Six Strings or Eight?

Jerryc41

Jerryc41

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I have ukes with both six strings and eight. A friend has been considering getting a 6-string concert, but I'm wondering why he wouldn't go for an 8-string. He's not sure himself, but he thinks that the 6-string isn't as big a step up from a 4-string. I'm bring a couple of mine today for him to try.

So, any opinions on 6 or 8-string ukes?
 
I guess it boils down to the type of music you intend on playing, six string emphasizes a couple of notes, whilst an eight string must emphasize them all, i.e. increasing volume.

Your friend could always buy an eight string, & if he doesn't like it, just take off two strings & have a six string. ;)
 
Croaky Keith said:
I guess it boils down to the type of music you intend on playing, six string emphasizes a couple of notes, whilst an eight string must emphasize them all, i.e. increasing volume.

Your friend could always buy an eight string, & if he doesn't like it, just take off two strings & have a six string. ;)
Click to expand...

Excellent solution! :D
 
I've had both 6 and 8 but in the end settled on 5. In my experience 5 sounds better than 6 and 8 is too challenging to play well.
 
I had an Ohana six string tenor and didn’t like it at all. I didn’t like pickin’ it OR strummin’ it. I finally traded it in on my Kala Tenor which I liked better at least to strum. :eek:ld:
 
Love my KoAloha 6 string. The sound is so unusual. Strumming only; I wouldn't like to try to pick it. Plucking the doubled strings just for tuning is maddening enough.
 
Bill1 said:
Some of the music I fumble around with on a 12 string guitar sounds dreadful if you play the octave G note. I have no idea why, even accounting for my poor playing, it ruins the sound. John Butler took one of the G strings off his 12 string, its now an 11 string, because the high G string pitch (he uses different tunings) does not fit into his music.

A lot of ukulele players don't need or have a ukulele hero, but perhaps if you want to choose between 8 and 6 strings you need to find some players of both and listen and see which one you like the most?
Click to expand...

Surpisingly, Spider John Koerner of the Blues, Rags & Hollers, Lots More Blues, Rags & Hollers and The Return Of Koerner, Ray & Glover LPs that were popular among folkies in the sixties, thought just the opposite to John Butler. He put a banjo tuning peg in the centre of his peghead and added an octave G string. It sounded great the way he played it.

Spider John's 7 string.jpg
 
I think that at concert scale it makes more sense to have all strings in unison without octave strings. However for a tenor sized 8 string I played the ultimate yesterday at the Kanile'a factory. It was a slothead and my girlfriend who heard me play dozens of ukes and usually says "sounds nice" yelled out "holy &=%$& this is the best sound ever". It was a slothead and priced according to awesomeness, so way out of my range.
 
As a former 12 string guitarist, eight strings did it for me! Mind you, I only had that instrument about a year and decided I prefered the 'standard' four string ukulele,and passed it on!
 
I’ve had both. They were fine instruments both very different. I wouldn’t compare and contrast them. The 8 string’s sonic signature reminded me more of the 12 string guitars I used to play. The six sounded great when played with a guitarist. It definitely complemented the guitars sound.
 
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