finally got my new Martin 2K tenor = WUNDERBAR and a half!

Hey gang!

I usually don't announce when I get a new uke but I picked up my new Martin 2K tenor today and it's WUNDERBAR and a half. I prefer to order from my *local* music store (Long and McQuade) up here in Canada and I had ordered it last October 2012 and I finally got it! I actually opened the box shipped from Martin on the store's counter today to check it out. Fantastico! Now that I've been reading that new book about Martin ukuleles, I finally understand about their crazy delays! That book is well worth reading for those requiring patience for Martin uke delays. hehe

Of course I will do a video review in about a month or two but I must say right away that this new 2K tenor is a first class instrument. I never was a fan of koa wood since I find my Martin style 2k soprano too loud and I still wholeheartedly prefer the style 2 soprano in mahogany over the 2K.

However, this 2K tenor is already the nicest sounding (to my ears) with the easiest playability of all the Martin tenor ukes. I have the style 2 tenor and it is too booming like the Gold Rush in the Yukon of days past! The T1K is a budget uke of Martin quality made in Mexico, and I love it very much, and surprise, surprise... the new 2K tenor is a highly polished version of the T1K in every way. Exactly, what I was looking for via sound and playability. So, best to avoid the style 2 tenor and do not go to jail to buy it, hehe go directly to GO, and buy a 2K tenor if you want the best of the Martin tenors.

As for the new IZ mahogany tenor... I'm conflicted about that one. I wish I could test play one. If the sound is like the style 2, I'd be wary of it. That's why I won't order one on impulse. I can afford it, but I'm suspicious of its sound big time.

Martin Guitars is an amazing company but the lack of sound bytes of their new ukes has always confounded me since their return in 2011. After reading that new cool book, I understand more their business practices. Strange indeed, that it's been mostly me, the musical madman who has had to showcase the new Martin ukes soundwise. hehehe

Stay tuned for the 2K tenor review... or the operatic "3 TENORS REVIEW" together. Not sure what to do yet.

PeteyHoudini

Hey Petey! Congrats on your new 2K!

Once my IZ ukes arrive I'll have sound clips, and hopefully video of them

Aaron@Randees said:

Hey Petey! Congrats on your new 2K!

Once my IZ ukes arrive I'll have sound clips, and hopefully video of them

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Great Aaron! I look forward to hearing your IZ sound clips, etc... once your uke arrives safe and sound, and then I can decide if I will buy one and do a review as well. I encourage everyone to do a Martin uke review, NOT JUST BORING ME!!!! I only started doing reviews when I realized I had 5 of the new Martins and nothing to do!!! hehehe
cheerio!

Petey

Hi Petey,
I'm thinking of ordering a 2K tenor on Monday. How is yours doing? I've been bitten by the Koa bug, and lost interest in other tonewoods. Elderly has one in stock, so I could have it by Wednesday. I had a T1K for less than an hour, but returned it for various reasons. Tone was not one. My wife has a fantastically rich and chimey Martin C1K, and I have one that's not so rich. Mine has a thuddy G note,mwhich means the G string is thuddy. I'll have the folks at Elderly make sure the 2K doesn't have a body resonance that falls on an open string.

Sweeet! Congratulations!

Hi John,
I figured going for the gold is better than paying for too many round trip Fedex fees.

FrankB said:

Hi Petey,
I'm thinking of ordering a 2K tenor on Monday. How is yours doing? I've been bitten by the Koa bug, and lost interest in other tonewoods. Elderly has one in stock, so I could have it by Wednesday. I had a T1K for less than an hour, but returned it for various reasons. Tone was not one. My wife has a fantastically rich and chimey Martin C1K, and I have one that's not so rich. Mine has a thuddy G note,mwhich means the G string is thuddy. I'll have the folks at Elderly make sure the 2K doesn't have a body resonance that falls on an open string.

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Hi Frank,

Sorry, I've been overwhelmed with other matters lately to answer. I took the whole weekend off as a break to watch the first two seasons of "Person of Interest" on Bluray. It's one of my fav. shows to watch while sipping on some Johnnie Walker black label scotch. Sometimes, I need to escape the uke world.

