Brunswick BU4C or Oscar Schmidt OU5?

Hi all,

Firstly, I'm a complete novice to Ukuleles, having only ever messed about on guitars briefly in the past (drums being my 'instrument' of choice)

I got my first Uke (Mahalo Soprano) for Christmas, which I fitted Aquila strings to and lowered the action on and I must say I'm absolutely loving learning how to play...

Anyway, having been well and truly bitten by the bug, I want to add to my Uke collection and I've decided I'd like a concert size to go with my little Soprano.

After much searching, I think I've narrowed it down to the two Ukes in the title - but there's a bit of a price difference between the two, primarily due to the fact that the OS isn't readily available in the UK, so would need ordering in from the States.

I can get the Brunswick delivered for about £65 (US$104), whilst the OS will set me back about £138 (US$220) once delivery and import charges are paid.

So - finally - some advice please!

Will the Brunswick be a noticeable step up in quality from the Uke I currently have?

Is the OS worth the extra outlay?

Or is there another (UK readily available) alternative in that sort of price bracket that will be a noticeable improvement and will fit the bill?

Thanks in advance for any help offered.......

If you were in U.S., I'd recommend the OU5, but at about half the price you would have to pay.. It's an ok uke and if not loud, sounds resonant and sweet with Aquila strings. It's also gorgeous. It''s also heavy, but I don't mind. I'd think that for the price of that OS, you could get an Ohana that would sound and play way better, be lighter, more resonant, project better, etc. etc. Check with Ken Middleton.

have you checked out southern ukulele store, there based in Bournemo, but they ship and they do swt ups and have the best selection of Ukes in the UK, Ohana are great ukes for mass produced factory ukes, but that is only my opinion, here is the link for southern ukulele store : http://www.southernukulelestore.co.uk/

ukuleledaveey said:

have you checked out southern ukulele store, there based in Bournemo, but they ship and they do swt ups and have the best selection of Ukes in the UK, Ohana are great ukes for mass produced factory ukes, but that is only my opinion, here is the link for southern ukulele store : http://www.southernukulelestore.co.uk/

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Not just your opinion Daveey, but many, many people's opinion.

Thanks for the input guys.... Sadly, being offered more ideas and then doing a bit more research has just confused my choices a bit.

Two more add into the mix - the Aria 250 - £110 delivered with a decent free case and setup!

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/121006077200?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1438.l2649

Or this little, rather beautiful looking, but completely unknown 'Hanknn' - £80 delivered (with presumably a cheapo case)

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/160927848...eName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1438.l2649

I've read a couple of reports on the Hanknn on UU and I'm guessing it's just an 'own brand' Uke that is mass produced in China and could have ended up being branded with any of the 'known' labels....or am I being naieve?

Any thoughts on these two?

PhilUSAFRet said:

Not just your opinion Daveey, but many, many people's opinion.

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Many thanks for you r kind words mate i love my SK 35G

ChaosToo said:

Thanks for the input guys.... Sadly, being offered more ideas and then doing a bit more research has just confused my choices a bit.

Two more add into the mix - the Aria 250 - £110 delivered with a decent free case and setup!

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/121006077200?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1438.l2649

Or this little, rather beautiful looking, but completely unknown 'Hanknn' - £80 delivered (with presumably a cheapo case)

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/160927848...eName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1438.l2649

I've read a couple of reports on the Hanknn on UU and I'm guessing it's just an 'own brand' Uke that is mass produced in China and could have ended up being branded with any of the 'known' labels....or am I being naieve?

Any thoughts on these two?

Click to expand...

To be honest chaos, and it may be my ignorance lol i have not heard of either brand, so i cant really give you a true opinion, but the one with the case, well that case is worth about £25- 30 so i reckon the uke is probably about £50 - 70. My personal opinion is top give southern ukulele store a call and have a chat with them, they have great knowledge and personally if you can stretch your budget a bit more depending if you want a soprano or concert ? i would plump for the Ohana Sk 35 ((G) if you want gloss finish) or the CK 35, or maybe even consider the Kala, but i prefer the Ohana personally, check out southern ukuele website and then either call them or send them a email, i personally dont think much of either of the two you have shown ,but it is your choice and i dont know your budget, keep us posted on what you decide to get or if you want any more help, all the best from me

Cheers for that Daveey. To be honest, the more I look around, the more confused I become!

The Aria only came to my attention because the SUS are selling a rebranded one (under their own tag) for £80 (without case), hence me thinking the one I listed was a decent deal.....especially as it's froma 'proper' music shop who say they do a setup on it before sending it out.......

From research, I've noticed that most mass produced Ukes come from China, so I was thinking that the Hanknn (and the likes) are just basically cutting out the middle man!

I've added the Ohana CK10s to my consideration list, but the 20s is pushing the budget for me, as I'm really only a newbie (and I've now decided to keep the budget at sub-£100)......

The others I'm looking at are the Kala KA-C and (thanks to the GotaUkulele site) the Kauai KUC 70B.

What I want is a noticeable step up from the Mahalo (bearing in mind I've put Aquila strings on and lowered the action), because I've really been bitten by the bug and I want a 'proper' instrument now.....

So - keep the advice coming - I'll not be making any decisions until at least the end of the month (thank God for overtime!) and I appreciate all the expert advice.......

From all the ukes on your list, the Aria AU-250, all solid mahogany concert with ebony strap button, geared tuners, a "proper setup" with a hard case included for 100 quid is the way to go!!!!!! Not sure you can beat that anywhere. That's a price I would have expected for the Aria AU-150 all laminate uke