Loprinzi questions

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RafterGirl

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I've had my KoAloha concert for a week now and absolutely love it. I need to sell my Islander tenor to fully fund another uke purchase in the future. Once I have the money, I want something that will be a good counterpoint to my bright koa. Something mellow. I've listened to a lot of sound samples and like the tone of cedar. I see that Loprinzi has a cedar/mahogany model that's close to my price range. They also have cherry that's a little less money. The cherry I listened too sounded mellow but it's hard to tell for sure. Loprinzi comes highly recommended, and I think the slim neck would work for me. Can anyone comment on the nut size on a Loprinzi concert, and on the sound of cherry vs cedar/mahogany.
Thanks
 
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Yes, LoPrinzi is in our county. Donna's ukes are of impeccable quality. I have several friends who own them. One is a cherry concert model that is just about the best sounding uke I've heard around here. You couldn't go wrong with a LoPrinzi. I wish I had the dough for one!
Ask her for the nut sizes at: http://www.augustinoloprinzi.com/contact-us.html
 
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Nickie said:
Yes, LoPrinzi is in our county. Donna's ukes are of impeccable quality. I have several friends who own them. One is a cherry concert model that is just about the best sounding uke I've heard around here. You couldn't go wrong with a LoPrinzi. I wish I had the dough for one!
Ask her for the nut sizes at: http://www.augustinoloprinzi.com/contact-us.html
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I have heard from Donna. Nut size is the standard 1 3/8, but they can do a custom size. They can also upgrade to UPT tuners. I'd love a cedar/rosewood, but that's out of my price range. I emailed her for some price quotes with a bigger nut size, but haven't heard back yet. She has a maple concert available in the stock size right now and there's a cherry at Dusty Strings in Seattle.

I've been messing around with my tenor this past weekend and decided to keep it. It's an Islander with the 1.5 nut and a comfy neck, and I'm starting to finger pick a little which seems easier on the tenor with more finger room. I'm going to try a low G on it. So, now I'm in a quandary. Do I spend the money on a custom sized Loprinzi concert in a different tonewood ( I have a Bonanza concert & a KoAloha concert), or maybe try a soprano??? Or just chill with what I have for awhile & save some money & keep looking & listening to different things. That last option is probably the wisest one, but it's hard when you combine UAS with a little pocket money!
 
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Maybe have a look at a KoAloha acacia, they have long neck soprano, concert, & long neck concert - I very nearly bought one myself the other week, (but decided on a Kala acacia concert in the end).
 
uke1950 said:
Maybe have a look at a KoAloha acacia, they have long neck soprano, concert, & long neck concert - I very nearly bought one myself the other week, (but decided on a Kala acacia concert in the end).
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I already have a KoAloha Koa concert and want something totally different. Either another concert in a much different tone wood like cedar, maple, or cherry. Or perhaps a soprano this time a different tone wood. If I get a soprano, I'd prefer a wider nut size. At the moment there's a Kiwaya KTS-4 and a spruce/rosewood Larravee at HMS that look nice. The Larravee has a slightly wider nut ( 1 13/32) plus a longer scale (14.17). I've heard that Kiwaya have a wider nut, but I'm not sure?

So may choices!
 
uke1950 said:
Mahogany or cedar then - both have a lovely mellow tone. :)

(Spruce is fairly bright sounding.)
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A cedar top/rosewood Loprinzi concert would be super sweet, but pretty pricey. Their cedar top/mahogany would be my second choice.
 
Ukecaster said:
The Kiwaya nut will be a tad wider than the Larrivee. I measured a Kiwaya KTS-4 nut at 36mm. Other Kiwaya/Famous ukes came in at 37mm. Very comfy for me.
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Awesome. Thanks for that measurement. Kiwaya specs aren't easy to find.
 
I got more info and price quotes from Donna today. Turns out that a Loprinzi cedar/rosewood concert isn't out of my budget, so that's the way I'll go.
 
