Nalu Ukuleles

I was wondering if anybody has played or held a Nalu ukulele. They look really nice, and sound pretty good, but i just wanted some opinions, cause I'm pretty sure they are a new company.

-JJ

Can't say so for myself cause I have never played one, but check out these videos and decide for yourself :

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=USAxXaxHi2A

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Od90GMFaoIk

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E6OzQDRibW0

I have UAS for the black one.

Great, bang for your buck ukulele. They sound better than any other import I have played.

Aloha JJ, I hope you don't mind my intervening here, as I am one of the 3 principals of NALU Ukulele Company. Of course, I can only say great things about our ukuleles being one of the founding partners. First off, also thanks for the plug on the "looks" of our ukulele. As principal creative designer, we believe we accomplished an eye-catching product while also offering nice sound at an affordable price point. I have been very closely involved in the design development including discerning sound and tone of our instruments. Having been a collector of vintage ukuleles for over 25 years, it has given me a sensitive ear of what's been produced in the past, and I must admit to referring to tonal quality from ukes in my collection. Along with the modern day high end ukes out there with great sound, we also had to realize that there are vintage ukuleles that possess a distinct sound worthy of replicating. Of course, all 3 partners have been involved and we have also sought the advice of other experts and players, and feel their input has been critical in our development to this point. We at NALU continue to strive for "better", because we know there are many choices out there. Do know that we are positioned as a mid-range instrument and our attention to detail has been a critical part of the quality we expect in our instruments. Also know that our ukuleles carry a 5 yr. limited warranty, but our sole purpose is that we have happy strumming customers for a long time. Please note that I am not offering an opinion, merely a bit of NALU's history and mission statement.

OK, back to your question, yes we are a NEW company, but did not plan this overnight. This project and forming of our "new" company has been about 2 1/2 years in the making. Without going into too much detail, we debuted our first ukuleles at the UFNC, Northern California Ukulele Festival in April 2009. We decided to expand our base from local hawaiian venues to "the world" you might say, and exhibited at NAMM 2010 in January with our complete line of products. It's safe to say our ukes have been well received, and we have secured a number of core dealers from this show, along with continued interest by other dealers. We are experiencing some growing pains, and we appreciate your understanding and patience as we are working to build up our inventory as we have had so much interest! We are currently dealing with some back orders, but in this situation we see it as a good thing. Again, we know there are many other ukuleles out there, high-end, mid-range, entry level, luthier one-offs, etc...we know as a company you can't please everyone. Just knowing that you have inquired about NALU ukuleles and queried peeps online, does express an interest about NALU ukuleles. We at least hope you consider what NALU can offer you as a player as one of your selections. Depending on where you live, we could direct you to a NALU dealer. If not, please give one of us a call, our phone numbers are located on our web site at www.nalu-ukulele.com or fill in the contact information and we'll be happy to assist you by contacting you at our earliest convenience. JJ, thanks for your interest and I hope that you find a uke that fits your needs and look at NALU as a possible choice. MAHALO! Rick Rasay

JJ

Thats awesome to hear back so quickly from Rick Rasay from Nalu. The have some wicked cool looking ukes and I hope I have a chance to play one myself :drool:. Here are a couple links of interest:

A forum member named Andruke who just received their flagship model the Nalu Kaiko'o tenor

http://www.ukuleleunderground.com/forum/showthread.php?27104-Got-my-new-Nalu-Ukulele!


Here is an interview with the guys from Nalu by Aldrine

http://http://ukuleleunderground.com/namm/2010/01/17/interview-with-mark-rick-gary-of-nalu-ukulele/

I bought a Nalu Hokua without the pickup. The sound is incredible. Mellow, like you would expect from a solid mahogany, but certainly not muffled! It is a gorgeous instrument and the Nalu wave motif carries through without being overdone. I love the abalone inlay.

I have spoken with Rick and he is SO nice and really wants to make sure anyone who buys a Nalu is totally satisfied.

Very happy Nalu owner

I bought the flagship model, the KZ1T with a Fishman pickup. I was at the NAMM show looking at a Kamaka when I stumbled across the Nalu booth. I know there's a difference between the Nalu and the Kamaka, but I could buy 2 of the Nalu's for less than the price of one Kamaka... So I did! I've got one with a high G, and one with a low G. The tone is as good as any of the Hawaiin ukes I played at NAMM

I am extremly happy with my Nalu. Go buy one, you will be glad you did.

Since I last posted in this thread, almost a year ago, I've exchanged my non-pickup Hokua, for a Hokua cutaway with a MiSi pickup and gloss finish and am loving it.

The Kaiko'o is one beautiful uke. Congratulations x 2!

Where could I find an online dealer of Nalu ukes? I'm not having luck with google.

AncientMatingCalls said:

Where could I find an online dealer of Nalu ukes? I'm not having luck with google.

Click to expand...

Try the Ukulele Source (www.ukulelesource.com).

Hmm, they just have a link to the website which is no help as far as pricing goes. Why do they make it so hard to find out how much their ukes cost?

They have a contact page. Seems like the website hasn't been updated. Have you tried calling them directly?
Gary ~ 707.499.9143
Rick ~ 510.714.7623
Mark ~ 323.854.7559

I agree Nalu needs to put some effort into designing their website. They are losing business and sales by not doing so.

I suggest calling Smiley Kai, the owner of Ukulele Source, (408) 998-2640. He's a good guy and knowledgeable about ukuleles.

I purchased my Nalu, which I <3 by the way, from Sound Uke. (http://sounduke.com/products)
Granted, I got it off their eBay page, but the owner of the store has a phone number available.