Finding a well designed and sturdy instrument case for everyday use is a pretty important must-have for a musician... after all, you are entrusting the case to protect something that is quite valuable, both in terms of monetary value... and more importantly sentimental value. You are generally looking for something that will last a decade or more... in fact, most of my cases have lasted for at least two decades! Thankfully, none of them have been tested to destruction...

... anyway, the search is complicated when you are looking for a travelling case... one that is also light and compact in addition to everything else that you are looking for in a regular day to day case!

I have been looking for a single viola travelling case that would be a good fit for my Baroque viola. Now, Violas are a special problem in themselves, as there is no highly standardised length to them unlike violins and cellos... so, finding a case that fits snugly or has a system that can work with multiple sizes is always going to be a bit of a test of skill and luck.

Thankfully, a colleague of mine had recommended this guitar case manufacturer (Visescase) based in Thailand... who also make good violin and viola cases, and the pricing to quality ratio is pretty good as well!

Well, it is always a good sign when the packaging for the case is also sturdy and decent! Nothing would be worse than receiving a case that has already had its damage limits tested!

Okay, the bubble wrap is pretty standard for most shipping things... but the way that it was done was so that the case was snug in fitting inside the wood lined box as well... speaking of which, I wonder how the wood made it through Australian customs! It is treated wood, but you never really know with Australia.

So, a quick look at the interior reveals a fairly unassuming design... the neck of the instrument is held in place by a two pads on the top and bottom halves, I would have preferred a sort of tying option instead like most cases have... but this is also workable and two additional pads on the top half keep the instrument from moving around.

A small compartment for accessories is also present, as are two bow holders... again, a minimum of storage space... but keep in mind that this case is for travel and not day to day use!

Two decent padded straps round out the accessories options... no music storage option, but I tend to keep that in a bag anyway.

The shell is a decently strong PVC material (in lots of colour options, I chose a muted grey/blue colour...), with two additional layers for shock and impact absorptoin.

My baroque viola fits neatly into the case, but it will take a little bit of adjustment to make sure that it is snug and not moving around inside! Now, the little shocker... and nice surprise, was that my modern/Classical viola fit nicely inside as well! This is a pretty rare event, as my modern viola has fat lower bouts which means that it doesn't tend to fit in most cases, even if the length is right. I've tended to buy cheaper cases, and then rip apart the lining and padding to make it fit.... not the most ideal option, but I don't want to splash out on custom sized options.

There is an adjustment velcro system at the bottom end of the instrument case to suit different sizes of violas. Nifty!

The latches are good and pretty sturdy... but this is where I have my single negative in this "review". There are only two latches... which means that if one fails, then there isn't much room for redundancy... for instance, my other latched cases tend to have three or four latches... and the ones with two tend to have a zip that binds the two halves as well.... so, it is something that I'm less keen on, and I would have preferred additional latches.

... but all in all... it is a purchase that I'm happy with, and hopefully one that will serve me and my instruments for a nice long time! It also looks less bulky than my older "modern" case... and that is going to be very useful when navigating the check-ins of flights in this coming month's touring...

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