Two all-solid tenor ukes compared

Ken Middleton

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I thought it would be interesting to compare my Pete Howlett Custom Tenor with the Ohana TK-35CG, the instrument I most often play. The two ukes are really very different in so many ways. Please read the blurb with the video.

Be warned: this video is ridiculously long.

Howlett and Ohana compared

I have tried to be fair and played something similar on each uke. I didn't change the levels to make either one sound louder. Added a touch of reverb to brighten up the tone.
 
Well Ken - all I can say is that they both sound great with your playing. Thanks for sharing.
 
Great comparison Ken. I like the Ohana, It's not as loud but I like the warmer overall tone. Is there much difference in the way they play? Is the Ohana "off the shelf" as far as not being professionally set up? I would imagine the Howlett is pro set up?
Don
 
Great comparison Ken. I like the Ohana, It's not as loud but I like the warmer overall tone. Is there much difference in the way they play? Is the Ohana "off the shelf" as far as not being professionally set up? I would imagine the Howlett is pro set up?
Don

Thanks very much, Don. This may come as a bit of a shock, but this idea that instruments are set up before they are sold is a bit of a myth. You can't set up an instrument for a person unless you know their requirements. Most good manufacturers and all sensible dealers check the instruments before they are sold. At Ohana, all our instruments are checked before they are shipped to dealers. Any adjustments that are needed are carried out then. We set our action at the same height as, for example, Kanile'a - not too low. If the action is too low we get a lot of unhappy customers. Because Pete Howlett is making an instrument for an individual, he will set the action at the height that they request.
 
Thanks for doing that Ken. Don't worry about the length of the video, it is great listening to you play. I think the mahogany was warmer and the koa brighter. So personal preference then. For me the mahogany was preferable, but both sound really good.
 
I prefer the brightness of Koa but that is a generality. I have to admit that the Ohana surprised me with the depth or "complexity" of its tone. I've been fortunate enough to play some great guitars and some "just okay" guitars and often the difference between a top-notch instrument and a lesser beast is the complexity of the tone. Often less expensive instruments seem to be a little "one dimensional" but you illustrated that the Ohana offers more - more than someone like me is capable of taking advantage of, probably.

It's kind of funny because with guitars I tend to prefer darker tones, but with ukes I prefer brighter tones. Maybe I just like to really differentiate between the instruments. LOL

Anyway, great job as always and I'll stop rambling, now. :)

John
 
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Thanks for listening. Which wood do you like best for sound: mahogany or koa?

I do not think one is better than the other - just different. That being said I preferred the sound of the mahogany - it was a little warmer.
 
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