Choices, Choices!

Yes, I am a ukulele dealer... but I RARELY let myself keep one. I have 4. One was the result of a fortunate trade. But now, I have UAS bad!

I got some Prototype Acoustic Eleukes in... sight unseen. I had no clue what I was getting. And I have been aching for a Soprano or Low G Tenor for a long time!

The problem is... I am in love with more than one! I did not know they would be this beautiful! And I love them all! But am having decision issues. I have norrowed it down to 3! All 3 have a passive pickup system. If I am to keep a ukulele, I would love for it to be one of these Eleukes because I am irrovocably and completely in love with Eleuke in every way.

Left to right:

Soprano Spruce Top/ Rosewood
Tenor Cedar Top/ Rosewood
Soprano All Solid Mahogany with In-lay

So here they are:




Sort of leaning toward the soprano mahogany. I am in love with the inlay which is basically the Eleuke logo 4 times over. I just usually dont go for ukes this snazzy... basically because I am clutsy and my poor Kala has so many finish nicks. But I would probably baby this one more.

Ooops my post disappeared, I must have clicked 'cancel' by mistake.

We'd all like to help you with this but first you have to post some vids of you playing them. Something more than a quick ten second burst. Maybe a little tune on each one showing off the things each one is best for.

Bruce in Adelaide

I agree with Bruce. Videos will add the component of sound to the decision process. Without videos, based only on what they are and look like, I'd recommend the mahogany soprano because (1) I get the feeling you want a soprano more than you want a low G tenor (I gather you already have a tenor but no soprano), if you could only pick one; and (2) of the two sopranos, I would prefer the mahogany, not so much for the inlay but for the wood type -- if I were getting a soprano uke, I'd want the most traditional sound I could find, and I think you're more likely to get that from a mahogany than from a spruce top. My only concert ukulele is solid mahogany for this reason.

Not to hijack your thread, but since you're seeking advice I'm hoping you have a moment to give some. So if I were to buy an eleuke from you, which one of these two types would you recommend:

Mahogany 100 series tenor:
http://cgi.ebay.com/MIM-Eleuke-Tenor-Mahogany-100-Series-Ukulele-B-stock-/170574912296?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item27b70e9b28

Black or blue 100 series tenor:
http://cgi.ebay.com/MIM-Eleuke-Tenor-100-Series-Metallic-Blue-Ukulele-/170573620829?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item27b6fae65d

Or perhaps you would recommend something else? I guess my question comes down to: Is solid mahogany in a solid body electric uukulele worth the extra money it costs? Does solid mahogany affect the sound of the uke, the feel, the playability? Any other thoughts?

mds725 said:

Is solid mahogany in a solid body electric uukulele worth the extra money it costs? Does solid mahogany affect the sound of the uke, the feel, the playability? Any other thoughts?

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Well, it affects the mojo, and that's 50% of the equation. If it feels right, looks right and sounds right, you'll play your best with it. If you spend your time wondering if it would have sounded better in a solid mahogany rather than the rosewood, you'll play down to what you expect the rosewood would sound like.

Hijacking your hijacking, I prefer the rosewood, but that's because I've got one on order and that's what I selected as my personal eleuke. It may arrive tomorrow. It will be the best sounding eleuke that I'll have played (guess why) and I'll play the heck out of it, the best I can and could. So it sounds like mahogany might do that for you.

Anyways I should stop hijacking your hijack, Mim will have something sensible to add.

Bruce in Adelaide

If I was shopping for this type of uke, even though I don't like too much bling, I'd gravitate to the mahogany. But it's more what calls out to you most. What does the little voice in your head say?

The mahogany soprano. No question. I don't usually like that much bling either (although if a Martin 5K fell into my lap, I wouldn't mind THAT bling!), but I love mahogany sopranos. Of course, I've never owned a spruce topped uke before. In my collection, my three favorites are all mahogany: my 2 vintage Martins and my Mainland soprano. I likes me some mahogany! I'm thinking of having a custom soprano made in 2011, and it will most likely be mahogany. Get the mahogany!

Another vote for the Mahogany Soprano!

Mahogany Soprano!
The tree-of-life inlay did it for me. It's the best kind of fretboard inlay IMO

Mahogany soprano. Love it. Don't usually like too much bling either but that one is really nice.

Aloha Mim,
Good Morning, I hope you're having a wonderful morning after Christmas...My choice is the warmer Mahogany anytime before asthetics....Gee you're sooo lucky!!! MM Stan...

personally, I don't really fancy so much bling on my uke, but I guess Mahogany's a better choice?

Well I'm going to go against the grain a little. I'd personally go for the cedar top tenor with low-g. I love cedar combined with hard woods like rosewood or walnut. But... the soprano is cool too. I wouldn't worry about the bling on the inlay. Look, you run a uke shop, play all the time, sing well, and above all else enjoy ukuleles. If anyone deserves a little bling on their uke it's you. And as for as worrying about putting marks on it my theory is this, ukes are meant to be played. You take care of it as best you can, but if playing it puts a mark or two on it let it go. Why buy a Mercedes just to park it in the garage?

Mim said:

Yes, I am a ukulele dealer... but I RARELY let myself keep one. I have 4. One was the result of a fortunate trade. But now, I have UAS bad!

