Konsidering a Kala?

The 3 or 4 Big-K-Brands are generally Konsidered the Kream of the uKulele Krop. But when unit sales are Kounted, Kala ukuleles Kan be listed as an eKonomical, popular K-brand alternative. But before you Konsider a Kala, you need to first Konsider my experience.

First, though, let me tell you I started playing the ukulele when I was 9-years-old. That was 56 years ago. I also worked in a music store, selling guitars. I played in a folk singing group. I gave guitar lessons. I’m not a great player, but I’ve seen and played a lot of instruments over the years. I know what I’m looking at in ukuleles.

I had let my playing slide until my grandsons wanted to learn how to play. All I had was my beautiful Yamaki guitar, made in Japan in about 1971. So, I decided to purchase a couple of ukuleles—one for me, and one for the GK’s. To quickly get started, I took a chance and bought two Lanikai’s from Butler Music’s “Gambler’s Special” on the Bay. The one I play now for practice cost $32 plus shipping. Both LU-21B’s received from Butler’s play fine.

Still, I wanted a nice baritone ukulele that would be my go-to instrument for the rest of my life. I prefer a baritone for a number of reasons I won’t elaborate here. I have a unique picking method and would like to post a few songs on the Tube, too. So a nicer instrument is in the cards.

One day last November, I happened to be by a store in the big city 80 miles from home and happened into a fabulous Kala KA-FMBG. The list price is $450, but most stores sell them for $299. The solid spruce topped ukulele with flame maple sides and back played like absolute silk. Its projection was amazing. The sustain and intonation were as good as anything I had played—and I’ve played a few. But I didn’t pull the trigger, as this was my first foray into a music store in years, and I wanted to shop around.

I did shop around, but found nothing used as I had hoped; so I ended up going to a music store closer to home—a store just 45 miles away. They handle Kala ukuleles, but the only baritone they had on the floor was a Kala KA-B, a satin mahogany, listing at $197 and selling for $149. I wanted something nicer to look at. The people in the store were very nice, and they said they had some KA-ABP-CTG’s in the warehouse. I had limited time that evening, so I drove the 45 miles back the following week to look at the Kala baritones with the solid cedar top and acacia sides and back. One wasn’t pretty. The growth rings were uneven with severe waves. It had a blotchy coloration. There was a virtual absence of medullary rays. The second Kala was worse with mismatched halves and a small knot on one side.

The good people at the store said they would order one in for me; and about 3 weeks later, one of my sons picked up a very good looking baritone Kala with a cedar top the store had ordered for me. I played it. It buzzed. The neck had a distinctive s-curve. With a straight edge spanning from the 1st to the 14th fret, there was a 2 ½ to 3 mm gap at the 7th fret. The gap was greater than the height of the fret wires. It was virtually un-setupable (if that’s a word). I brought it back. The store shipped it back to the distributor and ordered in 4 more baritones—2 FMBG’s and 2 ABP-CTG’s.

When the four Kala ukuleles arrived, I drove the 45 miles to pick out the one I liked best. However, when I got to the store, they wouldn’t even show me the 2 cedar topped baritones. They said the necks on both had such bad s-curves, they had put them back in the boxes before I arrived. Still, I had 2 FMBG’s from which to choose. I had forgotten my reading glasses and went home with what I thought was the better of the two. When I got home to where it was quiet and played an A chord, there was a soft, but noticeable buzzing on the 3rd and 4th strings. I got out my straight edge. At the 6th and 7th frets, the gap was nearly 2 mm. The neck had an s-curve. I brought it back. The store ordered in more Kala baritones.

I went back yesterday to look at the ABP-CTG and the FMBG they had received. On the cedar top, the wood grain was uneven and blotchy. The FMBG spruce top was very uneven with reed spacing from half a millimeter to a good 3 millimeters, and it was very wavy. By this time, my recent experiences with Kala’s had raised my reluctance for the brand—consciously or not. I wasn’t going to “settle” on what I considered less than a quality piece, because I know there are nice pieces available for $300. I didn’t even check the neck and fingerboard.

