Lost In Uke World.

Jonathan80

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Hi All,

Im Jonathan From Malaysia.

Im working on buying a Tenor ukulele for myself as my first music instrument as i only have interest but never had the courage to pickup one but after listening to some uke music i fallen in love with ukes and everyday all i think about is uke even though i don't know how to play one,

I've been thinking of getting a worth while tenor... i cant afford to start with a beginner uke then move on to intermediate then hi end like everyone else who live in the state because the shipment fee to the country i stay would cost more then the uke itself as the exchange rate in my country is so low that a K maker standard uke that i dream of would cost like used car here 1:4 exchange rate.

To cut the story short... i would love to own a uke that can last me a long time because my income does not permit me to own a few uke let alone collecting, i hope folks here in UU would help me pick a good tenor which ill try my best to save the money to purchase in distance future that i could enjoy playing and i love singing even though i sounded awful.

Thank you everyone in advance and your time reading this.

Regards
Jonathan
 
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Thank you so much Hawaii 50,

i've been lurking in the ukulele site hawaii...
i find the Kanilea's K-1 T5 to be really attractive. if i buy this ill get free shipping too if they may ($800 worth of single instrument get free shipping but T&C apply i guess)
from my country importing anything above RM500 which is USD126.95 they will tex me 35% to 55% from the total include shipping charge. which is a pain...

Thanks again for the suggestion hawaii50... wishing you all the best.

Regards
Jonathan
 
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I know you said you don't want to keep on buying ukes, but I would suggest buying a Kala to learn on whilst saving up for your dream uke, best of both worlds, by the time you can afford it, you will be able to play it. ;)
 
I know you said you don't want to keep on buying ukes, but I would suggest buying a Kala to learn on whilst saving up for your dream uke, best of both worlds, by the time you can afford it, you will be able to play it. ;)

Thank you Croaky,

Thank you again for your great advice... i guess ill just look into kala tenor uke and make up my mind on one...
Take good care always and god bless

Regards
Jonathan
 
Dear all,

Now i have narroow down to 2 tenor uke.

Kala KA-T and Ohana TK-10.
Any opinion between this 2 ukea?
Regards
Jonathan
 
I have a Kala KA-T, it's a good uke. :)

Ohana are good ukes too, & I don't think there will be much to choose between them.

(Whilst I do have some Ohana ukes, mine are solid mahogany.)

The daler also 2 more ohana which is TK-70MG and TK-50WG which both are solid top with pamited side.
Very temting but both of this cost 3 times of the TK-10.. lolz
But it's really temting though...

Regards
Jonathan
 
I think KALA KA-T or KA-TG(gloss finish KA-T) is good enough in laminated ukes. I really like KA-TG. I see Ohana costs much than Kala. But I think the narrower body of ohana is more good looking. If you choose Ohana, I think 10 or 12 series are good enough for low price option. At the end, you could choose Asian brands too, like Anuenue, Nices, A'ama, Bright Sun, Kiwaya(and Famous, Luna, F). Maybe it will save some shipping cost.
 
Note that most Ohanas lack side markers (the ones you can actually see all the time as you play), so if it's a toss-up, I'd go Kala for that reason alone. I have seen some tenor Ohana models with side dots, but most lack them. To check if there are side dots on a particular model, look to see if Mim has a listing on eBay for that model (just include "Mim" in the search string): she photographs the ukes from different angles, and usually the player's side of the neck can be seen in at least one of the photos. Also, ask your vendor directly, just to be sure—features like this can change without notice, and your vendor may have older stock.

My first uke was a Kala KA-B baritone; it's been a terrific little uke for the price, and I still use it as my bari "beater" in standard tuning—I'm quite happy with the tone. I'm sure the ones that Kala is making nowadays are even better. I have five other Kalas, and they're all great value. I say this not to imply that Ohanas aren't as good, but just as an endorsement of Kala quality.

Thank you so much Ubulele,

I've checked with the vendor and the ohana has no side markers.
I did not actually think of it untill you mention it.. thank you so much.

Regards
Jonathan
 
I would say buy the best Kala you can afford. I just played my friend’s cedar top kala slot head ukulele and it sounded great. Check out the sound sample on the ukulele site:
https://www.theukulelesite.com/shop...id-cedar-top-tenor-slothead-gloss-finish.html

Hello Martinlover,

Yeap i've been looking at that too but my local vendor don't carry that model.
he only have the Kala KA-T in stock other then the Ohana brand. to be honest most of the shop here now only carry asian marketed uke which i'm worried of trying.
And uke selection that are around this country is limited because demand is limited too.. most consumer will choose china made uke because its cheap.
anyway that's said i'll have to work with what they have in hand.

Regards
Jonathan
 
I think KALA KA-T or KA-TG(gloss finish KA-T) is good enough in laminated ukes. I really like KA-TG. I see Ohana costs much than Kala. But I think the narrower body of ohana is more good looking. If you choose Ohana, I think 10 or 12 series are good enough for low price option. At the end, you could choose Asian brands too, like Anuenue, Nices, A'ama, Bright Sun, Kiwaya(and Famous, Luna, F). Maybe it will save some shipping cost.

Hello Sciatica,

Thank you for your opinion...
Actually i have not much of model to choose at and most likely its either Kala KA-T or the Ohana KT-10,
But reading all the opinion here i guess Kala is the all time favorite for most folks... i guess i'm gonna settle on the Kala KA-T..

Regards
Jonathan
 
I think the Kala is a good choice.
The side marker's are a none issue for me.
It's no problem to dyi, if you're interested.
I don't have experience with the Ohana, but I'm sure they are fine.
I can say, for a fact, that we have loved every Kala we bought.
Good luck.
 
I think the Kala is a good choice.
The side marker's are a none issue for me.
It's no problem to dyi, if you're interested.
I don't have experience with the Ohana, but I'm sure they are fine.
I can say, for a fact, that we have loved every Kala we bought.
Good luck.

Hello Maki66.

Thank you for your input.
Im planning on shipping in a kala KA-STG after much consideration... i guess this uke is the best choice so far.

Regards
Jonathan

K21-KA-STG_001_2fa3e4be-0c17-4cc9-9477-c491bb3cdfa3_1280x1280.jpg

And this case.
W07-RC20852B_20_20_20_001_1280x1280.jpg
 
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