Long Neck Questions

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sully151

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Hey All,

I am maybe possibly looking into getting another Uke. I have a R&L concert that I got about 15 years ago. Sadly, it has seen better days since it spent a lot of time on a boat.

I am primarily a bad guitar player, but love my little Uke too.

What are the benefits/downsides of a Long Neck?

Is it better/worse to get one in a concert size or tenor?

Would it be a bad choice to have a long neck as your only Uke? Is it more of a specialty item?

Thanks in advance.
 
I have a Kamaka longneck soprano (soprano body, concert neck) as my primary player and I just LOVE it. Definitely not a specialty item; I consider it the best of all worlds - still has a soprano sound but has the volume and sustain of a longer scale. In addition to more volume and sustain, another benefit is the join at the 14th fret instead of the standard 12th fret, making it easier to play high up the neck. Can't really think of any downside at all - will be curious to see what others have to say about that.
 
I agree, best of both worlds... if you like a Concert scale and a Soprano body (the definition
of 'Super Soprano' or 'Longneck Soprano') :)

I prefer the Soprano-size body, but my 'adult-size' (read fat) fingers enjoy the extra room
on a Concert-scale fingerboard.

Since my fingers are 'adult-size' but also short, a Tenor-scale fingerboard is a bit of a stretch
for my comfort.

Hence, the longneck Soprano! Yay! I'm sure glad someone thought of it and builders put
it into production :)

I'm a singer/strummer versus Fingerpicker, so the longneck Soprano works for me :)

keep uke'in',
 
Nothing but love here for the longneck. I have a KoAloha pineapple longneck. Soprano chime with concert playability. What's not to love? Plus the longer string length gives it more sustain.
 
It took a while, but the longer neck scale is the one for me. I have concert bodies with tenor necks. The extra room is needed and I have not noticed any difference in the sound.

I did have a tenor neck soprano for a time, but the neck was too top heavy for the body. It played nice though...
 
I love longnecks too. A longneck maintains the distinctive ukulele sound, but often gives better volume. The larger body of a tenor uke can sound more guitar-like. Advantages: more room for fretting the higher frets, increased volume, more frets, classic ukulele sound. The only disadvantages I have found: a longer stretch for some fingering, and finding cases that fit properly can be an issue sometimes.

–Lori
 
Here's another vote for the long neck. I love the soprano sound but I find the standard scale cramped, so the super soprano fills the bill. I have three: Kala KA-SLNG, Gretsch G9100-L, and aNueNue Mini-C.*

I have yet to play a long neck concert, but I like the scale on my tenor, so I expect a long neck concert would nice, too.

*Mini-C stands for "mini concert," but that seems to be a matter of marketing. Its body is soprano-sized, slightly longer than the others but no wider, and the Gretsch's body is deeper.
 
Lori said:
... and finding cases that fit properly can be an issue sometimes.
Click to expand...

Definitely could be a problem, but luckily I haven't had any issues with it. My Kamaka came with a case, so that was that; the Koaloha longneck pineapple I briefly had fit perfectly in an old standard pineapple case I had.

FWIW, I actually had more trouble finding a case that would fit a Koaloha Pikake soprano I had some years back. Because its lower bout was a bit wider than most sopranos, it was always a really snug fit. I resorted to an old-school chipboard case for that one - which would be a great solution for other oddly-sized ukes since they are somewhat flexible. Trouble is, nobody makes them any more!
 
+1 for all the long-neck love... I adore my Ohana SK-30L. I use it primarily for classical (and have it strung low G) so being able to play up the neck is really helpful, while still getting that lovely soprano sound.
 
Hearing everyones opinions of long neck sopranos is fortunate for me, as I have also been wondering if there were real advantages to this version of uke.

So what I'm getting from this is that there is more finger room & better sustain, for very little added length, thanks. :)
 
I also have a long-neck soprano, although mine is called a mini-concert, and coincidentally is also an R & L!
I love it, it has great sound, with the more comfortable scale of a concert, without the extra bulk. Win / Win for me!
It is probably the most "Hawaiian" sounding ukulele I have, the tenors I have tend to sound more like mini guitars, especially the low G ones.
 
