we tigers
Well-known member
I recently came across these stunning arch top ukuleles, but I can hardly find any information on these. Anyone here own one or ever played one?
Anyone familiar with Jazz Box Uke (Toby Chennell)
- Thread starter we tigers
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we tigers
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RichM
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I have one and I love it. Extremely well made, great tone, and beautiful to look at.
Paul December
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Beautiful & Cool...
...but are the tops very thick? Is it quiet?
...but are the tops very thick? Is it quiet?
OP
OP
we tigers
Well-known member
That's what I'm worried about as well. Do they sound good acoustically? Not overbuilt?
RichM
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The top is arched and very thin, as a good carved top should be. Toby is an experienced archtop guitar maker and understands the top carving process. More like a small archtop guitar sound than a uke sound, which is inevitable, but very full and rich. I think these are very special.
RichM
Well-known member
I think mine is the last one Toby made. I don't know if he is planning on making more or not.
H
Hippie Dribble
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website says they're building more at the moment...
AndrewKuker
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I emailed them once and they never replied
Same here.
LOVEAGOODUKE
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I tried to phone today and got a carpenter in Birmingham.I,ve e mailed and waiting for a reply.
They look lovely ukes and a good price too
Martin.
They look lovely ukes and a good price too
Martin.
I emailed them once and they never replied
I got an email from them the other day, kindly apologising for not replying before. Their email account had problems but now it seems things are back to normal. Good!
AndrewKuker
Well-known member
Ya, he sent me a nice email too.He had email issues for a bit. We have at times too and it sucks. But seems like a great guy and said we would be top of his list for stores. woohoo! Of course if he keeps poppin up here he'll be too busy to ever get to us. If anyone gets one post your feedback.
Lardy Fatboy
Well-known member
http://www.ukulelecorner.org.uk/home/in-the-corner/soprano-or-standard/jazzbox-archtop here is a link to the one that lives at Ukulele Corner and a sound clip is included there (if only I was any good at playing)
Caddy65
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The link to the website above didn't work for me, but this one did.
http://homepage.ntlworld.com/tobias.chennell/purchase.htm
Is that the same luthier?
They look great!
http://homepage.ntlworld.com/tobias.chennell/purchase.htm
Is that the same luthier?
They look great!
LOVEAGOODUKE
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What are they like to play,Richm?It looks as if it would be different to other ukes.The strings look higher off the body as the bridge looks quite high and where the neck joins the body is higher.Does it feel different to play.I,ve never played an archtop guitar so would be interested to hear your thoughts.
Thanks
Martin.
Thanks
Martin.
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we tigers
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The prices went up dramatically... I remember seeing them for £350,-
LOVEAGOODUKE
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They still seem great value for a hand made instrument.
Spruce and Mahogoni Baritone Arch-Top by Toby Chennell
I just picked up a magnificent baritone arch-top ukulele made by Toby Chennell in England. It is simply magnificent. I wanted a baritone with lots of volume and sustain as well as a decent pick-up. I got all of those things and much more. This is a solid-body instrument with mahogoni sides and back and a spruce top. Ergonomically, I find it, well... perfect! It is beautifully designed and finished (keeping in mind that each instrument is hand-crafted!) This is not a mass-produced instrument and it is amazingly inexpensive. So there are teeny, tiny flawlets that a picky person could complain about, but on mine they are all absolutely insignificant -- particularly given the magnificent projection, tremendous sustain and perfect intonation all the way up the fingerboard. The instrument virtually begs to be picked up and played. The sound quality through the pickup is also superb, even without a pre-amp! Toby is a great person to deal with and he stands behind his products. If you don't get an answer instantly to your email, it's probably because Toby is busy making another superb uke! I wouldn't give mine back for anything!
I just picked up a magnificent baritone arch-top ukulele made by Toby Chennell in England. It is simply magnificent. I wanted a baritone with lots of volume and sustain as well as a decent pick-up. I got all of those things and much more. This is a solid-body instrument with mahogoni sides and back and a spruce top. Ergonomically, I find it, well... perfect! It is beautifully designed and finished (keeping in mind that each instrument is hand-crafted!) This is not a mass-produced instrument and it is amazingly inexpensive. So there are teeny, tiny flawlets that a picky person could complain about, but on mine they are all absolutely insignificant -- particularly given the magnificent projection, tremendous sustain and perfect intonation all the way up the fingerboard. The instrument virtually begs to be picked up and played. The sound quality through the pickup is also superb, even without a pre-amp! Toby is a great person to deal with and he stands behind his products. If you don't get an answer instantly to your email, it's probably because Toby is busy making another superb uke! I wouldn't give mine back for anything!
Playability - Chennell baritone
I was worried about that too, until I received my Capone baritone from Toby the other day. I took to the keyboard instantly. My fingers don't seem to notice and certainly don't mind the curvature of the fingerboard. Toby adjusted the action for me in advance and it is comfortable and very low, just the way I like it. The action may LOOK higher than it is because of the radiused fingerboard. With the curved front and back, the instrument is actually easier to hold than a normal flat-bodied uke. The loud, clear, yet warm sound is what I would expect of a far more expensive uke. It puts off-the-shelf mass-produced stuff in this price range to shame.
I was worried about that too, until I received my Capone baritone from Toby the other day. I took to the keyboard instantly. My fingers don't seem to notice and certainly don't mind the curvature of the fingerboard. Toby adjusted the action for me in advance and it is comfortable and very low, just the way I like it. The action may LOOK higher than it is because of the radiused fingerboard. With the curved front and back, the instrument is actually easier to hold than a normal flat-bodied uke. The loud, clear, yet warm sound is what I would expect of a far more expensive uke. It puts off-the-shelf mass-produced stuff in this price range to shame.
