kala ka-15s vs ukadelic line

Hi everyone this is my first post in this forum, and it is because tomorrow or the day after tomorrow ill be buying my first ukulele, and the thing is that i have done a little research and i going to buy a Kala soprano ka-15s, because of the price, and the reviews i have read. But yesterday i started wondering about the ukadelic line, they look kind of cooler than the ka-15s, and my question is, is there any difference between this this two models???, i mean in the sound and the quality of the material and playability, or is basically the same???.

I hope you can help me here out, and don't wanna buy something thats looks cool but sound awful.

aa And I'm from Mexico by the way.

Any Ukulele from Kala is very Good Quality!

The Ukadelic's are just painted versions of the KA-S models which have Silver Nickel frets over the Brass frets of the KA-15s.

I love the ukadelics

The music store I work at sells the ukadelics like hotcakes. They play pretty well. For an example, I made a multiple uke arrangement of "beat it" and posted it on youtube. Everything but the main riff/baseline was recorded with ukadelics.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0mEzlQXctAQ

check it out to see what they can sound like.

Also be aware that Kala just finished their "design a Ukadelic" contest, and word has it that they're looking to get the artwork sent off soon, so there will likely be some new models available in the near future. I'm guessing they want to have some new choices for Christmas.

ok thanks everyone, i decided to purchase a ka-15s, and I'm still waiting for it, i didn't purchase the ukadelic cause i didn't find enough videos of people playing it (besides the one of kg24).

I will tell you i receive it test it.

I just passed my ka-15 on to my adult son. It is a terrific uke for the money and sounds as good as more expensive ones. Hope you enjoy it!

The difference is minor but notable...

We own both the 15S and a Ukadelic. They are very similarly made and equipped with the following differences:

1. 15S has brass frets, made from "mahogany"
2. Ukadelic is made "from poplar or nato"

Nato is just another form of mahogany, and is also called "Eastern Mahogany". Poplar is also used in acoustic instruments and is known for having better "sustain".

Neither of the above issues is meaningful. With nylon strings there should be no practical difference in the frets; however there is a slight difference in the sound.

Both have very respectable sound. The Ukadelic is widely described as "brighter", while still full. The 15S feels a bit warmer and softer (in tone, not volume). Thus, its a matter of taste as this is entirely personal preference. And keep in mind these two are VERY similar in almost every regard.

Personally, I like the little extra brightness of my Ukadelic, while my partner prefers both the look and sound of her slightly warmer 15S. We could easily exchange our ukaleles (after prying mine out of my cold dead hands) and neither of us would be unhappy. You won't go wrong with either. I love my "Tiki".

I do hope I have completely frustrated you, lol...

Got one of these Tenor Ukadelics on order- to complete my collection with the only size I don't have yet

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Kala-KA-TRE...ultDomain_0&hash=item27db049f57#ht_2617wt_981

Had a $50 gift card for christmas and these were the only tenors under $50. I think an unpainted mahogany body might sound just a bit better- but they don't start under $70 and then those don't have the Aquila strings like this one- which also has a really nice deep body- Some places are selling this model for considerably more- so I'm anxious to get it

Columbo: "And one more thing..."

One post above I described the sound differences between our KA-15S and our Ukadelic (with the Ukadelic being brighter and a bit louder, the 15S being warmer and mellower), when I happened to take a close look at the sound holes and found a difference that may account for why, at least for these two...

The laminate around the sound hole is noticeably thinner on our Eukadelic. Unfortunately they are strung so I was unable to use my digital calipers, but by eye I'd say the 15S was 1-1/2 to 1-2/3x thicker than the Eukadelic.

More experienced Euker's here may be able to comment as to whether the thinner face also adds to Eukadelic's reported brightness.

Hey Kayouker- just a few thoughts on my own- I play a lot of stringed instruments and there are some basic principles-
what you said above about the sound difference seems to be the usual case-

anything painted or heavily clearcoated is not as good at letting sound through as something that is not- whether it's a uke, a guitar ,, fiddle etc.
and mahogany seems to be particularly mellow sounding- include "sapelle" and nato I guess- described as similar- i know sapelle is very mellow sounding

I've had a cheap Rogue steel string guitar I've had for years, and even with a laqeuor finish, the sound is nioticibly more mellow than any of the pine topped guitars in the same league.

I break the sound basically into three components
volume
overtones
and sustain

I think volume and sustain are more closely related to body shape and size, and the type of strings
"Overtones" are the variance you can hear within both the volume and sustain
unpainted and unfinished mahogany will, given the same shape size and strings- let more sound through the body and deliver more overtones

I ended up getting that uke above delivered, and here's my review in the review section:
http://forum.ukuleleunderground.com/showthread.php?92355-Really-nice-CHEAP-Kala-ukadekic-tenor

I'm quite happy with the ukadelic tenor- although I'm sure the higher priced unpainted mahjogany models above it probably deliver a better sound, the difference is probably mainly in overtone- I simply couldn't spend the money on one.

because this ukadelic is made with thin poplar and has a volumous deep body- it actiually does quite well with volume and sustain- and those are pumped up with the aquila strings which for some reason aren't on the mahogany bodies- they are probably set up to maximize the overtone and give a sft sound full of texture

It doesn't feel or sound like a cheap uke in anyway- when I first started on ukes last summer- I wanted a "tropical day" Kala just to hang on the wall mostly- but that one is usually the highest priced of their soprano line, so I got somethinmg else more based on sound then later- and I chose an unpainted mahogany Hola that has a really great "bell shape" for a really classic uke sop sound at a cheap price.

here's the review I did of that:
http://forum.ukuleleunderground.com...ay-quot-Hola!-quot-to-a-really-solid-enty-uke


I expected the Kala ujadelic tenor to be of solid quality, and wasn't disappointed! THe price was fantastic, and listed as a "blem" but I can;t find a single thing wrondg with it.

I do love my Kalas!!!