After looking for alternate brands, and finding no other baritones from makers with whom they do business, the good people in the store had given up and gave me my money back. Maybe they thought I am too picky, but I’m sure not going to spend $300 on something that doesn’t play any better, or have as good a neck as my $32 Lanikai. But I don’t think they believe I’m too picky—they were sincerely apologetic and outwardly expressed concern with what they would do with the Kala brand in the future. Certainly, they don’t want their name attached to poor quality instruments, especially since they sell many ukuleles on the net. And, they have already shipped back 5 of the 7 Kala baritones they have ordered since December!

Coincidentally, I was in Texas last week and stopped in a music store. They had 1 baritone in stock. It was a Kala FMBG. The D and G strings buzzed terribly at the 2nd, 3rd and 4th frets. I handed it back to the sales person after playing only 15 seconds. He returned it to the rack!

I’ve seen threads on this board with folks asking about Kala cedar tops. I’ve bit my tongue and withheld my opinion. I also saw the thread on the Kala tenor with the cedar top. It looks beautiful with straight, tight reeds and striking medullary rays. I hope the neck and action are as good as the looks of the instrument. But when my $300, 450 miles and 3 months of waiting resulted in a complete disappointment, I decided it’s time to share my K-brand experience with the UU community.

I’ve played an exceptional Kala FMBG; but out of 10 Kala baritones I’ve recently seen, that first one was the only good one. The Kala baritone failure rate per my experience is 90%. I know there are decent Kala’s out there…but at just 1 good Kala baritone in 10, remember:

If you are Konsidering a Kala, Konsider my experience and check it closely.

Update: Today, I was in the big city and stopped by the store that had the nice FMBG. I knew it wouldn't be in stock 6 months later, but I wanted to see what they had; and what they had was 4 baritones on the shelves--one low-end, one Lanikai solid Koa and 2 Kala's.

BOTH Kala's buzzed. I had my reading glasses and my straight edge and scrutinized the better of the two, a Kala ASAC-B solid Koa. Like my previous experiences, the straight edge touched the 1st and 14th frets. The neck/fretboard swooped down from the 1st fret, bottoming in the area of the 6th to 9th frets where the gap was a good 2mm. Past the 14th fret, the neck swooped down again. It was the s-curve with which I had become familiar--and this ukulele had a price tag of $399.99.

So, now my experience shows 11 of 12 Kala Kala baritones with problem necks. If it is a problem of shipping, Kala needs to change carriers or packaging or both. If it's climate, Kala needs to re-engineer it's build plan or quit shipping to the Midwest. My guess is similar to what the first store told me. They think there are manufacturing problems with the jigs used. Either way, it's a problem most beginning consumers won't know unless someone tells them.

I felt it was time I told them.

- Farp

I bought 3 all solid wood Kalas from www.ukulelesite.com last year. They were strung and set-up to my taste, shipped in the right cases, and looked and sounded great from the get-go. Fantastic service. They more or less promise to do right by the customer and they did. No "krapshoot".

New thread title: When shopping at music stores that typically cater to other instruments, buying any "economiKal" ukulele is a Krapshoot.

Moral of the story: if you're going to buy a (low/mid/high/any) range uke, save yourself the heartburn and buy from a source that treats ukes as real instruments like HMS, Mim, or Elderly.

Jon, that is good advice; but before I buy any instrument, I want to hold it, play it and give it a few licks. And BTW--both stores I was at have in-house luthiers.

Yep. When buying any mass produced uke, if you buy from a random dealer or off the web, setup will be random as well. If you buy from an established internet dealer like the Ukulele site, Mim or Uke Republic they will do a setup. They'll also pick one out to your specifications. Alternatively I bought my Kala from a local dealer who does a setup. I once bought a Kala that was terribly set up that I got from Amazon. With any instrument - the dealer matters.

Farp said:

Jon, that is good advice; but before I buy any instrument, I want to hold it, play it and give it a few licks. And BTW--both stores I was at have in-house luthiers.

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I understand about wanting to hold them first. I feel very blessed that I have a music store close enough by that puts in the effort, so that I know I'm not wasting my time by making a visit. In general I've been less than impressed by the treatment of ukes by most music store. Otherwise it's HMS for me.

