Lanikai LU-21 Problems :(!

RubberDucky451 · Sep 22, 2009

First of all, Hello Uke players!

I recently bought a Lanikai LU-21 and I'm fairly pleased with it except for the fact that the C string always sounds terrible. Obviously I've tried tuning it but compared to the other strings it sounds awful.

I'm not %100 in love with my LU-21 and i would buy another Uke. If there's another decent uke for 100 I'll grab it.

Anyways, thanks in advance

Dino · Sep 22, 2009

RubberDucky451 said:
First of all, Hello Uke players!

I recently bought a Lanikai LU-21 and I'm fairly pleased with it except for the fact that the C string always sounds terrible. Obviously I've tried tuning it but compared to the other strings it sounds awful.

I'm not %100 in love with my LU-21 and i would buy another Uke. If there's another decent uke for 100 I'll grab it.

Anyways, thanks in advance

Okay. First off, welcome to Ukulele Underground. You found a great place to hang out. Anything about the uke, you can pretty much find it here.

Anyway, what do you mean by your C-string being awfull and terrible? Does it buzz when plucked? Not staying in tune? What kind of string is it....a steel-wound string or a nylon string? Where did you get the ukulele from?

There are so many people on this site and you will get tons of suggestions.

Aloha, Dino

tebuddy · Sep 22, 2009

I have the same ukulele.

I have not had any particular trouble with that string and I find once it is tuned correctly, it rarely loses its sound.

Check out this guide:
http://www.ukeschool.com/ukulele/tuning/ukulele_tuning_4_c.html

Do you have a chromatic tuner you can check it with?

brickerenator · Sep 22, 2009

Going with my experiences with my Mahalo, it takes up to 10 days of playing and tuning before a string will hold its tune well. And the D'Addarios I put on hold a tune much better than stock strings.
More specifics will help us diagnose the problem.

djny · Sep 22, 2009

I'm also a beginner and I have the same ukulele. It could be that your strings have not stretched enough yet or maybe you just don't like the sound of your strings. Since the C string isn't as high and bright as the others, maybe it sounds dull in comparison. You might want to try different strings. I understand that Aquilas sound good on laminate ukuleles, but I haven't tried them yet myself. I have Worth clears on mine and I'm happy with them.

soulpowerbreaks · Sep 22, 2009

The LU-21 I just got came with Aquilas, and it sound pretty good. I have no problems with my C string. You may need to be specific though. Is it out of tune? Buzzing?

cocohonk · Sep 22, 2009

Try some new strings first! Could be just a simple bad string.

If not, I'd probably check the nut/saddle/bridge (the one at the top, I always get the terms mixed up!) and see if there's a problem - sometimes if the slot for the string is too wide/narrow it could make the string buzz.

RubberDucky451 · Sep 22, 2009

Thanks for the warm welcome and replies

It sounds a bit out of tune(It starts out fine but whines away and sounds flat). I've tried tuning it various ways but I'm still not satisfied. I notice it out of tune whenever I play a G chord and D and a few others.

I've been playing my Uke for about 2 weeks so I'm guessing it has been properly broken in.

Uncle Rod Higuchi · Sep 22, 2009

Just to double-check:

the tuners are nice and tight so there's no slipping, correct?

the other strings sound OK up and down the fretboard?

the 12th fret gives you an octave sound? (same note, higher pitch)

If you have a friend handy who plays uke or guitar, have them also look at it.

RubberDucky451 · Sep 22, 2009

Uncle Rod Higuchi said:
Just to double-check:

the tuners are nice and tight so there's no slipping, correct?
(No the tuner is a bit loose on C actually)

the other strings sound OK up and down the fretboard?
(Yes)

the 12th fret gives you an octave sound? (same note, higher pitch)
(Yes, i would say the high C sounds better)

If you have a friend handy who plays uke or guitar, have them also look at it.

tebuddy, i tried tuning the C string to an E and it was much easier. Thanks.

John Colter · Sep 23, 2009

"i tried tuning the C string to an E and it was much easier."

I take this to mean that you held the "C" string down at the fourth fret, and tuned it to a true "E", and there is a big improvement. If so, what sort of result do you get now, when you then play the open "C" string? If it is giving anything other than a true "C", then there is something wrong with the uke, which is what caused your problem in the first place.

If all is now hunky-dory, then it was just an honest newby glitch. They say that the most difficult thing for a beginner, is to get the thing tuned accurately. Once you've mastered that, it's all fun, fun, FUN!

Enjoy.

Ukantor.

ukulelehoo · Sep 23, 2009

RubberDucky451 said:
(No the tuner is a bit loose on C actually)

If the tuner is loose, use a screwdriver to tighten the screw (located at the end of the tuner usually) snugly. That should help.

RubberDucky451 · Sep 23, 2009

It's not that the screw is loose it's that the tuner knob itself is loose for some reason.

I'll have a friend look at it, it may be the tuning. The only reason i was worried was because there was only 1 problem string.

John Colter · Sep 23, 2009

If the tuner knob is not a close fit on the shaft then there can be a small amount of "free" rotation before turning the knob causes the shaft to turn. It makes tuning more difficult than it should be, but once you have it tuned, it should be OK.

Ukantor.

RubberDucky451 · Sep 26, 2009

I found out the problem. I was annoyed by the D in my G chord. So i received my tuner today and i thought i would investigate my problematic C string.

It turns out that even when the C string is tuned properly when it's played on the second fret (D) it gets off tune (Namely sharp).

I assume this has to do with the price of a ukulele. Is there anything i could do to fix this problem? (New strings?)

Sonseeker30 · Sep 26, 2009

Aloha RubberDucky~

Great to have you here at UU. I have the Lanikai LU21CE with a pickup and I have no problems with it so far. It could be the type of strings you have. Try some Aquilas or DiAddario's. A lot of the Uke players here use those brands.

RubberDucky451 · Sep 27, 2009

Sonseeker30 said:
Aloha RubberDucky~

Great to have you here at UU. I have the Lanikai LU21CE with a pickup and I have no problems with it so far. It could be the type of strings you have. Try some Aquilas or DiAddario's. A lot of the Uke players here use those brands.

I have aquila nyguts that came standard.

fbrown627 · Oct 3, 2009

I just got a LU-21 yesterday and I'm not happy.

Surprisingly, my C and E strings stay in tune while the G and A need constant re-tuning (which is not surprisingly since they are new Aquila nygut.)

However, even as soon as the second fret, the notes are horribly off-key. I have a clip on tuner and watch it go from a perfectly tuned open string to a very off key note by fret 2.

Anything I can do , or should I return the instrument. (Tuners and bridge seem fine.)

tebuddy · Oct 3, 2009

tebuddy, i tried tuning the C string to an E and it was much easier. Thanks.

Yeah I initially had trouble with the c as well, but that tune e from c thing really made it easier.

Your welcome.

Eric · Oct 3, 2009

Is this a set-up problem? I have an LU-21 which had poor intonation when I got it. It was my first uke but even so the poor intonation even at the second or third fret really bothered me. I read up about setting it up properly by filing the nut slots and lowering the saddle and despite some trepidation I gave it a go and the instrument is now much better and I'm very happy with it. I have Aquilas on it which are a huge improvement over the OE strings. I've since bought a solid wood uke which was about three times as expensive but which was even more in need of being set-up to intonate properly.

Lanikai LU-21 Problems :(!

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