is that normal?

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Martynas

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i just bought my first ukulele makala mk-s and when i strum it it sounds like ukulele of death not of joy and happines. its just my strumming or instrument? :D i tunned it with android app and also checked it on google page where i can hear all strings how they sound and it sounded exactly like there i dont know whats the problem? and also when i tune them strings feels really relaxed, i mean i can drag 3 of them one pile easily
 
i just bought my first ukulele makala mk-s and when i strum it it sounds like ukulele of death not of joy and happines. its just my strumming or instrument? :D i tunned it with android app and also checked it on google page where i can hear all strings how they sound and it sounded exactly like there i dont know whats the problem?
 
Beware the ukulele of death...

Could be the strings - a new Makala might have had Aquilas put on it but then again it might not. If not it might have stock nylon strings on it, which aren't always so great.

Could be the tuning - a clip on tuner would serve you well here just to be sure that you are tuning up okay. Floppy strings sounds a bit suspicious.

Could just be you :p
 
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A sound sample would really tell us what's wrong.
 
Can you be more specific? "Ukulele of death" doesn't tell me what's wrong with the sound.
 
it was my bad. but the ukulele really sounded awful. i watched one video where he said factory relax ukes before shipping so first time you tune you have to tune it a lot i mean spin those things. and yeah its ok now and im learning few strumming patterns :)
 
Have you looked for recordings of your uke on youtube to know if youre in the ballpark?
 
All ukuleles should have a name........your ukulele of death is now known as the "Grim Reaper"

When strings are new they continue to stretch and sound like death at first. Play it for 4-6 hours to let them stretch and settle before calling it bad names
 
I dunno, I got a nice Korala all plastic polycarbonate ukulele yesterday and even that sounds pretty good. Suprisingly good infact!
Try a string change!
 
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Ukulele of Death? Yeah, sounds like the Makala I had.
 
A possible cause is that you might strum the "wrong" way. Like, hitting the strings in a way where you mute them.

Perhaps this helps:

 
If your strings are that loose and floppy, could it be that you have the octave too low on some of them? Just a guess.... They should be pretty taught and take a little effort to press them down to the fret. Also, when tuning G C E A, make sure the G string is the one closest to your chin when you are holding and strumming the uke.
 
Ukejenny said:
If your strings are that loose and floppy, could it be that you have the octave too low on some of them? Just a guess.... They should be pretty taught and take a little effort to press them down to the fret. Also, when tuning G C E A, make sure the G string is the one closest to your chin when you are holding and strumming the uke.
Click to expand...
I agree with jenny. It sounds like you might be tuned to the proper notes, but the wrong octave.
 
Cheap beginners ukuleles can sound a little dead, However the first culprit is usually cheap strings. I've bought many ukuleles that sounded dead with the original strings that came to life after a string change.

Anthony
 
Martynas said:
it was my bad. but the ukulele really sounded awful. i watched one video where he said factory relax ukes before shipping so first time you tune you have to tune it a lot i mean spin those things. and yeah its ok now and im learning few strumming patterns :)
Click to expand...

LOL I did the opposite with my first uke, tuned mine too high.
 
stevepetergal said:
Ukulele of Death? Yeah, sounds like the Makala I had.
Click to expand...

haha...good luck with your Makala, Martynas!

I have friends with Makala baritone, tenor and concert...the baritone and tenor sound fine, the concert on the other hand sounds like krap! And the lady who has it leads a group and seems oblivious that the thing is so monotoned! You can hardly hear any difference in the chords.
 
In the school where I teach music, including ukulele, we have about 30 Makala MKS's. They required a little breaking in before they would stay in tune, but the more we tune them and play them, the better they sounded. Definitely a cheap ukulele, and not without compromises - but they've done well for us.

I take it you're a beginning player, since you mentioned this is your first uke. I would suggest making sure you're not bending the strings up or downward when you're making chords; that was a problem for me when I was starting to play. That can make any ukulele sound out of tune. Just a thought.
 
Martynas said:
it was my bad. but the ukulele really sounded awful. i watched one video where he said factory relax ukes before shipping so first time you tune you have to tune it a lot i mean spin those things. and yeah its ok now and im learning few strumming patterns :)
Click to expand...

It's worth it to have a clip on tuner, $5-10 on ebay. the ones with a Uke setting will keep you from tuning to the wrong octave.
You will probably have to tune up every hour for the first day, then every six hours, then every day and then one day it will hold tune for a week! Then one day, you'll decide to change strings and it will be the same for a week or so.
 
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