Tuning a Waterman

UkeStuff

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Kala very kindly donated 40 Makala Watermen to our school.

We have been using them for a while now, and I am convinced--after using my own ukuleles and the very inexpensive Mahalos that we purchased before the donation--that the Waterman (and its ilk, like the BugsGear) are ideal ukuleles for school programs where the ukulele is an addition to a program rather than THE program (such as in Langley, BC). They are rugged and hold their tuning better in the sad climate conditions of a school (A/C is turned off at the end of the day and in the summer, heat is lowered in the winter at night and weekend, etc.).

One of my observations is that the 2nd String E is most likely to be out of tune.

But what I wanted to ask about was tuning the 1st String A. The Snark SN-6 tuner doesn't get a clear reading on that string (it does with the other 3), unless the A string is played ridiculously strong or a chord is still ringing from the other strings.

Otherwise, when tuning the A String, it shows as "in tune" on the tuner, but when played in any chord, the string is distinctly sharp. As we have 40 of these instruments, I can verify that this is the case, versus a fluke (no pun intended).

If you have a Waterman, have you experienced this, and if so, what is your solution? Is there a clip-on tuner that is better for the Waterman (and worth buying)?

I know I can tune by ear--but this is a school where time to tune is often limited and there is often other noise in the room. Speed is of the essence.

Thanks in advance for any advice.
 
Hello Choirguy,

First, that is super-cool that Kala hooked you up.

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I was having the same problem making the E and A note properly. chalked it up to the crappy stings.
The intonation was just terrible past the 5th fret on the A. The E's intonation was bad from the 1st fret on.
My solution, a new set of strings.

The Martin 600 should do the trick...and every uke player needs to learn how to string a uke so it can be a learning experience for the kids. =)
BTW, I have no problem tuning my uke now that I have new strings. I am using the PHD's but those are twice the cost of the Martin 600.
 
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Thanks for that...I will keep that in mind. Right now we have no budget for new strings...and need to wear these out first. But if it really is the strings...then that will resolve the issue. I may just buy a set of new strings myself and give that a shot.

Incidentally, the strings don't seem bad--compared to the terrible strings that came with our Mahalos (which we also cannot afford to swap out).

Again...thank you for that. I have no idea why the A just won't read as it should, particularly when the G reads just fine.
 
I don't think the difference in strings is great enough to create such a huge problem. Even a counterfeit string that is visually indistinguishable from an authentic one. It's easy to believe that the sound path up the neck might give some tuners a headache, especially on the highest string. You might consider swapping the A with one of your home ukes. See if the string gives your home tuner problems and vice versa for the school A / tuner. Won't cost you any more than a little inconsequential wear and tear on those two A strings.
 
Thanks for that...I will keep that in mind. Right now we have no budget for new strings...and need to wear these out first. But if it really is the strings...then that will resolve the issue. I may just buy a set of new strings myself and give that a shot.

Incidentally, the strings don't seem bad--compared to the terrible strings that came with our Mahalos (which we also cannot afford to swap out).

Again...thank you for that. I have no idea why the A just won't read as it should, particularly when the G reads just fine.

I am sorry, flu medication is making me loopy. When I first read the thread, I thought this was about the strings.

Have you moved the tuner around on the headstock?
I found that I got a better tuner response when I placed the clip-on close the G string near the nut. I have the mini clip-in style.
Perhaps in your case move the tuner near the A string geared tuner for better vibration response. Or try an online /ipad or android tuner app to compare.
Have you tried that?
 
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Thanks for that...I will keep that in mind. Right now we have no budget for new strings...and need to wear these out first. But if it really is the strings...then that will resolve the issue. I may just buy a set of new strings myself and give that a shot.

Incidentally, the strings don't seem bad--compared to the terrible strings that came with our Mahalos (which we also cannot afford to swap out).

Again...thank you for that. I have no idea why the A just won't read as it should, particularly when the G reads just fine.

Have you tried a different tuner, some just dont register well on some ukes
 
I have a bunch of SN-6s that I use (Snark), and they read every other kind of ukulele just fine, all 4 strings. But reading the A on a Waterman doesn't work right.

I am going to try putting the tuner closer to the A tuner head next week. I'll see if that works...and I will also give my iPhone a try as well.

That said, I have found the clip-on tuners to simply be easier to use in a busy room.
 
Awesome of Kala to hook your school up like that! I have this sort of problem with banjo ukes. Try moving the tuner to that side/ in line with the string. Sometimes that helps, for me at least.

I think a lot people here would be happy to donate a few bucks for school programs. It would be nice if there was a list of local schools with these types of school programs if we wanted to downsize and donate
 
Awesome of Kala to hook your school up like that!

