looking for a reasonably priced but awesome electric uke

kaizersoza

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i don't mind if its used as long as it is in very good condition, now here's the story,
i happened to be chatting with my son who works for Roland Music, i asked him if he would price the roland microcube for me as he has discount, just out of curiosity,
he phones me today and tells me he gets it for around half price and do i want one for my christmas prezzie,
well i had to accept his kind offer, now this has left me with a very odd dilemma, coz on christmas morning i won't be able to give it some love,
so can you all give me some ideas as to what electric uke i can buy myself,
don't mention eleuke coz they don't exist anymore in my world, rocking horse crap is more available, i only can afford about £100 but if forced forcibly i will stretch to £150
PLEASE! PLEASE! help me out as i am running outta time here,
thank you all you lovely people

kaizer
 
yea, put a pickup in/on a uke you already have. i really don't use on with an amp that much. if you are going to perform. thats another story.
 
hi itsame, i may have to resort to one of those stick on thingeez, but there are a lot of reports about feedback, so i don't know, the stagg stratocaster catches my eye but then there are reports it conflicts with the roland microcube so that may rule that out decisions, decisions
 
its a long story strumsilly, but to cut a long story short i have been bought a roland microcube for christmas, and who knows i could start busking in the new year to pay for the new electric uke i am going to buy lol i've been fancying one for a while
 
don't mention eleuke coz they don't exist anymore in my world,

Well if you refuse to get the most widely available electric uke, what can we offer? lol.
Find one on eBay. They don't cost all that much - you may have to pay a bit of international shipping if it's coming from overseas.
Unfortunately, because electric ukes are a bit of a niche, you almost always have to buy online.

Otherwise, you can get a Risa Uke-Solid. They're excellent electric ukes.
But they cost a bit more than Eleuke.
Find them at www.ukulele.de They come in Soprano, Concert and Tenor
Or from this UK based eBay seller:
http://stores.ebay.com.au/Southern-...98821018&_sid=923147848&_trksid=p4634.c0.m322

The Stagg Stratocaster.
I used to have one. It sounded terrible through my Roland Microcube.
Don't know whether it was just the particular one I had, or whether they're all like that.
There was a very loud hummmm and the output was not very strong. But when plugged into a different amp, it worked just fine.

The stick-on thingies.. as far as "electrifying" uke goes, they're at the bottom in terms of sound quality.

Otherwise, you can just get an acoustic-electric uke. However, it won't have as much sustain as a true electric ukulele (with a solid body), and may have some feedback problems at higher gain.
 
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thanx for the advice kissing, i'll take a chance on the stagg and if it don't sound good, i'll send it back or i'll change the amp, i like the sound of the risa but at this time of year its too expensive thanx for the advice
 
hi itsame, i may have to resort to one of those stick on thingeez, but there are a lot of reports about feedback, so i don't know...
Had one probably 20 years ago (a Dean Markley) and used it on guitar and mandolin thru a Fender RAD bass amp (GC salesperson had told me acoustic instruments sounded better thru bass amps) and never had any feedback issues at all.

Worth a shot IMO.

If that doesn't work out, you could always try one of those under-the-bridge pickups.

Point being that you don't need to rush out and buy an electric or electric/acoustic uke just because you're getting an amp. Unless, of course, you really want to. :)
 
Call Mim maybe she has a deal for you.
I second the Mim vote, give her a call she is wonderful to work with and I know she does a lot of international business. She often has better deals when you call than she can do on Ebay.
 
don't mention eleuke coz they don't exist anymore in my world, rocking horse crap is more available, i only can afford about £100 but if forced forcibly i will stretch to £150


Get a stick-on thingy to tide you over the Christmas period. It'll be average but do the job...

Consider an electro-acoustic uke? Lots of quality ones around.

But if you really want a solid body electric uke, get on to MIM and order an Eleuke from the USA. She is nothing short of fantastic, always answering my questions and queries. I ordered mine from her and it arrived at my place across the pond in less than two weeks.