Awesome. I don't currently own one, but have had the opportunity to play on a couple of LoPrinzi ukes that were excellent. The soprano I owned for a while was one of the best sopranos I've ever played. I also think they're a great value considering what you get. Just about anything comparable is more expensive.
 
uke1950 said:
So, now the waiting begins........ :)
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Donna will start my cedar/rosewood Loprinzi concert Monday. Delivery in 6-8 weeks. Waiting for my new baby will be hard :)
 
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I had a Loprinzi mahogany super soprano that was the best sounding soprano ai had played. Naturally I sold it, convinced myself sopranos were not for me. I am happy to here you went with cedar rosewood, will give you a warm yet powerful sound with nice over tones. Congratulations..........you a progressing nicely with your UAS.;)
 
SoloRule said:
Happy to find this thread.
Anyone played Bishop wood Loprinzi? I am being tempted by Loprinzi at the moment.
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They had a Bishop concert listed on their available page when I first talked to them, but it disappeared pretty quick. I had never heard of bishop wood. Here's what Donna told me about it. Bishop is a somewhat common tree found in coastal areas. It is a great tone wood but because the trees tend to be small in diameter and yield little it is not generally milled for instrument grade material. It is usually not worth the mills effort or time. I have a very limited supply and once gone that will be it. It is mellower than koa with an overall sweet tone.

Hope that helps. So far, in the ordering process they have been great. Donna has emailed me answers to all my questions in a timely manner and they've sent pictures of the available ukes to me as well.
 
RafterGirl said:
They had a Bishop concert listed on their available page when I first talked to them, but it disappeared pretty quick. I had never heard of bishop wood. Here's what Donna told me about it. Bishop is a somewhat common tree found in coastal areas. It is a great tone wood but because the trees tend to be small in diameter and yield little it is not generally milled for instrument grade material. It is usually not worth the mills effort or time. I have a very limited supply and once gone that will be it. It is mellower than koa with an overall sweet tone.

Hope that helps. So far, in the ordering process they have been great. Donna has emailed me answers to all my questions in a timely manner and they've sent pictures of the available ukes to me as well.
Click to expand...

Thank you for the information. They are at the Florida uke fest this weekend. I should receive a pic next week
 
DownUpDave said:
I had a Loprinzi mahogany super soprano that was the best sounding soprano ai had played. Naturally I sold it, convinced myself sopranos were not for me. I am happy to here you went with cedar rosewood, will give you a warm yet powerful sound with nice over tones. Congratulations..........you a progressing nicely with your UAS.;)
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I wanted a very different sound than my KoAloha koa concert. I was looking for mellow, warm, and sweet. I talked with Donna about all the options, like maple, cherry, and mahogany. She thought cedar & rosewood would be an excellent choice. At first I thought it would be out of my price range, but it turned out to be under my max budget even with some upgrades. I have heard such good things about the Loprinzi ukuleles, and they are made right next door to where I grew up in Florida, so that was kind of cool.
 
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DownUpDave said:
I had a Loprinzi mahogany super soprano that was the best sounding soprano ai had played. Naturally I sold it, convinced myself sopranos were not for me. I am happy to here you went with cedar rosewood, will give you a warm yet powerful sound with nice over tones. Congratulations..........you a progressing nicely with your UAS.;)
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DU-Dave fret not about your lost mahogany Loprinzi. There is one for sale in the marketplace for a great price, though it's not a super soprano.

I recently acquired a Loprinzi Spruce Maple Concert. It is amazing in build quality, tone, and playability. The tone is very different than mahogany. It's clear and articulate, yet resonant and loud. It begs to be finger-picked and I'm not a picker yet, But I'm giving her what she wants - opening new horizons for me and my playing. Changing my tune 😍
 
LoPrinzi

I’ve got 3 loPrinzi ukes....a tenor all maple, concert maple, and a concert cedar/rosewood. They are all amazing and stand up well against my Kala Elite, Compass Rose and KoAloha. You’re going to LOVE yours!
 
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