Why the hate on Pono?

I've seen a few posts lately where people are comparing Pono ukes to $40 Amazon ukuleles. I've been considering a pono pro classic, rather than paying double for one of the big Ks. But I don't want to drop a thousand dollars on garbage. Am I missing something?

I have never had any bad experiences with Pono besides just plain ol’ not bonding with one. Their quality is top notch and they offer solid woods with bone nut and saddles. Besides the chunkier neck, I can’t imagine anyone complaining and I CERTAINLY don’t think $40 ukes from Amazon even come close to the same level of tone and build quality.

I have heard 3 main complaints on Pono, 1. they are low volume 2. They are overbuilt/heavy and 3. The neck is too thick, front to back.

I owned a Pono RTSH(S)-PC and found that the volume was fine, it wasn’t the loudest or quietest uke I’ve played. The build, while robust, wasn’t overbuilt and it was still very much a ukulele. The neck was thicker than I was accustomed to but I don’t believe it was ever a factor and, after time, paired with the radius fretboard, it became barely noticeable. Overall, my feelings toward it were very middle of the road and ultimately sold it.

Check out this video done by HMS, where they are using a different saddle to compare impact on different action heights, they use a Pono for the example and Tobias from the start claims the low action robs some instruments of their full potential, and the crew agreed there was a difference once the highest saddle was used, so maybe the low volume complaint stems from Pono a liking a bit higher action...or it was a coincidence.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=cO3i0FI1TQk

Awaters said:

I've seen a few posts lately where people are comparing Pono ukes to $40 Amazon ukuleles. I've been considering a pono pro classic, rather than paying double for one of the big Ks. But I don't want to drop a thousand dollars on garbage. Am I missing something?

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I absolutely love Ponos. I've never played a bad one. They are definitely better than $40 ukes on Amazon, but I understand not every uke works for everyone.

I think your idea of saving money on a K brand to get a Pono is a good idea. Try to play a few Ponos if you can before buying. But personally I think you won't be disappointed with a pro classic. I got one recently and love it.

The necks are a bit thick. Personally I like that feel. Then again, I have a Kanilea, very thin neck, and I like that one, too.

Arob54 said:

I have heard 3 main complaints on Pono, 1. they are low volume 2. They are overbuilt/heavy and 3. The neck is too thick, front to back.

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I hadn't heard the complaint about volume before.

I get the weight and neck complaint. But I've always loved how solid the weight and neck feels.

I don't think there's any hate towards Pono. I had the Pono UL4-40 steel baritone and liked it a lot. I didn't like the thick neck. I could have had it shaved down by my luthier but decided to go custom instead. Buying and selling instruments is a way to find the "keepers" for yourself.

Just Russ said:

I have never had any bad experiences with Pono besides just plain ol’ not bonding with one. Their quality is top notch and they offer solid woods with bone nut and saddles. Besides the chunkier neck, I can’t imagine anyone complaining and I CERTAINLY don’t think $40 ukes from Amazon even come close to the same level of tone and build quality.

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I think this is my situation exactly. Early on in my playing, Dixie Ukulele closed shop and sold all of their stock at cost, and I bought a gorgeous cedar and rosewood PC tenor. It was my most expensive ukulele (At $690 or so) and would still be if I owned it. It sounded great, and it was a gorgeous instrument, but I just didn't bond with it...and found myself moving to my KoAloha Opio Sapele Tenor. I've since found that I'm happiest with a Concert scale instrument. I think the comments about being heavier than many ukuleles is accurate--but that doesn't matter, as they still sound wonderful.

So I don't hate Pono, and I respect the heck out of them. Anyone that would compare a Pono to a $40 ukulele (is there such a thing?) is someone whose opinion is not worth listening to.

I also wonder how many people that have moved away from a Pono have found themselves with a KoAloha...there might just be tonal qualities of a KoAloha build that are more appealing to those people.

Oft repeated advice here that fits your purchase of a Pono: Buy it from a reputable dealer... that does proper setup... and has a return policy for refund. That means you can order one and it should play well right out of the box (proper setup). If you do NOT like it enough to be deliriously happy, you can return it for a refund with the costs mainly being the return shipping cost. Recommended dealers include The Ukulele Site (HMS), Mim's Ukes, and Uke Republic.

