NUD - Effin UkeStart

SteveZ

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Effin UkeStart

About a week ago, a post appeared which mentioned the Effin line of guitars,ukuleles and other stuff. After seeing that Butler Music was handling this line, how interesting the instruments sounded and the attractive pricing, I took the plunge. A review of the offerings led me to the black "UkeStart" model. The instrument arrived today and the fun has started.

Appearance: The instrument is sharp and is of concert ukulele scale, even though it's only 23 inches long. It has that "Fender Strato" type of brashness as a solid body, and it fits well. I checked the instrument stem-to-stern and could not find any faults in form, fit or finish. It come stock with black strings, and Butler threw in a set of low-G Aquila Nylguts as part of the deal. Am not a fan of black strings on a black instrument, so am experimenting with strings and looks. Right now have three white Nylguts and one Aquila Red on the UkeStart, and just have to make up my mind what I prefer (am leaning to the reds, but have to order more). Opted for the optional strap (strap buttons are factory installed). A padded gig bag and cable also comes with it.

Playability: The strings are still settling in place, and experience tells me that at about 48 hours the strings will stabilize. I did an intonation check (very good). The frets are the correct height and the action is comfortable. There did not appear to be any "set-up touch-ups" needed. I did have to tighten the nuts on the tuners (a couple were a little loose). Overall, very smooth and comfortable.

The instrument comes with a cable, and I jacked it into a Honeytone amp to make sure everything works (everything did!). I didn't hear any buzzing or other problems. I did experiment with mixing some wound and unwound strings. The wound strings tended to sustain a lot longer through the amp, so I plan to keep unwound strings on the UkeStart for better balance. I have been going through the "play-a-minute then retune" and probably will for the next couple days. Once the strings stabilize I'll cut a sound sample going from no amp to Homeytone amp to a ten-watter on the same tune. For now, the ear is satisfied with what it hears.

Sound: This is a solid body instrument, so when not amped all you get is the basic string sounds. When amped, it was all right and I did not hear any distortion or buzzing. Again, balancing the strings so they sustain relatively equally is important on an electric, as the pickup and amp are not forgiving. The instrument has a 9-volt battery powered preamp to go with the pickup, and it functions well enough.

There is a plug for earphones. One can crank up the preamp and let the instrument rock without disturbing the rest of the household. Also, there is a plug to connect an MP3 player, so you can "play along" with your favorite tunes. I checked the plugs on this new instrument and everything worked well.

Uniqueness: This is a very interesting instrument. Solid body ukuleles are a different experience, and this one rocks well. This instrument will probably become my "airline traveler" concert uke amongst other things. As a solid body, am not too concerned about the "overhead bin" fragile-item problems that occur with most acoustics. Also, it's quiet enough without an amp to allow playing in hotel rooms without management being called, as well as play at home when others don't want to hear you (love those earphones!)

Bottom line: Am very glad I bought the Effin UkeStart. I used to have a solid body RISA Stick soprano as a traveler, but never really warmed to it because if its unconventional shape. Warmed up quickly to the UkeStart , as it is is a fun solid body instrument with considerable versatility. It's well-made, sized right and priced great. The name notwithstanding (marketeers sure can be creative), it adds a new dimension to the ukulele experience.

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I could not resist, ordered the black Les Paul...
 
I could not resist, ordered the black Les Paul...

Let's hear how you like it. The more reviews, the better. Have decided on the Aquila Reds for stringing. The black-and-red look is sharp.

Tried the UkeStart with a plug-in Joyo amp I got over EBay a while ago. They go for about $10-15. The amp is handy and takes up little space.

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Steve, you are addicting. Who can resist a plug in mini amp for $17 on eBay from a U.S. shipper. I decided not to save $6 and order it from China with 3 week delay.
 
The strings are settling in, and it's sounding pretty good. Another day or so and what's on there will have stabilized - just in time to be removed for the Aquila Reds (due in Monday from JustStrings).
 
With the AUX-IN and Headphone jacks in the back, which will be pointing directly into your body when you hold it with a strap, you might want to invest in a pair of right-angle female-to-male 1/8" (3.5mm) (TRS as in 'STEREO' and not MONO) audio adapters so that the plugs and attached cables will be effectively be parallel instead of perpendicular to the back of the instrument.

see attached pic below:
VUPN7956.jpg


Otherwise you are likely so snap off the business end of the plug inside the jack.

Radio Shaft, Parts Express, etc should have them for about $4 each adapter.
 
So I pulled the trigger on the black ukeless like Greg.

Shipped already via UPS (which I think stands for Ukulele Purchasing Service)
Scheduled Delivery:
Monday, 05/11/2015, By End of Day

Also managed to obtain spousal consent AFTER making the order (oooh, I am a slick one) by promising to sell off another in the herd (not so slick after all).

Looking forward to it.
 
Below is a sound sample link I recorded earlier today on an iPad Mini with Sound Recorder app. The sample is a three-parter. The UkeStart is strung with unwound Aquila NylGut strings tuned CGDA (reentrant C) which tonally matched low-G GCEA (the difference is the E is detuned to D).

First part of sample is the UkeStart unamped, so you hear what it sounds like without any boost. The sound level was set for max pickup, so no comparison to volume from the second part can be made. The UkeStart was about 12-inches from the iPad when the recording was made.

Second part of sample is the UkeStart amped with a HoneyTone 1-watt portable battery amp. The amp level again was set for max pickup and the Amp was about three feet from the iPad. Preamp settings were at midrange and the amp volume was at about one-third. The high-low balance controls on the UkeStart and HoneyTone were mid-range.

Third part of sample is the UkeStart amped with a Joyo 1Watt plug-in mini amp. The high-low-vol controls of the Ukestart was high and vol at 1/3rd, and low at mid-midrange. The amp is simply on-off.

Was going to do a sample with my ten-watter, but it's out of commission (got a short somewhere inside).

With a decent amp the result should sound pretty good. The 1-watt amps are just "convenience" amps with marginal reproduction. What I got out of the amp results were decent across-the-board string pickup and no distortion that I could link to the instrument. Amping nylon strings versus steel is another story, as is amping nylon wound versus nylon unwound.

https://soundcloud.com/steveztv/effin-ukestart-hallelujah

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Thanks for sharing!

You were using a pick, yes?

I am looking forward to much pedal. Very distort. Oh such phasing. Too rock. woo
 
Thanks for sharing!

You were using a pick, yes?

I am looking forward to much pedal. Very distort. Oh such phasing. Too rock. woo

Yep on the pick. Used a medium puck. Tried a light pick on the Nylguts, but the pick-clicks were too pronounced.
 
Congrats! When I started playing uke, I never would have believe the solid body electric would come along....very intriguing....1st one I ever saw was at a TBUS jam, a koa top Gibson Les Paul style electric, how was it cool....
 
So I pulled the trigger on the black ukeless like Greg.

Shipped already via UPS (which I think stands for Ukulele Purchasing Service)


Also managed to obtain spousal consent AFTER making the order (oooh, I am a slick one) by promising to sell off another in the herd (not so slick after all).

Looking forward to it.

WOOT
The Ukulele Purchasing Service tracker says my new uke is waiting for me at home!
 
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