HELP: which ukulele should I buy???

uke_1

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Hey ukuleleunderground-community,

I would really appreciate your help. I want to buy a ukulele as a gift for my wife. She is a passionate player and has been learning and playing ukulele since 3 years. She still uses her beginner ukulele and I wanna help her get better, by stepping up here ukulele game :)

I want to spend around max. 300 Dollars.

I found these 2 that I liked:

https://www.thomann.de/at/fender_montecito_tenor_ukulele.htm?ref=search_prv_4

https://www.thomann.de/at/kumu_tf72_skinny_body_koa.htm

Which one would you recommend? Or which other ukulele in this price range would you recommend?

Thanks for your help!
 
Lots of choice in that price range. Fenders don't get a lot of respect in uke circles. But I have had several and liked them fine.

If you can get to a proper retailer where she can chose her own and have it properly set up, that would be better than us helping you chose. There are many personal choices in ukes, what size, how the neck feels, how it sounds to you. But if she has been playing for three years with her starter, it is definitely time for an upgrade.

I know someone who received a very nice and expensive uke from her husband. But she doesn't like the size, neck or sound, so she never plays it. But she won't tell him because the gesture was so loving.
 
Welcome aboard, to you & your wife. :)

I think you should be looking at Kala & Ohana, great ukes at good prices.

Ukes are personal, so I would surprise her with the money, in a lovely card, so that she could go & buy something that she would like & play, that way you will both win. :)

(Purchase from one of the recommended dealers you will see mentioned on this forum.)
 
Welcome to UU.

I second Croaky Keith. I owned several Kala and Ohana Ukes well within that price range and have been pleased with their qualities.

However please get it from a reputable seller to ensure proper setup. I would pick a properly setup basic uke over a poorly setup expensive uke any day.
 
Depending on your wife's personality, you may want to go Gift Certificate route and or take her to an Ukulele store on her Birthday and let her pick one. If you must buy one to have on the Birthday, I second the Ohana or Kala recommendation. Both really good for the money. A name like fender costs extra $$$.
 
Right, you can't go wrong with Kala and Ohana.
You need to buy where (not Amazon) you can get the uke set up for her hands. You might try Mim's Ukes, online, she's very good at matching up the uke with the owner, even if she doesn't know her. Mim is very picky and does a great job. She probably sells more Ohana ukes than anyone else in the US.
 
I'll second Nickie's recommendation of Mim (and Ohana). I just worked with Mim for the first time this past week and was very satisfied with all aspects of the transaction, including the nice setup work and very quick turnaround time!
 
I'll second ... <accidental snip> ...

I just ordered an Opio acacia tenor from Mim. It will be delivered tomorrow, so I haven't yet seen her setup work. But I ordered from her in part because of her great reputation and attention to detail. Mim spends as much time setting up inexpensive starter ukes as she does top-of-the-line instruments. That's very impressive!

She's been wonderful to work with, and I'm probably not going to sleep tonight knowing my uke will be here tomorrow. BTW, I like Ohanas too. There are a couple on my "want to buy" list. :D
 
Ohana gets my vote too, I don't think anyone matches their value at their price point. If you're in the EU check out World of Ukes and the Southern Ukulele Store, Thomann sell boxes from the factory but those guys inspect the ukes and make sure they're good to go before sending them out.
 
I assume you are in Europe, therefore I'd second Pirate Jim's suggestion to look at Southern Ukulele Store in the UK or Andreas David's "Gute Ukulele" in Germany. Both are specialized in ukes and will sort out the crap.

Personally, I'd recommend stretching your budget just a little bit and go for the KoAloha Opio that someone mentioned, or a Pono. These are not from an anonymous factory with a brand name stamped on it, but made by a dynasty of ukulele builders with great knowledge and prestige. If you want to buy from Thomann, they do carry some Pono models:

https://www.thomann.de/at/search_dir.html?oa=pra&sw=pono
 
Your wife has been playing three years! Give her the gift of choosing what will suit her. None of us knows what neck profile she likes, or her wood choice, the sound she's looking for, or anything else; and until she tries a bunch of ukes, she doesn't either, really. Give her the money and take her to a uke store. She might even decide to watch for a used model if she finds an expensive one she likes.
 
Hey ukuleleunderground-community,

I would really appreciate your help. I want to buy a ukulele as a gift for my wife. She is a passionate player and has been learning and playing ukulele since 3 years. She still uses her beginner ukulele and I wanna help her get better, by stepping up here ukulele game :)

I want to spend around max. 300 Dollars.

I found these 2 that I liked:

https://www.thomann.de/at/fender_montecito_tenor_ukulele.htm?ref=search_prv_4

https://www.thomann.de/at/kumu_tf72_skinny_body_koa.htm

Which one would you recommend? Or which other ukulele in this price range would you recommend?

Thanks for your help!

Hi, my friend, maybe you can check out this ukuleles: http://www.strong-wind.com/ukuleles. :)
 
I once bougth a Luna uke from Thomann, which I was not exited about. I dont know if it is the brand or the vendors which is to blame.
If you order from Southern Ukulele Store, there are many good ukuleles within your price range, made in asia from solid wood.

Going to a store in person is a great idea in theory, but it may be far away. You don't write where you live. Ukulele preferences are very individual, so your wife should preferably pick the Ukulele herself. If surprising her is important to you, better pick something similar to what she has, but made from solid wood or in another way betyder. Not that solid wood is always better. The options you suggest are both tenor scale. Does she play a Tenor today? And what kind of material is it made from? Which brand?
 
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So it's been fi'teen day an nerie a peep from the OP. I think we can quit jumpin through hoops and doing backstands and such. If he even still visits this post he's probably gotten his thirst quenched by now. I'm jus sayin.
 
I'm not crazy about that Fender style. A uke is a rather personal thing, so it's very easy to buy the wrong one. I would give your wife a price limit and ask her to choose. I would not want someone to buy a uke for me unless I specified which one.

I bought directly from Thomann, and pricing and service were very good. I got an 8-string uke.
 
I also Have an Ohana uke that I just purchased from Mim, Solid cedar top and willow back and sides. She did a wonderful job setting it up low action for my arthritic fingers. It sounds beautiful! Also, Mainland has some great solid ukes in a good price range. But I agree she should pick her own. Instead of a gift card you could put the money in a special card saying it is for her special uke. That way she could go to a store or buy online and not be limited.
 
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