YogiTom
Well-known member
Not sure if it is sacrilege to post a NUD without photos in the OP, but I beg forgiveness to the ukulele gods if so. I promise it’s for a good reason! (More on that below)
My first impression, out of the box: bummer, it cracked on the lower soundboard and top separated in transit! On closer inspection, what appeared to be a crack was simply the “grain” swirl of the composite material, and what I thought was separating pieces seemed uniform and intentional. I also saw—again, on close inspection—that this “seam” is visible in a few photos on the website, but you really have to look for it in them. Purely cosmetic, and now that I know it isn’t a fault I couldn’t really care. I’m actually prepping a DIY solution to this non-problem, and will post the photos when I’m done.
The thing sounds and plays great. I’d read some folks talk about being disappointed by the volume or timbre this ukulele has, but I honestly was hard pressed to rate them both as anything less than excellent...for a plastic ukulele, of course. Definitely not Blackbird resonance, but enough sustain and a warm timbre that makes me smile when playing. And isn’t that the goal with any ukulele we buy?
Intonation seems fine from my limited examination up the neck. I did experience what others have described when fretting: press harder than needed and the intonation does suffer noticeably more than on other ukuleles I’ve played. But, for me, that’s a kind of bonus, as it is forcing me to stop my normal death grip and relax my hand more. Suddenly chords were much easier and fluid, so that was a cool revelation! I think I may make this my practice uke as a result, to hone those good fretting habits.
I love the feel of the flat, shallow neck profile which I also love on my Kanile‘a. Again, it makes fretting so comfortable and easy for me. It means I’m more likely to keep my thumb comfortably on the neck opposite my fingers rather than wrapping around towards the 4 string as it sometimes does. Another good habit that I desperately need to practice!
As for bling, I opted for the gold tuners and added a matching strap button on the end of the body. Currently strung low G with the stock strings—D'Addario Fluorocarbons—which sound great, but will likely get swapped with either Living Waters or Worth Clears, as I think those might brighten up the timbre a bit more to my liking.
Lastly, my biggest mark against this otherwise awesome NUD is on the back. There is a US nickel sized imperfection near the heel, maybe where the mold stamp leaves its mark? It’s not a big deal, but it feels a bit sloppy not to smooth that out somehow, or to do what the Flea does with a logo or some other graphic. Maybe it isn’t possible to do without making it look worse? I can always just cover it up with one of my “Ukulele Freak” stickers that Mim included with my orders since I don’t plan to ever sell this one. All in all this is a small gripe, but perhaps one that would ruin it for those who like a perfect finish.
I would highly recommend this for a travel ukulele, though if you plan to fly it may be better to go for the soprano. I just have lanky hands and struggle with playing anything smaller than concert scales comfortably, and don’t find myself flying often enough for it to matter.
I’ll get photos and a sound sample up ASAP. :shaka:
My first impression, out of the box: bummer, it cracked on the lower soundboard and top separated in transit! On closer inspection, what appeared to be a crack was simply the “grain” swirl of the composite material, and what I thought was separating pieces seemed uniform and intentional. I also saw—again, on close inspection—that this “seam” is visible in a few photos on the website, but you really have to look for it in them. Purely cosmetic, and now that I know it isn’t a fault I couldn’t really care. I’m actually prepping a DIY solution to this non-problem, and will post the photos when I’m done.
The thing sounds and plays great. I’d read some folks talk about being disappointed by the volume or timbre this ukulele has, but I honestly was hard pressed to rate them both as anything less than excellent...for a plastic ukulele, of course. Definitely not Blackbird resonance, but enough sustain and a warm timbre that makes me smile when playing. And isn’t that the goal with any ukulele we buy?
Intonation seems fine from my limited examination up the neck. I did experience what others have described when fretting: press harder than needed and the intonation does suffer noticeably more than on other ukuleles I’ve played. But, for me, that’s a kind of bonus, as it is forcing me to stop my normal death grip and relax my hand more. Suddenly chords were much easier and fluid, so that was a cool revelation! I think I may make this my practice uke as a result, to hone those good fretting habits.
I love the feel of the flat, shallow neck profile which I also love on my Kanile‘a. Again, it makes fretting so comfortable and easy for me. It means I’m more likely to keep my thumb comfortably on the neck opposite my fingers rather than wrapping around towards the 4 string as it sometimes does. Another good habit that I desperately need to practice!
As for bling, I opted for the gold tuners and added a matching strap button on the end of the body. Currently strung low G with the stock strings—D'Addario Fluorocarbons—which sound great, but will likely get swapped with either Living Waters or Worth Clears, as I think those might brighten up the timbre a bit more to my liking.
Lastly, my biggest mark against this otherwise awesome NUD is on the back. There is a US nickel sized imperfection near the heel, maybe where the mold stamp leaves its mark? It’s not a big deal, but it feels a bit sloppy not to smooth that out somehow, or to do what the Flea does with a logo or some other graphic. Maybe it isn’t possible to do without making it look worse? I can always just cover it up with one of my “Ukulele Freak” stickers that Mim included with my orders since I don’t plan to ever sell this one. All in all this is a small gripe, but perhaps one that would ruin it for those who like a perfect finish.
I would highly recommend this for a travel ukulele, though if you plan to fly it may be better to go for the soprano. I just have lanky hands and struggle with playing anything smaller than concert scales comfortably, and don’t find myself flying often enough for it to matter.
I’ll get photos and a sound sample up ASAP. :shaka:
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