Review- Ohana Vita Uke (VK-70R) Soprano Ukulele

Thanks for the review. Interesting, well I learnt something more about this particular instrument and I’ve been casually looking at them for a while. There are a few videos of them and they do sound great, unfortunately for me they aren’t widely available in the U.K. (I believe that only SUS stock them) and they just don’t come up for sale second hand - maybe there aren’t many sold new but I suspect that folk just want to keep them too.

A while back I tried one for size at a trade stand and like you found it nice to hold, the larger body just seemed to be comfortable and easier than a standard Soprano. Unfortunately the Hall was noisy and the Uke was completely out of tune so I couldn’t judge its sound then. At about £150 here (IIRC and that’s an old price) they’re not something I’d buy near blind. Lovely though they are I’d want to hold, feel and hear it for myself, over some time, to see how it matched with my own particular hands, build and ear.

Please would you expand about the fitting of a strap button, I got the impression from your video that there isn’t any wood to put a screw into. Please would you also say about how you added side dots too, thanks.

Martin Strings v Aquila’s, it’s a matter of taste I suspect and maybe how your Uke is set-up and played too? I have two near identical Ukes but to my ears the one strung with the Martin M600’s sounds best, but I think that the Aquila’s are a good string too.

Thanks again for the review, I hope that you will have a moment or two to respond to my questions.
 
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Graham,

Glad you liked the video. Here is a link to a video I did about the side dots and strap pins- https://youtu.be/V8P7kSsAdyc

The difference on the Vita Uke is there is no seam on the lower bout. I will have to center the pin using the bridge as a reference point.

I am going to practice on a cheaper uke before tackling the Vita Uke. Wish me luck.
 
I have one of these; it is part of my vita uke collection which includes a vintage vita, a ukiyo and a Pete howlett and the Ohana. The Ohana is nicely made for an inexpensive instrument and loud. It is a clever homage to the vita. However it is in no way like a vintage vita, which is glorious and unique and sounds like nothing else. The howlett is fabulous and the ukiyo is nice but nothing else is a vita. The sound and feel of the Ohana are nothing more or less than a typical Ohana. It’s all about the look.
 
I have one of these; it is part of my vita uke collection which includes a vintage vita, a ukiyo and a Pete howlett and the Ohana. The Ohana is nicely made for an inexpensive instrument and loud. It is a clever homage to the vita. However it is in no way like a vintage vita, which is glorious and unique and sounds like nothing else. The howlett is fabulous and the ukiyo is nice but nothing else is a vita. The sound and feel of the Ohana are nothing more or less than a typical Ohana. It’s all about the look.

Beautiful collection. I only have the one I reviewed. I would like to get the other model in hog if there is a difference in sound.

Otherwise, what would suggest for a next buy? I have always liked the look and would like to continue collecting more. Any help would be appreciated.
 
Graham,

The difference on the Vita Uke is there is no seam on the lower bout. I will have to center the pin using the bridge as a reference point.

I am going to practice on a cheaper uke before tackling the Vita Uke. Wish me luck.

I use an alternative method that you might find helpful, or or parts of it so - just watched your video.

1) Put 2 - 3 inch wide masking tap on the lower bout to cover the area where you expect the pin screw hole to to drilled.

2) Measure the body depth and mark off the height at the midpoint - say a 4” long line running parallel to the top and bottom faces.

3) Place the Uke on its side on a flat surface. Prop the far end of the head up with a pile of books (or anything else suitable) such that the neck is near raised level. Put a pile of books at the bout end with hieght a little below the centre of the Uke, mark the masking tape using the book pile top as a level edge. Turn the Uke over and remark the tape.

4) Find the midpoint between the two marks and draw a line at 90 degrees to the original line. You now have your Centre, eyeball it to ensure you haven’t made an error and then drill with care.

That’s the jist of what I do, I think it more reliable and accurate than using the bridge as a guide.

I have heard on here that the Mahogany model isn’t as bright as the Rosewood, if I could pick between the two then I’d go for the more mellow sound. I’ve also heard here that Worth Browns work well with them.
 
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Beautiful collection. I only have the one I reviewed. I would like to get the other model in hog if there is a difference in sound.

Otherwise, what would suggest for a next buy? I have always liked the look and would like to continue collecting more. Any help would be appreciated.

For two and a half years I scoured eBay and craigslist and online listings looking for a real vita. I did not want to pay what people were asking. They are virtually all cracked unless restored. That’s because they were built so light. I finally found one with no strings, frozen tuners, cracks and a badly glued on bridge for under 200 dollars. My plan was to get it restored. Instead I got the tuners working, cleaned it up, put strings on it and it actually plays great. A friend has two and did something similar but one he fully restored. A real vita is special and hunting for one can be fun.

Pete howlett is a gifted and experienced builder. For what you get from him his prices are very reasonable. I commissioned a vita in concert size from him and it is the best of the 3 howlett’s that I have. It’s a wonderful uke but not the same as a true vita but much more like it than the Ohana. The ukiyo is a truer copy but my favorite copy is the howlett.

If, like me, you have an irrational love of the vita uke, then you must go on a quest to find a real one. If you want the best uke in that shape then get one from Pete howlett.
 
I had Dave Talsma buid me a concert size vita, Cuban mahogany b/s, highly figured redwood top. It is really a nice uke with a fine sound!
 
For two and a half years I scoured eBay and craigslist and online listings looking for a real vita. I did not want to pay what people were asking. They are virtually all cracked unless restored. That’s because they were built so light. I finally found one with no strings, frozen tuners, cracks and a badly glued on bridge for under 200 dollars. My plan was to get it restored. Instead I got the tuners working, cleaned it up, put strings on it and it actually plays great. A friend has two and did something similar but one he fully restored. A real vita is special and hunting for one can be fun.

Pete howlett is a gifted and experienced builder. For what you get from him his prices are very reasonable. I commissioned a vita in concert size from him and it is the best of the 3 howlett’s that I have. It’s a wonderful uke but not the same as a true vita but much more like it than the Ohana. The ukiyo is a truer copy but my favorite copy is the howlett.

If, like me, you have an irrational love of the vita uke, then you must go on a quest to find a real one. If you want the best uke in that shape then get one from Pete howlett.


I must concur with katysax. I also own the very rare Pete Howlett custom Vita Uke. Not only does it sound great and plays extremely easy, but to my (maybe poor) ears, it is indistinguishable from the original Vita sound, and is in fact a far better made instrument than the original. (Kind of reminds me of the Ken Timms reproduction of the Martin Style "0" that everyone wants to own, because it's arguably superior to the actual original Martin) While the original Vita was, in its day, the quality of an upper midrange priced instrument, the Howlett quality level is more in the MBU stratosphere. I own several High end instruments (K-ukes, Mya Moe's etc.) and the Howlett Vita is by far my favorite. This instrument seems to be a "semi-secret" build that is unadvertised on the Howlett Ukulele webpage. At the present time, I doubt if there are even 10 of them in existence in the whole world. And with Pete not that far away from becoming a "man of leisure", It behoves the "Vita Lover" out there to try and sweet talk him into making one for him/her. A high end Vita is a really different experience than what one gets from a conventional Uke.
 
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Back to the original topic, VK-70R; is there a block of wood inside the bottom of the bout that a strap screw can drive into? Or, is is just the the thickness of the side laminate?

<edit> I sent a message to Aloha City Ukes and verified that it does have a block on the inside of the lower bout and that a strap button can be securely installed.

-W
 
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