Best laminate concert uke player?

ukeinfused

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Looking for a quality wood laminate concert player (not a Fluke) for a neice who is unwilling to commit to care and feeding of a solid top.
Is the Kala KA-KCG all about looks, or does the koa laminate add something to the sound on that instrument? How does the Islander AC-4 compare, at nearly half the retail price?
Others?
[Edit: . I prob should have clarified: I'd already started these four girls, Kala KA-15S sopranos to the little ones and Luna concerts to the older ones (both lam hog ukes, COMPLETELY playable and sounding OK for the money, esp the Kalas), and promised them I'd buy them a better uke if they learned to play them. Two of them did, so now I'm on the quest for something prettier (prob a gloss finish with binding, though the Islander looks good to me!], with better tone if possible...]
 
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I love my Islander AC4, it's a joy to play. The fretboard and dimensions are the same as my Kanilea K1 concert.
 
If you can find an aNuenue she'll be set for life.
Amazing quality and very affordable.
 
I really enjoy my Caramel CC-100 a laminate Zebrawood concert. Mine needed a bit of setup but I think Caramel has improved a good deal on the setups in the last couple of years. I always get compliments on its sound when I play it in public. For $55 delivered it beats a Kala mahogany that costs over $100. Also it comes with a builtin tuner and equalizer. A Caramel gig bag is cheap too. Add a Honeytone amp and she'll be set to shred for under a hundred clams.

Check Amazon for all three.
 
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I have a Kala KA-SCG. It's my go to uke. Great sound.
 
How about that Enya X1 Concert that is made of HPL, and apparenlty now has the richlite radius fingerboard and the ritchlite bridge? The Enyas have a nice tone and should be pretty resilient. It is the same general construction as that little EUR-X1 that you played at Silver Creek (great to finally meet you, by the way). $115 with all the accessories...but you might want to buy other strings.

NOT a referral link: https://www.amazon.com/Concert-ukul...id=1503980263&sr=8-1&keywords=ENYA+X1+CONCERT
 
Looking for a quality wood laminate concert player (not a Fluke) for a neice who is unwilling to commit to care and feeding of a solid top.
Is the Kala KA-KCG all about looks, or does the koa laminate add something to the sound on that instrument? How does the Islander AC-4 compare, at nearly half the retail price?
Others?
[Edit: . I prob should have clarified: I'd already started these four girls, Kala KA-15S sopranos to the little ones and Luna concerts to the older ones (both lam hog ukes, COMPLETELY playable and sounding OK for the money, esp the Kalas), and promised them I'd buy them a better uke if they learned to play them. Two of them did, so now I'm on the quest for something prettier (prob a gloss finish with binding, though the Islander looks good to me!], with better tone if possible...]

I have an Islander AC-4 and it's a nice instrument IMHO, they seem reasonably priced in the USA. It needed setting up when I got it but that's normal. I can't see a time when I'll need a better instrument; it sounds fine, its plain looks are to my taste and I love the wider fret board and wider spaced strings. However your niece might prefer something more showy and for a young lady the wide fretboard and wide spaced strings might be no advantage or even a disadvantage (potentially too big for her hand?).

Kala don't sell the cheapest or best value 'just now' Ukes, however they are a credible brand (for club and playground comparisons) and they do sell good instruments at reasonable prices. I am a bit of a 'skin flint' at times but still buy Kala. When I was in the market for a Concert Ukulele the Kala KA-CEM appealed to me, and additionally a couple of players in my Uke group have CEM's and they are happy with them. I wanted the wider string spacing hence the Islander was purchased instead, but IMHO you won't go far wrong buying a laminate Kala.

I can't think that the finish material on a laminate will make any difference to the sound however my rough experience of Kala and Makala laminates is that the higher up the range you go the better they sound. So, to some extent, finish is broadly indicative of sound quality available from each Uke.
 
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I'm anxious to try out a HPL laminate from Bonanza Ukes/Pete Mai. I like the retro wild colors that really stand out/ the colors really "pop". I may order one soon as my travel knock-around ukulele.
 
I recently gifted a Kala Waterman to a teenage girl. Not the best sounding instrument, but sturdy. I have a Bonanza and like it a lot. Around $200 for a concert in the HPL, so a little higher in price, but sturdy & fun.
 
Not sure what the best is, and I have only a couple weeks on ukuleles.
So, take my views with a pound of salt.
My coworker, who got me started, bought a Kala KA tenor and I loved it enough to buy my own, a TEM.
My wife liked mine enough to buy a Kala cedar top, laminated back and side.
My coworkers bar buddy liked his Kala KA enough to buy her own TEM.

I don't know who is the best, but I believe Kalas are decent for the money.
I've also had pleasant experiences with a Donner soprano and a Enya HPL.

After some experience with different ukuleles, I did notice that Kalas nuts seem a little narrower than others, which is fine for med to small hands.
 
Senior in age, maybe. Not maturity.:D

The Fluke is a blast. Its a super ukulele, thank you so much!

BTW, My buddy, who I mentioned got me started, liked my Fluke so much he bought a tenor in Koa.
 
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