I agree. What is funny is that I wrote in asking for some posters to put in the classroom (I teach middle school choir to a mix of kids that want to be there and those that have no other elective). So I raised money from parents (not a cent from the district) and bought 58 Mahalo MK-1s, which were the cheapest ukuleles we could find that were functional--roughly $25 each from Amazon.

I let Kala know that as I asked for posters...and it took them a little while to get back to me, but then they sent me an e-mail informing me that they would send ukuleles--and they have done this for at least 2 other schools that I know of.

The irony is that the value of the "free" Watermen is almost greater than the value of all of the Mahalos.

I contacted Kala because I own (mostly) Kalas (Makala Concert Electric, Travel Tenor, Ukadelic American, Concert Banjo) and I like their products. You can bet I'll keep buying Kalas (the 10th Anniversary Sweet Pea is on my wish list).

And they donated out of the goodness of their hearts. I contacted Mahalo and the Mahalo vendors here in the US, and they were not willing to offer any deal--so that is why we went with Amazon, and I would have never thought to ask Kala for a donation.

Also...I'm not complaining about the intonation of the A, either. I'm just trying to figure out a better way to make sure it is in tune!
 
I agree. What is funny is that I wrote in asking for some posters to put in the classroom (I teach middle school choir to a mix of kids that want to be there and those that have no other elective). So I raised money from parents (not a cent from the district) and bought 58 Mahalo MK-1s, which were the cheapest ukuleles we could find that were functional--roughly $25 each from Amazon.

I let Kala know that as I asked for posters...and it took them a little while to get back to me, but then they sent me an e-mail informing me that they would send ukuleles--and they have done this for at least 2 other schools that I know of.

The irony is that the value of the "free" Watermen is almost greater than the value of all of the Mahalos.

I contacted Kala because I own (mostly) Kalas (Makala Concert Electric, Travel Tenor, Ukadelic American, Concert Banjo) and I like their products. You can bet I'll keep buying Kalas (the 10th Anniversary Sweet Pea is on my wish list).

And they donated out of the goodness of their hearts. I contacted Mahalo and the Mahalo vendors here in the US, and they were not willing to offer any deal--so that is why we went with Amazon, and I would have never thought to ask Kala for a donation.

Also...I'm not complaining about the intonation of the A, either. I'm just trying to figure out a better way to make sure it is in tune!

That is a great story. Thanks for sharing.
I must have gotten some bad strings on mine.
 
Have you pursued tuning up a step to ADF#B to see if your tuners respond? There is little cost in trying an alternate tuning and transposing.
My Makala Dolphin sounds a little better in this tuning than in GCEA. (Well, this week it does, to my 67 YO ears and these particular strings).
 
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Bill1,

There is a lot to unpack in your reply, and I certainly don't want.to get into an argument.

What I know is this: my school was given 40 Waterman ukuleles at no cost. They did this knowing we had already purchased very inexpensive Mahalo instruments. This means that they knew we weren't going to put in an order for another set of instruments any time soon.

It could be a tax write-off, but I have no issue with that. I write off donations I make in my taxes as well.

For my use, in my school, with our climate issues (heat/cold), with our student population (Title 1 School, low income, etc), the Makala Watermen are holding up far better than the Mahaols we purchased, abd even better the four Caramel ukuleles I bought for our 7th and 8th "man hand" boys to use (one has a huge scratch on the back--which could be purposeful damage).

If you had a full-blown ukulele program (like Langley, BC) where kids would be going on tour--you would want high quality instruments that cost hundreds of dollars each (like many band instruments).

We use the ukulele as a supplement in choir, which is groups of students up to 52 at a time This allows the singers to develop a skill where they can accompany themself (and tap into the rich resources on YouTube for the songs they want to sing/play), and as a diversion for the 40% of kids that are forced into choir that don't want to be there (there is no elective choice). Granted, the real sour kids still aren't happy no matter what you do-but I have seen a large number of kids gravitate to participation with the ukulele where they resist or even refuse to sing.

And the Waternen are ideal for that use.

Also...please note that I added 4 Caramel Ukuleles (cheap Chinese ukuleles) to our inventory, so I am aware of their value...but we needed 54 ukuleles at the start with no funding from the school (district, state, taxpayers), so our $25 Mahalo MK-1s are serviceable. We didn't have the extra $10-$20 per ukulele to go with a better model--and that is why the Watermen are a huge bonus and step up.

Again, the challenge is just tuning the A String.
 
MuttonousDoug,

I haven't considered taking things up a whole step because we have a mix of ukuleles (58 Mahalos in general, 40 Watermen, 1 $36 Caramel Concert, and 3 $39 Caramel Tenors) and kids sometime switch between them. As we all play together--and sometimes me on the piano (although I am usually on one of my personal ukuleles), we all need to be in the same key.
 
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