Buying Ukulele on Amazon

I've been playing guitar for nine years
i started with acoustic and now can do bass electric classical and even synth...
i am thinking of broadening my horizon of stringed instruments to a uke, banjo, mandolin... and chose to try uke first...

now all i need is a decent uke for $40-50 which actually sounds like a uke when fitted with aquilla strings
i had no idea about which brands to go for till yesterday but from what i've read at UU and other places i'm preferably supposed to go for a lanikai or mahalo with aquilla strings
i have no idea what a *setup* is
and
i dont know what wood is preferred
also following strict tonal qualities for guitars i wanna do something diff for a uke and get a flying v shape or something

i saw a badaax
http://www.amazon.com/Badaax-Flying...cal-instruments&ie=UTF8&qid=1331310175&sr=1-6
but saw it get pretty bashed on forums
my main attraction to it was because of the pickups
if i buy a normal uke can i get pick ups fit into it?
also i have to buy from amazon cause i have a gift cert

is this ok?
http://www.amazon.com/Mahalo-U-40WT...cal-instruments&ie=UTF8&qid=1331304731&sr=1-4

please dont tell me not to buy it unless this is like the bc rich of ukes
cause i found the sound pretty ok
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sOGt7x7EmPs&feature=related
can i get a pick up fit into that?
my only issue with this is that i feel it has less no. of frets?
also what size is this
is it a soprano?

and someone told me "a guitarist should always go for a baritone"
so how is this?
cause i wanted something diff anyway...
http://www.amazon.com/NEW-Heavy-Met...al-instruments&ie=UTF8&qid=1331312048&sr=1-46

i couldnt find a decent tenor on amazon and dont want a concert...
thank you in advance
and sorry for the long post but i've always found it easier to help someone on guitar forums who has described exactly what they want!

It almost sounds like you have your mind made up on something that isn't really "Uke like"

You don't want a Concert, and can't find a Tenor. Forget Baritone, for that you might as well buy a travel guitar. That either leaves Soprano size, or you have to up your budget to a Tenor. Sopranos usually stop at the 12th fret, so if you want more you'll likely have to upgrade to a Concert or Tenor anyway.

For your price, a Makala Dolphin (soprano) is by far the best buy. It's the economy line of Kala which is a fine starter for just about anybody. Check out musicguymic or Mim on eBay stores. They'll treat you right.

Welcome to the forum! You will want to set your expectations realistically. A $50 uke will perform similarly to a $50 acoustic guitar. A setup on a uke is the same as one on a guitar: level frets, adjust nut & saddle, etc. You can get a pickup installed on any uke, but it's probably not worth it for the price range you're looking at. There are some inexpensive DIY pickup options.

Why so cheap?

You played guitar for all those years and never learned what a set up is?

I played guitar for many years before uke. My first uke was a Lanikai LU-21P. The "P" is for pineapple shape, but they make the same model in "regular" shaped soprano, concert, and tenor. I like mine a lot.

Don't start with a baritone. If you want larger fret spacing get a tenor or concert, but if you want a "true" uke experience start with a soprano. That's where I started. I have large hands and a guitar background, but was able to do fairly well with it. I have since switched to tenor, but nothing can replace the feel and fun factor of my little pineapple!

I've bought from Amazon. They are hit-or-miss. I'm sure somebody here would be willing to sell you a decent, second-hand starter instrument. Or try one of the better retailers that have a web presence, such as Elderly Instruments or Hawaii Music Supply.

Good luck!

PS: check this out at Hawaii Music Supply. Seems like a good place to start.

http://www.theukulelesite.com/makala-mk-s-soprano-best-beginner-pack-options.html

I also recommend buying from Hawaii Music Supply over Amazon. Having the store give a proper setup is especially important for lower-priced ukes.

If you can stretch your budget I think the Islander ukuleles would be the way to go.

