Who are the Martin, Taylor and Gibsons of Uke?

AcousticDoc · Jul 24, 2008

Hello, I'm a beginner and was wondering what were the equavilant uke companies that are the high quality mass produced Ukes similar to Taylor, Martin and Gibson guitars. Oh and what would also be the more smaller privately handbuilt James Olson or goodalls of the uke world as well?

Boozelele · Jul 24, 2008

AcousticDoc said:
Hello, I'm a beginner and was wondering what were the equavilant uke companies that are the high quality mass produced Ukes similar to Taylor, Martin and Gibson guitars. Oh and what would also be the more smaller privately handbuilt James Olson or goodalls of the uke world as well?

Dude! you left out Fender....what's up with that???

I think that the popularity of guitars facilitates mass produced high quality instruments....where as the uke has two distinct classes...mass produced and hand crafted. Now some of the mass produced ukes are 'good' instruments...but the hand crafted ukes can be 'REALLY good' instruments (I know, I know, I'm totally speaking in generalizations)

AcousticDoc · Jul 24, 2008

Boozelele said:
Dude! you left out Fender....what's up with that???

Cause Fender builds crappy guitars! J/K! I was just listing good acoustic guitar brands (fender doesn't have any good acoustics!) So from my 30 minute research are the big mass produced ukulele's Kala and Kamaka?

seeso · Jul 24, 2008

Kamaka, KoAloha, Martin

Poi Dog · Jul 24, 2008

Easiest way to figure out what's the best of the best...

"What are YOUR favorite PROS using?" For me its... What does Jake use? How about Britni Paiva or Victoria Vox or James Hill or Herb Otah jr. or ALDRINE? How about some bands... like Ho'onua or Malino, etc.

Answer for me is... Kamaka, Koaloha and G-String.

AcousticDoc · Jul 24, 2008

seeso said:
Kamaka, KoAloha, Martin

So all the Kala's that I've been seeing around here are not very good?

AcousticDoc · Jul 24, 2008

Poi Dog said:
Easiest way to figure out what's the best of the best...

"What are YOUR favorite PROS using?" For me its... What does Jake use? How about Britni Paiva or Victoria Vox or James Hill or Herb Otah jr. or ALDRINE? How about some bands... like Ho'onua or Malino, etc.

Answer for me is... Kamaka, Koaloha and G-String.

Wow I checked out the Koaloha's they are gorgeous! Hopefully I will get good enough within the next few years to warrant a purchase of one of these beauties provided I liek the tone of course! My beginner Uke feels so cheap!

Boozelele · Jul 24, 2008

AcousticDoc said:
So all the Kala's that I've been seeing around here are not very good?

That is what I was referring to with my "mass produced" comment. Kala, Lanikai, Ohana, are all made in 'asia', some can actually be pretty good but they are NOT the gibsons or martins of the ukulele world. And besides....nobody just buys ONE ukulele....so try them all.

Poi Dog · Jul 24, 2008

AcousticDoc said:
Wow I checked out the Koaloha's they are gorgeous! Hopefully I will get good enough within the next few years to warrant a purchase of one of these beauties provided I liek the tone of course! My beginner Uke feels so cheap!

Yup - that's what I upgraded to! I've got a Koaloha Tenor now... I used to have a cheaper Leolani Tenor (handed it down to my son).

However, I'll probably be upgrading next year to a Kamaka Tenor (if I start saving all my pennies now... LOL).

Rubbertoe · Jul 24, 2008

AcousticDoc said:
Cause Fender builds crappy guitars! J/K! I was just listing good acoustic guitar brands (fender doesn't have any good acoustics!) So from my 30 minute research are the big mass produced ukulele's Kala and Kamaka?

Kala's and Kamaka's are two different animals. Both mass produced but with very different end results (and price tags). Mass produced doesn't necessarily mean "bad" and hand-made doesn't necessarly mean "good".

seeso said:
Kamaka, KoAloha, Martin

I'd have to add Kanile'a to this list. (unless you have an aversion to bridge pins).

rt1965 · Jul 24, 2008

When you think of Bushman, Ohana, Kala, etc... think Blueridge guitars. They are Asian made instruments that sound and look prettty decent, but don't quite hit the mark of Martin, Gibson, or Taylor. Then again, you're not paying top dollar for them. I have two KoAlohas, and an Ohana. There is just no cpmparison in overall quality. The Ohana is a nice uke and feels a niche, but a nice Martin tenor would fit the bill much better.

When you think Martin, Gibson, Taylor, think KoAloha, Kamaka, Kanilea, etc... As far as custom builders, thing Glyph Ukuleles, Andy Powers, and even some from the ones named above.

