This week I received my new “Wow ukulele” made by Alvin “Pops” Okami of KoAloha. He wanted to make an alternative to the koa ukuleles that were beyond the price points of many players. And WOW! He succeeded magnificently.
Sound: Is this the best sounding soprano out there? Pops thinks so and I agree that it sounds great. It is LOUD! Volume actually exceeds my KoAloha Pikake soprano by a bit. And it has very similar tonal qualities to the K, likely somewhat due to the same design considerations and construction. The tone is a touch brighter. This works well as a strummer to accompany a chorus as it can be heard loud and clear to complement the singing. Intonation is spot on up the neck.
Construction: Pops believes the wood combination on this gives the best sound possible. The top is Engelmann spruce. The Taylor guitar site says this: “Sonically, Engelmann has a mature tone, and yields a slightly richer midrange than Sitka, which makes a guitar sound a bit older. Old growth Engelmann tends to have a sonic attribute of smoothness or refinement to it…” This is likely the key to the volume and tone from this ukulele. The sides and back are pine. The pairing of the two must be complementary on the sound… googling pine in guitars shows it to have a ton of fanboys that love the wood. The front and back must be thin because they are translucent! A flashlight shines through the wood (does not happen with a koa K or mahogany Kiwaya). Fretboard is rosewood with fret markers inserted across the entire fret similar to the new K pineapples that sell out quickly. No name on the tuners, but they are smooth. Detail work on this one is not great with some glue showing and chips on the fretboard edge and some minor dings here and there. Also, no musubi soundhole…
Appearance: It is a beautiful ukulele. The woods on the side and body look wonderful together. And the colors of the fretboard and the main body (and headstock) are so complementary (creamy, dreamy with awesome curl on the pine) that it looks as if a color designer chose the palette for this. I have a few beautiful dark koa ukuleles that I love and an aNueNue Moon Bird, but this stands out as a “10” on appearance. Both my wife and daughter remarked on the striking looks right away without prompting.
Intangibles: A lot of boxes are checked here. I bought this through efiscella through this forum. He is Founder of the Mainstage Center for the Arts in New Jersey. His Harmony choir (thus the “H” on my headstock) visited KoAloha and sang and impressed Pops enough to use this as an ukulele fundraiser for the organization………. This ukulele is designed and built by Pops Okama. It is not a production line uke. How cool is that?....... It makes me happy! It is a confluence of all of the above. It feels special due to its development (it has a story behind it), construction, appearance, and sound. All the important boxes are checked.
So do you have UAS? This has to be on your list if you value a great sounding ukulele. I will likely sell my Kiwaya and KoAloha sopranos since this will be my go-to soprano ukulele. Fanboy NUD here? You bet, because it uplifts my spirit and puts a smile on my face!
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Sound: Is this the best sounding soprano out there? Pops thinks so and I agree that it sounds great. It is LOUD! Volume actually exceeds my KoAloha Pikake soprano by a bit. And it has very similar tonal qualities to the K, likely somewhat due to the same design considerations and construction. The tone is a touch brighter. This works well as a strummer to accompany a chorus as it can be heard loud and clear to complement the singing. Intonation is spot on up the neck.
Construction: Pops believes the wood combination on this gives the best sound possible. The top is Engelmann spruce. The Taylor guitar site says this: “Sonically, Engelmann has a mature tone, and yields a slightly richer midrange than Sitka, which makes a guitar sound a bit older. Old growth Engelmann tends to have a sonic attribute of smoothness or refinement to it…” This is likely the key to the volume and tone from this ukulele. The sides and back are pine. The pairing of the two must be complementary on the sound… googling pine in guitars shows it to have a ton of fanboys that love the wood. The front and back must be thin because they are translucent! A flashlight shines through the wood (does not happen with a koa K or mahogany Kiwaya). Fretboard is rosewood with fret markers inserted across the entire fret similar to the new K pineapples that sell out quickly. No name on the tuners, but they are smooth. Detail work on this one is not great with some glue showing and chips on the fretboard edge and some minor dings here and there. Also, no musubi soundhole…
Appearance: It is a beautiful ukulele. The woods on the side and body look wonderful together. And the colors of the fretboard and the main body (and headstock) are so complementary (creamy, dreamy with awesome curl on the pine) that it looks as if a color designer chose the palette for this. I have a few beautiful dark koa ukuleles that I love and an aNueNue Moon Bird, but this stands out as a “10” on appearance. Both my wife and daughter remarked on the striking looks right away without prompting.
Intangibles: A lot of boxes are checked here. I bought this through efiscella through this forum. He is Founder of the Mainstage Center for the Arts in New Jersey. His Harmony choir (thus the “H” on my headstock) visited KoAloha and sang and impressed Pops enough to use this as an ukulele fundraiser for the organization………. This ukulele is designed and built by Pops Okama. It is not a production line uke. How cool is that?....... It makes me happy! It is a confluence of all of the above. It feels special due to its development (it has a story behind it), construction, appearance, and sound. All the important boxes are checked.
So do you have UAS? This has to be on your list if you value a great sounding ukulele. I will likely sell my Kiwaya and KoAloha sopranos since this will be my go-to soprano ukulele. Fanboy NUD here? You bet, because it uplifts my spirit and puts a smile on my face!
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