Christmas Uke Finally Here- Collings Mahogany UT-1 Tenor

Dan Uke

Dan Uke

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This uke was sent on 12/14/12 from Illinois and finally arrived on 12/31/12 to Cali. Well worth the wait as I wanted to try a Collings Hog Tenor, which some are already saying is a modern classic.

Happy New Year!!! My son still has lots of energy while I am sooo tired...Sorry, memory not too good after the party.

Here's a sound sample

 
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So sweet!

Enjoy!
 
Wow, two weeks in the mail system across multiple climates and warehouses and modes of transportation. If that has not harmed it, it is probably indestructible-Congrats, Daniel.
 
You make it sing like a songbird, man. For the amount of time you (we) have been playing, you've taken it to a whole new level. Wonderful!

Daniel, that is one sweet-butt ukulele! It doesn't have the impeccable, modern classic sound of the "haircut" Collings UT-1, but it's still good. ;)

And I learned from your pugilist son, Nathan: I think I'm going to try that shirt over my head, face spanking thing in front of the staff when I return to work tomorrow .
 
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Congratulations on the beautiful new ukulele! Someone in my ukulele meetup group recently got a Collings (after a several-month wait) and let me try it recently. Those things are dreamy! Nice playing, too.
 
I've got 2 one with haircut and the other without. One strung low G and the other strung high G. One is upstairs with me and one downstairs in my moms care. They sound great strung low and high G. They both came from Dana. I love them both tho my mom is loving one of them. The non haircut one has a lot of curl in the Mahogany the other not much curl if any. It makes no difference in sound curl or not.

Both are lifetime keepers.
 
Very nice Daniel. You make that Collings sound sweet.

BTW how was it shipped, Parcel Post or by horse back?
 
Daniel, the uke is nice, but your son is the main event. :D
 
Thanks everyone...the uke sounds better already getting acclimated to Cali...it was actually in Cali over a week ago but I guess one of the sorters saw the Collings box which stated Austin, TX and probably sent it there by mistake...Steve and I were freaking out a little but at the end of the day it arrived safely so it's all good.

I'm afraid my son got my dancing skills as my wife is Filipina and they do know how to dance! Hard to keep my concentration! LOL

I might have to do Kamaka vs. Collings Part Deux...I'm glad each one is unique and there are pros and cons to both...hmmm...which one is better?? :p
 
Looking forward to your wise and respected review, Daniel. I think a comparison, pros and cons, of the Kamaka versus the Collings, would be used by many in the hunt for the "holy grail".
 
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I have the Kamaka tenor and the Collings tenor as you all know. I can find a lot of pluses with both but haven't really found any minuses with either. I'm happy with whichever one I'm playing. I don't think you can go wrong with either one.
 
Markr1 said:
I have the Kamaka tenor and the Collings tenor as you all know. I can find a lot of pluses with both but haven't really found any minuses with either. I'm happy with whichever one I'm playing. I don't think you can go wrong with either one.
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Deserted island, Markr1 stranded: which uke? lol
 
oh man I was cracking up at your boy. what a goofball, love it. my kids are ridiculous like that, so fun. the uke sounds...just right:) How would you compare with the LFDM? Brighter?
 
Beautiful sounding uke and great playing. Liked the Ave Maria. Your son cracked me up. I always wish I could borrow energy from my kids.
 
Congrats Dan,
Sounds exactly like mine....yeah Got the same uke...Happy Strummings.. perfect action and plays as easy as a Mya Moe...
 
AndrewKuker said:
oh man I was cracking up at your boy. what a goofball, love it. my kids are ridiculous like that, so fun. the uke sounds...just right:) How would you compare with the LFDM? Brighter?
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The hog is warmer than the spruce top LFDM and it's a totally diff't sound and LFDM has a nicer tone. The sustain on the Collings is a little short for my liking and in terms of feel and craftmanship, there is no comparison as the Collings is a production uke while the LFDM is a custom uke that took about 100 hours to make. Of course, the LFDM costs more and I can't believe the details involved with the uke. The only regret I have with the LFDM is that I should have gone with difft tuners...I guess I was trying to save money but another $100 to $200 really wouldn't have made any difference. Secondly, If I could buy another one, I would go more exotic and more bling. Again, finding the right uke sound is very subjective but I am definitely more of a fingerpicker and the LFDM suits me well. I sure would miss the Collings and Kamaka on the deserted island. :eek:
 
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One thing I admire about Collings tenor build: he understands aesthetics and tradition and split the difference between that and modern convenience by installing pegheads instead of geared tuners. Look at classic Martin tenors--even baritones--look at all ukes in that vintage and they all had friction tuners. They must have worked, too, because people played and played and played them.

I wish more manufacturers would take Collings lead. (And Martin? Wake up! Geared tuners on a CONCERT? Really?)

(Beautiful uke, BTW... :)
 
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