The Electric Uke Thread

Thanks ricdoug for your advise your expertise is very much appreciated, on the Digitech 360 theres a setting that switches from Amp to Mixer so i can practice at home and use the switch for gigs , my problem is the choice of Amp samplers there are, it's very confusing .

I was very lucky to watch the Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain last week amazing players but i noticed apart from the Bass player none of the other Ukulele players where plugged in they all had mikes directed at there Ukulele's for a more acoustic sound i assume .
 
I was just looking at one of my online suppliers website, & saw a second hand Clearwater steel string electric uke for £80, looked to be in perfect condition, so thought I'd give it a try, as I had wanted to try an electric steel strung uke for a while, but didn't like the RISA prices.

RedClearwaterElectric2-80.jpg
(Click on image to enlarge.)

That's another Xmas present for me. :)
 
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Hey all.

Got a Clearwater Les Paul Tenor the other day and having had time to play it I'm pleased in the main I've got some concerns about the pickups. I've done a quick review here and I'd appreciate some thoughts.

 
Could be, although I've hooked a pair of speakers up to that amp plug and mainly get lots of feedback. Tried a couple different leads into the amp as well. So I'm not sure why it seems to work with headphones.
 
do you have a tuner that you can plug a lead into? i have one, as well as a gazillion clip on tuners, if you have one or can borrow one, try tuning the uke through a lead - does the that g string register ok?

it's really odd that you can hear it ok through the vox and not through the practice amp. do see how it goes through another amp.

if it doesn't work reliably clean through other amps, then start a returns process with amazon, you shouldn't be out of pocket on postage and you could ask for a replacement and see how that goes, or get a refund...
 
There are two screws on each pickup. Each one adjusts the height of the pickup. You can adjust the left screw to bring the left side of the pickup higher/closer to the G string.

Better strings are available, and in a variety of tensions or thicknesses. I use the middle four strings from a guitar set to tune GCEA, and the heaviest four guitar strings to tune DGBE. You can have a lot of fun trying options. Flatwound, coated, 9s, 12s, etc.

I have also read about guitarists who swap out the potentiometers on their guitars for a smoother transition from low volume or low tone to high volume or high tone. My understanding is that customizing the parts is just part of the electric instrument experience. You have to think like a hot rodder.

Even replacing the jack plug can make a big difference. The plug jack on mine is obviously of low quality, and I plan to replace it soon.
 
do you have a tuner that you can plug a lead into? i have one, as well as a gazillion clip on tuners, if you have one or can borrow one, try tuning the uke through a lead - does the that g string register ok?

it's really odd that you can hear it ok through the vox and not through the practice amp. do see how it goes through another amp.

if it doesn't work reliably clean through other amps, then start a returns process with amazon, you shouldn't be out of pocket on postage and you could ask for a replacement and see how that goes, or get a refund...

That's a really good idea. It's really weird, in the video I was playing the G string on the 5th fret, should be the same note as open C, and got not nothing. If I go past the 5th fret on the G string then it starts picking it up a bit better. Don't know whether because the uke was set up for High G the pickups aren't able to respond to notes lower than that or what.

I'm a bit annoyed I've already put new strings on, probably should have taken them and had a look inside the pickups first. I'm wondering if I could take the covers off whether that would help. At least I'd be able to see if the poles are lined up.
 
Right I've done some faffing. Raised the neck pickup level with the fretboard, which didn't really do anything, and then I thought about what I do on my acoustic ukes when they're plugged in. Normally I turn the treble down at the pickup which makes the sound a bit less harsh. Here I decided to do this at the amp, keeping the bass all the way up and there's a definite improvement, although the sound can still cut in and out at times and the C string is a bit boomy.

 
Which brand of fluorocarbon strings do you have on your MultiUke? I already have the 2 Thomastiks on mine, with D'Addario T2s for the E and A. thx...

Sorry I just realized I never read your post. I use Martin high G.

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7 tenor cutaway ukes, 3 acoustic bass ukes, 8 solid body bass ukes, 7 mini bass guitars

• Donate to The Ukulele Kids Club, they provide ukuleles to children's hospital music therapy programs. http://.www.theukc.org
• Member The CC Strummers: https://www.youtube.com/user/CCStrummers/videos
 
RAB11:
Forgive me if I'm misunderstanding here or any of this is rehash...but just some thoughts:

First off, it looks like you're labeling the pickups wrong, unless this instrument selector switch is backwards from the norm.
When the switch is pointing towards the ground, that is the bridge pickup. When the switch is pointing up, that is the neck pickup. The middle position is usually both pickups engaged at the same time.

