Ohana SK38

Anybody seen these show up yet? I haven't seen pictures of them, Elderly doesn't have them. The only site of them was in the NAMM vids. Anybody know when they will actually show up in stock?

pdxuke said:

Anybody seen these show up yet? I haven't seen pictures of them, Elderly doesn't have them. The only site of them was in the NAMM vids. Anybody know when they will actually show up in stock?

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Several stores in the US and Europe have already got them on order. They will have them in stock soon. Some may have them already. Can't tell you which ones yet.

I have a couple at home and will do a review video soon.

Ken Middleton said:

Several stores in the US and Europe have already got them on order. They will have them in stock soon. Some may have them already. Can't tell you which ones yet.

I have a couple at home and will do a review video soon.

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Thank you, Ken. What I saw in the video I liked very much.

Lacking a proper comparison (one with the same songs and recording equipment etc) I did this little Audacity comparison of Ken reviewing the SK-38 and the SK-35G from a year ago. The two do sound quite different, with the SK-38 having less bass and very clean sound, as Ken said. I was a bit surprised to hear Ken say that the 38 is louder, only because I had to amplify the recording of the SK38 in Audacity to get it as loud as the 35, but judging from the backgrounds in the two videos I stripped the audio from the recording setup was different.

As Ken said, it is difficult to describe these things in words. My 35 has a very loud traditional soprano "bark," which those playing the 1920's - 1940's classic ukulele tunes love. Its hard to ignore. The 38 seems more controlled in that department (less resonance and/or sustain on certain notes?) , but again, I am only listening to YouTube clips. I can't wait to get my hands on a 38 to do a real comparison. I have to remember to bring the Zoom H4 and fresh batteries when I do.

For what its, worth, here is the comparison audio made by stripping the audio from YouTube and cutting out Ken's descriptions of the instruments. I also cut out some of Ken's wonderful finger picking on the SK38, because he didn't do as much on the 35 review.

http://www.box.net/shared/ezditux736

As good as it was before I think perhaps Ken's playing is getting better every year, or maybe his style is just changing lol. Thanks for always having such good reviews Ken. Time to update your 6 Ohana sopranos compared video Ken?

I would love to see a comparison video like Rod Neep did on the classic Martins, the Martin SO, and the Kiwaya. It would be great to hear them all side-by-side with the Ohanas thrown in too.

A really, really interesting comparison. I wasn't able to compare the two directly because I don't have an SK-35 with regular Aquila strings on. As the strings make a significant difference to the sound, it seemed pointless comparing the two. This audio comparison is very useful. Thanks for doing it.

With this audio clip, it is very clear that the two ukes have a very different sound. I have always regarded the SK-35 or 35G very highly and I think it still takes some beating, particularly at the price. I very much like the sound of the new SK-38 though. I like the looks of it too (lovely dark brown finish), but I think people are probably buying it for the sound. We are very pleased with this new uke.

The SK-38 actually took us over a year to develop. I started talking about it (with one of the world's leading soprano players) at a festival in 2009. We went through 2 prototypes before deciding on this spec.

Thanks.

Someone had commented elsewhere that it looked like the SK-38 had my UAS raging again, but I commented that I thought it and the SK-35 were so close that it would not. After listening to the audio comparison, my UAS is in full bloom again.

I would love to see a comparison video like Rod Neep did on the classic Martins, the Martin SO, and the Kiwaya. It would be great to hear them all side-by-side with the Ohanas thrown in too.[/QUOTE]
I second that motion!
I wish I could play both of them side by side. SweetWaterBlue that you so much for the audio comparison. I want one of each.

pdxuke UkeRepublic has the Ohana sk-38

My UAS was in remission until now.

roxhum said:

I would love to see a comparison video like Rod Neep did on the classic Martins, the Martin SO, and the Kiwaya. It would be great to hear them all side-by-side with the Ohanas thrown in too.

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Interesting, but the three instruments sound very different from each other. The Mexican-made SO is not in the same league as a solid-wood Kiwaya (IMHO).

Kiwayas don't really sound like Martins. An old Martin sounds like an old Martin. A kiwaya sounds like a Kiwaya. Kiwayas have one of the most exciting sounds in the ukulele world. They have a wonderful sound all of their own. The workmanship on a Kiwaya also knocks the SO for six.

The other problem is that probably no-one at the moment has all three ukes. I have several SK-38 ukes and a Kiwaya, but do not have an SO.

