Thoughts on KoAlana by KoAloha?

[DJ Mango]

I’m not buying it, at least not at this time.

I've wanted a KoAloha Mahogany ever since seeing this video :

https://theukulelesite.com/koaloha-tenor-ktm-00-mahogany-2.html

 

[Rakelele]

I'm somewhat astonished by the negative opinions about the Sapele line in this thread. In my personal experience, the Opios made from Sapele in Thailand around 2014/2015 are among the best ukes ever to be sold under the KoAloha label, including their Hawaiian line. Much cleaner finish and more open sounding than the Acacia line the have been producing since then.

 

[rainbow21]

I'm somewhat astonished by the negative opinions about the Sapele line in this thread. In my personal experience, the Opios made from Sapele in Thailand around 2014/2015 are among the best ukes ever to be sold under the KoAloha label, including their Hawaiian line. Much cleaner finish and more open sounding than the Acacia line the have been producing since then.

The feedback regarding the sapele opinions are for the "budget" KoAlana line, not the Opio nor the KoAloha ukuleles.

 

[Rakelele]

The feedback regarding the sapele opinions are for the "budget" KoAlana line, not the Opio nor the KoAloha ukuleles.

That makes sense, as some of the early KoAlana models developed the well-known cracking issue. All the more I feel obligated to testament to the quality of the Opio Sapele line from the Rebel factory in Thailand.

 

[Ukecaster]

Regarding Koalana ukes (not Koaloha or Opio, both great brands), it's just confusing to me why the parent company Koaloha felt the need to offer a premium construction limited edition model in their budget Koalana line. To me, that would be like Kanilea offering a limited edition solid wood Islander uke, with TRU-R bracing. What's the point? Am I missing something? Well, that one seems to be gone off FMM. Also, it said it was built in 2012, a long time ago, so I guess it was an among the earliest Koalanas. Who knows what they were thinking way back then.

 

[UkeStuff]

I have been tempted by the model on FMM, as it represents the one KoAlana that I do not have! However, with the turn of the economy, I don’t have the margin to buy it.

That KoAlana turned into the Opio. There’s nothing to be afraid of.

I have the older KoAlana Mahogany model that did have finish issues (I believe most were returned and destroyed), and I have two Sapele Opios that preceded the Acacia models (which are still made) but followed the second generation of the KoAlana. These both have spider cracks in the finish—which do not impact the playability of the instrument at all, but do make them “less pretty” up close.

I also have a modern KoAlana.

I’m a fan of KoAloha and of less expensive KoAloha models, I guess!

 

[Ukecaster]

That KoAlana turned into the Opio. There’s nothing to be afraid of.

I'm not up on my Opio history, but if they were first offered in 2012-2013, that would make sense: they first developed the Koalana brand (with KoAloha-like features, like that solid 2012 model on FMM), which quickly morphed into the very successful mid-range Opio brand. The low end Koalana only happened recently.

 

[Jerryc41]

Howdy!

There is a KoAlana concert on FMM that I'm interested in as a companion for my KoAloha soprano. I would plan on using it to play live and most likely put a K&K pickup in it. This particular one is solid sapele with a unibrace. It was made in 2012 in Guam.

How are KoAlanas overall? From my very limited understanding, they were originally made in China and were very poor quality. Then at some point they moved to Thailand and the early ones had issues with breaking with humidity changes. The later Thailand ones seem like they're fine, from what I read. I'm thinking this one made in Guam was between the Chinese and Thailand made ones?

I'm also a bit confused because it seems like they were at times solid woods and then laminate, with special runs of solid wood mixed in. It also seems like they may not all be unibraced and some have more "traditional" bracing.

This one appears to check the boxes as a good KoAloha companion: solid wood, unibrace, not made during the rough production periods (as far as I know). Anything else I should be aware of or look for?

Thanks in advance!

Mt tenor is beautiful, and it sounds nice. $200 used.

 

[gustophersmob]

Mt tenor is beautiful, and it sounds nice. $200 used.

Thanks, I appreciate the offer but I don’t play tenor.

 

[gustophersmob]

In case anyone is curious, this is the reply I received from KoAloha.

I really like KoAloha, they seem to really stand behind their instruments and want to take care of their customers.

We switched from sapele to acacia a few years ago because of the issue you described. We love sapele, but it can be suspect to climate change.

