Spruce top all-wood Baritone recommendations?

bretterb

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Hi. I'm new to the ukulele (only been playing for about 3 months), but I've gone through two ukuleles without finding one that feels just right.

I started on a Romero Creations "Tiny" Tenor. I really liked the sound, but it was a little small and hard to hold. Maybe a strap would've helped, but... I sold that and got almost the opposite... a Pono steel-string baritone solid Acacia wood that was really more like a tenor guitar.

The size of that was okay, but the scale was too long and I didn't like the steel strings.

So, I'm looking for a replacement and would like to make sure I get the right one this time.

I'm 99% sure I want a spruce top and would like to stick with all wood. I think a regular baritone size would be good, but haven't tried a full-size tenor, only the Tiny Tenor.

One I'm considering is the Romero Creations "Grand Tenor" but it's pretty pricey. I could get a nice Pono solid wood baritone for the same price.

I've also thought about, as a cheaper option, a Mainland Red Cedar baritone. The Mainland shop is only 30 minutes from my house, so I can go try one out.

While I don't have much skill yet, I'm more of a fingerstyle or chord-melody player (mostly instrumental), not a strum and sing songs kind of player. I'm really looking for a small 4-string classical guitar! :)

Any suggestions or recommendations?

Thanks!

-Brett
Bloomington, Indiana
 
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Most ukes have the same string spacing, so what you are looking at is the scale length, which one will suit you best.
Baritones are about 20", tenors are around 17", (concerts=15"/soprano=13.5").

Kala & Ohana have solid top spruce in their ranges, might be worth looking at.
Find videos on Youtube to get a reasonable impression of how they sound, it's what I do.

Edit: Kala cedar top baritone is a great one to consider too.
 
Brett, mainland also have the spruce tops in tenor. You might consider having one set up with low g linear tuning for finger picking.They are great folks to deal with. Look up the Bloomington uke club on Google and come join us.
 
You should definitely check out the Mainland Red Cedar tenor--I was at the shop in Nashville just one time, with no intention of buying anything, but walked out with a Red Cedar/Rosewood tenor that knocked my socks off. It was also deeply discounted because of a very slight indentation on the soft cedar top. There were certainly other deals to be had, too.

I'd recommend calling/emailing before you go, since they're more of a mail order than in-person shop. And also check out Weed Patch when you're there.

Good luck--let us know what you end up with!
 
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