Kala Custom: Maing Me a Believer with Each Additional Uke

Ukulele Eddie

Well-known member
Joined
Oct 20, 2013
Messages
3,477
Reaction score
28
Location
Santa Monica, CA
[title was supposed to read, "Making Me a Believer..." sorry about the missing 'k'!]

Sometime ago, we had a thread on Kala's new custom line out of Petaluma, California. Many of us questioned using their existing brand on truly custom, much more expensive ukes. To this day, I think they should have used some sort of derivative brand name, but...

...with each uke that I've seen/heard on HMS (my only source for evaluating this particular line), I am becoming more and more of a believer.

The Series 3 soprano and tenor available now on HMS both sound and look wonderful to me. If that sopano was a long neck, I would have clicked "Add to Cart" already.

Anybody else suitable impressed?
 
Last edited:
I'm very impressed with the sound.
Funny though... the "Kala" logo makes me pause. Guess I have some inherent uke prejudice.
Still if they where to sponsor me, I'd play one happily and wear the t-shirt and cap. Hypocritical and shallow, ha?
 
The ones I have played have not been worth the money yet. There are better ukes in the same price range.
 
When I first saw the announcement of the Kala Elite series, I was both excited and skeptical that what was being offered was not much more than a flashier attempt to exceed my favorite all solid wood Acacia KA-ASAC-T. Well, after playing a 2 Koa Tenor, I discovered that was not necessarily the case. Indeed, Kala has upped the ante with their Elite series with great sounding instrument that felt great to play and was a very nice looking instrument with a high-quality build that rivals any other high-end instrument I played including Kamaka, Kanile'a , Martin, and others.

Of course the perception will be that any Kala instrument is a less expensive instrument. Notice I didn't use the term cheap, because I don't feel the Kala instruments are cheap in the realm of quality. On the contrary, they are very good instruments for the value they offer. But that is the problem that many may have when looking at any Kala instrument that goes above that psychological price level of say $500 or greater . But like others have pointed out elsewhere, Kala is not the first company that produced non-luxury products and turned into a luxury product maker. This has been done by many other manufacturers in different industries with great success, such as Honda creating Acura and Toyota creating Lexus. The obvious difference here is Kala is still calling itself Kala with "Elite" attached to it's name, versus coming up with a new luxury name to differentiate from the base brand. But I think the use of a "Elite" after the already familiar brand-name is quite sufficient in what they are attempting to do. Any success will come from the idea that the company has an established customer base already familiar with their products, and now has a a higher-end offering for that same consumer base.

I feel that as long as Kala maintains a very high quality control and somewhat limited production of their elite series as they have seemingly done since the launch, they can be successful if they can maintain the line long enough for the consumer to adjust to the concept.

So far I like what I see, and could see myself buying a Kala Elite based on the sheer fact that I had a very high quality and great sounding instrument in my hand with no concern of being snobbish about the name on the headstock with price point at or above $1k or greater.
 
Last edited:
When I first saw the announcement of the Kala Elite series, I was both excited and skeptical that what was being offered was not much more than a flashier attempt to exceed my favorite all solid wood Acacia KA-ASAC-T. Well, after playing a 2 Koa Tenor, I discovered that was not necessarily the case. Indeed, Kala has upped the ante with their Elite series with great sounding instrument that felt great to play and was a very nice looking instrument with a high-quality build that rivals any other high-end instrument I played including Kamaka, Kanile'a , Martin, and others.

Of course the perception will be that any Kala instrument is a less expensive instrument. Notice I didn't use the term cheap, because I don't feel the Kala instruments are cheap in the realm of quality. On the contrary, they are very good instruments for the value they offer. But that is the problem that many may have when looking at any Kala instrument that goes above that psychological price level of say $500 or greater . But like others have pointed out elsewhere, Kala is not the first company that produced non-luxury products and turned into a luxury product maker. This has been done by many other manufacturers in different industries with great success, such as Honda creating Acura and Toyota creating Lexus. The obvious difference here is Kala is still calling itself Kala with "Elite" attached to it's name, versus coming up with a new luxury name to differentiate from the base brand. But I think the use of a "Elite" after the already familiar brand-name is quite sufficient in what they are attempting to do. Any success will come from the idea that the company has an established customer base already familiar with their products, and now has a a higher-end offering for that same consumer base.

