Cheap ukes that pleasantly surprised you

bellgamin · Nov 25, 2015

From amazon I recently bought a Kaka tenor uke with a solid spruce top. Got it for $99, to give to a neighbor's 7-year old kid. I hadn't yet realized the significance of the uke's name, but the kid did -- instantly. Said she didn't want a do-do uke & stalked off. Sheesh, what an ingrate..........

Later, her ~14 year old brother came over & asked me for the uke so I gave it to him. Good riddance. Several days later he brought the uke over to show me. He had sanded off the kaka, done a set-up, & re-strung it. He proudly played it for me. Hey! Pretty good sound for a cheap uke. Loud & sweet. Go figure!

Have any of you ever got an el-cheapo uke that surprised you at how good it played & sounded? Share your lucky tale!

kypfer · Nov 25, 2015

If $99 is cheap, so are all my ukuleles ... not a dud amongst them

PhilUSAFRet · Nov 25, 2015

Got an Asmus for $60. Turned out to be all solid maple with a solid spruce top. It's a sound cannon. Sounds like it cost many hundreds of dollars more. Just needed a setup and had to smooth the fret ends.

Jim Hanks · Nov 25, 2015

Kala SLNG longneck soprano was very pleasant. But it was setup and shipped by Mim so I wasn't really surprised.

RichM · Nov 25, 2015

Jim Hanks said:
Kala SLNG longneck soprano was very pleasant. But it was setup and shipped by Mim so I wasn't really surprised.

+1 on the Kala SLNG. Bought one for my girlfriend as a cheap starter, and now I find myself stealing it from her.

La Perdrix · Nov 25, 2015

the same with the Kala slng...
also love my SpongeBob pineapple...

Doc_J · Nov 25, 2015

Got a vintage Silvertone mahogany baritone for $100 that really sings. I understand that this is just a Harmony uke that was made for Sears in the 50s/60s. The internation is perfect, but the action is really high . Still it's very playable.

Takamine made some great sounding mahogany laminates sold for under $99 dollars, A few years ago. They still pop up on the used market occasionally. I keep Takamine laminate tenor in my office.

uketanzon · Nov 25, 2015

Pretty much any Ohana sounds good for their price point.

Rllink · Nov 25, 2015

For two years now, I've been talking up my $65 Makala concert. I guess that didn't surprise me though.

Croaky Keith · Nov 25, 2015

Makala seem to get good revues, that's why I went with them.

fitncrafty · Nov 25, 2015

My plastic Waterman really surprised me. I had to have it because it is clear. It was $50. It sounds pretty good and made quite an impression at my uke meetup this month.

lakesideglenn · Nov 25, 2015

Bought a 29.99 Mahalo smiley face a few yrs ago. Great setup and sound, perfect intonation right off the wall at Sam Ash. Gave it to my nephew about a yr ago and he plays it daily.

jollyboy · Nov 25, 2015

+1 for Makala. Also really like the Korala Explore.

actadh · Nov 25, 2015

Mine was the Zither Heaven. It has a unique sound.

It is easy on the fingers, so it is a good ukulele to pass around to introduce people to a ukulele.

The zither pin tuners instead of friction or geared tuners means little ones don't get it out of tune by twisting on the tuners - it needs a supplied tool to tune.

It is made in America and I was able to get it in interesting wood options - cherry and black walnut.

It makes a great office ukulele as it is little and stashes out of the way.

It makes a good car ukulele as it has a floating bridge, so no worries about it becoming unglued in a hot car.

stevepetergal · Nov 25, 2015

Those old Harmony ukuleles with the plastic fretboard are very surprising. I like them more than any current Chinese sopranos.

Tootler · Nov 25, 2015

Alic Soprano. Plastic body with laminate top and wood neck with plastic fingerboard. Influenced by Ovation & Magic Fluke Co. Looks more like a scaled down Ovation but construction more like a Flea. It cost me £45GB approx (I bought it from Germany so it was priced in Euros).

Intonation spot on good tone. Sounds a lot better than you've a right to expect from a ukulele at that price. Certainly puts the Schoenhut Flea copy in the shade. Some have concerns about the plastic fingerboard but I think that's a concern with any plastic ukulele. I think plastics are the way forward for getting low end ukes that are in tune and with decent intonation. I also have a Korala explore, concert scale but I don't think it sounds as good as the Alic. I've also briefly tried a Makala Waterman and was pleasantly surprised.

RichM · Nov 25, 2015

I can't believe I forgot to mention my Mastro banjo uke. I play that thing constantly

Xtradust · Nov 25, 2015

I've yet to play a Makala Pineapple that didn't sound nice. $49 new. I keep one in my car.

Inksplosive AL · Nov 25, 2015

Bruce Wei solid acacia tenor bought for the price of shipping $60? plus the under $20 bid I want to say $17.50. At first I thought it heavy and overbuilt until I pulled everything out to compare to a Koaloha I acquired. Its voice is as sweet as the Koaloha and the small crack was easy to repair, silly me I was new to humidity control.

On the flip side the Walnut soprano I bought for $99 plus $55-$60 shipping Ive never been happy with. It is extremely quiet so quiet I have a pickup and EQ waiting to install if I ever get the itch.

Turns out I'm not very fond of anything bigger than a soprano.

kdmccullum · Nov 25, 2015

Kala KA-SLNG......love it. And my daughter loves it so much she stole it from me. HMS setup made it perfect.

Cheap ukes that pleasantly surprised you

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