Resonator Uke's

foxshock

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Resonator Uke's Especially from Eddy Finn, how do they sound? i'd love to buy a Uke that sounds EXATCLY like a banjo does the Resonator adds that Banjo Twang? can i put Steel Strings on it?
 
Hi foxshock and welcome to the forums! My honest advice is that if you want a banjo sound, buy a banjo. A resonator uke doesn't really sound like a banjo though it sharpens things up and gives it a bolder, brasher tone and louder volume. Steel strings? No. You could always try buying a banjo ukulele if you want to 'approximate' that kind of sound and still play uke chords. There are many excellent value brands around now.
 
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Resonator Uke's Especially from Eddy Finn, how do they sound? i'd love to buy a Uke that sounds EXATCLY like a banjo does the Resonator adds that Banjo Twang? can i put Steel Strings on it?
Steel strings on a uke bad idea....too much tension and may bend the neck, then it is useless....
 
Most certainly a resonator uke does not sound exactly like a banjo. The reasons for this is that it is not a banjo. Resonator ukes do sound more banjo-ukey than regular ukes but really, resonator ukes should be for people who like the sound of resonator ukes and banjo ukes should be for people who like banjo ukes.
 
The Turkish company Cumbus makes a steel-string resonator-backed banjo uke that will give you a true banjo sound. You can run a search on the internet for "Cumbus ukulele" and find a new one for a bit over $100 in the USA. The strings can be ordered from http://www.mid-east.com or any of their many franchisees.

A resonator ukulele is a ukulele version of the resonator guitar, and thus is like a Dobro rather than like a banjo.
 
Those cumbus ukes often have pretty bad intonation issues. The cumbus is a fretless instrument, and it seems they haven't put much effort into proper fret placement when making the fretted versions.

Southcoast makes a "classical metal" linear (i.e., low-G) string set (see http://www.southcoastukes.com/linear.htm, second set from the bottom) for tenor uke. I've used them on my Kala tenor reso-uke and they sound great. I have not tried them on my tenor banjo-uke, because I like the regular re-entrant G on banjo-ukes, to give them a more banjo-y sound.

- FiL
 
You could always find an old Irish tenor banjo that came with steel strings originally. That would put you @ the size of a baritone banjo uke.
 
No, a Resonator Uke does not sound like a banjo...
...but honestly, neither does a Banjo Uke. I'd also say neither sounds like a regular Uke either.
Having owned several of both, I'd say:
ResoUke = Brash/Brighter, More Sustain
BanjoUke = Warmer/Duller, Less Sustain

I liked the sound of both (the BanjoUke a bit more), but really depends on the kind of music you play. IMO the BanjoUke sounded better with Folk, Country, and Tin Pan Alley, while the ResoUke sounds better for Pop, Rock, Contemporary.
 
Have to disagree...a little. Some resonator ukes sound a little more banjo uke like than they sound like a regular uke. I also agree, if you want a resonator sound, get a resonator, if you want a banjo uke sound, get a banjo uke, with or without a "banjo" resonator back on it.
 
I don't have much experience with resonators or banjos but my French MOTU ITI soprano (a sort of a hybrid between a Tahitian ukulele/banjo and a Hawaiian uke) IMO it does sound a lot like banjo. A nice little thing that would be easy to travel with.
 
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