Eye candy: my Small collection, literally!

Olarte

Well-known member
Joined
Feb 18, 2009
Messages
1,578
Reaction score
4
Location
Massachusetts, USA
Here are some pics I put together of my small in size that is, sopranino collection. Enjoy :shaka:

- The one on the left is an kiwaya Soprano put there for refernce.
- This is followed by An Ohana Sopranino,
- Rubin Sopranino,
- Kala Pocket smalted maple,
- Kala Spruce top Sopranino,
- and finally an Iuke Pimeapple Piccolo (tuned one octave higher.

image.jpg

image.jpg

image.jpg
 
OOOOO! I want one! Well, I don't mean one of yours, exactly . . . :rolleyes: I want a small one for travel and one that is quiet to play in a dorm room.

Got any suggestions of one that won't break the bank?
 
The cheapest is the Rubin Sopranino rp-202 it's pretty good quality although you will want better string high tension. It's only about $40 but you have to get it from China via ebay.

The rest get pricey over 100$ the ohana Sopranino is a bit bigger so it's closer to a standard soprano, you can get that from MiM for about $140.

They are best for simple first position chords....

By the ways if you want small and quiet, look at the peanut (if you can find one) which you can play as is or plug headphones in and only you can hear the full sound. Risa sticks are awesome but pricey and you would NEES a small amp with a headphone jack to hear it privately you might be abLE to get either one of these here used...
 
Last edited:
Thanks! I guess I should get a peanut. I love peanuts and peanut butter . . . :p

OK, I can get a peanut from Amazon for $110. Might be a nice Christmas present to myself . . .
 
Last edited:
Cool, I'm glad they are still available. That is probably your best bet, it will fit in your knapsack and it plays like a soprano. Might want to get a strap button and strap much easier to play as it is not easy to hold.

Good luck!

Sorry if I enabled your UAS... Muahahahaha!
 
Cool, I'm glad they are still available. That is probably your best bet, it will fit in your knapsack and it plays like a soprano. Might want to get a strap button and strap much easier to play as it is not easy to hold.

Good luck!

Sorry if I enabled your UAS... Muahahahaha!

:p You are evil!!!!

But, I have been looking for one I could take with me and I do need something under my tree for Christmas!! E-bay has some, but my PayPal account is used up because I refuse to link it to my bank! Amazon will have to do . . .

Hm . . . I'm thinking maybe YOU need a new uke! You deserve it, don't you think? :D
 
I would love to hear that sweet little pineapple!
 
Jenny that is the way the sopraninos should be it has the piccolo Aquila strings and it sounds like a music box.

In fact I just found 2 sets of strings on ebay and got them for some of the other pockets. The tightness is where it should he.

I will try to do a video in a day or two and let you know. Ok?

I love it the iuke Pimeapple, which is why I took them all out for the photo shoot.

Aloha,
Ivan
 
I love mini ukes. I've got the Ohana 'nino, a Kala spalted maple pocket, and an acacia pocket. I missed out on the Talsma pineapple sopranino in the marketplace here but just looking at the pics of it makes me want to get one. Might have to contact Dave Talsma about it and get myself an early birthday present lol.
 
A good alternative to the talsma , price and waiting list is the iuke pineapple... It's the only one that is easy to get through Amazon and it's different because of the true piccolo sound an octave higher. It's also much more affordable at $143? Which is also why I ordered more Aquila 94u strings for two of my other pockets. The strings are harder to find, only two sets on ebay,

In any case as crazy as I am about UAS, I don't think anything over $200-$250 is worth paying for, a Sopranino, as for that I rather have other ukes.

Now that I have the iuke, I love it and think the piccolo strimgs will be awesome. I plan to do a short video of it. And will post an update here when I try the strings on a Kala or the Rubin..

It makes sense too since a piccolo is supposed to be high pitched. Eventhough the fretboard is narrower on the iuke, more proportional if you ask me, it's actually easier to play because of the higher tension of the strings.



I love mini ukes. I've got the Ohana 'nino, a Kala spalted maple pocket, and an acacia pocket. I missed out on the Talsma pineapple sopranino in the marketplace here but just looking at the pics of it makes me want to get one. Might have to contact Dave Talsma about it and get myself an early birthday present lol.
 
Last edited:
Nice "little" collection you've got there Ivan, thanks for sharing it with us!

So... now that you have me suffering from UAS, which one would be the best addition to my collection?
 
Smallness being probably the #1 USP of ukuleles, it makes sense to maximise (minimise?) it.
I have the Rubin rp-400 and a pal the rp-202 same as yours, which both worked out very well after a bit of tweaking and represent great value for money.
I haven't tried the others in your collection, except for picking up a kala once in a music store. How would you rank them?
 
Ok currently value wise I would pick the Rubin if I had to choose only one at a good price. You can get it for only $50 and imminent has no defects seems well built Etc... However all except the iuke are pretty comparable as is with worth Browns. They play ok but are just a bit floppy compared to the iuke.

Now the iuke which cost me 153 is lovely, it's a true piccolo meaning it's pitched an octave higher. Because of this it sounds like a music box. And Eventhough the fretboard is more proportional and narrower it still plays better and sounds cleaner then the others because of the tightness of the strings. Also because the strings are so thin it's nice to play with a delicate touch.

So now I found two sets of strings Aquila piccolo 94u which I order if all goes as expected it might make the other sopraninos true piccolos!! The strings are hard to get in the US I only found two on ebay, and so they are. To cheap.

I hope to do a quick video later on today, we'll see. But so far I love my iuke!!!! And if the strings work I think I'm gonna be thrilled with the Kala smalted maple pocket. We'll see...
 
Ivan, what a cute little stable of uke-lets - thanks for sharing the pics! I'm curious what the dimensions and scale lengths of each one are.

UkeMania, I'm thinking the cartoon ukes from the other thread might be ideal for your purpose, no? They're pretty small, light, indestructible, and quiet. And you really can't beat the price. Even if you missed out on the sale price, the regular prices are still quite good.
 
Thanks for the comments. I believe they are all about the same scale I think it's 11 inch scale.

I purchased it from dangleberry music through the us Amazon website, I believe it cost 153 including shipping.

Got it in about 2-3 weeks. Now the strings they seem harder to get, I finally found one ebay listing for 2 sets from the UK that cost me $28 including shipping but I think it will be worth it to make the pocket and other Kala true piccolos...
 
Just wondering Ivan...

Did the Kala ukes come from Mim also?
 
I replied to this thread a couple of days ago - but it has disappeared. Thank you for making the video. I love the sound and the intonation sounds pretty darn good on such a little uke. The song you composed for your wife is beautiful!
 
Top Bottom