Pono taropatch concert vs Pono 8-string mahogony tenor - anyone played either/both?

I posted this under Uke Talk but I think it might be more appropriate here.

'm considering picking up an 8-string of some sort and wondered if anyone has played these two? I know that the taropatch models either have just low g or high g tuning and the regular 8 string has high and low g and c strings. Any input would be appreciated, I don't live near any dealers that have either one.

I think your best resource would be dealers: The Uke Republic and The Ukulele Site for certain. Andrew, owner of The Ukulele Site, is the son of the owner of Pono—so knowledge of the products (and customer service) is high!

That Pono taropatch concert sounds pretty good to me.

One consideration is that the Pono tenor 8-string has an adjustable truss rod in the neck. There's a lot of tension in having 8-strings, Being able to slightly adjust the curve of the neck may be a plus over time. They also make an 8-string mango tenor if you prefer the sweeter sound to the brighter mahogany.

I was able to play a Pono mahogany 8-string for a few minutes, and it was a lot of fun. Great strumming sound.

Kenn2018 said:

One consideration is that the Pono tenor 8-string has an adjustable truss rod in the neck. There's a lot of tension in having 8-strings, Being able to slightly adjust the curve of the neck may be a plus over time. They also make an 8-string mango tenor if you prefer the sweeter sound to the brighter mahogany.

I was able to play a Pono mahogany 8-string for a few minutes, and it was a lot of fun. Great strumming sound.

Click to expand...

Thanks for the input, I'm leaning toward a tenor and the Pono is in the lead

I cannot find these on the pono site, is there a link to review the specs?

There is currently a Pono Mahogany 8-string listed on theukulelesite.com. They have had a mango 8-string from time to time. But I haven't seen one for a few months.

I ordered a Taropatch CK-70-8 today from Mim. It is a sold spruce top, the rest mahogany. I’ve been thinking about a Taropatch a lot, as I like my Baton Rouge 8 string but have been gravitating to concerts for some time. I play everything from Sopranissimo to Baritone, but if you had to ask me to choose one ukulele, it would be my KoAloha concert(s). My Koa model is in transit to Hawaii for bridge repair.

What is interesting to me is that Ohana shipped the CK-70-8 like an 8 string ukulele (low and high G and C, unison E and A), and my (limited) research shows that Taropatch should be all doubled reentrant tuning, so I had Mim move the strings to that (Worth clears). I’m expecting to be pretty happy with the instrument...Incidentally, it is significantly less expensive than Ohana’s MSRP! Even with the change of strings and a hard case!

When I get it next week, I’ll be sure to post a review after playing it for a while!

https://ohana-music.com/product/oha...e-solid-mahogany-8-string-taro-patch-concert/