Your £150 budget may be stretched though once you add shipping and customs charges.
 
I too recommend MIM's to get an Eleuke.

I've owned Risa's, Eleukes and a Stagg.

Eleukes surpass the Stagg quite a lot in quality.
Eleukes are a lot higher quality. A Stagg isn't an instrument I would personally recommend.

(And Risa is higher quality than both in my opinion, but only if it's your cup of tea).
 
I too recommend MIM's to get an Eleuke.

I've owned Risa's, Eleukes and a Stagg.

Eleukes surpass the Stagg quite a lot in quality.
Eleukes are a lot higher quality. A Stagg isn't an instrument I would personally recommend.

(And Risa is higher quality than both in my opinion, but only if it's your cup of tea).


I am in agreement with all that say contact Mim about eleuke! I am pretty sure that Mim has shipped overseas before. Good luck! I love my eleuke! (and yup I got it from MIM)
 
I'd recommend the Mobile Cube all over the Microcube. Through a Microcube, a uke sounds harsh and not in a good way. The Mobile Cube is meant as an all rounder for all sorts of instruments. The uke sounds great through the Acoustic setting, and Keyboard setting. It's more expensive, but it's just a better amp for those of us not using electric guitars.

Even though I'm one who got rid of my Eleuke and am going back to Risa, I'd say Eleuke. I didn't get rid of it because it was bad. It's just that you don't want Eleuke, but then don't want Risa, and that would put the Ko'olau solid bodies out of reach too. It's like ..welp...
 
ok thanx for all of your input guys certainly food for thought, i will do a little bit of research and then decide in the new year, i'll just stick to my acoustic ukes for now
 
have you considered the epiphone les paul uke? With a little bit of setup (i.e., file the nut and change out the strings), it's a really nice acoustic-electric uke priced <$100.
 
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If you search ebay for "Cigar Box Ukes" you will find some really affordable ukes with pickups installed. The cigar box uke things is something I am getting a bit of interest in, and I have noticed this when I look at what is available. Regardless, I hope you find what you are looking for.
 
thanx guys, i have made my mind up on an amp, done a bit of research and i am going to buy the mobilecube its a bit more expensive than the microcube but it is compatable with more instruments and is a louder amp, it also has a couple of channels allowing you to use a mic or play along to your mp3 player, it even has a centre mute button so you can mute out the singer or/and lead guitar on a track and you can play or sing instead, time to get my own back on the girl next door (noisy neighbour) thanx for the idea Plainsong great shout

as for an electric uke, hmmm thats more of a problem, my m8 knows a guy who owns a LP stagg and he's gonna let me try it, if its good i'll get one because it has an active pick up and also supports mp3 as well as a headphone socket, i am not holding much hope for the stagg because some posters on here don't rate it, on older posts on here a lot of the guys loved it, so i am in 2 minds, after christmas has come and gone i am going to start saving, looked at Mim's ebay site and she has got some stunning eleukes on there, i quite like the Risa type as well, but we shall have to see, @kissing just watched your you tube vid with the epiphone and the risa, awesome dude
thanx again for all your input guys much love to you all
kaizer

UPDATE: have contacted MIM waiting for her reply

UPDATE ON THE UPDATE: I have placed my order with MIM fair play she is fantastic
 
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The center cancel is awesome. I use this to practice all the time. It's got a good chorus effect too, even if it isn't tweakable. I put this bad boy on a cheap mic stand, along with a cheap Shure mic, plug the iPhone into the audio in, and away we go.

Also works as straight up speakers, if you use the Audio setting.
 
I just answered your PM, kaizersoza. I did that before I read this thread. Being that your son works for Roland, the Mobile Cube will be more versatile. I recommended the Vox Mini3 in the PM. I still recommend the Mini3, but you're getting good deals on the Roland gear. Ric
 
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