Better Sounding String?

heyjohn

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I have a beautiful Kala Lacewood Tenor. It sounds great except that it seems that one string (the C string) resonates more than the others. In fact, the A string is rather quiet. Is this unique to this uke? Or could it be the strings themselves? Or could it be my newbie lack of skill? I bought the uke used. I am at least the 3rd owner. As always, thanks for all the help from this great group.
 
Hi John!

It's a very common problem with certain strings. When I first started playing on a Mahalo with Aquila strings, I used to pull my hair out trying to figure out why my C string was soooo much louder than the A string and whether it was normal or not. Turns out it is because the C string is lower in pitch and therefore usually needs to be thicker in order to pull out that note, but it doesn't have to be that way, some string sets have much better balanced volume than others due to using different materials.

I'm totally into South Coast, Living Water and Martins m600 strings at the moment because they have really good sound, balance and tension. A lot of people like Worths and Fremonts as well. I do like Aquilas still, but more on laminates ukes where they bring the top to life, rather than on solid wood tops like yours where they are a bit of an overkill (assuming that you have Aquilas on as they are the stock strings on this model I think).

Try experimenting with sets to see what you like best, just remember that it takes strings a little while (a few days) for them to settle, they'll get out of tune quickly in the beginning. It's totally fine to take them out and back on a few times when you're still testing, just don't cut the ends before you've made up your mind :)

Have fun with your Lacewood tenor, it's a very good model with a great sound!
 
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It could be any of the things you mention. But, if it's consistently one string muted and another stronger than the others, it's not likely to be your technique, (although as your technique improves, you will be able to compensate for these shortcomings to some extent).
There's probably a problem with the instrument. I'd recommend replacing the strings. This is the cheapest and easiest step to take. (I would try a different brand of strings, to be sure you don't get another set exactly the same). If the instrument has the exact same problem(s), it has something to do with the instrument itself, and should be looked at by a professional. Often, a problem with a muted or dead string will be resolved with a simple set-up.
 
I had a similar problem when I tuned my concert down to Bb tuning. I liked the overall effect but the C string sounded a little dead so I replaced the Aquilas with Worth clears and it's much better now.
 
Problems with certain strings and certain scale lengths is why Southcoast developed linear string sets.
 
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