I feel that as long as Kala maintains a very high quality control and somewhat limited production of their elite series as they have seemingly done since the launch, they can be successful if they can maintain the line long enough for the consumer to adjust to the concept.

So far I like what I see, and could see myself buying a Kala Elite based on the sheer fact that I had a very high quality and great sounding instrument in my hand with no concern of being snobbish about the name on the headstock with price point at or above $1k or greater.

I would agree that some of the China made $500 ukes may sound and play better than a $1,000 uke, BUT the elites are $1500 starting. You can buy a pretty awesome K-brand uke made in Hawaii for that.
 
Yes the price is high and the name on the uke is associated with lower priced ukes. But my experience with the California made u-bass models has me open to considering the possibilities. I am also very impressed by the quality they give you in the Asian made models.
 
Similarly, Lanikai has a competing Hawaii-made Malibu tenor with MSRP at over $2K. I believe it is made by Imua. In the $1k- $2k range there are lots of other excellent choices.
I'd guess resale values of these premium Kala and Lanikai ukes would be lower than competing K-brands, or Mya-Moes or others .
 
Last edited:
I would agree that some of the China made $500 ukes may sound and play better than a $1,000 uke, BUT the elites are $1500 starting. You can buy a pretty awesome K-brand uke made in Hawaii for that.

I think the one at $1,500 street is their top of the line model, the 3 Koa . A quick net search showed the 1 Koa is street priced in the $899, and the 2 Koa at $1,099. I'd like to find a few locally to play for a while to get a more sure-footed opinion. But $899 for an all solid Koa ukulele that they're giving special attention to in their California shop sounds appealing if they stand up to their Hawaiian made counterparts. I like to be surprised by well build great playing and sounding ukuleles no matter the name on the headstock or in the sound hole.

I'm sure resale may not be as good as say a Kamaka or Kanili'a, but I'm not an investor of these instruments and don't look to sell unless it is something that I don't care to use. So resale may be barrier to some who like to buy and sell a lot, unless of course these catch on and prices go up over time as they sometimes do...
 
Last edited:
My closest Lanakai dealer recently stopped carrying the Lanakai brand, and I was actually looking forward to them bringing in some of the Made in Hawaii models to try. I have to look around for another area dealer now to so that.
 
I think the one at $1,500 street is their top of the line model, the 3 Koa . A quick net search showed the 1 Koa is street priced in the $899, and the 2 Koa at $1,099. I'd like to find a few locally to play for a while to get a more sure-footed opinion. But $899 for an all solid Koa ukulele that they're giving special attention to in their California shop sounds appealing if they stand up to their Hawaiian made counterparts. I like to be surprised by well build great playing and sounding ukuleles no matter the name on the headstock or in the sound hole.

I'm sure resale may not be as good as say a Kamaka or Kanili'a, but I'm not an investor of these instruments and don't look to sell unless it is something that I don't care to use. So resale may be barrier to some who like to buy and sell a lot, unless of course these catch on and prices go up over time as they sometimes do...



Thanks for doing your homework.....the base price for the Calif built Hawaiian Koa Kala is $700-$800.00(soprano) range....I played them at HMS and they are the nice the tenors sound as good as the other K brands..the guys a Kala have put a lot of thought and energy into these ukes.....

hope they do well...:)
 
Would these be considered custom ?
http://www.kalabrand.com/EliteUke.html
Or is it simply an elite (aka fancy) series ?

I looked into these, I called Kala and was told there are a few options available, but it does not seem like they are building them to order. They did say they were not a dealer and that If I wanted something special I'd have to go thru a local dealer. (Which to me means I would not be able to price shop) But what they consider to be "custom" is not what I consider "custom". When I asked about the "custom inlay" they offer they said there are a few choices. But really could not tell me what the choices were. (or even direct me to more information)

They also say they have a custom foam padded case, that sounds like a stock case that they had designed. To me "Custom" means the built to a client's specifications. Not "pick one form column A and two from column B". If I was to order a "custom" ukuele I would at least want to be able to choose things like the size and shape of the neck, the size shape and location of the sound hole(s), if it had a sound port and where, as well as what if anything it had on the head stock. the number and size of frets. It doesn't seem they have those options.

