Blackbird Clara re-review... Now I get it

After I posted a review (which I thought was very favorable, almost glowing) Blackbird decided to ship the traveling Clara ukulele home for restringing and set-up work. They then sent it back around.

You can read my original review here: http://forum.ukuleleunderground.com/showthread.php?99080-Blackbird-Clara-Concert-Review

Here are my thoughts upon further review:

Fit and Finish - 7

When the Clara arrived the second time, Blackbird had apparently done something with the top, either polished it or added a finish of some kind. So, it was less "dry/sand-papery" feeling. New Fit and Finish rating -7. This is up from 5, but not higher because I know it has the potential to deteriorate.

Sound -9 (Up from 3.5!)

Here's where I must rethink the entire instrument. After Blackbird serviced the instrument and strung it with different strings (fluorocarbon according to them) with a wound low G, the instrument was very different. The sudden, initial decay of the sound that I describe in my original review is utterly gone. It SINGS. The banjo-like "boing" is also a thing of the past. With these two, little issues so effectively resolved, the sound is enormously improved. The Clara is a serious musical instrument and the sound is up to the professional level of anything on the market. It does not really sound like your custom, wooden instrument. The discerning listener can tell it's made of alternate materials, but that's not a bad thing. It's just a bit different. Does it sound like a plastic ukulele? Maybe, sort of. But, not like any other. It is a very robust, full sound. No cheap sound here. In fact the Clara is a loud instrument. Usually I don't think of "loud" as a very important characteristic, but this ukulele, being so very well-designed and built, utilizes its volume wonderfully. The player can easily play a very nice pianissimo without losing the really lovely, round sound of the instrument. This makes the dynamic range very wide indeed. And, the fortissimo you can get from the Clara is not only bigger than any ukulele I've played, it's still a nice sound. Beat it all you want and it will not sound harsh. The Clara has most exceptional sound capabilities.
Add to this the sustain capability of the Clara which, without the initial decay experienced with the D'Addario strings, is as great as my custom instrument. So, at higher volume, the sustain actually seems even longer. (The low G also may give one the false impression of more sustain than is really there, but even taking this into account, the Clara is superior.)

Overall Rating - 9.1

This instrument plays as well as any ukulele. With the initial-sound-decay issue resolved, the Blackbird Clara is much more what I had hoped. It is capable of every dynamic an ukulele player can ever expect and then some. It can play the beautiful loud and soft sounds needed for the musician's every possible need, and sound beautiful at both ends of its dynamic range. Strum it, pick it, caress or beat the music, and it's still musical. The legato (which I found impossible the first time around) is as good as I am able to get from any ukulele. It does sound sort of "plastic", but I say that only to point out that it doesn't quite sound like your custom wooden ukulele. It sounds every bit as good as anything I've played. Please, disregard all that business I posted about "value rating". Although I am very happy with the ukuleles I currently own, if I was buying my first performance ukulele, I would have trouble not buying a Clara. Or if I was planning to go to one instrument only, the Clara would be up there with any professional-quality instrument, and above most. (Maybe the top of the heap!) Plus, the Carbon fiber material should last nearly forever with no concern for the constant care necessary with wooden ukuleles. Surely worth every penny. I get it, now.

Who knows, perhaps one day the tonewoods we now love will be so scarce that we won't be buying wooden ukuleles. This may become the new standard in every way.

Thanks, Steve, for posting your "re-review". I'm a huge fan of the Clara, so biased of course, but I thought there was a very good chance you'd feel differently once it was re-strung with appropriate strings.

E

Thanks for the re-review Steve. Glad the FC strings made a big difference over the nylon strings. Changing from hi to low G has changed my opinion on more than one instrument, too.

Very decent of you to re-review this instrument and post another honest review. If anybody ever says strings really don't make that big of a difference I'll just point them your way.

DownUpDave said:

Very decent of you to re-review this instrument and post another honest review. If anybody ever says strings really don't make that big of a difference I'll just point them your way.

