More traditionally shaped and much louder than the round camp style Enya I reviewed
http://www.gotaukulele.com/2017/08/enya-eus-x1-hpl-soprano-review.html
http://www.gotaukulele.com/2017/08/enya-eus-x1-hpl-soprano-review.html
Enya EUS-X1 HPL Soprano REVIEW
- Thread starter bazmaz
- Start date
maki66
Well-known member
Great review, as always.
Thank you.
Thank you.
Good review. Thanks for doing it. I think the richlite is excellent. I'm looking at a tenor. There is definitely a place for HPL. Interesting Martin soprano is LOUDER. I have to think it the bracing. Did you check thickness of HPL top?
I guess that makes sense. HPL is HPL I'm thinking. I wonder if this material takes off, if there will be differences? So, I suppose it's the bracing or other factor like neck connection, block etc that would make the Martin louder!
Hi Baz,
Thanks for another great review. Also, I can confirm that due to the audio mangling of YT, it's difficult to hear any volume difference, but there is a clear difference in the 'voice' or tone of the Martin vs. Enya, in that the Martin seems to be in the upper-midrange and treble, whereas the Enya seems to be a little softer on the treble, and have a more 'rounded' lower-midrange tone...
I agree with your favoring the alternate materials when our natural resources are dwindling and at risk. However, I wonder how much paper pulp is required for HPL and Richlite vs. other 'laminated' milled woods or all-solid woods in terms of how many trees need to be cut down and the proportional yield of how many (more or fewer) ukes you can build using HPL...
I had my Martin OXK with me at the NJ Uke Fest this past weekend, and had no issues whatsoever, and during the workshops, the group play-along as well as the open mic, it was definitely loud enough, so I am very happy with it.
If I did not already have the OXK, this Enya EUS-X1 would likely move to the top of the list as the knock-about uke due to the way it's made, and pleasing tone (and of course the other benefits as per your review).
I was a bit disappointed that I missed out on the bargain price of the Enya camp-uke the first time around, but now seeing that more are coming out, and their pricing seems to be inline with other brands of better starter ukes, and maybe have a little better refinement in the build, it seems that Enya is paying close attention to quality control.
Mahalo,
Booli
Thanks for another great review. Also, I can confirm that due to the audio mangling of YT, it's difficult to hear any volume difference, but there is a clear difference in the 'voice' or tone of the Martin vs. Enya, in that the Martin seems to be in the upper-midrange and treble, whereas the Enya seems to be a little softer on the treble, and have a more 'rounded' lower-midrange tone...
I agree with your favoring the alternate materials when our natural resources are dwindling and at risk. However, I wonder how much paper pulp is required for HPL and Richlite vs. other 'laminated' milled woods or all-solid woods in terms of how many trees need to be cut down and the proportional yield of how many (more or fewer) ukes you can build using HPL...
I had my Martin OXK with me at the NJ Uke Fest this past weekend, and had no issues whatsoever, and during the workshops, the group play-along as well as the open mic, it was definitely loud enough, so I am very happy with it.
If I did not already have the OXK, this Enya EUS-X1 would likely move to the top of the list as the knock-about uke due to the way it's made, and pleasing tone (and of course the other benefits as per your review).
I was a bit disappointed that I missed out on the bargain price of the Enya camp-uke the first time around, but now seeing that more are coming out, and their pricing seems to be inline with other brands of better starter ukes, and maybe have a little better refinement in the build, it seems that Enya is paying close attention to quality control.
Mahalo,
Booli
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besley
Well-known member
I got a chance to see the EUR-X1 at the recent Silver Creek International Uke Festival when "Choirguy" (Chris) brought his. I was impressed, but since I don't play sopranos I wasn't tempted. Well when Baz mentioned in his review of the EUS-X1 that it came with Richlite fretboard and bridge it really peaked my interest. So I contacted the Enya vendor listed on Amazon, and asked to be sure whether the bridge and fretboard of the tenor sized EUT-X1 were also Richlite - especially since they are still listed as rosewood on the Enya website. They said that they were, but that so far only their store (Huizhou Enya Musical Instruments Co.) carried the Richlite version. With that I was hooked, and just ordered the tenor size. I hope it lives up to Baz's review of the soprano, but I'll let everyone know when it arrives in a few days.
