NUD: The Rebel Double Creme Mango soprano (Gloss finish)

That is one gorgeous ukulele! I like that they paid attention to the bookmatching and love the dark and rich coloring.

I have a mango KoAloha concert and like/prefer it to their koa models. It toned down the brightness and replaced it with a slightly fuller sound.

Enjoy!
Thank you!! Mango looks great and has a really interesting and unique sound, I'm glad more uke makers are using it.
 
The mango on your soprano is amazing. What a great job Rebel did matching the figuring. One of the nicest I've seen by any maker.

I perused the Rebel website shortly after TUS featured one of their ukes on their site. At that time they mentioned several high-end uke makers that they produced components for in addition to the Opio line for Ko'Aloha. They have since taken down those references, and I don't remember who they were anymore. So their credentials are quite extensive. I've long admired their somewhat quirky designs as well as their more mainstream instruments.

The gloss finish looks a little heavy to me. But it's hard to say from just the photos.

I have a satin Rebel mango tenor that I love to play. You described the mango's voice quite poetically: "there’s a dreamy, watery liquid quality to the sound." I have long considered mango to having a warmer, smoother, more silky sound than koa. But so much depends upon the design and build of the instrument, it's a grossly general assessment at best.

Nice review and congratulations on your beautiful uke. Big thumbs up! (y)
 
I love my Rebels, and I agree with everything you said about them. I've been considering a Rebel mango tenor for a while, either that or a KoAloha. Yours is a beauty!
 
That is one gorgeous ukulele! I like that they paid attention to the bookmatching and love the dark and rich coloring.

I have a mango KoAloha concert and like/prefer it to their koa models. It toned down the brightness and replaced it with a slightly fuller sound.

Enjoy!
I have not had a chance to try the KoAloha Mango. I will be taking a trip to Oahu in February and trying some of those mango's is on my to-do list.
 
Wow. That's a really nice one. I had one once. Looked nice and sounded great, but didn't have anywhere near that curl. Great find!
 
The mango on your soprano is amazing. What a great job Rebel did matching the figuring. One of the nicest I've seen by any maker.

I perused the Rebel website shortly after TUS featured one of their ukes on their site. At that time they mentioned several high-end uke makers that they produced components for in addition to the Opio line for Ko'Aloha. They have since taken down those references, and I don't remember who they were anymore. So their credentials are quite extensive. I've long admired their somewhat quirky designs as well as their more mainstream instruments.

The gloss finish looks a little heavy to me. But it's hard to say from just the photos.

I have a satin Rebel mango tenor that I love to play. You described the mango's voice quite poetically: "there’s a dreamy, watery liquid quality to the sound." I have long considered mango to having a warmer, smoother, more silky sound than koa. But so much depends upon the design and build of the instrument, it's a grossly general assessment at best.

Nice review and congratulations on your beautiful uke. Big thumbs up! (y)
Thanks very much for your kind words :)

I was smitten when I first saw the pictures of the uke. Initially wanted to get a model with satin finish, but changed my mind when I saw the beautiful figuring on this one. I'm happy with the gloss finish on the body, but felt that the gloss finish on the neck and back of the headstock could be done better. It's just a little too thick for my taste and has that "orange peel" texture that doesn't match the glass smooth texture of the body. But it's a small quibble and definitely not a deal breaker for me.

Totally agree with you that the build and design of the ukulele play a big part in determining how it will sound. It was interesting trying out the Double Creme and Double Cheese sopranos (essentially identical ukes with different material for the body) side by side. The Double Cheese (spruce/mahogany) has a brighter and clearer voice with slighter more volume and longer sustain, whereas the Double Creme sounds fuller and warmer with more substantial mids and low end.
 
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I love my Rebels, and I agree with everything you said about them. I've been considering a Rebel mango tenor for a while, either that or a KoAloha. Yours is a beauty!
Thank you! I think Rebel is one of the most exciting and innovative ukulele makers on the market today. Just last night, my son pointed out something interesting that I hadn't noticed before on my Rebel uke; the use of triangles as a design motif. You can see it in the Zelda inspired Triforce logo, the origami crane, the fret markers and even the heel where it narrows to a point forming a tiny triangle at the back of the uke!
 
Wow. That's a really nice one. I had one once. Looked nice and sounded great, but didn't have anywhere near that curl. Great find!
Thank you! I confirmed the purchase immediately when I saw the pictures of the uke, it is gorgeous. It seems like Rebel replaced the black keystone buttons for their Gotoh UPT tuners to smaller white Pearloid ones for their new models. I kinda prefer the older ones but the new buttons are pretty nice too.
 
do you like the smaller buttons over the bigger ones? I suppose you might be able to replace or swap out.
 
do you like the smaller buttons over the bigger ones? I suppose you might be able to replace or swap out.
Initially I thought the larger keystone style buttons looks nicer, but the smaller Pearloid buttons has grown on me. I think they fit the smaller soprano size quite well.
 
