wish to purchase and learn ukulele

muscmp

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i play guitar but wish to purchase and learn to play the ukulele.

i've found a place that is selling enya ukuleles in a closeout. in case it is against forum rules, i won't post a link unless that is ok. what can you tell me about enya? it appears that i may want to start with a tenor as it appears to be the closest to a guitar's size. are the woods important on a ukulele as they are on a guitar? they offer koa, mahogany, englemann and sapele.
thanks,
mikeB
 
The closest to a guitar is a baritone, & has the same DGBE tuning of a guitar's top 4 strings
Tenor/concert/soprano ukes are normally all tuned in re entrant gCEA.
Which wood a uke is made from can make a bit of difference, but strings tend to make the most difference in tone.
I usually suggest starting with a concert scale, but as you already have experience, choose what will suit your needs.
 
The closest to a guitar is a baritone, & has the same DGBE tuning of a guitar's top 4 strings
Tenor/concert/soprano ukes are normally all tuned in re entrant gCEA.
Which wood a uke is made from can make a bit of difference, but strings tend to make the most difference in tone.
I usually suggest starting with a concert scale, but as you already have experience, choose what will suit your needs.

great information. thanks uke1950. is there a popular place to purchase strings? aren't there various string materials? what do you know about enya ukuleles? can i post the link to the closeout?
 
there are several online places that sell many varieties of strings. two popular places are stringsbymail.com, stringsandbeyond.com

String materials are various: nylon, fluorocarbon, nylgut, etc. It's hard to tell you which is better as they all sound different, and they might sound very different to different people. Some foolproof strings are the Aquila brand Nylguts (probably what many new ukulele bring, they have a whitish look), the Martin Fluorocarbon (clear looking and different sound from the previous).

Enya ukuleles are Chinese made ukulele (not necessarily a bad thing). I believe they're the "higher" line of ukes from another brand that I can't remember anymore. I don't have an Enya uke, but have some inexpensive Chinese made. Some are good, other not great.

The best recommendation for a first uke purchase is to go to a store and test several sizes and makes and see if you like them. Purchasing the first uke online will be a lottery. If you have a strong desire to buy one, don't spend too much money until you're familiar with what you want (size, wood, solid/laminate, brands, etc.).

I've seen, in the Forums, links to offers and sales before, I don't see why you can't share the closeout site.

Good luck

Eugenio
 
there are several online places that sell many varieties of strings. two popular places are stringsbymail.com, stringsandbeyond.com

String materials are various: nylon, fluorocarbon, nylgut, etc. It's hard to tell you which is better as they all sound different, and they might sound very different to different people. Some foolproof strings are the Aquila brand Nylguts (probably what many new ukulele bring, they have a whitish look), the Martin Fluorocarbon (clear looking and different sound from the previous).

Enya ukuleles are Chinese made ukulele (not necessarily a bad thing). I believe they're the "higher" line of ukes from another brand that I can't remember anymore. I don't have an Enya uke, but have some inexpensive Chinese made. Some are good, other not great.

The best recommendation for a first uke purchase is to go to a store and test several sizes and makes and see if you like them. Purchasing the first uke online will be a lottery. If you have a strong desire to buy one, don't spend too much money until you're familiar with what you want (size, wood, solid/laminate, brands, etc.).

I've seen, in the Forums, links to offers and sales before, I don't see why you can't share the closeout site.

Good luck

Eugenio

eugenio: thanks for the great response. i'm enclosing the link below.

https://ventura.craigslist.org/msd/d/200-closeout-ukuleles-brand/6357404180.html

thanks,
mikeB
 
If you live near this place, go over there to test some of them to see which ones you like. You should know that the Koa and Sapele ones are laminated wood (they only have a thin veneer on top, and something else below; the koa might be more expensive, in this case, just because of looks). Usually, solid tops (Mahogany and Spruce) are better quality and might sound better, but not necessarily. Solid tops do require more care (need to maintain the moisture in winter and in dry climates) than laminates.

Good luck.

Eugenio
 
If you live near this place, go over there to test some of them to see which ones you like. You should know that the Koa and Sapele ones are laminated wood (they only have a thin veneer on top, and something else below; the koa might be more expensive, in this case, just because of looks). Usually, solid tops (Mahogany and Spruce) are better quality and might sound better, but not necessarily. Solid tops do require more care (need to maintain the moisture in winter and in dry climates) than laminates.

Good luck.

Eugenio

i would guess that they are all laminate but i may be incorrect.
thanks,
 
i play guitar but wish to purchase and learn to play the ukulele.

i've found a place that is selling enya ukuleles in a closeout. in case it is against forum rules, i won't post a link unless that is ok. what can you tell me about enya? it appears that i may want to start with a tenor as it appears to be the closest to a guitar's size. are the woods important on a ukulele as they are on a guitar? they offer koa, mahogany, englemann and sapele.
thanks,
mikeB

Might take a look at Enya ukes on Amazon. I see they have a solid top mahogany Enya tenor that comes with a gig bag, tuner and strap for only $23.90.
 