I think the elite series looks nice and are probably pretty good and is even a good deal I don't want to sound like I am poo-pooing them but I was a little confused about the word custom both on their website and in the thread so I am only trying to clarify.
 
I have not had a good experience with Kala in the pre-elite days. I started a thread last March. You can see it here: http://forum.ukuleleunderground.com/showthread.php?106050-Konsidering-a-Kala.

The flames came hard and often with that posting, but I stand by my personal experience--the Kala company blew off my problems in searching for a decent baritone ukulele when I wrote to them. I can handle the flames. As has been said, "This ain't my first county fair." Personally, if the company brushes off a sincere concern on a $300 (street price) ukulele, why would anyone lay down a grand or more--especially when there are other K-brands with strikingly stellar records?
 
Would these be considered custom ?
http://www.kalabrand.com/EliteUke.html
Or is it simply an elite (aka fancy) series ?

I looked into these, I called Kala and was told there are a few options available, but it does not seem like they are building them to order. They did say they were not a dealer and that If I wanted something special I'd have to go thru a local dealer. (Which to me means I would not be able to price shop) But what they consider to be "custom" is not what I consider "custom". When I asked about the "custom inlay" they offer they said there are a few choices. But really could not tell me what the choices were. (or even direct me to more information)

They also say they have a custom foam padded case, that sounds like a stock case that they had designed. To me "Custom" means the built to a client's specifications. Not "pick one form column A and two from column B". If I was to order a "custom" ukuele I would at least want to be able to choose things like the size and shape of the neck, the size shape and location of the sound hole(s), if it had a sound port and where, as well as what if anything it had on the head stock. the number and size of frets. It doesn't seem they have those options.

I think the elite series looks nice and are probably pretty good and is even a good deal I don't want to sound like I am poo-pooing them but I was a little confused about the word custom both on their website and in the thread so I am only trying to clarify.


interesting....your builder lets you tell him the size of the sound hole and where it should be on the uke and you tell him where to put the SSP and fret size....I thought that was the builders job....:) I never did anything like that....but I did ask for a certain neck thickness(if I already did not know how the necks were) and choice of woods for the build....

if you don't mind me asking who are the builders you use?...
 
Last edited:
interesting....your builder lets you tell him the size of the sound hole and where it should be on the uke and you tell him where to put the SSP and fret size....I thought that was the builders job....:) I never did anything like that....but I did ask for a certain neck thickness(if I already did not know how the necks were) and choice of woods for the build....

if you don't mind me asking who are the builders you use?...


Yes
With discussions with the builder you tell them what you want. His job is to consult with you and let you know what problems those desires might cause. There is a difference between something that is made custom and what is simply hand made.
Is it that strange you would tell a builder if you want a custom sound hole ? or a cutaway ? or how many frets to the body ? If you want your name on the fret board ? the shape of the headstock ?

I have some hand made ukuleles I don't have one that I'd consider custom. But I meet with builders who do this sort of work regularly.
 
Last edited:
Would these be considered custom ?
http://www.kalabrand.com/EliteUke.html
Or is it simply an elite (aka fancy) series ?

I looked into these, I called Kala and was told there are a few options available, but it does not seem like they are building them to order. They did say they were not a dealer and that If I wanted something special I'd have to go thru a local dealer. (Which to me means I would not be able to price shop) But what they consider to be "custom" is not what I consider "custom". When I asked about the "custom inlay" they offer they said there are a few choices. But really could not tell me what the choices were. (or even direct me to more information)

They also say they have a custom foam padded case, that sounds like a stock case that they had designed. To me "Custom" means the built to a client's specifications. Not "pick one form column A and two from column B". If I was to order a "custom" ukuele I would at least want to be able to choose things like the size and shape of the neck, the size shape and location of the sound hole(s), if it had a sound port and where, as well as what if anything it had on the head stock. the number and size of frets. It doesn't seem they have those options.

