Kamaka Love

fretie

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OK, its not like I haven't got a couple of nice ukes to play. My Big Island tenor was a good sounding uke right out for the box that Mim sent it to me in. The Koaloha long neck pineapple that HMS mailed to my friend's place on the Big Island for me to pick up and play while on vacation in Hawaii this winter was a real winner, smooth with good volume. :shaka:

And there were quite a few ukes in between those two that did not quite make the grade though they were solid instruments in their own right they just did not fit my playing style or sound aesthetic.

Then along comes the Kamaka. Yes, another sight unseen, unheard purchase, yes, like all the others. Taking a chance. Willing to risk a little for that surprise good find. And this beauty did not disappoint.:)

I get it about you folks who are Kamaka fans. Its a subtle thing, I feel, hard to put into words. This soprano is, may I venture to say, just your basic Kamaka. No custom jobbie here. But oh so understated in its sound presentation.

The uke feels good in my hands, specifically, there's something about the neck that just feels like a perfect fit. The weight and balance of the instrument is right. And the intonation: no bad notes on this uke.

The tone is, well, again, understated comes to mind. Confident, even... volume if I want it, soft and sweet when it suits. I really understand how there are peeps that find a Kamaka is all they need in a uke. I get that now.

Soprano, its been a while since I had a soprano in the herd. For a time there I thought soprano was too small but we evolve as players and now I am at the place where soprano feels like perfect. Maybe its the Kamaka magic again. Fingerpicking, chord melody, strumming, it all sounds good on the Kamaka.

I'm totally won over! :love:
 
Awesome. Sounds like you have a winner. Don't forget to give the others a little playing time, too. ;-)
 
Congratulations! I'd love to see pics!
 
Thanks for your comments, guys and gals!

@Patrick compared to some of your beauties my Kamaka is pretty basic but I'm glad you gave it some strums....always nice to add mojo from a skilled player to one's uke! ;)

@Nickie and janeray, here's a few photos of the soprano:



 
I understand where you are coming from! After getting my kamaka I stopped searching for any other ukes, it's all you need!
 
So pretty! And do I spy upgraded tuners?

Oh, you are sharp, janeray! I meant to mention the fact that the former owner had upgraded the stock tuners with Gotoh tuners that he bought from Kamaka and had his local luthier install.

I had no idea what a big difference tuners can make! I read peeps talk of tuners but on my tenor the tuners functioned accpetably and on the Koaloha the friction pegs were pretty tricky to fine tune but I thought it was all part of the Hawaiian made uke experience. NOW I know what a luxury it is to have 4:1 tuners. Oh they are so dreamy smooth and my strings are much more precisely in tune now - d'oh! :cool:
 
Oh, you are sharp, janeray! I meant to mention the fact that the former owner had upgraded the stock tuners with Gotoh tuners that he bought from Kamaka and had his local luthier install.

I had no idea what a big difference tuners can make! I read peeps talk of tuners but on my tenor the tuners functioned accpetably and on the Koaloha the friction pegs were pretty tricky to fine tune but I thought it was all part of the Hawaiian made uke experience. NOW I know what a luxury it is to have 4:1 tuners. Oh they are so dreamy smooth and my strings are much more precisely in tune now - d'oh! :cool:

I know what you mean. Friction tuners never bothered me, but my Kamaka Ohta-San came with the Gotohs, and - I was ruined for all others! I gave some serious thought to changing the old tuners out on my other two Kamakas. In the end I decided against it, but may reconsider at some point when the budget isn't so tight.
 
Love, love, love it! And I would like to have a concert version of this.
 
@trowacat, I saw you were on the hunt for a Kamaka a while back, which one did you end up getting?

@janeray, "ruined" by the Gotohs! how true is that?!
 
Kamaka Hat Love

I got this for Father's Day this year to go with my recent Kamaka White Label soprano acquisition. I know exactly what you mean. I never really wanted a Kamaka until I snagged mine at a price too low to be believed. Now I wouldn't part with it...it's keeping my pre-war Martin O company (I also have a hat to go with that one too)
 
I got this for Father's Day this year to go with my recent Kamaka White Label soprano acquisition. I know exactly what you mean. I never really wanted a Kamaka until I snagged mine at a price too low to be believed. Now I wouldn't part with it...it's keeping my pre-war Martin O company (I also have a hat to go with that one too)

I'm liking your Kamaka, and Martin, hat concept! :):)
 
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