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Joined:
February 2002
Posts: 1817
Location: Minden, Nebraska | A friend of mine who is a 'pre-Ovation player' (meaning he is not yet converted to the true O-faith) is interested in a Uke with electronics.
What do you recommend (I know Dave/Tupp is the OFC uke king) and does anyone have one for sale?
Thanks! |
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Joined:
December 2004
Posts: 1116
Location: Keller, TX | I have the applause UA20 that I bought here, but never play. It doesn't have electronics, but has the Ovation look. |
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Joined:
January 2005
Posts: 4903
Location: Phoenix AZ | Hi Paul. A subject near and dear to my heart. Uke choices are all over the board and it really comes down to what you want to do with it and how much you want to spend. $50. to $5000. would be a reasonable range. Probably no reason to go overboard (although I have somehow justified the > 1K threshold a few times myself) and really for $300 or so you can get some nice stuff.
But here is the kicker. I really hate to post this here but unfortunately it's true. Ovation (Applause) ukes are total shit. Yes they are cute and they have that Ovation "mojo" but they just sound and play like total crap. Believe me I've been through every model and tried to make something of them, but they are just crap. If you ONLY play plugged in, the UAE148 tenor is marginally OK and it does have good electronics (OP24+). But that's the only good thing I can say aout them.
In the $300-$400 price range seriously look at Kala, Bushman and Lanikai. Outstanding ukes for the money and the unplugged sound is what a real ukulele should be. You can get them with some decent Shadow-3 electronics. Templeman sells a line of Vineyard ukes that are also very good. I've got all of these brands myself (plus Martin, Kamaka, Kono and Blackbear) and highly recommend them. Several other OFC guys have bought these based on my recommendation and nobody has complained yet.
FYI, not that the recording was anything so good, but that xmas song I posted past night was a live one take using a Lanikai tenor. Freddie & The Fishsticks at last years tour was a Kala w/ electronics. On OFC-CD Vol.2 (available soon) you'll hear my Kamaka's. Yes I do use what I recommend. BTW, there is a spanking sweet Kala cutaway tenor with electronics on ebay right now. I forget the price, but I know this morning I was tempted to grab it just for a future backup. Try online at Roy COne's ukuleleworld.com for somegreat deals and service. I buy almost all my uke stuff from him.
Dave |
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Joined:
January 2005
Posts: 4903
Location: Phoenix AZ | Here's that Kala on ebay. This is a good one.
http://cgi.ebay.com/KALA-Cutaway-Koa-Tenor-Ukulele-w-pickup-NO-RESE...
It had a buy it now this morning of $299. but someone placed a bid and killed it. Music Guy Mic is a good seller, I've bought from him before.
Dave |
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Joined:
July 2005
Posts: 3411
Location: GA USA | Dave, I meant to say thanks for the tip on the Aquilla strings. I changed them out on Tuesday. MUCH better sound.
Will they ever stop stretching? |
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Joined:
January 2005
Posts: 4903
Location: Phoenix AZ | Yeah, Capt'n they do take a little bit to stop stretching. I just keep giving them a good yank and retune. Usually after a day or two everything is stable. Dave |
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Joined:
October 2006
Posts: 5576
Location: big island | I really enjoy the Aquila strings on my tenor uke. I had previously tried the "Worth" brand synthetic strings from Japan that Jumpin' Jim Beloff likes and features on his site. I was sadly unimpressed and only had them on my uke for a couple weeks when the E string broke in the middle of a song at a gig. It had taken the entire two weeks to stretch enough to remain fairly well in tune throughout one song. The Aquilas feel better, sound MUCH better and were stretched by the next day. As far as ukes go, one of my band members plays a Lanikai tenor plugged in and it does a great job for the price he paid, $189.00 new, with a Shadow pickup. I cannot endorse the smaller Lanikai models. My wife owns a concert size that needs some intonation work and sounds no better than the plastic one my daughter loves to play. I got my wife a Koa G-String brand concert uke last year ($500.00, made in Hawaii) and it is excellent in playability and sound. G-String ukes are often available on eBay. The very finest ukulele I have ever owned was made by David Hurd (Ukuleles by Kawika)here in Hilo on the Big Island. He recently completed an exhaustive book on the art of instrument making, "Left-Brain Luthiery". His tenor sized ukes, when available are now in the $3K range. He has a very informative website, just browse to "ukuleles by kawika", if interested. Kala ukuleles are also a good value, but again, in my opinion, only the tenor size gives a nice full sound and has enough volume to keep up with guitars acoustically. I hope to one day own an uke from Black Bear. Kamaka makes a pretty good ukulele although somewhat overpriced with the hype. The name "Kamaka" is synonomous with ukulele history and folklore. I own an 8 string tenor that is nearly 35 years old and it sounds magnificent! It is best for strumming, similar to most 12 string guitars, however, I can pick it rather easily too. I feel everybody who enjoys guitar would also enjoy a well-made ukulele. The challenge is gettin' your brain to rethink chord structures. |
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February 2005
Posts: 212
Location: France | I bought a Lanikai Tenor on Dave's recommendation and I'm very happy about it.
Tom |
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January 2005
Posts: 4903
Location: Phoenix AZ | Lanaki's comments are correct. Let me clarify one thing. 95% of the time I play tenor, so almost all my observations and opinions are on the tenor models.
One thing I failed to mention, you should also consider neck width. This varies a LOT from brand to brand. As a guitar player swithing to uke, you may find it more comfortable to use one with a wider neck. It's still tiny compared to a guitar, but makes the transition easier. In general the Kamaka's seem to have wider necks than most (I call it the FD14 of ukeland). Dave |
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Joined:
February 2002
Posts: 1817
Location: Minden, Nebraska | Wow.... I learned more about ukes in the last couple of minutes than I ever knew; seriously! Thanks for the great input.
Somehow I thought Ovation made a uke that isn't an Applause that might be decent, like the mandolin. I appreciate the honesty in the discussion on the OFC board. Sounds like a uke isn't the way to get him converted. Thank you! |
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I'm interested in a Uke
