Uke Don
Well-known member
This isn’t really a review but a comparison. There are plenty of thorough reviews out there of these ukes. But, there has been quite a bit of discussion lately about the Outdoor Ukulele and the Enya X1. Since I now have all three of the tenor ukes in the title I thought it might be useful to do some comparisons. Most folks buying one of these are looking for a durable take anywhere instrument. That was my purpose, and I kept buying another uke until I was satisfied.
Let me say upfront that I know there will be differing opinions, and that these are just mine. Please don’t take it personally or feel a need to flame me if we don’t share the same views. I’ve had the unlimited opportunity to play all of these back to back in my own home and these are my observations (and not what I expected).
The executive summary is that of the three, the only one I would recommend is the Outdoor Uke.
[td]Enya EUT- X1 Tenor[/td]
[td]Fluke Standard Walnut Tenor[/td]
Overall I’m very pleased with the Outdoor Tenor. It plays well, feels like a real uke and I like the sound. The neck shape, fretboard feel and slightly wider nut all make for an enjoyable playing experience. I was most disappointed with the Fluke. I know I’m swimming upstream with this, because there are so many glowing recommendations for it. I bought it based on that. Maybe it was the best available when it was first introduced, but other choices are now possible. I already have to be subjected to my own playing. I’m not going to make it worse with an instrument I don’t like the feel or sound of. Besides, it is twice the price of the Outdoor or Enya. I find it amazing that you can pay nearly $500 for the top of the line model. Given its construction I can’t in any way justify even the base price, made in the USA or not.
Regarding the Enya being very quiet, when I went to measure the sound level to see how much quieter it was than my wood ukes I discovered that the laminate just sucks up the high notes. The A string measured a full 10 db lower than the C. So the high strings sound half as loud. No wonder it’s quiet.
What also surprised me is that none of these instruments required any setup. They all had proper nut and saddle height, and except for the Enya being a little high in neck relief, they were great right from the box. Speaking of the Enya, I’ve had it several months now and there has been absolutely no change in neck relief. I know neck warping has been reported by one other UU member, but I have not seen it.
Hopefully this probably overly long post will be useful to some. At least it was educational for me to have all three to compare.
Let me say upfront that I know there will be differing opinions, and that these are just mine. Please don’t take it personally or feel a need to flame me if we don’t share the same views. I’ve had the unlimited opportunity to play all of these back to back in my own home and these are my observations (and not what I expected).
The executive summary is that of the three, the only one I would recommend is the Outdoor Uke.
Outdoor Clear Tenor with upgraded Tuners | |||
Construction | Polycarbonate – indestructible. Well made. | Well made. Laminate is somewhat brittle. | Fit and finish are just OK. Feels like exactly what it is. |
Playability | Feels like a real uke. 1.5” (38mm) nut. Easy to play and just feels good. | Good. Slightly radiused fingerboard. | The plastic fretboard and the ¾” lumber neck are unimpressive. Harder to play as a result. |
Tuners | Don’t bother to upgrade. The basic ones should work just as well. The upgrade does have plastic bushings, but they are no smoother in use. And the knob shape is annoying. | Plastic tuner body with metal gears on a slotted headstock. They work surprisingly well. Don’t know how long they will last. | The standard Grover friction pegs are terrible. I don’t understand why Grover would even make these they are so bad. I changed them out for Grover geared 8Ns. |
Sound | Very pleasant and balanced sound. Does not sound “plastic”. Not as loud as the Fluke but a lot louder that the Enya. | Terribly unbalanced, but not unpleasant. Very quiet (see below). | My least favorite, and to me harsh, hollow and plastic sounding. A great disappointment. The wood soundboard seems to make little difference. It is loud though. |
Setup | No issues | No significant issues. Neck relief a bit high. | No issues. |
Intonation | Good | Good | Good |
[td]Enya EUT- X1 Tenor[/td]
[td]Fluke Standard Walnut Tenor[/td]
Overall I’m very pleased with the Outdoor Tenor. It plays well, feels like a real uke and I like the sound. The neck shape, fretboard feel and slightly wider nut all make for an enjoyable playing experience. I was most disappointed with the Fluke. I know I’m swimming upstream with this, because there are so many glowing recommendations for it. I bought it based on that. Maybe it was the best available when it was first introduced, but other choices are now possible. I already have to be subjected to my own playing. I’m not going to make it worse with an instrument I don’t like the feel or sound of. Besides, it is twice the price of the Outdoor or Enya. I find it amazing that you can pay nearly $500 for the top of the line model. Given its construction I can’t in any way justify even the base price, made in the USA or not.
Regarding the Enya being very quiet, when I went to measure the sound level to see how much quieter it was than my wood ukes I discovered that the laminate just sucks up the high notes. The A string measured a full 10 db lower than the C. So the high strings sound half as loud. No wonder it’s quiet.
What also surprised me is that none of these instruments required any setup. They all had proper nut and saddle height, and except for the Enya being a little high in neck relief, they were great right from the box. Speaking of the Enya, I’ve had it several months now and there has been absolutely no change in neck relief. I know neck warping has been reported by one other UU member, but I have not seen it.
Hopefully this probably overly long post will be useful to some. At least it was educational for me to have all three to compare.