which one ?

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hoosierhills

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Hi everyone. Starting the search for the next uke. Playing Mainland exclusively at the moment and thought it might be nice to diversify a bit. I'm considering either one of the higher end O'hana's or entry level or slightly better Pono in tenor size. Volume and tone are priorities. Your thoughts and experiences would be appreciated.
 
I'd say go Pono
 
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I've never played an Ohana but they seem to get good reviews. As for Pono, I own a couple and think they are great. So, my biased opinion would be to try out a Pono. You can get started with Pono fairly inexpensively, if you go with a non deluxe acacia or mahogany.
 
Mele makes an awesome uke and prices are very reasonable.
 
I love Ohana. Love them. Have heard great things about Ponos. And I can't stop typing without saying, KPK makes a sweeeeeeeeet tenor. Sweet. My husband took mine away from me. I may have to order a KPK concert to replace that beauty.
 
Pono acacia/mahogany though are not very loud.
Don't get me wrong.. I personally love the neck on my pono. I can play forever on it without getting tired.

But the acacia/mahogany ponos are NOT loud. It's the one I grab if it's late at night and I don't want to wake the household up. I think they're ones you buy for tone, not volume. If you want a louder pono.... maybe a cedar top, but I've not tried one of those so I can't say for sure. I've not tried the Ohana's either. But you said you wanted volume and tone.
 
spookelele said:
Pono acacia/mahogany though are not very loud.
Don't get me wrong.. I personally love the neck on my pono. I can play forever on it without getting tired.

But the acacia/mahogany ponos are NOT loud. It's the one I grab if it's late at night and I don't want to wake the household up. I think they're ones you buy for tone, not volume. If you want a louder pono.... maybe a cedar top, but I've not tried one of those so I can't say for sure. I've not tried the Ohana's either. But you said you wanted volume and tone.
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I guess you have to define "loud" and in reference to what? My Pono mahogany isn't quite as loud as my Boat paddle or KoAloha, but it's right there. I actually took a decibel level measurement of my ukes one night. Hey, I was bored.

While not scientific, the KoAloha and Boat Paddle came in at 85db, strumming open chords. The Pono measured 83db, not bad considering the Boat is an ML model which is a baritone size body/tenor scale and the KoAloha's are just loud. Again, just putting the meter in front of me as I played all my ukes, so it's not the end all of tests.
 
I bought a Pono MT and I found that it had a specific tone and volume characteristic. To get volume out of it, I needed higher tension strings - which made the tone very clean, clear and to me it lost some of the characteristic uke "bark" and gained a more singing tone. Depends on what you're after. I've never played an Ohana so I can't offer a constructive comparison.

If you're looking for volume, Koloaha seems to come up a lot - but the tenors are likely outside your price range unless you get a good deal on a used one. The concert Koaloha Opio definitely would be in the price range, but not a tenor.

And if you want to get way outside the box, the new Deering Goodtime banjo uke is has way more tone than any banjo uke I've ever played and volume is not lacking (to put it mildly).
 
PTOEguy said:
I bought a Pono MT and I found that it had a specific tone and volume characteristic. To get volume out of it, I needed higher tension strings
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What did you settle on for strings? I've tried stock yellows ( I ditched them because I don't like wound), aquila's both new nylgut and super (louder, but fuzzy with bad sustain), wort ct(very clear, but very quiet), martin 620's (high tension but bad tone), and d'addario carbon. Right now I'm on the carbons which seem like the nicest compromise so far.

As far as quiet reference... concert kala cedartop acacia is way louder than the tenor acacia pono with nylguts.
 
I'm constantly recommending the Kala solid cedar top acacia koa body for $250-$360, really good projection and sustain, in my opinion, rivals some of the K brands up to $1000.
 
I would agree that Cedar & Spruce are generally "louder' of the wood tops you can get.... of course Banjo Ukes are probably the loudest.

Get that Deering banjo uke so I cant'!

itsme said:
My Mainland red cedar tenor is probably the loudest uke I have.

I'd probably put my Kala spruce top thinline tenor next in line. People are always telling me they can't believe how loud it is.
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cedar top

kohanmike said:
I'm constantly recommending the Kala solid cedar top acacia koa body for $250-$360, really good projection and sustain, in my opinion, rivals some of the K brands up to $1000.
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Great information from everyone. I have to admit that of the many sound samples I have heard I am always drawn to the cedar or redwood tops. I love the sound my Mainland mango produces but I can't seem to get much volume from it. Maybe a change from the stock aquillas would help.
Having said that, a local shop carries a lot of the Kala models and I will check them out.
 
hoosierhills said:
I have to admit that of the many sound samples I have heard I am always drawn to the cedar or redwood tops.
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I would also recommend the kala cedar acacia series. I think they hit a sweet spot with that line. I have it in concert and it is very large sounding. You get alotta uke for your money with that one. Slot head if you like it and very smooth grover tuners.
 
I'm not the most experienced player, so take my advise for what it is :)
If you have a chance to play the ukes you're interested in, then let your hands, eyes, and ears be your judge.
The wood used have alot to say, no doubt, but it is hard to generalize how the instrument sounds, just by looking at what wood is used. Two of the same uke, from the same brand, might even feel and sound different.
Allso, think about what kind of life the uke will have. If you will use it for traveling, taking to the park, and so on, then a solid uke might not be the best choice for you, and you should think about laminate body with solid top, and getting a good case or bag for it.
If you are mainly going to use the uke at home and just want the best possible sound, then solid ukes made from thin and well aged wood might be best.

If you, like me, live at a place where the shops don't stock alot of ukes, and you don't think the lokal store have what you need, then i'd say you should buy from a shop that does inspection and setup before shipping the instrument. Even high end brands make mistakes and occasionally bad instruments.
I once wanted to upgrade to a high(er) end instrument and ordered a Martin from Thomann. The instruments neck was all out of place and the fretboard was uneven, so two of the frets was bend. From Thomann I allso get an Ovation uke, that had a bad construction and allso was returned.
I don't think a more "personal" shop would ship such an item.

In short :-D
You will find good ukes from both brands, and you really have to try them to tell what is best.
If you buy the uke online, then play it for a few days, without giving it a scratch at all, and if you are not happy about it for several reasons, then ship it back. If you like it but have minor issues with the setup or tone (to some extend), then it might be worth having a pro doing a new setup and then experimenting with other strings to find a tone that suits you better.

My best sounding uke is a Kala with solid spruce top and mahogny laminate body. It is stringed with aquila super nylgut low G. For some reason, this uke just puts out a clean, bright and balanced sound, that is superior to some ukes that cost two and tree times more. I'm shure, that I could buy another uke like my Kala, and recieve a bad sounding and cheap feeling instrument. Buying online has a high factor of luck to it ;)

Anyway, I hope you find an amazing instrument that will be worth every penny :)
 
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