A nice mahogany concert uke? Or should I try koa/acacia first?

Matt Clara

UU VIP
UU VIP
Joined
Aug 3, 2009
Messages
1,640
Reaction score
15
Location
Lansing, Michigan
In the three months I've been playing the uke, I've now owned three of them, a spruce topped Ohana soprano, an all mahogany concert Ohana, and a cedar topped Kala koa concert. Of the three, I like the sound from the all mahogany instrument the best, and I've already sold the soprano spruce top, liking it the least. I'm thinking I should either plunk down some serious money (~$500: serious to me, anyway) on a nice mahogany instrument (the Ohana's narrow neck annoys me); or, perhaps I should try some other types of wood and see if I like them better.

  • I like the precise notes the mahogany produces
  • the spruce top sound lacked depth and was all about the bright bounce.
  • the cedar top reminds me of the mahogany, but with an added "warm fuzz"
Given my tastes as stated above, should I bother with the koa/acacia wood, or should I just go for a nice all mahogany? If I go for the all mahogany, does anyone have any suggestions? There are plenty of koa/acacia in my price range (again ~$500), but I'm not seeing any all mahogany concerts in that range that aren't simply blinged out kalas, or the like. I'm not particularly interested in spending money on bling.
Thanks for your time.
mc
 
I love my solid mahogany Kala tenor, but the Kala solid acacia tenors look and sound so fantastic that, subject to confirming it with my own ears/finger, I think I'd like those even more. I've had a few mahogany ukes, and I like mahogany, but those acacias... wow.
 
In the three months I've been playing the uke, I've now owned three of them, a spruce topped Ohana soprano, an all mahogany concert Ohana, and a cedar topped Kala koa concert.

UAS’ers unite!! :D

I’m UAS’ing at about your pace (see signature below) and am also still eyeing new ukes. If you’ve got a shop near you, try Kala’s lacewood line of ukes. It has a really nice soft but strong tone to it. My Cordoba is an acacia uke and it is still my favorite sound so definitely consider acacia or perhaps a solid koa top with other wood sides (to keep to budget).

Or heck man just throw caution to the wind and splurge on a KoAloha!! You know you want to. :D
 
mahogany seems to have good clarity and sweetness, but koa might be more lively. I think you have to get one in koa and live with it a while. After that, for your ultimate uke, order a custom in whichever wood you prefer.

I'm leaning towards mahogany myself, but am also enjoying a Koaloha right now. A lot depends on the way the instrument is constructed.
 
Hamano?

While I am now leaning towards trying a Kala Acacia concert (@ $279 with a case and free shipping, it's hard to go wrong). I'm curious, though, if anyone can recommend a Hamano?
 
Why not both? I was in your shoes a while ago and i ended up buying something that made me very happy that I must now part with so now a shameless plug. I have a solid koa top solid mahghany back and sides for sale in your price range with a pick-up (fishman). There is a thread in the market place with pictures and a video.
 
Why not both? I was in your shoes a while ago and i ended up buying something that made me very happy that I must now part with so now a shameless plug. I have a solid koa top solid mahghany back and sides for sale in your price range with a pick-up (fishman). There is a thread in the market place with pictures and a video.

Wow, that really was shameless. ;)
 
Yes it was. My wife tells me one out one in but this time it was two out one in. I wanted an eight string so I let my six string go and I have to let one more go. I can not get rid of my koaloha and my other mele tenor was signed by jake so I knew pickups are a desired feature. Maybe I'll find the extra money to cover the cost of the eight stringer but then again I can only play one at a time. Seriously you should look into the koa top mahaghany back and side ukes. They have the beauty of koa and a combination sound that comes from the two woods. I love both mahaghany and koa and I prefer koa b/c of looks not sound. Put them together and you get perfection at budget.
 
If you don't have one yet that is all *hawaiian* koa (solid top) I'd go for that. There's magic on those islands and in that wood. (And it's where the uke was effectively "born" - even if it started life in Portugal).
 
UAS’ers unite!! :D

I’m UAS’ing at about your pace (see signature below) and am also still eyeing new ukes. If you’ve got a shop near you, try Kala’s lacewood line of ukes. It has a really nice soft but strong tone to it. My Cordoba is an acacia uke and it is still my favorite sound so definitely consider acacia or perhaps a solid koa top with other wood sides (to keep to budget).

Or heck man just throw caution to the wind and splurge on a KoAloha!! You know you want to. :D

It's true, I do want a pineapple sunday, or a concert scepter!
 
Top Bottom