opinion on Tangi Ukes

vcowman

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Hi Folks, what is your opinion on Tangi Ukes? Is his soprano still the best sounding uke he makes? Thx;)
 
anyone have one? someone was saying their tenor sounds better than kamak or kanaliea :D
 
Hey. Tangi sound better than a Kamaka or Kanile'a....hmm....well Tangi is a friend of mine.....not to be biased......I rather have Tangi's sound as compared to the Kamaka......Kamaka's are great, but I don't care for their particular mellow sounding uke and I can't afford a custom like Jake so that is out of the question. As far as Kanile'a.....I would definately jump at one....K-1 Tenor high gloss.....sorry to say I cant afford an $800-$900 uke. So the Pono and my latest 6-string Tenor by Tangi is where I am at.
 
thanks for your feedback, i will vist him when I am in HI
 
I have a pair of Tangi sopranos. I have no idea about Tangi's other ukes, but my non-koa soprano sounds pretty good for a cheap uke. I like it as much as some of my friends more expensive ukes, but its definitly no Kamaka.
 
I really like bright, punchy ukes. I tried the konolea concert and liked it, hope to check out Tangi's stuff
 
I played a concert uke of his at a local Uke club meetup, and, while pub conditions aren't ideal, I can say it was loud enough to hear and enjoy, and the neck was a tad fatter than usual, but in a good way, was nice for my short stubby fingers.

It had old cruddy strings on, with a wound C that looked all rusted out and it still sounded nice.

The guy bought it directly from Tangi so I'm not sure if this was a custom job or not, but I've not a bad thing to say about that uke.
 
I bought my daughter a old tangi six string. It sounds great and plays well.
 
and the neck was a tad fatter than usual, but in a good way, .

The guy bought it directly from Tangi so I'm not sure if this was a custom job or not, but I've not a bad thing to say about that uke.

Tangi's necks are like plainsong said, a little thicker, but its made that way for durability per say. Another trait of Tangi ukulele is a smaller body style. I don't know if that has anything to do with the projection, but it is definately smaller. As far as Tangi's custom ukes.....if there are mother of pearl inlay, wheter if its around the soundhole, around the body, on the fretboard, then you can call it custom.
 
So I have recently been interested in these Tangi Ukes. I was wondering if anyone knew of a sound or video clip. I searched and found this one. This is not me. So does anyone know of any other sound clips or videos of Tangi ukes?
 
Thanks Fred, I saw that in another post when you were grass surfing. Sounds good to me. That is about exactly what I am looking for. So are you happy with it? If you don't mind what was the price of that uke?
 
Here's our Tangi double-hole. The first two videos have plain gut C and A strings and kooalu gold on the G and E.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dxc4EBpwqus

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hQBfE8vlrTQ

This last one sounds a bit out of tune. The A is back to Kooalu gold but the E is a used gut string from my violin and the C is still Gut.

The gut sounds really good--as long as you get the gages right and they are in good shape. Otherwise the intonation can get squirrely. But the same thing can be said for any synthetic string combo as well.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kpCk8AoO9wM
 
Sadly, Tangi seems to have gone out of business recently. He has been clearing out his stock locally for very low prices...like so low that I don't even want to tell you what they are on this site. And in the future, I'll probably feel bad for not taking some of his inventory at those super-low prices, but he does make nice instruments. I think he's selling them from his home now, but I don't know exactly what he has left.

If you're on Oahu, and are interested in getting one of his instruments for a rock bottom price, then you can probably try calling him directly, and see what he can do for you...while supplies last.
 
Tangi Soprano

I recently picked one up on Ebay that was mis-listed as a Lanai. It has Aquilla strings on it and it is solid KOA. I haven't played many sopranos but I daresay it is the best sounding soprano I've come across. But, I haven't had the opportunity to play with the big boys Kamaka etc. I'm sorry to hear Tangi is packing it up.
 
I have a Tangi. I used it for all of my videos for the "All Things Reggae" Contest. It definitely doesn't sound it's best because of some cracks in the body and the nut and bridge are a little shattered...(read: it buzzes a little). But I love it! Here is the link to my channel:

http://www.youtube.com/user/bruddahkekoa

BK:shaka:
 
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