I think the elite series looks nice and are probably pretty good and is even a good deal I don't want to sound like I am poo-pooing them but I was a little confused about the word custom both on their website and in the thread so I am only trying to clarify.



The one custom order build I did (a Martin guitar) was done by working closely with the builder's dealer. The dealer worked with me on all the specs to be submitted for review and a price estimate. Once the order was confirmed, the dealer handled everything ensuring that what was built matched the original custom specs. This eliminates any problems that may arise and the dealer is your buffer and will ensure that your purchase is accurate. Without this buffer of a dealer, you will have more of a burden to ensure the process is completed accurately.

This is why most manufacturers have dealers in the first place to provide the buffer for more focused customer service. Whether Kala will do full blown customs, or just minor changes, I Would again have one of their dealers find out for certain.
 
The one custom order build I did (a Martin guitar) was done by working closely with the builder's dealer. The dealer worked with me on all the specs to be submitted for review and a price estimate. Once the order was confirmed, the dealer handled everything ensuring that what was built matched the original custom specs. This eliminates any problems that may arise and the dealer is your buffer and will ensure that your purchase is accurate. Without this buffer of a dealer, you will have more of a burden to ensure the process is completed accurately.

This is why most manufacturers have dealers in the first place to provide the buffer for more focused customer service. Whether Kala will do full blown customs, or just minor changes, I Would again have one of their dealers find out for certain.

Not to sound contrary but if something is submitted for review that implies it must be with in certain guidelines. I don't know if that would be considered "custom" which to me means "made to order" ... Of course a builder can come back and say "we can't do that" or not take the job.(this happens to me a lot)

To me it seems the dealer in the situation you mention is a buffer but not for the customer, a buffer for the manufacturer. The dealer becomes like the costumer service person you complain to when your cable goes out. You may have paid for cable to watch the "big game" but if the cable goes out in the last half the best you can hope for is a partial credit. THere is only so much they can do to correct any problems.

And yes, one would have more of a burden to make sure the process is completed accurately anything not mentioned to the builder and doesn't turn out right to the customer is not the fault of the builder.

I once had custom displays built for a trade show and "assumed" or "forgot to mention" that I expected them to break apart for storage. That was a costly mistake on my part it was not the fault of the builder who couldn't read my mind.
 
Last edited:
“Custom” is a word commonly used for small shops not running an assembly line operation. Maybe that word shouldn’t be used. Regardless, most every builder will be offering options within the confines of what they are comfortable with and what they have found to be best for their builds.

The builders I know all have certain guidelines. They have templates and jigs to cut their fret slots to a certain scale, attach their necks at a certain fret to body and glue their bridge accordingly, pre made molds determine the shape of the body and their stock of woods will determine what your choices are.

Ordering a custom is already a leap of faith for you. I think it’s best to not be locked into something when no one really knows how it will come out, including the builder. I know when my brother tries something new he does it first to make sure he likes it. He won’t take it on as an option you can order until he first has experience with it and decided he likes it. He builds how he builds so a custom order would have to fit into that. Perhaps you wouldn’t consider him a “custom” builder. However, I think it’s a respectable way to operate and in everyone’s best interest.

In the case you mentioned above, if you put in an order with a dealer and they did not relay the information correctly, the fault would go to the dealer and there should be no cost to you. It's the same as putting an order in directly with the maker and them not getting the specs right. Humans do make mistakes, but usually after an order you will receive an invoice or build sheet with details. If everything is confirmed it should all go well.
 
Interesting thread about the California made stuff; my take on it is that they're serious about what they're doing, perhaps because as a uke company, they need product diversification (witness the guitars).

With respect to customer service, the usual way (tradition) is for dealers to service the stuff, not the company. In the case of Kala, I'll point out that a large Austin, TX based dealer gave me a real runaround on a Kala. .. but shockingly, the Kala folks themselves were enormously helpful and made a fix for me.
 
Top Bottom