Synergy Instruments Sopranos (Carbon Fiber & Ekoa models)

maddogsauce

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These two instruments just arrived at my door this morning. The first thing I did was pull the stock strings and swap them with my favorite strings which are Living Water. These instruments were just released, and currently on a Black Friday special. Specs can be found on the Synergy website https://www.synergyinstruments.com . You'll notice that even prior to the holiday discount, these are considerably less expensive than instruments made from the same materials by other companies. Some special modifications I had done on mine were to use side markers instead of top markers, and I also asked for Gotoh UPTs. The folks at Synergy are willing to allow some mods upon request which is nice. The only differences between the two instruments is that one is all carbon fiber with no top bracing, and the other is all Ekoa with carbon fiber top bracing. I decided to get both models just to see what differences there might be based on materials alone.

In regards to the build, I think some things were done well, and others not as well. They both feel very solid, as one would expect from these materials. I thought by the looks that it was going to be a through style bridge, and it is similar, but as shown in the 3rd photo, the strings actually come out the bottom of the bridge rather than into the instrument, which is a design I actually really like, wasn't looking forward to digging the strings out through that tiny sound hole. Speaking of the sound hole, I'm not sure what was used to cut it out, but it's not a perfect circle, which seems slightly more noticeable on the Ekoa model. A couple other issues would be that the fret ends aren't great, not worried about cutting myself, but they could certainly be better. The gloss finish also has some dimples and imperfections throughout, but it's not horrible if you're not looking for them. The burst they decided to use on the Ekoa looks nice on the top, but the sides don't appear to have gotten quite the same attention. The neck also feels very thick, especially for a soprano, however, it doesn't really bother me because I have big hands and I like the way it was shaped. Overall, they're not perfect, but they're also less than half the price of other instruments built in similar fashion, and I'm trying to keep that in consideration.

As far as differences between the two, I am a bit surprised. I don't wanna go too deep here yet until the strings settle in, but here are initial observations. The Ekoa sounds a little warmer, and the carbon fiber is brighter, which is what I expected, but it's not a huge difference. What I am surprised by is the volume. I own a Blackbird Clara and have owned a Farallon, and I own multiple carbon fiber ukes. That said, the carbon fiber model seems to be louder? The Clara and Farallon dwarf most ukes with their volume, which i previously credited to the Ekoa, but in this case, the carbon fiber is louder! I'm curious if it has to do with the fact that the Ekoa is braced while the carbon fiber is not.

Altogether, I am happy with both. I got the carbon fiber to leave in the car, and the Ekoa was meant to be my travel buddy. I'm curious to see how my thoughts adjust between the two as the strings settle in. If you're looking for a uke you can beat on, they're a good buy at the price, but just don't go into it expecting the same attention to detail as their more expensive counterparts.
 

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Interesting choices on the Ekoa fabric that they used. Blackbird for example has moved to unidirectional top, back, and sides, while the Synergy is only unidirectional on the top. Wonder what the cost difference is on the two types of Ekoa? (Common wisdom from the guitar side is that there is no sound difference between the different fabrics.) And I do have to admit that the sunburst does look a bit incomplete, not being continued around the back and sides as one might expect.

blackbird_farallon_sunburst_3133-1.jpg
 
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I am looking forward to hearing some sound clips of their sopranos. Last I checked, I only saw videos of the larger sizes.
 
I'm waiting for my strings to settle before I go into much detail on sound quality, I want to give a fair opinion. May need to try different strings on the Ekoa version, I'm getting a little buzzing on the first couple frets on the E string. So far, I'm more impressed by the carbon fiber than the Ekoa. Thinking about switching to a lower tension string one one or both. I'll be honest, I sold my Kiwaya KTS-4, and don't have another soprano to compare to other than an outdoor ukulele, so I may not be the greatest to rate the sound on these either.
 
Wonder what the cost difference is on the two types of Ekoa?
Unidirectional is just under 4x the price of twill (details depending on weight), and the UD is only available in 16 inch widths. That’s probably too narrow for one swatch back and sides, and it likely causes increased waste (Info from https://lingrove.com/order-samples )

It wouldn’t surprise me if BB uses twill for the first layers and UD just in the surface for cosmetics. Twill’s much heavier (so fewer layers for the same strength) and drapes better.
 
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Thanks for sharing your thoughts, great to get some first hand comparison. Looking forward to hearing more about how your experience with them evolves.
 
Thank you very much for sharing your thoughts and comments. What's the total length of Synergy soprano size? Still 21in or bigger? Thanks.
 
I wish they had recordings of the soprano. I would be interested to hear them as there is not a lot of info out there.
 
Thanks for the review. Can't cut a round hole??? Something's not right there.......wrong cutting tool or not enough attention to finish detail.....I mean come on......$60 amazon ukes have better cut and finished sound holes. I'm willing to see a new manufacture make improvements before not thinking about them any more....I'd certainly want my first products to go out to be darn near perfect........
 
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