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I suppose I now believe strings can make a real difference. On the previous review thread for the Clara, I expressed doubt strings would really improve this instrument. I have to say that doubt was/is based on lots of experience. I still think changing strings makes small changes in sound, at least in most cases. On this instrument, the difference happened to be the very thing the ukulele needed. Big Change? I don't know. But just the right change in this case.

stevepetergal said:

I suppose I now believe strings can make a real difference. On the previous review thread for the Clara, I expressed doubt strings would really improve this instrument. I have to say that doubt was/is based on lots of experience. I still think changing strings makes small changes in sound, at least in most cases. On this instrument, the difference happened to be the very thing the ukulele needed. Big Change? I don't know. But just the right change in this case.

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Your rating when from 3.5 to 9.1, so I'd say the result is a big change.

In my growing but still limited experience (10-12 ukes over the last 13 months, most with multiple string changes), I would agree that often strings don't matter much but I have experienced a number of times where they've made very significant changes. But in most cases for me this has been shifting from a fluorocarbon string to Aquila Red but I've a few times experienced big changes in tone or volume with two different fluorocarbons where those strings differed, ahem, materially (e.g., like thickness or hardness).

I have had my Clara a few weeks now and it's my main uke of choice even over my Koaloha tenor ,,,what it has is fun playability it's very comfortable to hold etc and it gets a lot of positive comments when I take it along to the uke club the sound yes is not quite of wood but definitely not at all like plastic , all in all I think Blackbird have succeeded in all their aims with the Clara and will definitely be taking over to the UK in the new year to play at a few clubs around the London area ,,,,and hopefully at Aaron Keims workshops that he is doing in the London area ,,,can't get better than that

I prefer the Clara over my Mya-Moe and maybe even over the Collings (which is unbeatable for looks, of course) - and I normally prefer tenor!

I don't know if my observations of its sound are shared here, but I find that the Clara has the punchiness of a shorter scale and the depth of a longer scale. Best of both worlds, really.

Yes well put Andy I actually sold my mya moe and prefer the Koaloha it has a much better clearer sound straight out of the box,,,as for the Clara that's for keeps

Thanks for giving Clara another whirl Steve and I am super pleased above all that you 'get it' now! Thanks too for all the other great comments above! A few clarifications: we did add an impervious sealing coat to the top which is now standard and we've been upgrading the models made pre-July. This very thin UV-cure Urethane coating ensures it will never degrade regardless of how profuse the sweating is... Also, while strings certainly make a huge difference, this was also a question of set-up. Our uni-body and CNC machined tolerances are so tight, we are able to set action lower than most (5/64th" or 2mm) which works great with higher tension and narrow diameter flourocarbon strings. Switching to nylon strings, which exhibit less tension and are larger in diameter, simply requires a slightly higher string height (set-up). Finally, Clara is made mostly of Ekoa- a linen fiber bioresin composite we developed which is like carbon fiber, only natural. Anyway, looking forward to any further thoughts!

I was so pleased to get to experience that traveling beauty. The sound was superb. It was hard to mail it off. =)

justinlcecil said:

I was so pleased to get to experience that traveling beauty. The sound was superb. It was hard to mail it off. =)

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Buy one, Justin. You know you won't regret it.

jluttwak said:

Thanks for giving Clara another whirl Steve and I am super pleased above all that you 'get it' now! Thanks too for all the other great comments above! A few clarifications: we did add an impervious sealing coat to the top which is now standard and we've been upgrading the models made pre-July. This very thin UV-cure Urethane coating ensures it will never degrade regardless of how profuse the sweating is... Also, while strings certainly make a huge difference, this was also a question of set-up. Our uni-body and CNC machined tolerances are so tight, we are able to set action lower than most (5/64th" or 2mm) which works great with higher tension and narrow diameter flourocarbon strings. Switching to nylon strings, which exhibit less tension and are larger in diameter, simply requires a slightly higher string height (set-up). Finally, Clara is made mostly of Ekoa- a linen fiber bioresin composite we developed which is like carbon fiber, only natural. Anyway, looking forward to any further thoughts!

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I sent mine back for the coating upgrade. No change in the great sound and playability. It was done in a shorter than estimated time.

My thoughts on the Blackbird Clara concert uke, RTU

The Blackbird Clara RTU came for a visit this past week. Here's my thoughts about it.

From the first strum I could tell this was no ordinary concert uke. It is LOUD, with deep bass tones, nice clarity on the trebles. In fact, this Clara compares more with tenors, than with concerts.

