Moore Bettah Tenor and Kamaka HF-3S Sound Clips!

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mwaller

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Greetings UU!
I decided to record brief sound clips of my two favorite instruments - my custom Moore Bettah Tenor and my special order Kamaka HF-3S tenor. Pictures of these instruments are in the following threads:

http://www.ukuleleunderground.com/forum/showthread.php?31699-Two-New-Arrivals!&highlight=arrivals

http://www.ukuleleunderground.com/forum/showthread.php?38821-The-wait-is-killing-me!&highlight=wait+killing

Both instruments are strung with D'Addario T2 Titanium trebles (Hard). Both recordings were created in the same space with the same equipment and settings.
Wish my playing was better, but here goes anyway...

Moore Bettah Tenor:
http://chirb.it/MaEbPx

Kamaka HF-3S:
http://chirb.it/M6c3da

Hope you enjoy!
Thanks,
Mika
 
Both Great sounding ukes. Someday soon I hope to own a K of some type.
 
They both sound great! Think I'm leaning towards the Moore Bettah. Makes me excited for mine (although Chuck won't probably won't start mine until this next spring)!
 
Aloha mwaller, they both sound great. I don't have a Kamaka or Moore Bettah, but I have to say that the ukuleles that Chuck makes are a peice of artwork that plays beautiful music. No question of the love, time & personal craftsmenship that goes into Moore Bettah ukes. If I ever get to a worthy playing level that I could justify such an ukulele & come up with the bucks, I would have to become proud Moore Bettah member.
 
hi Mika

lovely playing. Think they both sound sweet. I probably lean more towards the Kamaka but I live in expectation of owning a Moore Bettah one day too. Nice comparison. Thanks very much for sharing with us.
 
First off....great playing !!

I can't tell enough difference to know which is which. I put both clips up side by side and switched between them.
I even tried to sync them together, but was not quite quick enough. But Man, your playing is consistant !
If I noticed any difference, it was that the Moore Bettah had slightly more depth in the low end.

Bill
 
Aloha Mika,
Thanks for the comparisons...they were awesome...nice and sweet...I like them both very much!!
BTW, How's Andrew doing??? Have fun and enjoy your new babies....Happy strummings!! MM Stan..
 
mm stan said:
Aloha Mika,
Thanks for the comparisons...they were awesome...nice and sweet...I like them both very much!!
BTW, How's Andrew doing??? Have fun and enjoy your new babies....Happy strummings!! MM Stan..
Click to expand...

Thanks, MM Stan!
Andrew is doing well! The uke always gets a smile from him... at least the first few strums. He's about 6 1/2 moths now, and is practically crawling. Yikes...
He loves music, and enjoys banging on a Little Tikes toy piano that we found at a flea market.
Around Thanksgiving time, we had some snow days. Here he is, experiencing snow for the first time!
Andrew-Snow.jpg

Cheers,
Mika
 
They both sound great. I had a hard time differentiating between them...but if forced, I would give the slight edge to the Moore Bettah. That is a good comparison, especially because you have the same strings on each of them. I always feel Kamakas get shortchanged in most comparison tests when the stock strings are on them. Here, I thought it sounded almost identical to the Moore Bettah, or at least almost as good.

Nice playing. :)
 
Nice playing Mika!

I think the Moore Bettah has a rounder, fuller tone to it. The best way I can describe it is that if you listen to the Kamaka after listening to the MB, something is missing. It's like somehow the Kamaka is failing to reproduce certain frequencies in the sound spectrum. I listened to the Kamaka first and didn't think this at all. It wasn't until listening to the MB then listening to the Kamaka again was I able to put it to words.

I had it set that I was happy with my KoAlohas and I wouldn't need an MB. Now this is changing my mind. :) The MB sounds incredible!
 
Mika,

I couldn't tell the difference myself. At first I thought I thought the MB had a better higher end but then I listened to the clips a few more times and now I can't tell. Thus, I would have to say that they both (along with you) performed brilliantly.

I know that Chuck believes his instruments open up significantly over time. When he sent me mine I requested T2's and he put them on. However, he also sent along a set of Aquilas (as well as another set of T2's.) stating that he preferred the Aquilas until the uke opened up then the T2's would be fine. Hank the Tank, Laron and TJF all agreed that the MB opens up significantly over time. I'm sure the Kamaka will open up some too.

So which sound do YOU prefer?

Love the photos of your son with the bunny ears.
 
That was some pretty good playing!!!

Both ukes sounded awesome, I leaned slightly to the Kamaka, to me the Kamaka was a tiny bit richer/mellow. (which I like) BUT....I'd take a Bettah uke any day!!!

Thanks for posting!
 
Going in, I assumed I would like the MB better. I was surprised. I ended up like the Kamaka better. It sounded more immediate, louder and just had more meat to it. I really am a bit dismayed to be honest. Not what I expected.

I also find it surprising how many folks didn't hear a difference. Maybe it is the quality of their PC speakers. To me they differ significantly.

You sounded like you played better on the Kamaka as well which is telling. Now you have me thinking....
 
Both sweet sounding ukes. Personally i prefer the kamaka.
 
They both sound wonderful. The MB is maybe a bit richer/deeper, the Kamaka a little brighter - but they're both beautiful and I don't think I could say one was better than the other - just different approaches to wonderful music...
 
I will agree that both sounds great, but imho the Kamaka is a little lacking compared to the MB. Don't get me wrong, not that it sounds terrible, but just a little different. The MB has more depth in its overall sound as well as being more resonant. And the excellent playing didn't hurt either...lol But both are wonderful instruments and I'd be happy with either one. If I could afford it though, I'd lean more towards the MB at this moment in time.
 
olgoat52 said:
I also find it surprising how many folks didn't hear a difference. Maybe it is the quality of their PC speakers. To me they differ significantly.
Click to expand...

I am using a set of Event PS-8 studio monitors on my PC. I had my wife help with a blind comparison where I listened with a pair of Sony MDR-V900 head phones. She played the clips 4 times. I called them 'A' and 'B' . I got the third one wrong.

I haven't played rock bass in 30 years, and didn't think my hearing was that messed up.
Bill
 
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