways fashion, and it does mute some, but probably not as much as it is meant to. Perhaps best for 15" or smaller. It might be workable if I want to cut a slit all the way through the rubber on one side.