Which one sounds warmer to you?

Ukulele Eddie

Ukulele Eddie

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I'm looking at the Pono Classic line and have been eyeing the Rosewood with Cedar top for some time. I found a great deal on a Wi'awa model. The description on HMS describes it as "the warmest sound of the Pro Classic line" but when I compare the two models, the Wi'awa sounds very clear but not as warm as the Rosewood.

I'm just curious as to what others hear and (a) which one they think is warmer and (b) which one they like better (regardless if they think it's warmer or not).

Wi'awa with Spruce top

Rosewood with Cedar top

They both sound great to me and I know ultimately I need to please my own ears and wallet, but I would appreciate others' thoughts.
 
Personally I find it almost impossible to do much comparison from videos. Everything sounds so similar much of the time. I think I have to be in the room with both of the instruments and then have them playing the same thing and then I might be able to seriously compare. But to be honest I don't have a trained ear so some may hear a lot where I hear a little.
 
Neither of them is a "WARM" instrument. They are both bright due to the Spruce and Cedar tops. Having said that my ear hears the Wi'awa being ever such a tiny bit warmer, probably due to it being full body where as the Pono is a cutaway.

Not much in it.

Anthony
 
Hi Eddie,
I think that the spruce top has a much better tone than the cedar model. More resonant, and not as percussive as the cedar top. The cedar top's response sounded uneven, while the spruce seemed clean all over the fretboard. I spoke to Corey on the phone a couple of weeks ago, and he was pretty excited about spruce tops that night. Hope this helps.
 
Ukulele Eddie said:
I'm looking at the Pono Classic line and have been eyeing the Rosewood with Cedar top for some time. I found a great deal on a Wi'awa model. The description on HMS describes it as "the warmest sound of the Pro Classic line" but when I compare the two models, the Wi'awa sounds very clear but not as warm as the Rosewood.

I'm just curious as to what others hear and (a) which one they think is warmer and (b) which one they like better (regardless if they think it's warmer or not).

Wi'awa with Spruce top

Rosewood with Cedar top

They both sound great to me and I know ultimately I need to please my own ears and wallet, but I would appreciate others' thoughts.
Click to expand...

I've read Mahagony is "warm" and "mellow" so I've been sticking with that so far because I like warm and mellow :)
 
A split decision.

The cedar with RW was warmer by far to my ear. But I liked the Wi'awa/ Spruce better.
 
That spruce top uke sounds sweet! Hope you get it. It is amazing.
 
I just don't like the looks of the Wi'awa, that would eliminate it for me.
 
Hey Eddie, I think the cedar top sounds warmer, but aesthetically I prefer the Wi'awa.
 
eugene ukulele said:
Hey Eddie, I think the cedar top sounds warmer, but aesthetically I prefer the Wi'awa.
Click to expand...

My sentiments exactly! I agree with the others that neither is especially warm, but I think the cedar top has a fuller sound - I prefer the sound of the cedar, but the aesthetics of the spruce.

Hmmm. Is "both" an option? :)
 
Most are saying the Cedar is warmer where as I say the Spruce is warmer. What I DO agree with them however is that the Cedar is FULLER (more bass). This is the case in the RECORDING anyway. To my ear Warmer and Fuller are two different things. Fuller is the full range of frequencies. Warmer is in the harmonics. Lower order harmonics sound warmer to most people and higher order harmonics sound harsher to most people and I'm hearing more lower order harmonics from the Spruce top. The Cedar top is just a little harsh in the treble range.

Mind you. The recordings could be different. I'm hearing more distortion(and this could possibly create the lower order harmonics) from the Spruce recording and less distortion from the Cedar recording so as someone already said. You really should have them in your hand and judge them side by side. The recordings could be deceptive.

Anthony
 
Cedar easily warmer, but the spruce/maple sounds awesome.
 
Agree to some of the replies above. Cedar & RW one gives warmer sound, but Spruce & W'awa one gives overall better sound in my opinion.
 
From the samples, the cedar is warmer, but the spruce is a sweeter and more mellow. I think the intonation was better on the spruce, now is that caused by the instrument or just the fact that one was tuned more accurately than the other? I love the cedar/rosewood combination, but just maybe not that particular instrument. I'd ask for them to pick one with perfect intonation, or as close as possible. That one in the video may have it, but not according to that sound sample.

I definitely like the looks of the cedar/rosewood better and the sound of that one better, again, if the intonation was as good as the spruce. I just don't seem to be a fan of the spruce sound.
 
Thanks, everyone for your thoughts. I do appreciate them. It's not possible for me to hold and hear them both but I do have the option to return the Spruce top if I don't like it. Incidentally, this particular one is pinkish red rather than the more common blonde W'aiwa. I do prefer the beauty of the deep colored rosewood and cedar but I like that the W'aiwa is a limited production instrument. Will post what I decide later today.

Keep the comments comin'! ;-)
 
It is very hard to judge sound from a video. there are a ton of variables. How hard is the player picking? Is he using bare fingers vs. fingernails or pick. The microphone used will also vary the tone. Even with all that being equal, it can be difficult from a video. I watched one video comparing ukes below $200 and I could hear almost no difference.

That said, and having never played either of the instruments in question, the cedar SHOULD sound warmer. Cedar is a much softer wood than spruce. But to my ear neither is as warm as mahogany. I'm a big fan of that sweet warm sound. I test drove several ukes at Ukulele Underground and settled on the Mainland Classic Mahogany. It was even warmer than the Mainland cedar with rosewood body.

Is there any chance you couild buy both and return the one you like less? If possible, try to go somewhere you can actually play the instrument in person. That is always the best bet, if you can.

Good luck!
 
I did pull the trigger on the Wi'awa/Spruce, but it may be a few weeks before it's in my hands. Will post pics when I have it since it's the reddish variety rather than the blonde.

Again, thanks for all the comments...

E
 
Congratulations on the new purchase. Just the fact that the spruce is a limited run edges that model out over the cedar. Now you get to wait, that is always enjoyable :( Thanks for throwing up the two videos for a back to back sampling, that was fun. I am a newbie so it was educational for me to read everyones view about the tone of each uke. Enjoy it when it makes it into your hands.
 
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