I wonder if there is a short in the cable that goes from the instrument to the amp you're using. You said it works with the little Vox Amplug thing, if I remember correctly..and that eliminates the cord since it just plugs directly into the instrument. From the end of the cord you have there, it looks like one of those really cheap ones. I've had them included in things I've purchased before and they're not good. They tend to short out after not a lot of use.

I wonder what your low G string is made of. Nickel wound strings work best with magnetic pickups. It doesn't have to be pure nickel, just something along the lines of what D'addario uses in their XL electric line. Other materials don't work as well, and some not at all.
The pickup doesn't have adjustable pole pieces, so there is likely going to be at least some slight variation..nothing too major though. Ideally, it has a bar magnet if it doesn't at least have pole pieces that are spaced correctly.
The fact that you get signal part of the way on the fretboard, and not on the other makes me think it'd be something else though.

I'm wondering what the two control knobs are. Most commonly, one would be a tone knob and the other a volume knob. It could also be wired up so both are volume controls, one would control the bridge pickup and the other the neck.

Finally, there could be some issue with the electronics that would be hard to pinpoint without having someone experienced look at it.

Hopefully you can get it figured out and fixed soon so you can enjoy it more.
You did some cool playing in the demo. :cool:
 
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One more thing: Bridge pickups need to be set higher out of the body than neck pickups usually to get the same volume as the neck pickup.
 
Thanks for the thoughts mate.

Re the cables, not sure that's the problem. In the demo I played with the one that came with the uke, but previously I played with a cable I've had for years and gigged with but got the same problem. Also had similar issues with the amp plug with speakers plugged into the headphone slot there.

First off, it looks like you're labeling the pickups wrong, unless this instrument selector switch is backwards from the norm.
When the switch is pointing towards the ground, that is the bridge pickup. When the switch is pointing up, that is the neck pickup. The middle position is usually both pickups engaged at the same time.

Ah my mistake. May explain a few things.

I wonder what your low G string is made of. Nickel wound strings work best with magnetic pickups. It doesn't have to be pure nickel, just something along the lines of what D'addario uses in their XL electric line. Other materials don't work as well, and some not at all.

I've got Ernie Balls on there, a habit from when I used to play guitar. Not had problems with them on guitars so I'm not sure on that score either.



I'm wondering what the two control knobs are. Most commonly, one would be a tone knob and the other a volume knob. It could also be wired up so both are volume controls, one would control the bridge pickup and the other the neck.

This is what I'm thinking too actually. That's the only difference I can tell when I adjust that knob.

Thanks for the thoughts though. I'll keep having a tinker and if it keeps going there are a couple local luthiers I know of who may be able to shed light.
 
Thanks for the thoughts mate.

Re the cables, not sure that's the problem. In the demo I played with the one that came with the uke, but previously I played with a cable I've had for years and gigged with but got the same problem. Also had similar issues with the amp plug with speakers plugged into the headphone slot there.
I understand now. Definitely sounds like it could be something with the electronics then. A bad pot, switch, jack, loose connection, etc.

Ah my mistake. May explain a few things.
I also made a mistake in my typing. I mean to say you mislabeled the pickup selector switch, not the pickups themselves. I think you understood what I meant, even with my error. haha.

I've got Ernie Balls on there, a habit from when I used to play guitar. Not had problems with them on guitars so I'm not sure on that score either.
That definitely rules out the string then.

This is what I'm thinking too actually. That's the only difference I can tell when I adjust that knob.
I thought a bit more, and it wouldn't make sense to have them both as volume knobs AND have a pickup selector switch. The one guitar I had with two volume knobs didn't have a switch. You just controlled with the knobs. It was cool to mix in a little from one pickup and a little from another....but who knows what they did with this.

Thanks for the thoughts though. I'll keep having a tinker and if it keeps going there are a couple local luthiers I know of who may be able to shed light.
You're welcome. I wish it could've been more help. Hopefully you can find a good tech or luthier who will get it figured out and fixed reasonably, if you can't get the solution. All in all, it looks like a pretty cool uke!
 
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P.S. - One of those videos Futurethink linked to in particular I think is a good one, if you didn't check it yet:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=93HWrhxl3tw&feature=youtu.be

The first problem mentioned is especially interesting to me. I've never encountered that problem, so will file that away in my mind to remember hopefully.
Since it's just one string on yours though, that's particularly odd.
 
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