Bear in mind also that Kiwayas are expensive. Quality usually comes at a price. The head of Kiwaya USA told me that they could not make the SK-38 for anything close to the price they are selling for.

Interesting Ken. Since everyone is interested in replicating that vintage Martin sound, do you think the Ohana sk-38 hits closer to the mark than the Kiwayas do? Certainly, old wood has a quality that new instruments don't, but is that what Ohana was shooting for?

BTW, the new Ohana looks very good, imo.

I seem to recall that even Martin is coming out with a new "old Martin" clone. This time, apparently they did it right (as opposed to the SO), but I can't find the link right now. It really makes you wonder what the old Martin craftsmen knew that we don't know now. Most of these inexpensive Asian sopranos have flat tops, and I recall Pete Howlett saying that for some reason he doesn't understand the Martin tops do not sag much over time, yet they are flat, not over-braced and sound good.

The soprano space is interesting right now.

didgeridoo2 said:

Interesting Ken. Since everyone is interested in replicating that vintage Martin sound, do you think the Ohana sk-38 hits closer to the mark than the Kiwayas do? Certainly, old wood has a quality that new instruments don't, but is that what Ohana was shooting for?

BTW, the new Ohana looks very good, imo.

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We bought a 1930's Martin style 2 and had our factory copy it as close as they could. They came up with an excellent prototype. We changed a few things. I didn't like the new-looking white binding, for instance. We changed a few other things. We considered more expensive tuners. This prototype sounded very close to the real Martin. The second prototype still had the sound, but there were one or two other adjustments that needed to be made. We decided against bar frets. Several experiened (and well-known) players said that they made it too hard to play. They suggested that we ought to use regular frets like Kiwaya do.

We decided to get the price down so that it would be affordable. We kept the important things: thin wood, light weight, ebony nut and saddle, great sound, etc. By the NAMM show in January it was ready. It took a long time, but it was worth it.

I am not going to say that the SK-38 is closer to the old Martin sound than a Kiwaya. I will stress again that Kiwaya make some of the very best ukes you can buy. They have been making instruments since 1918 (I think). I do think that they are brilliant, but it is really their sound, not Martin's. Some might say it is even better than the sound of an old Martin. It really is very subjective.

We at Ohana made an honest attempt to produce an instrument with a great sound that is close to the Martins of old, and produced it at a really affordable price.

I have been as open as I could be.

Ken Middleton said:

We bought a 1930's Martin style 2

I have been as open as I could be.

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First, who got to keep the old Martin?

Second, your contributions here and everywhere else are very much appreciated. Thanks, Ken.

didgeridoo2 said:

First, who got to keep the old Martin?

Second, your contributions here and everywhere else are very much appreciated. Thanks, Ken.

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The old Martin is still at the factory (in one piece). I think we will sell it eventually.

I still have one of the prototypes.

KEN

Ken, you mentioned at NAMM that Ohana was thinking of changing tuners to black. Did you do that?

pdxuke said:

Ken, you mentioned at NAMM that Ohana was thinking of changing tuners to black. Did you do that?

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No, we changed our mind. Black would probably look better, but Martin used white. It is more in keeping with the spirit of a style 2.

I love the new Ohana and feel they did great on this one. It looks vintage and sounds marvelous . Ohana seems to deliver on quality and beauty while keeping the price affordable. My opinion on the SK-38.... GOAL!!!

Uke Republic said:

I love the new Ohana and feel they did great on this one. It looks vintage and sounds marvelous . Ohana seems to deliver on quality and beauty while keeping the price affordable. My opinion on the SK-38.... GOAL!!!

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You gotta bring one to the next Meet-up!! I went to Uncle Wally's last week, but Eller was thinking maybe Mon or Tues at PS/Macland.

Here's a video with Philippe Krouk and I filmed at Phil's home during last year's Paris Festival. One of us is palying a beautiful old Martin style 2 and one of us has the Ohana prototype. Which is which? Don't read the blurb.

I will as long as we don't sell out again:0 Monday sounds great to me. You may have to take one to Uncle Wally's , I've had request for that group to see it as well. Tough for me to get out there with traffic-1.5 hours the last 2 times.Gotta love 285

SweetWaterBlue said:

You gotta bring one to the next Meet-up!! I went to Uncle Wally's last week, but Eller was thinking maybe Mon or Tues in Marietta.

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That was a great video Ken. I remember when you first posted it. That was what got me thinking about the 38. You gotta love that wall of sopranos.