Ukulele Buyers Guide

[rokubifan1]

What about Kohala?

[chiefhalftown]

Similar to Lanikai. The best way to look at this is: you tend to get what you pay for. No one name has a lock on construction. Most affordable ukes are made in China and are all laminate construction. Next step up is solid top but they cost more..

[3234718]

So laminates really don't get at all better with age?  Not even a little?

[chiefhalftown]

No they don't.

[MrMarinebioguy]

im a new uke player. just got my first one today for christmas. i was curious if Makala if a good brand? im pretty sure its solid wood. any input would b apprieciated

[chiefhalftown]

Good uke name, strong with beginners. Enjoy!

[Lilylibra]

Most informative, really appreciate this video, thanks.

[Manna580110]

KALA Acacia tenor or FENDER Nohea koa which is better?

[chiefhalftown]

The Fender tenor is all laminate Koa wood. Not bad for the price but not in the same category as the KALA Acacia which is solid wood.

[Monkee975]

youkalaylee, kayla? Include the correct pronunciation in your buyers guide! LOL

[xCapnNikki]

@Monkee975 Kala is a name of the brand of the ukulele. It's pronounced Kayla, though.

[Monkee975]

@xCapnNikki I know it is a brand name but, your pronunciation of Kala is very wrong.

[chiefhalftown]

Well they are a type plastic, nylon more correctly.

[SearchForDeclicious]

should a ukelele's string look like its plastic?

[Bendeenswaray]

@salpedi, same here, my hands and fingers are small too, I was struggling with the guitar and thought why not try ukeleles. Well I was thinking of getting the Makala soprano as I tried it out in a shop and my fingers and hand wraps around well, but I like the tone and sound of the Makala concert, one size up but they haven't got any in the shop to try. Ill gamble and go with the concert, if it doesnt suit I'll sell it and go soprano.

Hope this helps.

[colassalcoconutttt]

"So you wanna keep that in mind, too. . .OKAY?"

[philmaster3000]

Thank you for the guide. It was certainly helpful. I just wanted to let you know about the planet waves humidipak. I just picked a set up for for my Taylor acoustic. It is meant for you keep your instrument in the case when you're not using it, but it's just a couple nylon pouches you put in your case and in the sound hole. I went through a few bad products before I found that. It's great. Thanks, again!

[SalPedi]

I'd like to buy a baritone ukelel but I have small hands for an adult male. I think I'd have a problem reaching for some of the move intricate chords. So, before I buy one, I need good advice on which ukes have smaller necks if there are any ukes of that type at all. thanks. I'm ready to buy, so I'm hoping for some of your learned expertise on this. Thanks.

[LyricsIn]

is there big difference between Lanikai LU-21 Soprano Ukulele , Lanikai LU-11 Soprano Ukulele and Kala Makala Soprano Ukulele ? for beginner

[fm1224]

a lot of good points! thanks!

[chiefhalftown]

I see little difference between the two. Whichever you can get the best price on, I suppose.

[kathylynne1]

I'm looking at the Lanikai LU 21 as well as a Kala KA-S Soprano. Which would you recommend between the 2?

[yenguccia]

I would like to start learning to play the Ukelele, and I don't want to spend so much, I saw on line called MAHIMAHI!!for a beginner like me would it be ok? it's the cheapest on line --

soprano solid top, MS-ST2-it says it's made of ply--:)) funny teehee..

!

[chiefhalftown]

I don't have personal experience with Makala so I can't comment. You can take solid wood outside for an afternoon of fun. You just have to use common sense. in its treatment.

If you're under $100 then you are in laminate territory. I recommend Lanikai. Better than they have to be for the price. Nice playability.

[Campbell88guitar]

hey thanks for the video its helpful! I'm looking into a ukulele at the moment, been playing guitar for a while and wouldn't mind having a smaller instrument that I can easily take with me when I travel or go out. As u mentioned for solid wood you have o be careful of its conditions, so im guessing that wouldn't be the most suitable if you want to take it out for a day. What type would you suggest? I'm hoping to get as full of a sound as possible and under $100. what do u think of the makala

[PacificSurgeNJ]

what's the first kala you were playing in the vid?

[chiefhalftown]

I do a quick strum of the KALA Acacia tenor. It's the first one I pick up also. It's the one with the slotted head stock.

[TheDukeOfFall]

... You remind me of Alan Rickman...

[MeAmAPeople]

Geminid 2010

[chiefhalftown]

Your budget limits you. The Lanikai Uke LU-11 is about $55.00. It would be their least expensive but it's a good name brand and nothing to be ashamed of for a starter. Do a search.

[NoNeedForAcceptance]

for Christmas, im thinking of buying my boyfriend a ukulele.. hes like amazing at the guitar and told me how much hes wanted a ukulele..

i kinda only have about 50 bucks right now (haha) so, im looking for a cheaper top-end one. since he plays guitar, i think he would be picky about sound quality.. any tips here on a specific ukulele?

Thank Youu.. :)

[chiefhalftown]

You could buy a soprano Lanikai LU-11 ukulele for around your budget. Nice uke for the price.

[NoNeedForAcceptance]

@chiefhalftown alright. ill check it out. thank you so much.. :)

[Lexagmor]

I'm a beginner and saw a Kohala concert uke(kk-c) made of curly koa. I heard it's from Lanikai, but not too sure. it's $99 with a gigbag, tuner, and book. Is this good? Not familia with brand name. Please help!

[chiefhalftown]

That's a well known brand. I've had several Lanikai ukes, each one about perfect for the price. I wouldn't hesitate.

[Lexagmor]

@chiefhalftown Thank you for your quick response! I had heard of Lanikai, but couldn't find any information whatsoever on Kohala and the website seems very new, as it offers no information. Thanks again, I'll definitely be having that ukulele in my hands pretty soon!

[jocelynstemilyn]

thank you for the nice tip! I'm just a beginner and dont know where to start. thanks!

[eprinco]

Thank you for this. i am trying to buy my first uke. i saw that there are different types ie. 'soprano' and 'tenor'. what do these mean? which one should i buy?

[bigetalls1]

Dude, I really enjoyed your videos, I also remember Chief Halftown from Philly in the seventies. Sweet!. Anyway I bought a Lanikai solid spruce top tenor, for 99 bucks just a 20 minutes ago, Hope its playable, it's 143 on Amazon, came with a gig bag, was on sale. I believe you--rock, urr , whatever , Uke On!!!

[Fritz451]

Very helpful and very unpretentious; excellent video!

[wesleyrahn]

I learned more from your two videos than hours looking on the internet.

You indicated the space the size of a nickel was too much, so what gauge (dine, penny) can I use to check the string's height from the frets?

Thanks again for your great instructions.

Wes

[omurodog]

thank you for the review!

[porkinwitz]

What would you think about a Oscar Schmidt OU5 for about $115.00 for a first uke?,.....It comes with a bridge and nut set up before they ship it.

[chiefhalftown]

I think the Oscar Schmidt would be OK for a first uke.

[SritaCaramelo]

great review!! you're the only one that sounds like he knows what his talking about. Would you mind answering a couple of questions? See, I'm from Argentina, and I can't get many ukeleles locally, so I'm thinking of buying it on ebay, so I want to be very careful with what I chose. It's my first uke so I don't want to go over the top, but I don't want it to sound like a toy. Do you think kala's ka-s wouldbe a good option? is it really a reliable brand? Thank you :)

[chiefhalftown]

Yes I would recommend KALA. On E-bay do a "Kala ukulele" search and then look for the seller MusicGuyMIc from HI. He ships all over.