mikelz777
Well-known member
Lately I've been very intrigued by the idea of an 8 string ukulele. I'm only half joking with the title of the thread but I was seriously wondering, is an 8 string ukulele noticeably more difficult to play?
Is it significantly harder to cleanly fret 2 paired strings vs. 1?
Is it significantly harder to cleanly fret chords, especially barre chords? I don't have problems playing a regular uke with low action (2.5mm at 12th fret) but I do have a slight weakness in my left hand and I'm concerned that an 8 string would be significantly harder to play.
Would there be a difference in the tension/feel of a concert 8 string vs. a tenor 8 string?
If a louder/fuller sound is ultimately what I'm looking for might a 6-string uke (paired 1st and 3rd string) be more suitable if the hand strength for playing an 8 string is an issue?
Another concern is that I'm at the point where if a new uke comes in, one of my others has to go. I don't think there's any way I'd be able to try an 8 string out before buying. I'm pretty sure none of the local places that sell ukes have anything more that 4 string ukes so buying an 8 string (or 6 string) only to try it for the first time would be a bit of a gamble and one I'm not sure would be worthy of selling one of my current ukes.
Is it significantly harder to cleanly fret 2 paired strings vs. 1?
Is it significantly harder to cleanly fret chords, especially barre chords? I don't have problems playing a regular uke with low action (2.5mm at 12th fret) but I do have a slight weakness in my left hand and I'm concerned that an 8 string would be significantly harder to play.
Would there be a difference in the tension/feel of a concert 8 string vs. a tenor 8 string?
If a louder/fuller sound is ultimately what I'm looking for might a 6-string uke (paired 1st and 3rd string) be more suitable if the hand strength for playing an 8 string is an issue?
Another concern is that I'm at the point where if a new uke comes in, one of my others has to go. I don't think there's any way I'd be able to try an 8 string out before buying. I'm pretty sure none of the local places that sell ukes have anything more that 4 string ukes so buying an 8 string (or 6 string) only to try it for the first time would be a bit of a gamble and one I'm not sure would be worthy of selling one of my current ukes.
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