My nephew is turning eight soon and has developed some interest in my ukulele playing. I was going to give him one of my Pono's that I consider to be on par with some of the much more expensive instruments I have. However, turns out that he has some very specific requests about the looks: Going through my collection of instruments, he made it very clear that he likes Spruce tops, Abalone rosettes, slotted headstocks, and while he liked the special shape of my Romero Creations XS soprano, he noticed that it was easier for him to hold a regular figure 8 shaped instrument. He was also very clear about his dislike of plastic instruments which I had thought might be a good fit for a kid.
So I went looking for an ukulele that has all of those features, and while I will happily gift him with a more expensive instrument when he sticks with playing, I didn't want to break the bank just yet. What I ended up with is a Kmise MI 2068 Concert Ukulele that has a solid Spruce top, Mahogany back and sides, Abalone rosette, and a slotted headstock.
Ordered it from AliExpress and I have to say, it's a pretty fine instrument. No obvious flaws, clean build, nice satin finish, good setup with low action, and it even has a bound fretboard with no sharp frets standing out. Definitely not just a toy or a wall hanger. Comes with the white Aquila strings that I didn't find terrible on this instrument. Intonation seems to be good (the bridge is compensated), and the sound isn't dull, certainly a bit thinner than my Kanilea Concert, but that was to be expected.
For about $55 USD, the package also included a gigbag, a tuner, a strap, strap pins, some picks and a capo. The capo is all plastic and broke on the very first use, but other than that, this seems to be a pretty good deal. I'd say it could easily compete with Kalas and Ohanas that cost three or four times as much. Especially since t has a solid top. Definitely good enough for a beginner, and I'm sure that my nephew prefers the tasteful look of this one over one of the gaudily painted Sharks or Dolphins.
There is one strictly cosmetic thing where I think they could make this uke even nicer: By using simple dots instead of stars and especially the whale that marks the 12th fret, I think this instrument would look even more classy and appeal to adults and children alike. They could also design a nicer logo while they're at it, but hey: this is a nice instrument for a great price and I applaud the workers who built it (my one severe concern is about their working conditions which we know nothing about).
All in all, I'm happy to pass on the Aloha to the next generation with an instrument that lives up to my high standards.
So I went looking for an ukulele that has all of those features, and while I will happily gift him with a more expensive instrument when he sticks with playing, I didn't want to break the bank just yet. What I ended up with is a Kmise MI 2068 Concert Ukulele that has a solid Spruce top, Mahogany back and sides, Abalone rosette, and a slotted headstock.
Ordered it from AliExpress and I have to say, it's a pretty fine instrument. No obvious flaws, clean build, nice satin finish, good setup with low action, and it even has a bound fretboard with no sharp frets standing out. Definitely not just a toy or a wall hanger. Comes with the white Aquila strings that I didn't find terrible on this instrument. Intonation seems to be good (the bridge is compensated), and the sound isn't dull, certainly a bit thinner than my Kanilea Concert, but that was to be expected.
For about $55 USD, the package also included a gigbag, a tuner, a strap, strap pins, some picks and a capo. The capo is all plastic and broke on the very first use, but other than that, this seems to be a pretty good deal. I'd say it could easily compete with Kalas and Ohanas that cost three or four times as much. Especially since t has a solid top. Definitely good enough for a beginner, and I'm sure that my nephew prefers the tasteful look of this one over one of the gaudily painted Sharks or Dolphins.
There is one strictly cosmetic thing where I think they could make this uke even nicer: By using simple dots instead of stars and especially the whale that marks the 12th fret, I think this instrument would look even more classy and appeal to adults and children alike. They could also design a nicer logo while they're at it, but hey: this is a nice instrument for a great price and I applaud the workers who built it (my one severe concern is about their working conditions which we know nothing about).
All in all, I'm happy to pass on the Aloha to the next generation with an instrument that lives up to my high standards.
