How many ukes are enough?

Hi, I understand the UAS, because I had many other syndromes. This time I want to head it off and just have the perfect number of ukuleles that is practical.

So far, this is my collection:

Kala soprano- daughter uses this, I leave it out to encourage her to play! Too small for me.

Concert Luna- my go- to laminate. I use this when I go out and wait for the kids, while sitting in the car. It's low end, but actually pretty good.

Kala TEM- tenor with low G. I have found that tenors are too big for me and I don't like all the ringing of the low G when playing the other strings. Trying to "give" to my bro.

New Kamaka concert. This is in it's own case and seems to be special. My first high end koa ukulele. It is from 2013 I found out from the sticker inside. Probably not for daily use, but for special occasions. Will it get ruined if it is for daily use? Not sure what frequency people play their koas.

I like concerts, have been thinking about another one to put a low G on. Something for daily use. Like cedar or spruce top? Any thoughts? For the jazz ukist in me.

And maybe another koa nice one. Want to try a Koolau or Kanilea. But not sure.

Can anyone who has been down this road before impart any wisdom?

Thanks!

Play your Kamaka every day. That's what it's for. My KoAloha is my most played uke, and I'm not very careful when playing.

How many ukes are enough?

Just one more!

I am not a 'collector' or hoarder of 'things' and since the ukes serve me as a tool for my songwriting, as well as otherwise emotional cathartic therapy, the instruments that are not in the core rotation now feel like surplus 'baggage' and are a burden to think about.

By observing the trends here on UU since I joined, it seems there is an ebb and flow to UAS, for both incoming and outgoing. I have previously been in the non-stop incoming phase, and will soon be starting an outgoing phase.

Sorry for my rambling, but I guess what I was trying to explain/justify that there is no arbitrary 'perfect number' of ukes, and that each of us needs to find our own equilibrium.

Opinions are many and varied on this topic, but there is no RULE for a magic finish line of 'OMG gotta get them ALL' like Pokemon.

So do what feels right for YOU, and not what 'random' strangers on the internet (LOL) tell you.

:rock::nana: :music:

I have several ukes, but the one that gets picked up the most, is not the most expensive that I have.

If you you have found your perfect fit , stick with it, & enjoy it.

I wish I only owned five of my 13 ukuleles and the money I spent on the other eight back in my bank account. I would then be about £800 better off, have much less clutter about the place and my favoured five instruments would get my entire play time.

Which 5 did you end up liking the most? Are they the most varied? Higher end? Felt better? I dont want to own a bunch of cheap ukuleles, but also don't want to break my bank with lot of high dollar ones. 5 sounds good!

That sounds like me with fedoras! I have about 50 of them.

I guess I am looking to try out different kinds too. Too bad there is no "ukulele library" where you could check one out and play it for a while, then return it!

I hope you can keep in touch with this forum- we newbies need you!

In retrospect, I wish I had stopped after the first properly set-up ukulele and then stuck with that one instrument for at least a year, if not longer, and properly learned to play it. Then after a year, or two, of consistent practicing I should have evaluated what I like and dislike, what I wish was different, etc and then either got another instrument or found happiness with what I had. If I had done this, I believe I would have saved myself quite a bit of money, "stress", and frustration, and I'd probably be a better player now. I'd know less about ukuleles, but perhaps I'd know more about music.

Instead, too soon I threw money at the perceived gear problem, trying to "get it right" early on, when at the core of my "wanting something different" feelings there was probably simple dissatisfaction and impatience with my own playing ability -- which could have been remedied by spending money on proper teaching resources, and with practicing instead of researching what else I could buy. (This is how I have now approached guitar now too: one set-up instrument, no other guitars for at least a year, and I am having a good time doing just that).

I also feel I spent a lot of time and energy on trying to decide which is my perfect size or even instrument, going back and forth between them, analyzing them, sometimes following my head, sometimes my heart, and sometimes my ears, but none of those are consistent because our moods and momentary preferences aren't consistent, either. There is fun to be had too, you gain different perspectives and experiences, and on some level I feel that in order to truly know what you do want, you have to also know what you don't want, and that requires exposure.

Then again, I know that when I started out, I just wanted to make music and have some fun, nothing else, and certainly not the agonizing over what to get, how to get it, and then later on: what to let go. I do make this sound a bit worse than it is, but I really do believe that for me, the above outlined approach would probably have worked better. When I got up to 12 or 13 instruments, I started to let some go. I'm down to the ones in my signature, and I plan to further reduce the number. I wish I could pick just one, but I'm not quite ready for that yet. The letting go is harder than the getting.

No reason to keep a good quality uke languishing in its case. My two regular players are a KoAloha and a Covered Bridge, both concerts. The KoAloha sounds great strung with low G PhD strings.

valde002 said:

That sounds like me with fedoras! I have about 50 of them.

I guess I am looking to try out different kinds too. Too bad there is no "ukulele library" where you could check one out and play it for a while, then return it!

I hope you can keep in touch with this forum- we newbies need you!

Click to expand...

Don't worry, I've got no plans to reduce my participation here on UU. I am merely going to shed some ballast is all.

Mivo -

Maybe something to keep in mind is that what we learn and experience during the journey is often of greater 'value' than the perceived 'reward' that we had expected at the destination when we each (as individuals) started on our paths?

I feel that my knowledge of not only ukuleles has expanded, but also knowledge of music as well, in addition to recording techniques, and on top of that, a whole wide world of music in different genres that I never would have heard otherwise.

