How do you break in a new uke?...

ricdoug · Sep 30, 2008

How do you break in a new uke?

Here's an interesting device. I wonder if it's similar to the one Wearymicrobe's building. Ric

http://www.ukuleles.com/Technology/HulaGirlShaker.html

wearymicrobe · Sep 30, 2008

It is very close to what I have tried in theory. Personally I don't like putting any weight on the soundboard or bridge but you never know if that effects it.

I really think just putting it in front of a speaker with a wave moving back and forth is the best way, its cheap its easy and really all you need is about a hundred hours or so.

I am going to convert one of the fire cabs that I picked out of the trash to doing this full time. With higher volumes and a lot of dynamat.

I keep wondering if my composite tops are going to break in like the solid wood ones?

luckily everything that I am building right now is solid body so heck they could be made of 2x4's and they would sound fine.

h-drix · Sep 30, 2008

personally i like playing my ukes =p

SuperSecretJohn · Sep 30, 2008

h-drix said:
personally i like playing my ukes =p

Same, but it could be used during class or work, right? or sleep? Any time you're not playing your ukulele.

UkEdman90 · Sep 30, 2008

h-drix said:
personally i like playing my ukes =p

HAHAHAHA exactly! Point proven!

Ken Middleton · Oct 1, 2008

Just play it. That is the best way, in my opinion.

wearymicrobe · Oct 1, 2008

h-drix said:
personally i like playing my ukes =p

Actually this is a real problem for me as a builder, I cannot play everything that I build until it "breaks-in" so this is helpful for tweaking the builds a bit..

Also when I display or go to a show I want the best sound possible with no strum marks or finish mar's before anyone plays it.

Thats what started the whole thing.

Plus I have way way to many ukuleles and I have some major dollar ones that I simply will never play enough to really fully break-in.

UkeNinja · Oct 1, 2008

wearymicrobe said:
Actually this is a real problem for me as a builder, I cannot play everything that I build until it "breaks-in" so this is helpful for tweaking the builds a bit...

My initial knee-jerk reaction was the "play it till it breaks" attitude as commented above, but this actually makes sense to me. But the question rises: how do other luthiers go about "tweaking their build" and how long do you need to find out what works and what not?

wearymicrobe said:
Plus I have way way to many ukuleles and I have some major dollar ones that I simply will never play enough to really fully break-in.

Depending on the listener's standpoint, this can sound a bit funny. If you have the dough I say go for it, but buying so many ukes that you can't play them? Do you buy them to play, or are they like an investment for you?

h-drix · Oct 1, 2008

wearymicrobe said:
Plus I have way way to many ukuleles and I have some major dollar ones that I simply will never play enough to really fully break-in.

this would make me really depressed...

leaveit2jane · Oct 1, 2008

So is this clothespin gizmo exciting one string at a time with it's little speaker? What's a fire cab? (Google says it's a cab on fire, which I'm sure isn't relevant.)
I guess what I'm asking is: Does playing music at the instrument help it gain it's voice? LOL, This is just something I never thought about. I always thought it was totally dependant on how much it got played.

Ukuleleblues · Oct 1, 2008

I had a kit uke I put a solid spruce top on. I was messing around and had a pickup on it and was running it throught a Phaser, distortion, reverb, compress, delay and other stuff I can't recall. i wuz playing "The wind Cries Mary" through it. I had to play it in a separate room from the speaker because of feedback. Well somehow I ended up with the uke on a table in the same room as the speakers and the mixer was down. I turned it up the feed back was wild and I swear the uke was dancing on the table (it had a soft top), it was bouncing all around before I could get it turned down. I swear it made the uke play louder and sweeter. I guess it opened up the top. I guess something like this world work pretty well. I might try it on my next uke.

wearymicrobe · Oct 1, 2008

Fire Cab. = Big 1/2 inch thick steel cabinet used to store flammable liquid like my welding gear or wood finishes. Makes a great sound chamber so you don;t annoy the wife.

As for tweaking the build, I am more interested in top material then bracing right now, I know the spruce tops that I have made open up over time, I have a few that have resonated very heavily with the speakers and they sound the best to my ears It might be as simple as trying to find one a design that really jumps to with the music.

leaveit2jane · Oct 1, 2008

wearymicrobe said:
Fire Cab. = Big 1/2 inch thick steel cabinet used to store flammable liquid like my welding gear or wood finishes. Makes a great sound chamber so you don;t annoy the wife. QUOTE]

Thank you! That makes so much more sense now.... I can sure understand where a builder would have a better go selling something already mellowed out too. "Actual" is probably a better seller than "Potential", and people aren's all that patient anymore.

uluapoundr · Feb 3, 2009

The Hula Shaker was designed by David Hurd of Ukuleles by Kawika. David has contributed tons of information to the uke community that can be found on his website and in more detail in his book. David would use the Hula Shaker to help speed up the break-in process of his ukuleles. Prior to David retiring, his ukes were highly sought after with years long waiting list. Could it be that selling his ukes with an open, broken in sound helped increase his sales? Possibly. Today, Ukuleles by Kawika are hard to come by, but when you find one, the asking price is quite high.

How do you break in a new uke?...

ricdoug

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wearymicrobe

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h-drix

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SuperSecretJohn

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UkEdman90

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Ken Middleton

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wearymicrobe

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leaveit2jane

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