My 2k tenor is a real keeper. No regrets on that baby. Though, I took a risk ordering it, but with online purchases from Elderly, you can always return it if you're not happy with it. My first Martin cherry 3 uke was not at all to my liking and I returned it to Elderly pronto. The second cherry 3 I ordered from them has become my fav. uke of all time. So, it's a bit of a crap shoot when buying a new uke without playing it first.

I'm very lucky my 2k tenor is the best of the my 3 new Martin tenors. However, many people email me and comment how much they love the sound of my T1K tenor! That one had a singing sound right away in the music store in Montreal and I bought it within 30 seconds of playing it. Of course, playing it in a way to bring out the sound is key. My song "Night Under the Stars" was written and arranged for that uke and it really takes advantage of its wonderful sound. Though, it still sounds better on my 2k Tenor! Though, I would never fault the T1K. hehe

Petey

Congrats on the new Martin!

Ukejenny said:

Congrats on the new Martin!

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Thanks. The 2k tenor baby is now a year old and I'm very happy with it. I can see Julliard in its future. hehe

Petey

Oh Great! I've been hitting the refresh button for two days, and while you posted your response, I was ordering a new Koaloha Concert from HMS. That doesn't mean I won't grab the Martin 2K from Elderly.....

Thanks for sharing your experience, Petey. I liked the sound of your T1K as well, but the one I ordered from Elderly was awful. Returned Pronto? I was at the Fedex counter in less than an hour, and that was only because I was waiting for my wife.

FrankB said:

Oh Great! I've been hitting the refresh button for two days, and while you posted your response, I was ordering a new Koaloha Concert from HMS. That doesn't mean I won't grab the Martin 2K from Elderly.....

Thanks for sharing your experience, Petey. I liked the sound of your T1K as well, but the one I ordered from Elderly was awful. Returned Pronto? I was at the Fedex counter in less than an hour, and that was only because I was waiting for my wife.

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Very sorry, but I was away in my own world while you were hitting the "refresh button" waiting for a response, but I had to escape into a weekend of binge viewing of a TV series that I like over and over again. POI. ;-)

Koaloha are first class ukes. I've always wanted one. They are my second fav. uke after Martin.

BTW - Other Big News... I will be going to Hawaii in Feb. 2015 for a 8 day uke vacation. "Kimo Hussey" will be the guide for the uke vacation sharing his music and Hawaiian life with us.

Though, I will compose a song about Honolulu and record a vid of course! hehe

Petey

I've had my Martin 2K Tenor for 12 days now. I played it at Gryphon in Palo Alto in February. It was still there in March and it took me two trips to make the decision. What a sweet playing 'ukulele! The sound is great too. But the way this thing plays is hypnotic. I never knew a tenor could be so easy to play.

I'll always be a KoAloha fan. This 2K makes me a Martin fan for life.

Congrats Petey....happy strummings man...

Peter - I have also thoroughly enjoyed your video reviews, and I'm looking forward to your T2K review. I too have a 3 Cherry soprano that was the second uke I bought. It is an early one and has the Martin stamp on the back of the headstock, but no decal on the front of the headstock. Very good uke. It is probably sacrilege, but I replaced the friction tuners with Pegheds and had strap buttons put on the heel and endblock. I lead a lot of jams, and the ease of tuning and a strap really help. A T2K is on the way from Elderly. Based on your thoughts and my own experience with Martin, I'm very excited. I'll let you know how I like. - Tony

www.TCUkeClub.com
www.BluegrassUke.com
www.UkeAmericana.us

do the new US made Martin tenors have the same slim necks as the vintage ones. I have a 12 fret '56 that I love , except the friction tuners. I'm putting geared on it.

snocrvr said:

Peter - I have also thoroughly enjoyed your video reviews, and I'm looking forward to your T2K review. I too have a 3 Cherry soprano that was the second uke I bought. It is an early one and has the Martin stamp on the back of the headstock, but no decal on the front of the headstock. Very good uke. It is probably sacrilege, but I replaced the friction tuners with Pegheds and had strap buttons put on the heel and endblock. I lead a lot of jams, and the ease of tuning and a strap really help. A T2K is on the way from Elderly. Based on your thoughts and my own experience with Martin, I'm very excited. I'll let you know how I like. - Tony

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Hi Tony,

You were really in the game early by getting one of those 3 cherry sopranos! I have no issues with customizing a uke (even a cherry soprano) if you can make it more enjoyable to play. I have never bought a uke as an investment. Well, only an investment in one's uke playing fun!