D
Dean Beaver
Guest
Hi Booli,
Regarding Paper Pulp, and the amount of wood used, it's not so much about the amount of wood used, but rather the types of trees being harvested.
Paper pulp is made from trees that grow quite rapidly, and grow reasonably easily in various conditions (and honestly the timber is not really good for much else), in other words they are not vulnerable to decline or even disappearance, but can be grown and harvested in plantations in many places, and natural areas where such trees grow will remain relatively and minimally unaffected by the process.
Because Trees aren't just Trees, they are a habitat and a major part of environment in a diverse ecosystem, varying in many ways throughout different areas in the world.
For example, here in Australia, we have a big country, we have lots of biodiversity, but that also means we have many many unique types of flora and fauna that sometimes only exists in small communities, sometimes very small communities, and a single species can easily be wiped out completely in a very short time in those cases, and all it takes is the simple destruction of a relatively small area to cause extinction, and when I say destruction I don't necessarily refer to total destruction, although that can be the case, I mean simply the radical change or even the removal of a single important species can become detrimental, cause and effect, I'm sure you'd understand.
We have seen extinction of many species in the last hundred years alone, and it's ongoing, a constant struggle against those who don't know better and don't care to know better, because money talks, and some people consider money is more important than life itself, as long as it's not their own life, I'm quite sure we all know someone like that, it is commonly referred to as Ignorance, Greed, Selfishness, Megalomania, etc.
Even now, with many animals and plants under further threat it' still very difficult to get some people to understand it or to respect it, and we have ongoing issues regarding beautiful unique areas in which certain animals and plants remain, yet may not be found anywhere else in the country, let alone in the world. Once they are gone, they're gone for ever.
Some trees are slow to grow, only grow in certain areas, or propagate only under very specific conditions.
Some Trees can be grown in plantations for commercial purpose, some can't. So choosing the types (Genus/species) of trees is an important factor.
I don't think HPL will take over from Timbers in the musical instrument industry, but it is a viable alternative, and as such can be a contributing factor in the area of habitat and environment matters.
I think until we have a world where every people understands and respects the environment and habitats, there is a need to stay on the ball and keep moving. In one moment the guard drops, and in the next moment people are moving in with industrial machinery and quickly and recklessly taking everything they can and leaving everything else for dead.
That's the reality. It may seem somewhat radical, but the age of technology and machinery is radical. There's been extinction caused prior to this age of Tech Industry, so imagine how it could be now without measures taken to counter it.
It is a problem in the world, it can be very clearly seen in the Amazon to name a more famous case, it can be seen in many countries, in many areas, in many ways.
I sincerely hope this helps with some better understanding ...
As for these Enya X1 series, I think they look like a good well made instrument, and from this review I think they would be a good Ukulele. The Kaka Mahogany Laminate Tenor I bought some time ago was good, and so I think that Enya would certainly pass the grade, so to speak.
I've seen the Concert and Tenor versions of the X1 available on eBay, and they're probably available on some other platforms also.
I was doing some online research on the Kaka around 6 months ago and found an article regarding the Enya HPL models and had a read, it was interesting, I'd never heard of it previously.
Regarding the volume, I am thinking with a Tilt Neck it may be possible to raise the Saddle a touch and tilt the Neck accordingly (to retain good action), to raise the string height above the body, to a relatively reasonable extent which realistically may not be much, and in so doing the volume may be slightly increased, though it may also be a compromise between volume and Tone in that case. I don't know whether or not this is actually the case, but it's a consideration that I think is worth suggestion, if it seems important enough to someone personally.
Regarding Paper Pulp, and the amount of wood used, it's not so much about the amount of wood used, but rather the types of trees being harvested.
Paper pulp is made from trees that grow quite rapidly, and grow reasonably easily in various conditions (and honestly the timber is not really good for much else), in other words they are not vulnerable to decline or even disappearance, but can be grown and harvested in plantations in many places, and natural areas where such trees grow will remain relatively and minimally unaffected by the process.
Because Trees aren't just Trees, they are a habitat and a major part of environment in a diverse ecosystem, varying in many ways throughout different areas in the world.
For example, here in Australia, we have a big country, we have lots of biodiversity, but that also means we have many many unique types of flora and fauna that sometimes only exists in small communities, sometimes very small communities, and a single species can easily be wiped out completely in a very short time in those cases, and all it takes is the simple destruction of a relatively small area to cause extinction, and when I say destruction I don't necessarily refer to total destruction, although that can be the case, I mean simply the radical change or even the removal of a single important species can become detrimental, cause and effect, I'm sure you'd understand.
