Kanile'a Platinum 2021 and new D Series

Their live showcase is still on. That new Platinum sure looks great. Souza, Kamaka, and Okami families are such huge contributors to ukulele community and I feel so honoured to have met their heads and other members in person.
 
merlin666 said:
Their live showcase is still on. That new Platinum sure looks great. Souza, Kamaka, and Okami families are such huge contributors to ukulele community and I feel so honoured to have met their heads and other members in person.
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Yup, am watching. I think a D Series Super Tenor with a Sinker Redwood top is going to be extremely hard to resist.
 
The curving down of the bass side and upper bout sound holes are the big features of the 2021 Platinum. It was really interesting seeing the required changes to bracing and lightening of the top. Lots of design and development to get there. And that magnetic back access plate was cool.
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I'm watching, but I absolutely love the "D" series. It will be a boomer. The are raising the bar with the gorgeous wood options. The offset sound hole really lets the glory of the wood grain flow without interruption. I love the sound of that sinker redwood. That's just the way I like them. It's like a wonderful contralto singing: rich, deep and mello. Yum.

It will take me awhile to get accustomed to the 2021 Platinum. Not sure what I think of the flame sound holes. I do like some bling, but the design may be a touch too busy for me.

What a leap forward with the video presentation. Love that.

Very tempting. Very expensive. Very gorgeous.

Bluesy.
 
I'd love to spend a little time with the new curve on the platinum that he said was 10x better then an armrest. Price is more then I'm willing to spend, but just to have hope that it will be available in a reasonably priced model in 1-2 years (if it's that good).

I *really* like the looks of the offset D sound hole, but wondering if the looks of the D series are really any better then a KSR that is $1000 or more less (sound-wise).

On flip side, I think I'm setting in at a Tenor with a 1.5" width - and if I'm going to lay out the money for a once in 10+ year investment - it has the looks, side port and the armrest that I'd prefer.

Will probably have to wait for reviews on the new ones & see what people said. Funny, considering the stream joke - if they said they were available this year by Xmas - I may have given in right away :)
 
Bluesy said:
Not sure what I think of the flame sound holes. I do like some bling, but the design may be a touch too busy for me.
Bluesy.
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In case you didn't get the chance to watch the whole video yet, Kahiau said that the sound holes are Koa leaves. Does that make it any better than flames?
 
I know! I look at it and keep seeing flames for some inane reason and I can't shake it.

I really enjoyed seeing the bracing changes they had to make for the magnetic panel and the interior part of the comfort fade. All of those tiny honeycombs. All beautifully engineered.

It's hard to turn away from these. The other companies are going to have to step up their marketing b/c the presentation was well done. Provided info on the key features and innovations, yet retained the personal touch. It left me wanting to hear a more complete sound sample.

Bluesy.
 
I'd love a Kanilea, but that pin bridge is a deal breaker for me, ugh!
And the prices, well.....
 
Nickie said:
I'd love a Kanilea, but that pin bridge is a deal breaker for me, ugh!
And the prices, well.....
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Love the Kanile’a pin bridge. Not all pin bridges work as well as theirs. Never launched a pin on a Kanile’a.

Hopefully some of these features will trickle from the Platinum model into the future less expensive models, like the Pineapple shape did.
 
The D series looks great, a margin more expensive than the deluxe models i could understand but that much extra for essentially a side sound port and an off centre sound hole?...
The stained koa and the work in the custom shop was exceptional, any of those would have been great for the platinum model. The 2021 for me personally fell short. Over engineered for the sake of being different. The wedge seems like an interesting feature but the impractical sound hole making future repairs difficult to only remedy that with cutting a chunk out the back? Not for me, sometimes less is more and feel this route was a step back not forward. Love kanilea’s instruments and have owned a few myself but this year is a no no.
 
That new Platinum reminds me quite a bit of the Enya Nova ukes and I don't think that's necessarily a good thing as those are supposed to be on the cheaper end of the spectrum. The looks overall are a bit of a step back in my opinion but that's probably offset by the plethora of features which are not clearly noticeable at first. I wonder if that (yet another) new bracing system will find its way to all of their other models in 2022 or whether that will be reserved for only certain models, or maybe you need to cough up more cash for it, who knows.

The D series on the other hand look absolutely beautiful but... only tenor models available... meh...

I do have to agree on the prices of both the new models. They are fast approaching some extremely high-end brands at this point and I don't like it. I really hope the same doesn't happen for their more entry level models.
 
Dohle said:
That new Platinum reminds me quite a bit of the Enya Nova ukes and I don't think that's necessarily a good thing as those are supposed to be on the cheaper end of the spectrum. The looks overall are a bit of a step back in my opinion but that's probably offset by the plethora of features which are not clearly noticeable at first. I wonder if that (yet another) new bracing system will find its way to all of their other models in 2022 or whether that will be reserved for only certain models, or maybe you need to cough up more cash for it, who knows.

The D series on the other hand look absolutely beautiful but... only tenor models available... meh...

I do have to agree on the prices of both the new models. They are fast approaching some extremely high-end brands at this point and I don't like it. I really hope the same doesn't happen for their more entry level models.
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I was wondering what the 2021 platinum reminded me of and it's the Enya Nova, you're right!

I was really excited by the D series but I think after import taxes the price in the UK will be close to the 2020 platinum price, and that's quite steep for a paired down version. I think it's available in super tenor too and looking on the kanile'a website the price for the redwood super tenor D series is $3435 and that's not even for the "premium" koa option.

I was blown away by the stained green koa / ebony ukulele. Wow! If I win the lottery...
 
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There's a new video about the Kanile'a Platinum for this year on the HMS Youtube channel:



Interestingly, it looks and sounds like they've switched from the Aquila strings to some sort of fluorocarbon strings at least for the Platinum. I was expecting this since the guys at SUS hinted at it a few months ago. I wonder if this will apply to their other models in the future.

Lovely sound, amazingly pretty wood, interesting features, crazy price, still looks too much like a wooden Enya Nova to me.
 
Beautiful Kanile'a. Stunning looks. I'm not sold on the light maple for the scoop. It draws your eye right to it. I'm sure it looks better in person. The magnetic trap door is a great idea, but I can't help but wonder how it will hold up around the edges after 5 or ten years?

I like the wedge. The details of the design are really nice. A lot of luthier hand work obviously went into it.

As far as the price goes, this is the top of the line Kanile'a ukulele. Their showcase instrument. Small, limited run, exclusive luxury instrument. They threw everything they could think of to show off their skills as designers and skilled builders. It's quite impressive. I wouldn't pay that much for one, but there are people who value owning rare, superb-sounding and wonderful-looking instruments. And I don't begrudge them that desire even one little bit.

It's a true gem.
 
Don’t know about the panel in the back. Would rather have a solid back with no hole in it. Also wish they would do away with the pin bridge
 
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