Choirguy said:

I also wonder how many people that have moved away from a Pono have found themselves with a KoAloha...there might just be tonal qualities of a KoAloha build that are more appealing to those people.

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Good question. I have a KoAloha and a Pono, both tenors. I like them both and it's really tough for me to say which I prefer. But they are both very different.

I like Pono: they're a great middle of the road production ukulele. You get a lot for your money and quality is very consistent. Yes, they are a little on the heavy side—some even have thrust rods but the ones I've played sounded wonderful after a few years of play in. I still have an ancient MT-E—Pono's basic model—and it developed an amazingly sweet harp like tone, ideal for strums on backing tracks or fat single line improvisations. Yes, it's not a loud uku but is certainly average for its class. It's similar in volume to my more expensive Kremona Mari. I see a lot of Pono on stage here on Oahu, usually jacked into a pedal board and amp so they're plenty tough enough for nightclub gigs. The only thing I don't like is the necks are not wide enough and feel cramped for my hands (otherwise I'd buy another one!). I like their thick necks but they need to be at least 1.5" wide at the nut.

I don't 'get' what Pono fans see in them, the ones I've heard, don't impress me - I'd much rather an Ohana solid mahogany - but at the 'mid' price range, I'm definitely a KoAloha Opio fan - the tone of a uke is key to me. :music:

While mine sounded nice, I couldn't bond with it. I didn't really like the feel of it, it was pretty heavy and the look never really clicked with me. For the price they charge they should at least put some binding/purfling on there to make it look more interesting. I sold mine and took a pretty big hit in doing so.

I have a pono MTD. I love it. I have east coast low tension strings. ( Lo G) It is very mellow for a uke, which is what I want. Volume is not that big of deal. The neck did take some getting used to to as I moved up from a low end Kala Tenor. Loaned lout now so the exact model i not available. I have heard the three knocks ax listed above, but I have gotten used use to the neck, the "heft" I like, and the low volume, I really don't care about. Got mine on ebay with a hard case for $ 370.00:music:

Arob54 said:

I have heard 3 main complaints on Pono, 1. they are low volume 2. They are overbuilt/heavy and 3. The neck is too thick, front to back.

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I would add #4. The nut is too narrow, side to side.

Granted my experience with Pono is limited to the one Acacia Tenor Deluxe I owned for the better part of a year - but I definitely found it to be an extremely neck heavy instrument that was rather too quiet for my taste.

I also disliked the neck carve intensely. I thought it was fat and round and inelegant. And the nut width and fret board were far too narrow for me. The string spacing was so close to the edge that I kept pushing the dang A and G strings right off the side of the fret board. I bloody well HATE that.

Sure it sounded nice - and it was beautiful - but it was neither nice enough nor pretty enough to justify its shortcomings, in my opinion - so I sold it off.

As for Ponos being overbuilt - I would say that the very fact that Pono have truss rods in tenor ukuleles is on its own an excellent example of "overbuilding". And there's no question in my mind that the truss rod is what constituted most of the weight and poor balance I was experiencing while playing it. Whether seated or standing - I could not comfortably play that ukulele without a strap.

ukuleleabe said:

Good question. I have a KoAloha and a Pono, both tenors. I like them both and it's really tough for me to say which I prefer. But they are both very different.

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Same here. My KoAloha tenor is way prettier and cost me 5 times as much as the Pono Mahogany tenor I got used on EBay. But I love that Pono so much I've considered getting a new deluxe model with a gloss finish someday.

I will add that, while I didn't bond with my cedar/rosewood tenor, I absolutely adore my cedar/rosewood soprano and cedar/ebony tenor (though, when it comes to the tenor, I do regret going with the model that had more abalone and no cutaway instead of the less showy one with a cutaway, but whatever. You live, you learn). The soprano caught me way off-guard as I was lured in just by the case and, to get a better look at the lining, removed the ukulele and, hey, since it's in my hands and all, started strumming it and that was all she wrote. I flagged Zach over and said it's mine now as someone else was starting to edge in with their eyes on it.

I have heard complaints about weight and the Ponos I've reviewed in the past have certainly been heavier than other ukuleles, but still solidly in the "ukulele" class of weight. This is probably just me coming from a guitar background as having guitars from 6-10 pounds on your shoulder feels a lot different than even the heaviest Pono (which, I believe, is the cedar/ebony due to wood density).