We have seen extinction of many species in the last hundred years alone, and it's ongoing, a constant struggle against those who don't know better and don't care to know better, because money talks, and some people consider money is more important than life itself, as long as it's not their own life, I'm quite sure we all know someone like that, it is commonly referred to as Ignorance, Greed, Selfishness, Megalomania, etc.
Even now, with many animals and plants under further threat it' still very difficult to get some people to understand it or to respect it, and we have ongoing issues regarding beautiful unique areas in which certain animals and plants remain, yet may not be found anywhere else in the country, let alone in the world. Once they are gone, they're gone for ever.
Some trees are slow to grow, only grow in certain areas, or propagate only under very specific conditions.
Some Trees can be grown in plantations for commercial purpose, some can't. So choosing the types (Genus/species) of trees is an important factor.
I don't think HPL will take over from Timbers in the musical instrument industry, but it is a viable alternative, and as such can be a contributing factor in the area of habitat and environment matters.
I think until we have a world where every people understands and respects the environment and habitats, there is a need to stay on the ball and keep moving. In one moment the guard drops, and in the next moment people are moving in with industrial machinery and quickly and recklessly taking everything they can and leaving everything else for dead.
That's the reality. It may seem somewhat radical, but the age of technology and machinery is radical. There's been extinction caused prior to this age of Tech Industry, so imagine how it could be now without measures taken to counter it.
It is a problem in the world, it can be very clearly seen in the Amazon to name a more famous case, it can be seen in many countries, in many areas, in many ways.
I sincerely hope this helps with some better understanding ...
As for these Enya X1 series, I think they look like a good well made instrument, and from this review I think they would be a good Ukulele. The Kaka Mahogany Laminate Tenor I bought some time ago was good, and so I think that Enya would certainly pass the grade, so to speak.
I've seen the Concert and Tenor versions of the X1 available on eBay, and they're probably available on some other platforms also.
I was doing some online research on the Kaka around 6 months ago and found an article regarding the Enya HPL models and had a read, it was interesting, I'd never heard of it previously.
Regarding the volume, I am thinking with a Tilt Neck it may be possible to raise the Saddle a touch and tilt the Neck accordingly (to retain good action), to raise the string height above the body, to a relatively reasonable extent which realistically may not be much, and in so doing the volume may be slightly increased, though it may also be a compromise between volume and Tone in that case. I don't know whether or not this is actually the case, but it's a consideration that I think is worth suggestion, if it seems important enough to someone personally.
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I edited my post above and removed my other posts that were not on topic to the Enya soprano uke you have on review here.
I did not intend to derail from the original topic. Sorry Baz. Please forgive me :bowdown:
I did not intend to derail from the original topic. Sorry Baz. Please forgive me :bowdown:
UkeStuff
Well-known member
Agreed...it is a good time to retire "Kaka" as a brand. However, if memory serves, the new brand name is Hankey...so maybe the company isn't paying for a consultant.
<CEO> "Did anyone know that our ukulele brand means, "Poop," in some Spanish speaking countries, and thus any country where people from those countries might resettle?"
<Marketing manager wipes his head nervously with a handkerchief>"Um...no..."
<CEO>"Well, we need another name."
<Marketing manager looks in his hand>"How about Hankey?"
<CEO>"That's perfect. That nonsense word can't possibly mean anything else! Fire up another 500,000 ukuleles that say, 'Hankey,' as the company name!"
<CEO> "Did anyone know that our ukulele brand means, "Poop," in some Spanish speaking countries, and thus any country where people from those countries might resettle?"
<Marketing manager wipes his head nervously with a handkerchief>"Um...no..."
<CEO>"Well, we need another name."
<Marketing manager looks in his hand>"How about Hankey?"
<CEO>"That's perfect. That nonsense word can't possibly mean anything else! Fire up another 500,000 ukuleles that say, 'Hankey,' as the company name!"
Wasn't aimed at you buddy!
Ukecaster
Well-known member
Geez, they shoulda called me before rolling out the Kaka name for export ukes, I would have clued them in ��
Thanks! No worries brother, just wanted to keep things simple...and more on target to the thread anyway.