Also, if they have in-house luthiers what's their excuse? All I can think of is they don't have the time/money/skill/interest to verify that the products they sell meet basic playability requirements. That's the kind of treatment I expect from big-boxes like Guitar Center.

JonThysell said:

I understand about wanting to hold them first. I feel very blessed that I have a music store close enough by that puts in the effort, so that I know I'm not wasting my time by making a visit. In general I've been less than impressed by the treatment of ukes by most music store. Otherwise it's HMS for me.

Also, if they have in-house luthiers what's their excuse? All I can think of is they don't have the time/money/skill/interest to verify that the products they sell meet basic playability requirements. That's the kind of treatment I expect from big-boxes like Guitar Center.

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Jon--there was no need for any excuse by the luthier. An s-curve and a 2-3 mm gap is not something they can fix on the bench without a major neck re-make such as planning it. Their hands were tied with a piece or pieces that were not set-upable.

ETA: if just a small handful of shops, such as those mentioned in this thread, receive product that can be set-up, then the brand is worse than even I think, no? I mean, they ship thousands of instruments across the globe, but only 3-6 shops out of the hundreds who receive product have instruments worthy of purchase? Sheesh--it's worse than the 90% failure rate then!

Hey there, Farp...

Thanks for sharing your experience.

-Booli

I have had nothing but good experiences with Kala. Sorry you have not had the same experience.

I really appreciate the detailed observations. From here out I'll be checking my ukes with a straight edge.

Mooh said:

I bought 3 all solid wood Kalas from www.ukulelesite.com last year. They were strung and set-up to my taste, shipped in the right cases, and looked and sounded great from the get-go. Fantastic service. They more or less promise to do right by the customer and they did. No "krapshoot".

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Well... to be fair, this is exactly why you shop at HMS. It's not that kala doesn't send HMS duds, but that HMS weeds out the duds before customers would ever see them. It's not like big box music, where they don't even open the box before dropping it in the mail.

As far as measuring with a straight edge.. Is that really appropriate? Really, unless you are doing it without strings, the neck will not be straight because of the string tension, which bows it a bit. S-curve, or twist is certainly bad, but relief bow is normal, and buzzes less than if you adjust a truss rod to make the neck ram rod straight under tension.

spookelele said:

Well... to be fair, this is exactly why you shop at HMS. It's not that kala doesn't send HMS duds, but that HMS weeds out the duds before customers would ever see them. It's not like big box music, where they don't even open the box before dropping it in the mail.

As far as measuring with a straight edge.. Is that really appropriate? Really, unless you are doing it without strings, the neck will not be straight because of the string tension, which bows it a bit. S-curve, or twist is certainly bad, but relief bow is normal, and buzzes less than if you adjust a truss rod to make the neck ram rod straight under tension.

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Spook, You are absolutely correct about the bow in a properly tensioned neck. I covered that in my thread about using straight edges, see http://forum.ukuleleunderground.com...2-Buying-A-New-Uke-—Bring-The-Right-Equipment.

With the conflicting planes of the fret wires and fret board, seeing the actual curve in a neck is difficult for me with the naked eye. The straight edge provides a guide, and it will quickly show the difference between the gradual, slight curvature of a properly crafted and set-up neck versus one that has problems beyond repair, as were the cases of the s-curves I've witnessed with 2-3 mm gaps in the middle. The latter are typically beyond being able to be set-up with a resulting acceptable action.

Both stores in my narratives are quality, family dealers in Minnesota, with excellent reputations.

I appreciate the responses received so far. Writing the post was not done in haste, and it took me several weeks before I decided to actually put it up here. I had contacted the Kala company and received unsatisfactory responses to my concerns. I was told the ukuleles either had the bad necks because of the climate or damage in shipping. If climate is the problem, then the company shouldn't sell to dealers in MN. It also doesn't explain my experience with the bad Kala in Corpus Christi, Texas. If shipping is the problem, then change carriers or packaging.

No, all the problems aren't a result of climate or shipping. At a minimum, some are manufacturing defects, design, development or deficiencies. The sooner the company recognizes the problem, the sooner it will be resolved. If it isn't resolved, and bad product continues to reach the consumer, the brand will suffer greatly. They have shown they can produce quality products. I trust they will correct the problems.

