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francoribollita
Aloha
USA
1 Posts |
 Posted - 05/31/2005 : 4:31:41 PM
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I am a begginer trying to decide on what ukulele to buy. After searching the net for many, many hours my choice of instrument has been narrowed down to a four or six string tenor (big fingers). Dazzled by the beauty and reputations of the ukuleles out there, my cash limit is rising. Before I go bankrupt I need to choose. The brands that I have been most interested in are Koaloha, Koolau, Kamaka and Kanile'a. These ukulele would keep me in the $850 range. Pohaku in Berkeley CA near where I live is also a consideration. If I really want to go crazy, a koa ropebound Tony Graziano ukulele from Santa Cruz CA has caught my eye (big bucks). Can somebody out there help me with my choices?
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marzullo
`Olu`olu
USA
923 Posts |
Posted - 05/31/2005 : 8:19:01 PM
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caro franco (ribollita?? oh, you're a chef! e` un nome molto interresante che hai scelto)
um, these are all great ukes. each has its own attractions. a friend of mine has a six string kamaka that sounds so sweet; i have a ko`olau four string tenor that is my favorite ukulele, the koaloha's that i've played have been supurb, and i played a pohaku that was very sweet.
you won't go wrong with any of these ukes. the thing to do is to sit down with them in front of you in a quiet place, and play them until you know which one it is.
it's a bittersweet process, i know.
aloha,
keith
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Ukupau
Aloha
USA
24 Posts |
Posted - 06/01/2005 : 08:59:15 AM
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I am also a beginner and am in the midst of going through the same choices. So far, I have purchased a Lanikai Tenor (4 string) as a starting point and have had many complements on how bright the sound was. Not to shabby for $100. The next purchase was a Kamaka Lili'u 6 string (built in the 70's) online at eBay for $540. It needed some luthier work to address some small cracks but after I got it back you could not tell were the cracks had been. The sound of the Lili'u is very beautiful to say the least. I have mine strung low G with wound strings on both the low G and the low A.
As I progress from learning the chords and onto picking the notes, the 6 string presents a challange in the picking department where-as the 4 string is pretty straight forward. All I need to do is remember what side of the string pair I need to pick. Working on that "muscle memory".
All in all, with both Uke's sitting side by side, I tend to always pick up the Kamaka first. I do a lot of traveling and will most likely take the Lanikai on the road keeping the Kamaka out of harms way.
JohnF |
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alpha-uke
Aloha
1 Posts |
Posted - 06/01/2005 : 10:13:11 AM
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After having owned an absolutely flawless pre 1920 Martin 1K soprano for at least 15 years, I recently decided to invest in something more current in the tenor range.
Initially, I came to similar conclusions about builders. As I was already planning a family trip to Honolulu for Xmas, I thought this would be a great opportunity to check out ukes. Man did I ever learn.....first off never judge a Hawaiian made uke by its $$$. While I saw some very nice ukes, I was also exposed to some of the worst workmanship and sad examples luthiery imaginable!
Unfortunately there seems to be a strange sentimentality among islanders and dealers concerning island builders, I literally saw $1,000+++ ukes that looked like they were made by a kid in high school shop, no kidding. The variance in sound was so exteme in certain cases I thought it astonishing. Dealers just shrugged it off, saying thing like "oh thats just a mellow sound", or thats just a different style of building.
Unfortunately there are several builders in the islands, that for whatever reason, are either riding the current wave of uke popularity and making far more than they can handle, or they are making a lot of $$$ off of selling junk.
I would offer this, for the money you cannot beat KoAloha, the sound, and consistancy in workmanship are far more consistant than anything else in your price range. Another option might be from a New Zealand violin builder, called Kapono Ukes, while I have only played a few of these they were very impressive for the price.
On the other hand, if you are going to step up to custom made, be careful and speak with as many previous customers as possible. Unfortunately, I chose this route and took delivery of really bad uke, it was like pulling teeth trying to return it, not to mention the pathetic attempts the builder made trying to justify his (lack of) workmanship. The builder I speak of was one you mentioned.
On a positive note, I found an experienced luthier who builds $6,000++ classical guitars,
for $1,500 I am the proud owner of the most beautifully made uke I have ever encountered.....at any price.
Good Luck! |
dark is the sway that mows like a harvest |
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goto636
Aloha
USA
32 Posts |
Posted - 06/01/2005 : 12:58:10 PM
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Your best bet is to try all the ukes you can get your hands on. Each one will be different. For my first really nice uke I had the opportunity to try lots of different ones at a festival. And while I now have several other incredible ukes (including two from Peter Hurney at PoHaku) that first one still has best the "fit".
It's hard to quantify but it just feels right, like it fits me and I don't have to adjust to it's dimensions.
But for more practical purposes, check with Mike Atkins at www.alternatetunings.com. He's in Cayucos and deals in some very nice new and used ukes including Koaloha. He might have some on hand that you can try out and he's got great prices. Good luck!
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Cliff
Aloha
USA
16 Posts |
Posted - 07/21/2005 : 7:41:20 PM
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Bushman makes Jenny ukuleles for under $300. People swear by them.
The Flukes are fine instruments as well, I have two. |
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