All of this having a much greater effect and understanding than anything I'd been exposed to being mostly 'guitarded' for 35 yrs prior...or in my 'formal' music education, whether from school or with private tutors...

Nevermind the wonderful camaraderie found here on UU with like-minded folks.

For me, it's all a win. :rock:

Not ukulele related but I think we can all relate. My main instrument is trumpet. The late Lew Soloff was one of the very best to ever pick up a horn. Any baby boomer here has probably heard his solos on Spinning Wheel and God Bless The Child. Lew played with Blood Sweat and Tears for about six years. Lew had an enormous collection of horns. He once brought 21 trumpets and flugelhorns on a flight as his carry on luggage!

Booli said:

By observing the trends here on UU since I joined, it seems there is an ebb and flow to UAS, for both incoming and outgoing. I have previously been in the non-stop incoming phase, and will soon be starting an outgoing phase.

Click to expand...

I think it's like dating. You have to kiss a lot of frogs to find a prince... and you have to play a lot of ukuleles before you find the uke you can love for a lifetime. Eventually, many of us find The One True Uke (or a small harem) and the UAS subsides.

Does that mean we found the right uke, or does it mean we grew up and stopped chasing rainbows? I don't know. I still lust after the occasional pretty new soundboard, but I am experienced enough by now to know that buying another uke will not make me happier beyond that quick initial thrill, nor will it make me a better player.

But 5-strings. I do not have a 5-string yet and I think I might like a 5-string.

Falling in love with every nice uke that comes along is much less disruptive than trading spouses every few years. I tell my husband this. Same with kittens. I get my endorphin rush with kittens and ukuleles, and this is better than many alternatives.

Booli said:

Maybe something to keep in mind is that what we learn and experience during the journey is often of greater 'value' than the perceived 'reward' that we had expected at the destination when we each (as individuals) started on our paths?

Click to expand...

I don't disagree, it's definitely true and it's also how I felt about the acquiring and experimentation process. I can't argue with that. But looking back, I feel that this is a different journey than the one I had set out on originally. It's like wanting to go to Venice and eventually arriving in New York. Both are great journeys, and some of the way may even be the same, and you never know where you'll travel after from where you are then. Still, if I could do it again, I'd sometimes look at the street signs and check the GPS to make sure I'm on the way to Venice.

Only you can answer that for yourself. Maybe something said here can help you figure it out though.

After a long journey of buying, selling, and trading various instruments (ukuleles included of course) over the last roughly 20 years, the answer I'm at right now is:
One decent uke.
If I was performing, the answer would be two. It'd be smart to have a backup.

I was never a collector, but more the type looking to find that one perfect instrument that was just right. Of course, I do not believe it exists now. Having multiple instruments doesn't do it for me either, even if they all bring various things to the table. I've become much more of a minimalist. For me, it's more about making a choice and trying to stick to it. That's my goal.

I only know of two cures for UAS.
1) No money to spend on ukes.
2) Make the choice to not buy more and stick with it no matter what.

There is a simple truth that is often missed:
Buying more ukes is NOT the cure for UAS. It only feeds it.

I dunno, after lurking here for awhile and only having 2 Ukulele's, a 40 dollar Caramal and and old beater Baritone, I was beginning to think there was something wrong with me! However, I really did, and do, like hearing about the new Uke purchases here, and seeing the pics, so maybe I'm a voyeur, and there is something wrong with me! But even when I was playing bass, I was never a huge gear acquisition sort, I bought some stuff sure, but it was mostly stuff I used on gigs, not just buying to buy, far too chea....oops I mean frugal for that. I "might" get an actual "good quality" Ukulele down the road, but I'm happy with what I have now, and having a nice one just sit in a case doesn't do it for me.

I find that my ukes sound better when played regularly. Both my Koaloha and my Webber (Koa and spruce respectively). Maybe because they are only a few months old? But I wouldn't be worried about playing the too much.

After rappsy's thread about one's current lineup I thought about why I had more ukes than guitars, when I've been playing for a year vs 20ish for guitar. For me there just aren't a lot of mid range or higher ukes in stores around me where I can spend some time to try a bunch back to back. Luckily, a few people around my area have some wonderful ukes and that has helped, and they have been generous with explaining the nuances to me. There are also the various sizes which sound very different to me, and the high and low g to consider.

I agree with Booli about the journey. I've really enjoyed the process. It's really been a learning experience while rekindling my interest in music. I appreciate the guidance from the people around me and this site to help guide the process.

Mivo said:

...Still, if I could do it again, I'd sometimes look at the street signs and check the GPS to make sure I'm on the way to Venice.

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"Not all who wander are lost." - J.R.R. Tolkien

jer said:

...There is a simple truth that is often missed:
Buying more ukes is NOT the cure for UAS. It only feeds it.

Click to expand...

Alytw said:

...I appreciate the guidance from the people around me and this site to help guide the process.

Click to expand...

Unless you avoid NUD, Reviews and Inventory-listing (like Rappsy's) threads, there is constant reinforcement of UAS here on UU.

We are ALL enablers.

I'm just glad this isn't a forum about 'illicit' things, lest many of us might otherwise live in a 'world of hurt' instead of having the privilege of seeing so much joy and Aloha.

I think you're heading about it the right way - you're defining your ukulele needs. Then make sure you have a uke that fills that niche - and over time you may find that you're playing one uke for the majority of your niches. There are also ukes for your itches - it took me a while to find a uke that gave me the projection and tone I wanted.