Might take a look at Enya ukes on Amazon. I see they have a solid top mahogany Enya tenor that comes with a gig bag, tuner and strap for only $23.90.

If it sounds too good to be true... it almost certainly is. Doubly so when it comes to ukuleles for sale on Amazon.com

I wouldn't trust any dealer who is selling a "decent" uke for extra cheap and throws in a bunch of accessories to sweeten the deal.
 
bazmaz, who posts on this forum and has his own excellent website, gotaukulele.com, reviewed a couple of Enyas recently. I suggest looking at these reviews.
 
Omg! Amazon is giving away Enya again.
I love my little Enya camp ukulele.
I'm going to buy one on each size.
 
If it sounds too good to be true... it almost certainly is. Doubly so when it comes to ukuleles for sale on Amazon.com

I wouldn't trust any dealer who is selling a "decent" uke for extra cheap and throws in a bunch of accessories to sweeten the deal.

Good advice... but ya' never know.

I took advantage of another Enya promotion and bought two tenors (mahogany laminates from them via Amazon that included a set of strings, tuner, strap, and free shipping) last week at only $18.41 each to give away as inexpensive gifts. Interestingly, they're nearly identical in every respect, certainly gift-worthy, and frankly, I'm guessing a lot of people wouldn't be disappointed at 2 - 3 times the price I paid.

-Very playable with nice action: Approx. 1mm at the 1st fret and 2 1/2 - 3 mm at the 12th, with zero buzzes anywhere.

-Intonation: most strings go a little sharp from the 5th+ frets, and one of 'em, at the 12th fret, is maybe 3+ cents sharp. (I'm thinking about playing around with its mildly intonated saddle, but probably won't.)

-Nice looking and build quality is good; certainly a lot better than many other inexpensive ukuleles I've seen. No sharp fret ends, etc. Incidentally, these two ukes were packaged inside their gig bags- inside a heavy duty Enya-printed box, and again, inside yet another cardboard box, and then inside a box large enough to accommodate both packages . I don't see that sort of care in shipping all the time.

-The strings aren't as bad as the cheapies I've seen sent stock on some ukes, but they probably contribute to the overall tone and volume of each instrument which is only fair, IMO. Again, however, when compared to other tenors in the sub-$50 or so price range, they're not that bad.

I certainly prefer my considerably more expensive solid-top and all solid tenor (neither is an Enya), but I certainly feel they did me right with this particular promotion. On the other hand, admittedly, what you stated in your post is often true. On someone's "recommendation," I recently bought into completely different promotional deal and it was a mistake.

Whew... after all that, the instrument the OP is considering might be a totally different situation. As always, caveat emptor. YMMV.
 
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@Tenor--I see your point... and at $20 a pop, it isn't even too much of a risk.

If you're feelin' lucky, take a gamble and hope for the best.
 
thanks to all for your responses. i've emailed the person selling these so i can get model numbers and compare them with what is on amazon. no use in my spending $60 if i can get the same thing for less than $30 at amazon. i'll let you all know once i find out.
thanks again,
mikeB
 
Based on this thread and the reviews on Amazon I just ordered three tenors. I'll go over the set-up, replace the strings and keep them in our meet-up room as loaners. With Amazon Prime the shipping is free and they will be here on Thursday. Solid mahogany top for $22.70 -- with gig bag. If they really suck I'll make a Halloween costume out of them:) I'll also post a review here at some point.

By the way, the warranty states:

"If there are non-human quality problems, the ukulele can be changed or refunded in 30 days. Please feel free to contact us if you have any questions."

So, please restrict use to humans, or is it non-humans? What does that mean???
 
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By the way, the warranty states:

"If there are non-human quality problems, the ukulele can be changed or refunded in 30 days. Please feel free to contact us if you have any questions."

So, please restrict use to humans, or is it non-humans? What does that mean???

I think that just means if the uke is faulty, they will change or refund it, but if it's down to your (lousy) playing, you're on your own. :)
 
i received a response from the seller. he indicates that the model numbers are part numbers. so i guess that means i can't do comparison shopping. but, thought i'd post this info and see what others say.
thanks,

Hi Mike,

Sure, but they won't be of much use. They are the part numbers that were assigned to them when we were the distributor. You can see some feedback on them on our eBay feedback and our Facebook page. Both pages are linked on our website, www.bargainmusician.com.

The Koa Ukes:
EUT-70, EUC-70, EUS-70, EUP-70

The Mahogany Ukes:
EUT-25D, EUC-25D, EUS-25D

The Spruce Ukes:
EUT-26D, EUC-26D, EUS-26D

Thank you,
Zane
 
i've decided to pass on the enya ukuleles and focus on a good used one such as a kala brand. any recommended sites for used ones? i'd probably spend $100.
thanks,
mikeB
 
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