My New Pono PTO-E Tenor Ukulele

My new Pono PTO-E Tenor Ukulele arrived yesterday. I had been exitedly following it's journey from Music Guy Mic's in Hawaii via UPS Tracking as it made its way to my home in Massachusetts. I have been a professional musician for well over 40 years but now I finally have a quality uke. I'm happy!

The uke was well packed and came nestled in a very high quality (Ko'olau) case that fit perfectly. The instrument itself is beautiful with nice mahogany grain and high gloss finish. There are no imperfections whatsoever that I can detect. The sound is lovely with a full and mellow mahogony sound. I do think that it is a bit muted due in part to the stock Ko'olau stings which I understand are not very bright and perhaps by the gloss finish that I suspect dampens the sound some. I do hope that it may open up with some playing. The intonation seems fine and the frets are quite comfortable.

The action is just about ideal. If it were much lower I think I'd be experiencing some fret buzz. There does seem to be some very faint buzz off the saddle. While the action is good the string tension seems to this player a bit stiff but nothing major.

The passive under saddle pickup works just fine. I pluged it into my Fender Delux and it was instantly transformed into The Uke of Doom.

So a few minor issues, I always expect to take a new instrument into a luthier to tweek it a bit. This will be no execption. I fully expect to spend many, many happy hours with my new uke.

Any thoughts about how I might tweek the action or the saddle buzz myself? Can you recommend a low G string set which will brighten the sound?

I'll try my hand at a formal review in a while after I've had a chance to really explore this uke.

strings

I like the Worth's Clear, medium tension for my low G. It is a non-wound string, and the Worth Clear tend to brighten the sound. I get my strings online
http://www.ukuleleworld.com/tenor/

Scroll down to the bottom to see the Low G clear med. You can get the Low G all by itself if needed.

–Lori

Very cool. My Pono PTS-E just arrived today! The Low G golds were too low and mellow for my tastes, and I switched them for Pro Artes. They brightened up the sound a tad.

Anyway, congrats. I hope you are enjoying your new uke as much as I am!

Congratulation! We'd all love to see some photos!

how much was it? if u havnt already said lol

Congrats to you, Gcow. Do they make tenor Pro Artes with a low G string? Would you suggest a dealer?
I'll check out the Worths as well. I've used them and I think they sound great.

The price was about $420. A very decent price, I'd say, given the quality case and the pickup.

Thanks folks for the responses. Will post pictures and a proper review soon.

...and perhaps by the gloss finish that I suspect dampens the sound some.

Click to expand...

I heard here on the forums that the gloss finish doesn't change your sound. Just saying, so you don't feel bad for taking a gloss finish

Good to know. Thanks Wannabe.

regardless lol, it wud sound great. nice ukulele

Welcome to UU, Pete. Congrats on your new Pono. Looking forward to hearing some contributions from you. Do you have a YouTube channel or MySpace page?

On the subject of strings, there are three brands that are most popular. Most people agree that -

Aquila: Bright and loud
Worth Brown: Warm and mellow
D'Addario Pro Arte J71: Sweet and clear

Both Aquila and Worth make low G sets.

Aquila's low G string is wound, and I've found that they don't last very long. I break them within a couple of weeks.

I haven't tried Worth's low G. Their strings are made with flourocarbon. This allows for a higher tension, which allows for an unwound string.

D'Addario J71's are the string of choice for our resident uke guru, Aldrine Guerrero. They don't make a low G set as far as I know, but the J71's are just repackaged EJ46 classical guitar strings. You can buy a single D string (as well as the other 3 strings) from the EJ46 set straight from D'Addario's site.

For tips on how to adjust your action, take a look at this thread.

For causes and cures of buzz, take a look at this thread.

Hope this helps, buddy. Enjoy your new uke!

Let me add some of the members use classical guitar sets also. Savarez Alliance for one and D'Addario Titaniums being the other.