I got some Prototype Acoustic Eleukes in... sight unseen. I had no clue what I was getting. And I have been aching for a Soprano or Low G Tenor for a long time!

The problem is... I am in love with more than one! I did not know they would be this beautiful! And I love them all! But am having decision issues. I have norrowed it down to 3! All 3 have a passive pickup system. If I am to keep a ukulele, I would love for it to be one of these Eleukes because I am irrovocably and completely in love with Eleuke in every way.

Left to right:

Soprano Spruce Top/ Rosewood
Tenor Cedar Top/ Rosewood
Soprano All Solid Mahogany with In-lay

So here they are:

Sort of leaning toward the soprano mahogany. I am in love with the inlay which is basically the Eleuke logo 4 times over. I just usually dont go for ukes this snazzy... basically because I am clutsy and my poor Kala has so many finish nicks. But I would probably baby this one more.

Click to expand...

I can understand why you can not decide.. beautiful ukuleles... sopranos are not my favorite and I have never played a tenor, if you love sopranos I would go for the mahogany one otherwise jump all over that tenor.. it's gorgeous!!

Tenor Cedar, for sure. =]

mds725 said:

Or perhaps you would recommend something else? I guess my question comes down to: Is solid mahogany in a solid body electric uukulele worth the extra money it costs? Does solid mahogany affect the sound of the uke, the feel, the playability? Any other thoughts?

Click to expand...

Ok, this is always a tricky one. I think it comes down more to personal style and taste more than sound. Since it is an under-saddle Piezo pickup a lot of the sound is in the saddle and I have had customers switch up the saddle to achieve different sound. The theory is more wood, more sound. I have a Line 6 amp and I think the amp has a lot to do with it. I have plugged in concerts vs. tenors and not heard any difference. I need to do a mahogany vs. 100 series models... maybe I will tomorrow when I get to work and I will report back here . The differences I see between the two are

#1 Feel

The solid mahogany is heavier. Not a huge difference, but it is there. Personally I like that in a solid body uke. Especially since I use a strap. But you may like the lighter. Personal preference.

#2 Bragging rights

Most of us our guilty of this to a point. Being able to say "This is a SOLID mahogany Eleuke". I am sort of that way. Ha! My Eleuke is a Solid Mahogany Soprano... so of course I throw out the SOLID! Because for awhile it was the only solid anything I had! Well, now I still dont... but will soon!

#3 Looks

The mahoganies each have a different look, and a different grain, and look a but more classic and natural. If that is your thing, then I would go for it! Some people just love the looks of the blue, or the black metallic, or the rosewood. I sort of am in love the with Black Metallic... it is the mullet of Eleukes... from a distance it looks sleek, shiney, and all business. Up close the metallic pops and is very rock n' roll.

#4 Price

I mean, sometimes it just is not worth the extra $60-$70 for you. I find people who like the natural look, but dont want to spend the extra $$ opt for the Rosewood! Then I always seem to have a few B-stocks if you want something even less!

Tomorrow:
I will do a sound comparison of the Mahogany and the 100 series Tenor. I have never heard a difference, but I never went back in forth between those 2 specifically!

Hey, nice ukes I'm quite new to the game- didnt realise elukes sold hollow body ones aswell! My choice would be the mahogany soprano also, but didnt the film 'Scarface' warn of the dangers of dealers getting a taste of their products lol? be careful you could end up with you smothing your face in a pile of elukes soon!

ukejoelele said:

Hey, nice ukes I'm quite new to the game- didnt realise elukes sold hollow body ones aswell! My choice would be the mahogany soprano also, but didnt the film 'Scarface' warn of the dangers of dealers getting a taste of their products lol? be careful you could end up with you smothing your face in a pile of elukes soon!

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These are prototypes that never got mass produced. So there are only a few in existence of each. They do make a hollowbody now as well. It is either laminate mahogany or spruce. They have the MP3 input and headphone output like the solid bodies. They have an offset sound hole as well. The buzz is they are going to introduce these with A LOT of different exotic woods at NAMM. I can not wait to see and play them!

Here is the eleuke.com web site link to the acoustics:
http://www.eleuke.com/acoustic_electric_2010_catalog.pdf

Every once in awhile the eleuke.com site as opposed to the eleukeusa.com site will have some models that will be hitting America soon.

Mim said:

These are prototypes that never got mass produced. So there are only a few in existence of each. They do make a hollowbody now as well. It is either laminate mahogany or spruce. They have the MP3 input and headphone output like the solid bodies. They have an offset sound hole as well. The buzz is they are going to introduce these with A LOT of different exotic woods at NAMM. I can not wait to see and play them!

Here is the eleuke.com web site link to the acoustics:
http://www.eleuke.com/acoustic_electric_2010_catalog.pdf

Every once in awhile the eleuke.com site as opposed to the eleukeusa.com site will have some models that will be hitting America soon.

Click to expand...

Wow! They make a LOT of acoustic models! That ebony-topped one is pretty slick!

Chris Tarman said:

Wow! They make a LOT of acoustic models! That ebony-topped one is pretty slick!

Click to expand...

They are not out yet to purchase, but they will be. Me and Tim from Ukeeku and Sally Salukulady, will be at NAMM and will have a full report for you!

Wow Mim! The Ash top seems pretty nice! and it comes with a slotted headstock as well! (Insanely shimmering wood)