I've read up and down this thread for the better part of a half an hour, and as far as I can tell you are not a Kala customer, in so far as you never actually purchased a Kala instrument. Am I wrong? If I'm right, what's the point of the thread? If there's one thing I've learned from being an ukulele fan over the years, it's that a great majority of consumers expect perfection where it just doesn't exist. I recently took a return of a luthier-built Hawaiian ukulele that I sold at half price because of what the "buyer" considered slight finish wear; "wear" that was mentioned prior to the sale, a deal breaker, it turned out. Despite the fact that it cost me $36 dollars to ship and package it away, I ate $16 from his initial $20 shipping quote because I'd rather have the uke back than have someone else own it who doesn't appreciate it for what it's worth. It's now back in my possession and will never leave my house- never to be my loss again. My point is that some people will never be happy, so before casting blame with minute measurements and straight edged fury, it could be better to study the mirror; to see if there's anything askew within.

I'm with Soupking, It sounds like you're not a Kala customer, I'm not either. This forum has had many, many, inquires re buying a uke. We've said it before and will have to say it many more times, buy from a reputable uke supplier mentioned previously. I don't care how reputable a music store is with luthiers present. The majority will sell what they have and the luthiers will treat them as second class instruments; esp. the less expensive models like you've been discussing.

I suggest you call one or all of those mentioned, tell them your budget and they'll honestly suggest a few models. Buying from a music store you are limited to what they have on hand. "Our" guys have many makes and models to choose from and specialize in setting up ukuleles. Tell them what you prefer in an instrument. For myself, I like a thin, low action neck so I always stipulate that when looking.

I play baritone also, if I were looking in that price range I'd be checking out, Riptide(Rogue River guitars), Ohana, Mainland, Mele and Pono. Glen Rose plays a Rogue River.

I had a Kala thinline travel uke - tenor sized - that I bought basically sight-unseen from Sam Ash. That was my first uke but it had really high action. That was a few years ago. I was able to lower the action myself (thanks to the friendly forum advice here). But it was/is a quality instrument. My friend has it now. For people who will never be able to afford a $1,000-premier-"K" brand, Kala's are good.
And like everyone else said, buy from a reputable dealer who is recommended on the sites. That setup is priceless.

I've been very impressed with my Kala tenor cedar top, acacia koa body that I bought at McCabe's in Santa Monica less than a year ago. I was there a few days ago and tried the same one and it played and sounded just as good. I also played a couple of other ones that also felt good and played really well. Maybe different models are built in different factories, some with good workers, some might not be so good.

soupking said:

I've read up and down this thread for the better part of a half an hour, and as far as I can tell you are not a Kala customer, in so far as you never actually purchased a Kala instrument. Am I wrong? If I'm right, what's the point of the thread? If there's one thing I've learned from being an ukulele fan over the years, it's that a great majority of consumers expect perfection where it just doesn't exist. I recently took a return of a luthier-built Hawaiian ukulele that I sold at half price because of what the "buyer" considered slight finish wear; "wear" that was mentioned prior to the sale, a deal breaker, it turned out. Despite the fact that it cost me $36 dollars to ship and package it away, I ate $16 from his initial $20 shipping quote because I'd rather have the uke back than have someone else own it who doesn't appreciate it for what it's worth. It's now back in my possession and will never leave my house- never to be my loss again. My point is that some people will never be happy, so before casting blame with minute measurements and straight edged fury, it could be better to study the mirror; to see if there's anything askew within.

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Ummm, huh? I paid for a Kala, have a receipt, brought 2 home, both buzzed with no chance of repair, and somehow that makes me the problem because I have failed to become a Kala customer? What—I need to have a half dozen in a stable before I’m a customer?

Is it dumb to expect to have a playable instrument for $300? I'm the problem because I expect perfection? Who said anything about perfection? Even tuning the best of the best is a balance of imperfection, no?

What is the point of this thread? If that's been missed, that's certainly not my problem either. This ain't my first county fair. I still have $300-$500 burning a hole in my pocket, simply because I would like to purchase a reasonably playable baritone for a reasonable price. You and Patrick Madsen seem to indicate that is only possible when buying from one of 3 dealers out of hundreds across the globe.