The Clara with Oasis Brights sounded good when strummed or finger picked. The only thing that kept it from being great was the boomy low G. The boomy G tended to color the chord sounds, less to my liking. Maybe a different (less boomy) low G sting would make it great. Maybe a smaller sound hole would help the low G. But I only had a week with it, so no time to experiment.

The fit and finish looked good. The surfaces were very smooth. My wife walked in while recording and looked at the Clara. In her understated way she said it wasn't as pretty as my other ukes. Below it is next to my only concert (with a good deal of bling). But, I like its simple but good looks. I added another pic with light from behind so you can see how thin and light the material is.

This Clara is worthy of consideration for those in demanding climates or for folks looking for a tenor sound from a concert sized uke. If my favorite size was a concert, I’d own one of these.

Here’s a sound sample with the Clara (Oasis Brights), a Compass Rose (Oasis Brights) and a Boat Paddle D-Style (Worth CM +2 wound bass) for comparisons using the same recording setup. This should give you some idea of its sound.

soundcloud.com/doc-hj/clara-3b

I got the road trip Clara today. Wow this thing is loud. I think it's about the loudest uke I've ever played. So far I really like it a lot. The neck is absolutely amazing. It is very easy to play with accuracy. It is kind of slippery to hold - reminds me a little of a Fluke in that regard. The body has a lot of vibration when played, which makes it fun. The sound does remind me a bit of a fluke - kind of like a really really amazingly good sounding fluke that's more woody. The high notes do seem to decay a bit more than on my best wood ukes. My initial impression is that it is a lot of fun to play. I think it's going to be hard to give up up at the end of the week. I kind of like the boominess of the low G but that may be contributing to my sense that the highs roll off quickly.

I agree with the observation regarding the boominess of the wound low-G that comes stock, and I am a low-G player. I shall be changing the strings on my Clara soon.

I got to test out Eddie's Clara, and was very impressed with it. I like the sound with the Aquila Reds on it. I play low G concert size all the time, and liked the volume and clarity of the notes, especially on the 4th string where, on other ukes, it can get muddy sounding. I really liked the action, and the feel of the neck (shape and size). Very easy to play. Overall, great sounding and playing uke. I wish it looked more attractive at that price (I love pretty ukes). I do think the Clara shape is more attractive than the other Blackbird "figure 8" variation. As an industrial designer, I am kind of sensitive to that kind of thing. Not sure what I would suggest for improvement in that area. The fabrication method is new, and I am sure there are limitations to what can be done to the color. Anyway, I would love to have one in my collection, and it would get a lot of use in the ensemble playing activities. It will have to wait until next year, when other expenses have subsided.

–Lori

For those that have had the Blackbird Clara, would you select it over other $1200 ukuleles?

coolkayaker1 said:

For those that have had the Blackbird Clara, would you select it over other $1200 ukuleles?

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That's a tough one. I have spent some time comparing it to my Kanilea concert string low G.

The Clara has some interesting aspects. It is really loud. In fact, it is slightly louder than my loudest tenor. Unlike a lot of concerts the high notes don't get thuddy. It does not have the sustain of a good tenor. The neck is fantastic. It's as good as any neck I've ever played. I'm still not sure about the sound. It's very mellow and with the low G that it has the G is definitely a bit boomy. I would prefer a 14 fret neck join. How do you factor in the durability and unique character of the material? I have it right now because I've got the road trip model. I can see why they made it a concert size and the size does help the travel factor, but I wonder what it would sound like in a tenor. Comparing it to other concerts that I own - I think it is worth the price. I am definitely giving serious consideration to buying one. Overall I think it would be a better value for $200-300 less. Based on the ukes I've tried I don't think it is more or less better than a Kamaka or Koaloha or Kanilea, just different. Those can all be had in the basic model for $900-1100. However, there is nothing quite like the Clara. It really is unique and you are paying for new "technology".

Playing it feels great which is really important to me. So, I think it's worth $1200 and definitely worthy of consideration of you are looking in that price range.

coolkayaker1 said:

For those that have had the Blackbird Clara, would you select it over other $1200 ukuleles?

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I have a Clara and like it a lot for many of the same reasons as katysax and Doc_J have expressed. It is a nice playing and sounding uke with the added bonus of being immune to climate conditions. I can take it out and leave it in the trunk regardless of the weather and that appeals to me.

That being said, if I could only have one uke (not that I can imagine only having one) the Clara would not be my first choice.

Mitch