your top K brand ranking

tangimango

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Just curious on what others rank there k brands. Kekeke. Of course this is just my opinion so dont go crazy on me UU.

I rank #1 kanilea . Innovative bracing, top of the line uv high gloss finish, beautiful grade curly koa on standard models, nice sound for a factory model.
#2 koolau. To me its also #1 but , the price is really high. Its like custom factory so. But still good sound.
#3 koaloha. Just love the bright sound, love the sceptre and sunday models.
#4 Kamaka. Hmmmm. What can I say. Unless your kamaka is the same as jakes, kamaka to me is last. I think there name brand is so strong that they dont even need to try hard. Kamakas will sell .
 
KoOLau. Custom. Superb, built by a master, Noa Bonk.

KoOlaha. Hit > miss. Best "spirit". Best warranty.

Kamaka. Production models overrated. Hit < miss.

Kanilea. All bling. Nuff said.
 
KoOLau. Custom. Superb, built by a master, Noa Bonk.

KoOlaha. Hit > miss. Best "spirit". Best warranty.

Kamaka. Production models overrated. Hit < miss.

Kanilea. All bling. Nuff said.

Obviously, all of the mentioned brands are great. I'm not going to rank the brands, but I agree about KoAloha having the best spirit.
 
Personal preference. I'm a Kamaka girl all the way, but that doesn't mean it's the best - it just means it's what I like best :)

ETA: I suppose I should point out that I've owned and/or played all of the four in the OP except Ko'Olau. I sold my Koaloha not because I didn't like it, but because my needs changed. There were a few reasons I went with Kamaka rather than a different Koaloha - mainly, I prefer Kamaka's fretboard wood and I don't really like Koaloha's design elements, even though I think their ukes consistently sound fantastic. I've borrowed and played multiple Kanile'as and each time, did not care for the thickness of the neck - with my tiny hands, it's noticeable and uncomfortable.
 
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All are nice instruments.

I've owned a couple of each. But only have Ko'olau and Kanile'a currently.

My current K-brand playing preference is Ko'olau.
 
Ko'olau/Kanilea....for me, an easy choice, although some of the newer Kamaka's are awesome. To me, some Ko'Alohas sound amazing, some don't. I do like a little bling. A matter of "personal" preference. Lots of folks have had an awful hard time telling them apart and have been unable to choose which is which from blind sound tests. It's like in the old days where folks constantly debated which of the big car manufacturers was best....Chevy, Ford, Chrysler, etc. etc.
 
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Gee, nobody has mentioned Kala or Kiwaya or Kasuga or Kapono or Kapok or Kalua or Kahala!

They're all K-brands, aren't they?

Thank you, Tiki King, for the list...
 
I don't know. I only have one Kamaka, and I'm not likely to buy any other K brands. I love the ukes I have. I'm sure I would love other K brands if I had them too. I bought a Kamaka pineapple for the tradition, the sound, and frankly just being able to have a better soprano than my Kala KA-S. Also, it means a lot to me, personally, that the company used to hire deaf workers back in a time when people with disabilities had a rougher time being gainfully employed. I'm deaf in my left ear, which has given me nothing but difficulty and heartache throughout my life. Being completely deaf--I couldn't imagine.

Just from sound samples I've heard, there are certain sizes/models of certain brands I like more than others. So it's not like I would only buy Kamakas. If my Kelii concert got crushed (perish the thought!) I would consider getting a KoAloha instead of another Kelii. I think Ko'olau's tenors are the bomb, but I'm not so interested in a concert or soprano.

But maybe, like me, people buy a K brand because of personal feelings. Because, honestly, all of them are great in their own ways. We might as well ask acoustic guitar players to rank Martin, Taylor, Gibson, Collings...
 
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Gee, nobody has mentioned Kala or Kiwaya or Kasuga or Kapono or Kapok or Kalua or Kahala!

They're all K-brands, aren't they?

Thank you, Tiki King, for the list...

Hahaha!

What makes me sad too, is that unless a uke starts with a "K" people seem to not group them in the same category. Or unless it has a very classic Hawaiian name. But there are some amazing hand-made USA made great sounding ukuleles that don't start with a "K" therefore don't get the privilege of being group into the high-end ukuleles.

But then I suppose the list would be way long.

As far as lining up the top 4 "K-brands", I really cant. It depends on the type of music someone is playing and everyone's ear is different.
 
Gee, nobody has mentioned Kala or Kiwaya or Kasuga or Kapono or Kapok or Kalua or Kahala!

They're all K-brands, aren't they?

Thank you, Tiki King, for the list...

Hmmmm. And now for the benefit of the little elf that writes thw message saying your message is too short. Hmmmmm again:rolleyes:

Kala ...banjo - uke top value for money.....
 
I love my KoAloha Opio. That was a big purchase for me, and I appreciate that the company makes such an amazing ukulele in that price range.
 
I haven't owned a Ko'olau but have owned KoAloha, Kamaka and Kanile'a. Of those, I have sold the Kamaka Concert and KoAloha Soprano, Kanile'a is a keeper.

In a soprano KoAloha sound wins although I prefer the vintage Martin sound. In concert it's hands down Kanile'a, the sound, build, finish cannot be beat. Kanile'a handily bests the others in fit, finish and style too.

I'm sure the Ko'olau are excellent too. The few I have seen are beautiful.
 
The only Big 4 K brand that I've ever played is my KoAloha longneck pineapple. I like it. My wife and I watched the KoAloha story on Waikiki Beach when they were doing one of their movie on the beach nights and I was impressed with the company. I then had the privilege to meet the late MGM at Hawaii Music Supply where he sold me my KoAloha. I'm sure that the other makes are good as well but I think I'll always be a KoAloha man because when I play it I think of Hawaii and the good times I've had there on vacation.
 
The OP should have restricted the list to the Hawaiian big K manufacturers. That said, my choice would be

Ko'olau for their quality in craftsmanship. Nothing else like it amongst the Big 4.

Kamaka because it's a legend. I believe that if it weren't for them building consistency for almost 100 years and keeping the ukulele Spirit alive none of us would be talking about his today. Maybe my reason is flawed but my vote is one of gratitude.
 
If price played into it: Kamaka - History but you have to pick the right one.
If price did not matter: Ko'olau. Not really comparable as the others are production ukes made by many while Noa builds all Ko'olaus...it's a custom shop. The base model isn't much more but since it's a custom shop, I would get lots of upgrades!
 
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Who picks Premimum K brand rack ukes by names... ok if you asked on established custom builders, they build with more consistancy..... dont you pick for sound first and preference next for premimum ukes?
some ukes will always sound better than others... due to the building variancies, materials etc.. even between the same model and made by the same person...one thing good about buying premimum off the racks ukuleles is you get to pick and choose the best one amongst all brands and your preference.
why would you cut that out of the equation just for a Name if we are talking about premimum ukes, as all retain about the same resale value if that matters.
 
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Like some one posted before, I love the spirit of Koaloha. And the way they sound.
 
Kompass Rose

Khuck Moore ( Moore Bettah)

Kovered Bridge

Kollings

There................I'm happy
 
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