Hello
uketanzon, just came across this thread. I realize it's already April of 2018, but in case you were still wondering about the Cordoba 30 series. I owned the 32t-CE spruce model for a few months. Bought from HMS and it was fantastic. High end looks at a great price. The sound is very unique. I had Fremont Black Low G on it and it was lush with a dynamic tone range. and with HMS setup, it played like a dream. However, as i dialed in my tone of choice, i realized after a few months the spruce had a bark and sharp attack too forward for me. It is a canon. Even after more than 10 different string changes to mellow strings, there was something about its voicing that still had that "poungy" sound instead of a lush "doooong" low G sound...for what i was looking for.
So then i exchanged for the mahogany 30t-ce version...which I still own now. The attack and sound is warmer and more mellow, and it's actually a much more quiet uke than the spruce...significantly quieter. But it's no slouch.
So in general, these 30 series from Cordoba are several steps or exponentially higher quality than all the other Cordoba ukes out there. These are a different class. Excellent construction and materials and detail. These are beautiful,
and the cut away is just so awesome. Not to mention, the L.R Baggs 5-0 pickup is fantastic, and the whole thing comes with a polyfoam case. I have Worth Brown Fat Low G on it now and it's very lush...but still has that "poungy" low G sound.
Hard to describe. If i compare it with my Boulder Creek Riptide mahogany tenor, my woodnote acacia tenor, my Kala cedar tenor, those 3 latter ones have a deeper "boom or dooong" sound when the Low G is plucked. But the Cordoba is voiced differently,
and not as deep a tone. So still sounds like a "poung" when plucked Low G.
I would say after having owned 2 of these Cordoba 30s, it certainly is worth keeping as there aren't many like them out there. As others said, the tenor scale is there, but the body is rather small. The top sound boards, at least in the 2 i owned,
are quite thick, so there's less resonance than some of my other ukes. But not in a bad way...these resonate plenty. just different. The wider nut is nice to play once you get used to it.
that being said, IF i find another tenor that has deeper bass, a cutaway and equally good electronics, i might sell my Cordoba 30t-ce, as now UAS has kicked in and it's tough to keep so many. But I've taken real good care of mine, so it's super mint.
Now, these things are alive. Sometimes at night, they sound simply amazing...and other nights, they sound dead. Could be the weather and temperature, or my tired ears after a long day. Maybe others know what i'm talking about, that our ukes sound differently during varying times of the day and in which room we play them in. LOL!
The sound of the 30t-ce mahogany is very focused, clear, and very good at the mids and trebles. The bass is clear, and not boomy, but has a very light weight focused bass instead of a wide spreading one. By Comparison, the 32t-ce spruce I thought, had better deep bass due to the spruce and rosewood combination. Both of these observations are done using the same Low G string type from Fremont, D'Addario carbon, GHS, Worth clear and browns, and Fremont Soloist smooth wounds.
anyway long story short, these Cordoba 30s are fantastic value. Worth owning at least once in your UAS lifetime and collection.
Elderly has them, HMS has them, (at least the shops that setup them up).
good luck!