Last year, Kala alone sold 300,000 ukuleles. I'd guess several other companies sold more or less the same number. If getting a decent ukulele at a reasonable price out of a couple of million instruments is only available through one of 3 dealers internationally, something is fundamentally wrong and this thread is even more germane to what was articulated in my second post. Or, if the purpose of this forum is to steer every unsuspecting potential customer to just one of three dealerships, as is implied, then this forum isn't what it purports to be.

BTW--I just have to ask--how does looking in a mirror make ukulele necks straight or create a stock of playable baritone ukuleles appear within Minnesota? Or was the comment made to suggest that somebody who looks in a mirror and spends just 300 bucks can then be happy with buzzing frets?

If you buy from a store that doesn't set up its instruments, and doesn't even check to see if they are set-upable, then yes Kalas (or any other factory-made ukes, such as Lanikas, Cordobas, Lunas, etc.) are krapshoot.

If your local music store has an in-house luthier and they're still selling instruments that aren't set-upable, then the real problem is that your local music store is selling instruments that are not set-upable. As someone else said, places like HMS will weed out the ones that can't be set up. Your local music store's in-house luthier should be doing the same. If I were you, I'd direct my anger at the store that let you buy the unset-uppable uke as much as at Kala.

I have mixed feelings about Kala, myself. The one Kala I own is tenor resonator (I forget the year--2013?) that I bought from a non-UU-approved store over the web (at the time they were extremely hard to find), and it has been a bit of a disappointment. But reso-ukes are a special case--they're harder to build than regular ukes--and the common wisdom that there is no such thing as a good, inexpensive reso-uke appears to be true.

- FiL

FiL said:

If you buy from a store that doesn't set up its instruments, and doesn't even check to see if they are set-upable, then yes Kalas (or any other factory-made ukes, such as Lanikas, Cordobas, Lunas, etc.) are krapshoot.

If your local music store has an in-house luthier and they're still selling instruments that aren't set-upable, then the real problem is that your local music store is selling instruments that are not set-upable. As someone else said, places like HMS will weed out the ones that can't be set up. Your local music store's in-house luthier should be doing the same. If I were you, I'd direct my anger at the store that let you buy the unset-uppable uke as much as at Kala.

I have mixed feelings about Kala, myself. The one Kala I own is tenor resonator (I forget the year--2013?) that I bought from a non-UU-approved store over the web (at the time they were extremely hard to find), and it has been a bit of a disappointment. But reso-ukes are a special case--they're harder to build than regular ukes--and the common wisdom that there is no such thing as a good, inexpensive reso-uke appears to be true.

- FiL

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I agree. Having had conversations with many of the dealers of import ukes here, it is not uncommon for the manufacturers to ship instruments with defects. One of the primary responsibilities a good dealer takes is identify the defective instruments and return them to the distributor, so they never end up on the shelf. A good dealer also takes responsibility for making sure the quality instruments he or she sells are set up for good playability and tone. If your dealer encouraged you to make a long drive multiple times to purchase instruments that were not playable, then I really have to fault the dealer. I won't give Kala a free pass, but there's a certain reality with mass-produced instruments that sub-standard instruments do get through. Good dealers will weed these instruments out so customers will never deal with them. Farp's dealer didn't, apparently let him travel many miles only to learn that the instruments were sub-standard. Farp continues to defend the dealer as great. I just don't see it that way-- I don't know why you would defend a dealer that wasted your time that way.

Farp's suggestion that UU members are trying to funnel business to specific dealers is unfounded and a bit mean-spirited. When people recommend dealers like Mim, Uke Republic, and HMS, they are doing so because they have had very good experiences with these dealers. I could add Elderly, Bernunzio, and Gryphon to that list, although they are not as ukulele-focused as the others. They make sure their customers are getting good ukes, and they stand behind them if there are ever any problems. If you want to continue working with your "great" dealer who has attempted to foist defective ukes on you several times, go for it. Otherwise, please consider the suggestions of some of the committed players here who have had great experiences with other dealers. You posted here because you want other people to hear your experiences. Consider taking the time to hear other people's experiences as well.