Volume's always been kind of a non-starter for me. I've never played a single ukulele that couldn't fill a room with observing friends or relatives and, with anything beyond that, I would mic or use a pickup. That's just me, though.

There are certainly valid critiques there; they are heavier than most ukuleles and their neck carve is chunkier than most, but the pros outweigh the cons in most respects to me due to the solid woods, durable builds, and radiused fretboard. They're really nice instruments, I just think you need to find the "one," that speaks to you and that you connect with or call Zach or Corey at The Ukulele Site and ask them to pick out a really good one for you. ;-)

I've only played one Pono uke, and I noted right away that the neck was too thick for me. It was set up lo G, which I don't play at all that well, but I thought it sounded okay.
Another friend bought one, never fell in love with it and traded it for a Mainland, with which she is tickled pink.

I would never compare a fine uke like a Pono to a $40 piece of Amazon crap. That's just ludicrous. Anyone who would do that is a maroon.

What I see is that most of the "hating" or "not-bonding-with" comes from people who enjoy their Kalas and Ohanas. Thus, my guess is that this is about managing expectations: For most people, a Pono is a giant leap up in cost from what they have, so they are expecting an instrument that plays at least twice or three times as nice as an inexpensive one, and that's not going to happen, not even with instruments that cost way more than a Pono. This experience will give you a good feeling about the less expensive stuff you can afford, and that's perfectly fine: Why should you pay more for something that doesn't give you a lot more enjoyment than what you already have.

To me, it's the combination of some very little things that make Pono a league of their own which I would never compare to some of the generic "brands" you see on Amazon, including the aforementioned Kalas and Ohanas: Pono ukes are always made from solid woods, no tricking about calling their models only by a thin sheet of veneer, leaving away the important word "laminate". They only use wooden bindings and natural products for inlays, nuts and saddles, no plastic, "faux" or "pearloid". They are designed and supervised by a family that has been around and well-respected in the ukulele community for almost 30 years, who certainly know what they are doing and keep coming up with fresh ideas for interesting new models. They were the first to react to international regulations on Rosewood and Pearl and banish these materials from their lineup. They try to operate sustainable. They have their own production line in Indonesia, not just ordering from some ominous factories in China. Their tenors and baritones come with a truss-rod which you may never need, but it will provide stability for decades to come, when other instruments' necks will long be bowed and warped. Last but not least, I like their perfectly rounded neck profile and can tell you that is very similar to the ones of some high-profile custom builders such as LFdM, Beau Hannam, Jay Lichty, or Jerry Hoffmann.

Having owned about 12 instruments from Pono over the years, I have been very happy with most of them, playing them side-by-side next to the custom builds mentioned above. And here is where I get that very same feeling expressed above: Sure, those custom builds may have some more clarity or better volume, but some of the Ponos come pretty close at a fraction of the price.

Weight and balance? On a small instrument like a ukulele? I don’t get that at all, never have... if you want to talk weight and balance, let’s talk bass guitars ��. I don’t think Pono’s are overbuilt at all.Mine sounds awesome, projects out in to a room plenty loud. It’s a decade-old PTS with a spruce top, which I more or less rescued from years of non-use, neglect, and lack of love. Kind of like getting a pet from a shelter, so I bonded with mine right off no problem. And it’s not just me, because most people who have tried mine like it a lot. Plenty tell me it’s the best playing instrument they’ve tried, in terms of the sound and the action. Also the truss rod is a bonus because it allows for far more action-adjustment than a ukulele that doesn’t have one. This is the purpose of a truss rod, something I think a lot of ukulele players don’t entirely understand. You don’t need a truss rod, but I wouldn’t walk away from any instrument because it has one. I’ve played a few other Pono’s, any one of which I’d happily take home without hesitation. As long as it is set up properly, I don’t think you can go wrong if you buy one.

I owned a couple of Pono classic series! They are very well built but heavy in weight.
People say the Neck is thick , in my opinion it’s pretty similar to a Kala neck! Great sound quality if you get the right wood combination! Pono definitely offer a lot of choices.

You can not compare a Pono to a K brand. Pono doesn’t use Koa wood therefore The sound and feel are not even in the same class. If you are looking for volume and playability, you may be happier with a Koaloha.