I feel a bit strange that my videos have influenced people to buy those new Martins. That wasn't my goal. My only goal since I started playing the uke back in 2006 was to find the right sound for me and that happened to be with the new Martins. I just got a bit over-obssessed and started buying most of the new ones when I had the extra cash. I've stopped all that now since I have enough ukes. hehe I just need time to do my 2K concert review and my 2K/2/T1k tenor review (the 3 tenors together).

My keeper new Martin ukes collection will be: style 2 soprano, 3 cherry soprano, 2k concert and the 2k tenor. That will be my definitive collection.

Have fun with your 2K when you get it and let me know.

cheers,

Peter

@strumsilly: never played a vintage tenor so I don't know.

Hi Petey and All,
I had another T1K delivered yesterday. This one was from Zzounds.com, and was still in the sealed Martin shipping carton. The frets were protruding quite a bit, and the back looked much nicer than the front. In fact, I don't know why they didn't use the sickly looking Koa on the back....??? Its sound was remarkably similar to the T1K I sent back to Elderly right after it arrived: like a bigger C1K. The tenor didn't have much more volume than the C1K, and might have had less in a strum. The tops are very thick, and seemed choked. Sending that one back is no big deal, and I'll have to try a Nazareth Martin next.

Martin ought to send you a shirt, Petey. Not many people are doing Martin uke reviews on YouTube, and what little there is does not match the quality of your work.

Martin Tenor Strings: Ouch! I wondered why they felt so tight, and then looked at the diameters. They are rather heavy compared to the Oasis strings I use on my other tenors. I wonder how they'd sound with Oasis strings, but it's packed up to go already. I could unpack it....

Strumsilly: I don't know if it translates to the Nazareth/vintage Martins, but the MIM Martins have a slender neck. They have a shallow C profile, and are very comfortable for me. No complaints there.

FrankB said:

Hi Petey and All,
I had another T1K delivered yesterday. This one was from Zzounds.com, and was still in the sealed Martin shipping carton. The frets were protruding quite a bit, and the back looked much nicer than the front. In fact, I don't know why they didn't use the sickly looking Koa on the back....??? Its sound was remarkably similar to the T1K I sent back to Elderly right after it arrived: like a bigger C1K. The tenor didn't have much more volume than the C1K, and might have had less in a strum. The tops are very thick, and seemed choked. Sending that one back is no big deal, and I'll have to try a Nazareth Martin next.

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Sorry you're having some troubles with the T1K.

I guess that T1K I got was an exceptional one since everyone compliments the sound on that one. It only took 15 seconds of playing Eb to Gm on that T1K in the music store before I took it to the counter to buy it.

I find that a new concert Martin uke strums better than a tenor for sure. The concert is like a loud soprano. The tenor is just another beast completely that seems good for finger-picking.

It would be annoying to change the strings, test it out and put the old ones back on. However, if everything else about the uke would have be to your tastes (wood color, frets, etc), then it would have been worth a go.

Peter

PeteyHoudini said:

Sorry you're having some troubles with the T1K.

I guess that T1K I got was an exceptional one since everyone compliments the sound on that one. It only took 15 seconds of playing Eb to Gm on that T1K in the music store before I took it to the counter to buy it.

I find that a new concert Martin uke strums better than a tenor for sure. The concert is like a loud soprano. The tenor is just another beast completely that seems good for finger-picking.

Peter

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I usually decide on an instrument in about the same period of time, and it's unfortunate that there aren't any good stores nearby....or not so nearby. I spend more time filling out the online order forms, than it actually takes to give an initial assessment(!!!).

The Martin T1K is fine for fingerstyle, but strumming is in the repertoire. They still haven't sent the return shipping label, so maybe if I get a chance tonight. I have a couple of solid wood Kala tenors that were completely choked by Aquila strings, and saved with Oasis, so....

Okay.... My wife was watching a Dracula movie (?!?!?), so I unpacked the T1K. Believe it or not, the Koaloha is louder for fingerstyle! Crazy, but true. It's back in its box.

Peter,
How does the Martin 2K compare with the T1K in terms of volume? Strumming and fingerstyle. Thanks!