If this one seems like a good buy, you can have the assurance that it is well covered by our warranty, no matter who is the owner at the time. For Opios, we replace instruments with current comparable model if the instrument qualifies as a warranty claim. In the case of wood movement as you described, it’s covered by our warranty for the lifetime of the instrument.

 

[UkeStuff]

Regarding Koalana ukes (not Koaloha or Opio, both great brands), it's just confusing to me why the parent company Koaloha felt the need to offer a premium construction limited edition model in their budget Koalana line. To me, that would be like Kanilea offering a limited edition solid wood Islander uke, with TRU-R bracing. What's the point? Am I missing something? Well, that one seems to be gone off FMM. Also, it said it was built in 2012, a long time ago, so I guess it was an among the earliest Koalanas. Who knows what they were thinking way back then.

Someone else just posted in this thread, but considering the brand new Oha model by Kanile’a, the discussion above has a new meaning!

 

[efiscella]

I heard that Koaloha designed the Koalana ukuleles to give them away to school groups and other charities.Their surplus supply gets sold to retailers. Sound quality isn't great for the price, but some people buy them for the Koaloha look and feel.

Back in 2015, I took a high school aged show choir to KoAloha for a tour. We had about 30 kids and staff in the group. After the tour, Pops and the guys in the factory sang and played ukulele for our group, and then in turn, we performed for them. After the concert, cases of ukulele appeared and Pops announced that he was gifting each of the kids and the staff with a KoAlana. He autographed each one.

He was smitten by the kids and their talent and asked if the Harmony Show Choir would perform his original song, "America's Song" at their concerts, accompanied by the gifted ukuleles. We agreed. We all went back to NJ and started working on the song through YouTube videos and streaming session. Pops wrote to me and said the KoAlanas were not cutting it and would replace each of their ukuleles with a brand new design that he had come up with. He named it The Wow. it is a cannon, easy to play with its medium soft ukesa strings, wide fretboard, and crystal clear Clarity and sustain. He engraved an "H" into each headstock and the model became known as the "Harmony Wow."

There is absolutely no comparison between the 2012-2015 KoAlana to the Wow or any other KoAloha ukulele. The older KoAlana is difficult to play and just not much fun. I believe that most beginners picking up this uke would not keep up and just quit. The Wow is exactly the opposite story.

I was at KoAloha this past February and they had a number of the new KoAlana's on display. I tried them out, and Oh Boy what a difference. These newer models look beautiful, sound great, are a joy to play and are super affordable. They have a winner with this new batch of KoAlanas and I think they are the perfect beginner ukulele or a great soprano for the occasional soprano player.

 

[nicolec]

Back in 2015, I took a high school aged show choir to KoAloha for a tour. We had about 30 kids and staff in the group. After the tour, Pops and the guys in the factory sang and played ukulele for our group, and then in turn, we performed for them. After the concert, cases of ukulele appeared and Pops announced that he was gifting each of the kids and the staff with a KoAlana. He autographed each one.

He was smitten by the kids and their talent and asked if the Harmony Show Choir would perform his original song, "America's Song" at their concerts, accompanied by the gifted ukuleles. We agreed. We all went back to NJ and started working on the song through YouTube videos and streaming session. Pops wrote to me and said the KoAlanas were not cutting it and would replace each of their ukuleles with a brand new design that he had come up with. He named it The Wow. it is a cannon, easy to play with its medium soft ukesa strings, wide fretboard, and crystal clear Clarity and sustain. He engraved an "H" into each headstock and the model became known as the "Harmony Wow."

There is absolutely no comparison between the 2012-2015 KoAlana to the Wow or any other KoAloha ukulele. The older KoAlana is difficult to play and just not much fun. I believe that most beginners picking up this uke would not keep up and just quit. The Wow is exactly the opposite story.

I was at KoAloha this past February and they had a number of the new KoAlana's on display. I tried them out, and Oh Boy what a difference. These newer models look beautiful, sound great, are a joy to play and are super affordable. They have a winner with this new batch of KoAlanas and I think they are the perfect beginner ukulele or a great soprano for the occasional soprano player.

Thank you for sharing! I love my Koaloha so my parents picked up a Koalana for me to keep at their house (across the country) for when I visit. Since I’m not there to care for it a laminate was the way to go but I have yet to see/play it and was skeptical. Now I’m happy they scooped me one up!