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I gave it quite a lot of thought before finally pulling the trigger on the Rebel Double Creme soprano. With a KoAloha KSM-10C and Kiwaya Luna LS-4 (a brilliant Martin Style O copy) in my collection, I wanted a soprano that offers something different from the classic Hawaiian or Martin sound.

The Rebel team originally learned how to make ukes from KoAloha, one of the best in the business, so I have no doubt they know how to make a good ukulele, as evident from the excellent Opio line they produced over the years. Rebel was started with the vision of creating ukuleles that are uniquely their own, which is something that appeals to me greatly.

TUS’s interview with Peng, the founder of Rebel was very illuminating in helping me know more about their philosophy and approach to making ukes. I love the idea that Rebel is continuously making improvements under the hood for their production models, so although they might look the same, a 2019 Double Creme could sound quite different from the latest 2022 model. It was also great to know that Rebel tries to use locally sourced wood and materials whenever possible, and I have to say the Thai mango wood on my Double Creme looks absolutely divine!

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The first thing I noticed when picking up the Double Creme is the amazing attention to detail and simple elegance of the design. From the beautiful ebony faceplate with the origami crane logo and the exquisite Gotoh UPT tuners with gold hardware and Pearloid buttons, to the lovely geometrical maple inlay fret markers, the entire instrument is a sheer aesthetic delight.

The uke is also excellent sound-wise. I’ve compared my Double Creme Mango soprano with a Double Cheese soprano (spruce top with mahogany back and sides), and I have to say, the mango sounds better. The sound is full and balanced, with a generous chunk of mid and low notes plus nice sparkling treble on top. Mango has a reputable of sounding muted, and although it’s not my loudest uke, I find the volume of the Double Creme more than adequate.

What I find really interesting is that there’s a dreamy, watery liquid quality to the sound that I’ve not experienced before with any other ukes including the similarly build Double Cheese. I wonder if this is an attribute of mango as a tone-wood, or it is unique to this particular uke. This is my first and only mango uke (so far) so I don’t have the chance to compare it to other mango ukes.

I’ve also heard mango being described as sounding like koa. Comparing my Rebel with my KoAloha KSM-10C Koa soprano, the way each uke sound and feel in hand is strikingly different. Although there’s some history and connection between the two companies and Rebel learnt uke making from KoAloha and produces their Opio line, in my opinion, Rebel and KoAloha ukes feel very different from one another.

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Overall I’m really happy with my Rebel Double Creme soprano, both looks and sound-wise. If I have to really nitpick, there is one minor detail I feel would improve an already excellent uke even more if done differently. The gloss finish on the neck and the back of the headstock is slightly thicker than necessary and has a slight “orange peel” quality to it that's different from nice glass smooth gloss of the ukulele body. I wonder why is there this inconsistency with the finish.

I bought my uke directly from Baan Ukulele from Thailand and they are excellent to deal with. My order was shipped quickly and they even included a really nice Rebel T-shirt as a gift. Orders over $500 gets free worldwide shipping. I’m not sure if they setup the ukes they sell, but the action and playability on mine feels perfect.

I’ll post a sound sample in my next post that hopefully will illustrate what I meant by the interesting sound of this uke. Thanks for reading this rather lengthy and longwinded NUD post, hope it’s useful for those who are considering Rebel ukuleles!

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Stunning. I know this has come up before, but does “double crème” indicate standard concert body height and “single” or whatever that isn’t “double” is thinner than a typical concert uke?
 
Stunning. I know this has come up before, but does “double crème” indicate standard concert body height and “single” or whatever that isn’t “double” is thinner than a typical concert uke?
Thank you! For Rebel, "double" indicates regular body thickness. i.e.:

Creme Brulee = Mango thinline
Double Creme = Mango standard
Cheesecake = Spruce top, mahogany back & sides thinline
Double Cheese = Spruce top, mahogany back & sides standard
 
Thank you! I think Rebel is one of the most exciting and innovative ukulele makers on the market today. Just last night, my son pointed out something interesting that I hadn't noticed before on my Rebel uke; the use of triangles as a design motif. You can see it in the Zelda inspired Triforce logo, the origami crane, the fret markers and even the heel where it narrows to a point forming a tiny triangle at the back of the uke!
I had noticed the triangle motifs also. Very finely done, and I particularly love the origami bird logo. I found it odd that one of our forum members mentioned not too long ago that he thought the Rebels were plain looking. I think they have a classy elegance to their look. Everything is so precisely executed and finished.
 
What a gorgeous uke. Play it in good health and enjoy!
 
Well doesn't that sound great for a little soprano! One would think it's a concert at least. I like your blues walk piece.
Thank you! It definitely has a big sound and punches above its weight. When in doubt, play the blues! 😂
 
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