Wow
thank you everyone for the overwhelming response
i was expecting more bashing
like if on a guitar forum some beginner would post "i want a cool looking guitar" he would get killed
so thank you for being so polite

DaveVisi said:

It almost sounds like you have your mind made up on something that isn't really "Uke like"

You don't want a Concert, and can't find a Tenor. Forget Baritone, for that you might as well buy a travel guitar. That either leaves Soprano size, or you have to up your budget to a Tenor. Sopranos usually stop at the 12th fret, so if you want more you'll likely have to upgrade to a Concert or Tenor anyway.

For your price, a Makala Dolphin (soprano) is by far the best buy. It's the economy line of Kala which is a fine starter for just about anybody. Check out musicguymic or Mim on eBay stores. They'll treat you right.

Click to expand...

i wouldnt really buy on amazon... but i have a hundred dollar gift cert... so i'm buying a uke and ocarina... i've already spent more than half on a sweet ceramic OC.. so have around 30 dollars left...

actually my first preference on amazon was
http://www.amazon.com/Oscar-Schmidt...cal-instruments&ie=UTF8&qid=1331366138&sr=1-1
cause washburn guitars are one of my favs

i really dig this one... but i read in one post that concert ocarina's are for women and children who cant play a tenor
so that really put me off

and see i didnt know that sopranos stop at 12th fret so thank u for that!

Drew Bear said:

Welcome to the forum! You will want to set your expectations realistically. A $50 uke will perform similarly to a $50 acoustic guitar. A setup on a uke is the same as one on a guitar: level frets, adjust nut & saddle, etc. You can get a pickup installed on any uke, but it's probably not worth it for the price range you're looking at. There are some inexpensive DIY pickup options.

Click to expand...

thank you
yes i do realise that
and i expect it to perform like a $50 uke
but you know how sometimes a $200 has the same quality as another $150 guitar
so i didnt wanna buy a $45 uke which would be like a $20 toy...
i'm fine with them charging around ten bucks extra for the shape... cause i've always been very sensible buying guitars... so for once i'm trying to be slightly superficial... and yes if i like the uke my next would be a very sensible buy

Paul December said:

Why so cheap?

Click to expand...

ahhh.. such is life my friend
no seriously... i'm already going overbudget with a $50 uke... its my first... i'll def upgrade to the size i prefer.. i dont wanna buy a $200 soprano and then realise i find the size and sound of a tenor more comfortable...
makes sense?

the_dude said:

You played guitar for all those years and never learned what a set up is?

I played guitar for many years before uke. My first uke was a Lanikai LU-21P. The "P" is for pineapple shape, but they make the same model in "regular" shaped soprano, concert, and tenor. I like mine a lot.

Don't start with a baritone. If you want larger fret spacing get a tenor or concert, but if you want a "true" uke experience start with a soprano. That's where I started. I have large hands and a guitar background, but was able to do fairly well with it. I have since switched to tenor, but nothing can replace the feel and fun factor of my little pineapple!

I've bought from Amazon. They are hit-or-miss. I'm sure somebody here would be willing to sell you a decent, second-hand starter instrument. Or try one of the better retailers that have a web presence, such as Elderly Instruments or Hawaii Music Supply.

Good luck!

Click to expand...

lol...i didnt know it was the same...i read in places that you have to "set up" a newly bought uke...
but i never had that problem with a guitar(then again i've never bought a guitar online)
yeah i was more keen on a soprano because of the same reason....
thanks for your help..

the_dude said:

PS: check this out at Hawaii Music Supply. Seems like a good place to start.

http://www.theukulelesite.com/makala-mk-s-soprano-best-beginner-pack-options.html

Click to expand...

I live in Asia...
Amazon is my only option cause i have some money left there which i would never really use cause shippimg to asia costs a bomb..
my friend in states is visiting soon so i plan to ship it to his address and let him bring it to me(along with the ocarina)
the city where i stay has around 24 music shops but i could find one uke at five times the original cost...
hence...

imabuddha said:

I also recommend buying from Hawaii Music Supply over Amazon. Having the store give a proper setup is especially important for lower-priced ukes.

If you can stretch your budget I think the Islander ukuleles would be the way to go.

Click to expand...

thank you for your help...
but amazon is my only option and i think i can manage to set it up if its the same as a guitar...