Interestingly, the latest ukes from Martin haven't gotten rave reviews. The 5K and the Daisy are outstanding, but the new style 3's are getting mixed reviews. I think the issue is, they are being compared to Vintage Martins, and that probably just isn't fair. Martin isn't really set up to do ukes the way they used to, at least not finish wise. The build quality is good, but the finish they use today is much different from the ukes of yesteryear.

Kiwaya is another mass production builder who build really nice sopranos and concerts. Very much like Vintage Martins in both build and tone.

AcousticDoc · Jul 25, 2008

rt1965! That's a great post! :rock: I originally bought a bushman Jenny concert cause someone told me if was a blueridge version of the ukulele! And I remember playing some blueridge 160s that sounded almost as good as Martin HD28Vs a few years ago. So Are the ohana's, kala's and bushmans similar in tone to the more expensive ones with just poorer construction? I remember liking the blueridge tone but being horrified by the laquer job and neck.

OoOo they make uke's with bridge pins!? SWEET! My current Jenny doesn't have bridge pins and I'm scared of the day when I will have to change strings.

SuperSecretJohn · Jul 25, 2008

I wouldn't think Martins would fit in the category because they're considered vintage. I guess I would say Koaloha, Kamaka, and someone else... It's a toss-up between GString and Kanile'a.

deach · Jul 25, 2008

SuperSecretBETA said:
I wouldn't think Martins would fit in the category because they're considered vintage. I guess I would say Koaloha, Kamaka, and someone else... It's a toss-up between GString and Kanile'a.

Are the new Martins considered vintage?

SuperSecretJohn · Jul 25, 2008

deach said:
Are the new Martins considered vintage?

No. Other than the recreated 5K, I didn't know they have more. It just seems too much of a niche that I still don't know if I can call it a modern production brand... kinda like a lone ukulele luthier that's not really established as a part of a company. If they have a new line though, then I guess I stand corrected.

SinisterDom · Jul 25, 2008

SuperSecretBETA said:
No. Other than the recreated 5K, I didn't know they have more. It just seems too much of a niche that I still don't know if I can call it a modern production brand... kinda like a lone ukulele luthier that's not really established as a part of a company. If they have a new line though, then I guess I stand corrected.

Martin currently makes the 5K, 3K, 3C cherry, and S-O

freedive135 · Jul 25, 2008

I just have to say I like my Kalas!!!!
Yes I would love to have a Koaloha and when I am better (years from now) i'd like one.

And it not the hammer its the carpenter. Anyone seen the guitar that Willie Nelson plays?
http://photo.net/photodb/photo?photo_id=1046936

rt1965 · Jul 25, 2008

Martin's full ukulele lineup includes the 5K, the 5 Daisy, the SO, and three fairly new Style 3's. The newer Style 3's come in Mahogany, Cherry, and Koa. It's the newer Style 3's that are getting mixed reviews. I think too many buyers were smply expecting the new models to sound like their Vintage counterparts. Not gonna happen right out of the box. That and the finish is different from the older ukes, which turns the Martin purists off.

I don't think, however, that I would dismiss Martin as simply a niche builder. They may indeed be filling a niche, but let's not forget they have more experience than many of today's modern uke builders. It's not as if they just decided to get into the uke market. They have been overwhelmingly successful re-introducing Vintage style guitars over the past several years. Other than the finish difference in their new ukes, the design is the same. There's no reason to think their ukes will be sub-standard. Well, except for the SO!

experimentjon · Jul 25, 2008

Indeed, the best "mass produced" or "factory system (division of labor)" ukuleles are made by Kamaka, KoAloha, G String, and Kanilea. And I would place them in that order from most well known and well respected to less well respected (but still very very good.) However, I personally love my Kanilea tenor which I chose over an almost identically priced Kamaka tenor. All of them build great ukes, and when you're up in that price range, you're getting a good instrument, it's just a matter of personal preference which one you choose.

And as for kalas, they're not bad for the money, but I have never played a Kala that sounds or plays quite like a higher end uke.

drubin · Jul 25, 2008

rt1965 said:
let's not forget they [Martin] have more experience than many of today's modern uke builders. It's not as if they just decided to get into the uke market. They have been overwhelmingly successful re-introducing Vintage style guitars over the past several years. Other than the finish difference in their new ukes, the design is the same. There's no reason to think their ukes will be sub-standard. Well, except for the SO!

FWIW, I'm not sure "experience" is the right word here. Are the uke's Martin is making built by the same luthier's of Martin's yesteryear? No. It's new, factory based luthiers, albeit (from what I have heard), factory based luthiers located in the United States. And are you sure Martin is following their original design specs? I haven't been able to confirm this anywhere I've looked or asked. Maybe I'm missing something, don't know. I do know that Martin owns the copyright to the model names, obviously, but I'm not sure the new 5k or whichever new model is EXACTLY the same (finish differences aside) as the vintage models.

Who are the Martin, Taylor and Gibsons of Uke?

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