Wanted: soprano uke with strings far apart

Mr. B

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Soprano uke with strings far apart

Hi everyone,
I am looking for a soprano uke under 500,-$ which has the strings quite far apart, so fingerpicking becomes more enjoyable.
I have 3 examples at home, where I measured the distance between the g-string and the a-string.

Lanikai LU11: at the nut 26,5mm, and at the saddle 38,5mm
(I like the sound a lot, but the strings could be further apart - for my taste)

Cordoba 22S: at the nut 28mm, and at the saddle 40mm
(don't like the sound very much, because of the spruce it is a very bright sound, to bright for my taste)

Flight Travel Uke: at the nut 30mm, and at the saddle 42,5mm
(the sound is about ok/different; the strings are beautiful apart from eachother, the action is not good a bit further down the frets, and the feel is not really like a proper instrument - for my taste, I guess I prefer wood)

So, would you maybe know of a soprano which could be interesting for me?

Thank you all already for having taken the time to read this.
Best regards.
 
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Personally I find that the typical Soprano is hampered by having its strings set too closely together, but if you look hard then there are examples where this is not so. The latest Lanikai Sopranos do, I believe, have both a wider fretboard and wider spaced strings but I haven’t had my hands in one to check. For the price I think that they’re a nice product, well my LU21-P was and I sometimes regret selling it. One trick that is possible on some Ukes is to replace the nut with one that has wider spaced strings, I find that that trick works for me but YMMV.

The Islander Ukes have a wider fretboard and wider spaced strings, worth a look and the Flea is worth a look too. A good search here might produce more useful results for you, the topic has been raised before but I look forward to reading what others have to say on this again.

Edit. A search didn’t produce much for me but this might be a start: https://forum.ukuleleunderground.co...no-with-Wide-neck&highlight=Wide+neck+soprano
 
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Thank you very much for your answer!!!
I've been searching here for a post with this topic, but I didn't succeed in finding it.
Let's see if more people have answers, that would be great.
 
I believe the Islander Soprano has a nut width of 1 1/2 inches. I know a few other brands have the same dimensions, but I cannot remember which.

Never mind, here you go -


Make Model/Size Nut Width Confirmations
Anuenue 1.375″ / 35mm 1
Big Island Honu Traditional 1.375″ / 35mm 1
Bushman 1.45″ / 37mm 1
Cordoba 30T, 35T 1.5″ / 38mm 1
Fender U’uko Soprano 1.375″ / 35mm 1
Gordon MultiUke 1.375″ / 35mm 2
Gretsch G9100, G9110, G9112, G9120… 1.375″ / 35mm 1
Kala import models 1.375″ / 35mm 3
Kala Elite 1.5″ / 38mm 2
Kamaka HF Series 1.375″ / 35mm 2
Kamaka HF Series Baritone 1.5″ / 38mm 1
Kanilea K Series, Islander 1.5″ / 38mm 2
Ko,oLau 1.375″ / 35mm 2
Ko’olau Soprano, Concert, Tenor 1.375″ / 35mm 1
Ko’olau Baritone 1.5″ / 38mm 1
Koaloha 1.5″ / 38mm 1
Lanikai LBU-C 1.375″ / 35mm 1
Lanikai SMP-C 1.5″ / 38mm 1
Lanikai 21 Concert, Tenor, Baritone 1.46″ / 37mm 1
Lanikai 21 Soprano 1.45″ / 36mm 1
Magic Fluke Flea, Soprano & Concert Fluke 1.4″ / 35mm 2
Magic Fluke Tenor Fluke 1.45″ / 37mm 2
Mainland 1.375″ / 35mm 2
Martin Tenor 1.344 / 34mm 2
Martin Concert, Soprano 1.4 / 36mm 2
Ohana 1.375″ / 35mm 1
Oscar Schmidt OU6W 1.75″ / 44mm 2
Pono MCD, MT 1.375″ / 35mm 2
Romero Creations Grand Tenor 1.5″ / 38mm 1
 
I have an Islander soprano. Mine is all laminate, but it sounds great. With the 1.5 inch nut and wider string spacing, it’s one of the few sopranos I can comfortably play. Islander is Kanilea’s import line. They do have some all solid or solid top models. HMS, Uke Republic, and Penny Lane Music all carry some Islanders. I have not purchased from Penny Lane, but have chatted with them & they do set-up the ukes they sell.
 
I believe the Islander Soprano has a nut width of 1 1/2 inches. I know a few other brands have the same dimensions, but I cannot remember which.