My Mini-C came with its own gig bag (a nice one, too!) but the Kala and Gretsch models did not. The Kala is short enough to fit in some soprano bags, but the Gretsch is longer. I bought an Hola! concert gig bag and it works very well. The body area is a little larger, the there's nice thick padding, and the case is well made. At less than $20 at Amazon, it's a very good deal.
 
Hey All,

Thanks for the info. I might try to find a few to play. I live in Orange County Ca. So most of the shops near me have pretty standard fare, so it might be tough.
 
sully151 said:
Hey All,

Thanks for the info. I might try to find a few to play. I live in Orange County Ca. So most of the shops near me have pretty standard fare, so it might be tough.
Click to expand...

I'm in Orange County too, and the pickings are slim for ukes at most stores. I've seen some variety at Mo's Music in Fullerton and another store in Anaheim, the name of which escapes me at the moment, but it was mostly off brands that are in the hit-or-miss category. You might try Jim's Music in Tustin, as I think I saw a KA-SLNG there once. They tend not to have a lot of ukes in stock, but it'd be worth a call, or a visit if you're nearby. http://www.jimsmusic.com/ (I have no association with the store.)

EDIT: I don't know why I forgot about Island Bazaar in Huntington Beach -- just ukes and uke accessories, and friendly folks. I don't recall if I've seen any long-neck ukes there, but I'd bet on them first. http://ukuleleparadise.com/ (Again, I have no association with the store.)

FWIW, I bought my Kala from HMS and my Mini-C from Uke Republic, and I believe Mim carries Kala ukes. All three offer excellent service and include a setup.
 
Last edited:
Another cheer here for the long neck soprano!

My Koaloha longneck pineapple fits into a regular Kamaka pineapple case.
 
I have a Gretsch G9110-L, concert size body with long neck. It's great, but I want to find a hard case for it. It came with only a flimsy gig bag, and Gretsch doesn't make any kind of case for this particular ukulele. I've looked around on the web at cases and it seems the best thing to do is buy a tenor size case, then modify the padding somehow. I imagine this could be accomplished in a simplistic fashion by merely stuffing some padding (cloth or hunks of foam, for example) in the areas that are too loose around the instrument. Anybody have any other ideas? Thank you!
 
Rootley said:
I have a Gretsch G9110-L, concert size body with long neck. It's great, but I want to find a hard case for it. It came with only a flimsy gig bag, and Gretsch doesn't make any kind of case for this particular ukulele. I've looked around on the web at cases and it seems the best thing to do is buy a tenor size case, then modify the padding somehow. I imagine this could be accomplished in a simplistic fashion by merely stuffing some padding (cloth or hunks of foam, for example) in the areas that are too loose around the instrument. Anybody have any other ideas? Thank you!
Click to expand...

I'd recommend checking out a local uke-centric store, if that's a possibility. Both of the longneck sopranos I've owned fit into a standard soprano case, but then I've had standard sopranos that didn't fit into the standard cases I had on hand. The foam cases that are better protection than a gig bag but not a full hardshell case might be a good bet.

Otherwise, yeah - buy a bigger case and cut foam to fit is what I've seen others do.
 
I was wondering if there are any advantages or disadvantages between the super soprano (soprano with the concert fretboard) and the soprano with the tenor neck. I have a tenor and would like to get a soprano longneck for the soprano sound. I like the fret spacing of the tenor but I wonder if the string length might put too much strain on the soprano body, particularly around the saddle.
 
No issues.

I have a SS Keli'i with CM Worth and a KoAloha with BM Worth Browns.

They sound fabulous and are among my favourites. I have big hands and can navigate the fretboard with no issues.

I did have a LN Ohana soprano with a tenor neck. It was neck heavy. It had a nice sound but I had too many Ukes.
 
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