Never mind, here you go -


Make Model/Size Nut Width Confirmations
Anuenue 1.375″ / 35mm 1
Big Island Honu Traditional 1.375″ / 35mm 1
Bushman 1.45″ / 37mm 1
Cordoba 30T, 35T 1.5″ / 38mm 1
Fender U’uko Soprano 1.375″ / 35mm 1
Gordon MultiUke 1.375″ / 35mm 2
Gretsch G9100, G9110, G9112, G9120… 1.375″ / 35mm 1
Kala import models 1.375″ / 35mm 3
Kala Elite 1.5″ / 38mm 2
Kamaka HF Series 1.375″ / 35mm 2
Kamaka HF Series Baritone 1.5″ / 38mm 1
Kanilea K Series, Islander 1.5″ / 38mm 2
Ko,oLau 1.375″ / 35mm 2
Ko’olau Soprano, Concert, Tenor 1.375″ / 35mm 1
Ko’olau Baritone 1.5″ / 38mm 1
Koaloha 1.5″ / 38mm 1
Lanikai LBU-C 1.375″ / 35mm 1
Lanikai SMP-C 1.5″ / 38mm 1
Lanikai 21 Concert, Tenor, Baritone 1.46″ / 37mm 1
Lanikai 21 Soprano 1.45″ / 36mm 1
Magic Fluke Flea, Soprano & Concert Fluke 1.4″ / 35mm 2
Magic Fluke Tenor Fluke 1.45″ / 37mm 2
Mainland 1.375″ / 35mm 2
Martin Tenor 1.344 / 34mm 2
Martin Concert, Soprano 1.4 / 36mm 2
Ohana 1.375″ / 35mm 1
Oscar Schmidt OU6W 1.75″ / 44mm 2
Pono MCD, MT 1.375″ / 35mm 2
Romero Creations Grand Tenor 1.5″ / 38mm 1

I was going to send you this in private, but your inbox is full (you are not able to receive private messages)

Hello Kyle,

Just to say: Thank you very much for having answered to my question.
And thank you for the list with the measurements. That helps!

Wish you a nice Christmas time!
Best regards,
Marcel
 
This site shows the width of the fretboard/nut. The wider the fretboard, the greater the distance between the strings - hopefully. Oscar Schmidt is way out front with 44mm.

https://ukenut.com/comparison-of-ukulele-nut-widths/

Thank you very much for the link Jerryc41,
"The wider the fretboard, the greater the distance between the strings - hopefully." - exactly, it is true in some cases, in others not.
The Oscar Schmidt with 44mm is sadly just the Tenor size, if I understood it right (correct me please if I am wrong).

Btw., I am just a newbie but "Too many ukes, but I can't stop buying!" is true for me already as well. :)
 
Kiwaya or Famous (branded differently in different countries) S-1 series is 1.5 inches at nut. Best-quality laminate you'll find under $500.
 
I was going to send you this in private, but your inbox is full (you are not able to receive private messages)

Hello Kyle,

Just to say: Thank you very much for having answered to my question.
And thank you for the list with the measurements. That helps!

Wish you a nice Christmas time!
Best regards,
Marcel

Thanks for letting me know! They really need to make inboxes larger. 50 messages is not enough!
 
As also mentioned in the thread Graham Greenbag linked to: Soprano Fleas have a wider fretboard, and the distance between the strings is also larger. For my really large hands, they are much more comfortable to play than most other sopranos. Just bought a pre-ownde Koa Flea here in Germany, and I really find it quite easy to play. Highly recommended!
 
I would like to give a little résumé of the information you guys and girls brought together on my question/topic.

Distance between the g-string and the a-string :
-at the nut 3 cm, at the saddle 4,4 cm - Islander AS-4//MS-4
-at the nut 3,01 cm, at the saddle 4,13 cm - Famous FS-1//Kiwaya KS-1
-at the nut 3 cm, at the saddle 4 cm - Martin (new) soprano/concert/tenor (e.g.: OXK, S1)

I heard as well about this ukes, but I do not know the exact distances :
-Koloa KU-600 (watch out, tuners are garbage)
-Grace Harbor GHU-100S

Important, a wide nut does NOT necessarily mean that the strings are far apart. There are ukes with wide necks, but the string spacing is narrow (e.g.: some Koaloha's).

I have a Islander coming my way now, and I guess further on I will try to get my hands as well on a Famous.

So, so far THANK YOU ALL for having answered to my question, you helped me a lot!
 
I would like to give a little résumé of the information you guys and girls brought together on my question/topic.

Distance between the g-string and the a-string :
-at the nut 3 cm, at the saddle 4,4 cm - Islander AS-4//MS-4
-at the nut 3,01 cm, at the saddle 4,13 cm - Famous FS-1//Kiwaya KS-1
-at the nut 3 cm, at the saddle 4 cm - Martin (new) soprano/concert/tenor (e.g.: OXK, S1)

I heard as well about this ukes, but I do not know the exact distances :
-Koloa KU-600 (watch out, tuners are garbage)
-Grace Harbor GHU-100S

Important, a wide nut does NOT necessarily mean that the strings are far apart. There are ukes with wide necks, but the string spacing is narrow (e.g.: some Koaloha's).

I have a Islander coming my way now, and I guess further on I will try to get my hands as well on a Famous.

So, so far THANK YOU ALL for having answered to my question, you helped me a lot!

All good stuff and very informative. I have an Islander AS4 and It is a great playing and sounding uke. If you are looking to maximize distant between strings then remove the Aquila strings that come with it and use florocarbon, they are much thinner.
 
I also have the Islander AS4 and love it. I switched to Worth Clear strings & they sound great on it.
 
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