Are expensive "high end" ukuleles really worth it for a non-pro player?

While I mostly agree with Graham, I have to take exception to the term "if you can easily afford to overspend". Overspending implicates that you've spent more than you can afford, or more than the item is worth. People rarely think that way about a new car, though they really don't have $20,000-40,000+ sitting around just waiting to buy the car they want, but still want a particular vehicle. If you can find it within your means to buy a fine uke, whatever that means to you in price, then you will probably get great enjoyment from playing and owning that uke. For some, a $600 uke is a lot to spend, and considered to be above their means. For others, a "high end expensive uke" could be $1000, or $3000, $5000, or more (when I read the post's original question I was thinking of something like a Petros, or Chuck Moore, which I could never justify). But if I buy a fine Hawaiian uke for $2000, and that uke is worth $2000, it is not overspending to buy it, as I'm getting my money's worth. The question is, can I afford it? Nobody has mentioned financing, though I'm sure many of us use it in one way or another. I've used Affirm on several pricier uke purchases, and I've found it to work very well. I can purchase the uke that pops up that's exactly what I've been looking for, in terms of model/wood/looks, and pay for it with a very non-painful monthly plan, and without adding to my credit cards. It has worked well for me. If I had to wait until I had $1000-2000 sitting around, well, it would never happen. Also, to the OP's original question, are high end ukes worth it for the non-pro player - my original thought was that most players who get paid for playing don't take their high end ukes out for gigging, they take their workhorse ukes that they won't worry as much about something happening to. Of course, this doesn't apply to top performers like Jake, Daniel Ho, or Kalei. It's the uke enthusiast, whatever their level, who will feel that the enjoyment obtained from owning and playing a fine uke is worth it. Which will in turn keep the uke makers making them, as the demand is there.
 
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Eggs_n_Ham said:
I went back and listened to reviews on youtube about these ukuleles and am wondering: are these ukuleles *really any different, really any better* than a well made inexpensive ukulele?
At what point do you really hear the difference between a good ukulele and a really fine ukulele?
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I have an Aklot as well that I bought while I was waiting for my solid mahogany Ohana to arrive (I'll keep the Aklot as a travel/camping/beach uke), and I can comment that while the Aklot can actually be quite a good uke for the price, you can definitely already sense the difference in quality even with a $200 (CAD) uke. The Aklot outperformed or matched the quality of ukes I tried up to about $150 CAD, but there is definitely a threshold that happens much sooner than reaching $500 USD where the uke quality is noticeably better (sound, playability, build quality, fit and finish). My Ohana is an SK-25.

And then I'm sure you'll notice the difference between a $200 and $500, if the latter is a reliable brand like a Pono. I'm very happy with my Ohana so while I can say you may even be much happier with a uke much less than $500, I would also get the best uke you afford if you really enjoy playing and it's not a passing phase.
 
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There's also the option of moving up in steps. I may want to move up from my SK-25 to something like a Pono in a few years, and eventually from there to a K brand possibly. Baby steps :)
 
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Farkvam said:
There's also the option of moving up in steps. I may want to move up from my SK-25 to something like a Pono in a few years, and eventually from there to a K brand possibly. Baby steps :)
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I don't think I ever plan that far ; definitely not with musical instrument purchases. You are impressive!
 
Farkvam said:
There's also the option of moving up in steps. I may want to move up from my SK-25 to something like a Pono in a few years, and eventually from there to a K brand possibly. Baby steps :)
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That’s my way of doing things too.

With the exception of a house purchase I don’t buy anything on credit. That might make me unusual but taking small steps, checking I’m going in the right direction and saving for what I want has always worked for me.
 
I have played a few cheap ukes since I started back in 2011 and I don't feel like I would have appreciated the sound of my Pono had I bought it first. Now it is my prized and preferred uke when I sit down to play. None of the others make me feel as good as this little guy does. Got it used off reverb.
 
IMO, Farkvam and Greenbag both hit it on the nail head. Your experience and ability should (will) move you to the 'next level' $-wise. I know the level I'm at and, after becoming comfortable with doing my own setups, my lust for 'gold' has been kept in check by having very playable and pleasant sounding instruments.

I want to reach the point that Ogg is at (I drool over Ponos and someday will end up with one), but I am a very fidgety person. A cautious and restrained fidget.
 
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Good reasons not to buy an expensive ukulele:
- You don't fancy it
- You can't afford it and dont want to indebt yourself
- You would feel uncomfortable playing it/bringing it to the places you like to play, being concerned to damage it.

Bad reasons not to buy an expensive ukulele:
- You feel like you havent played enough to deserve it or appreciate it properly.

Some people here will not agree with me on this. Some people suggest you don't upgrade for years to come even if you obviously feel like doing it. Some will suggest that you take a loan to buy a K brand ukulele right away to save the in between. I think my attitude is in between here.
 
Is anything that's expensive really worth it? My Honda Fit cost about $20k, but I see cars on the road that cost $200k. Are they better? I doubt it. I have some relatively expensive ukes because I like the appearance and the quality. To each his own.

By the way, what you own has nothing to do with your ability to use it. I'm not a great player, but I have some great ukes.
 
UkingViking said:
You would feel uncomfortable playing it/bringing it to the places you like to play, being concerned to damage it.
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That is a real concern. My group started playing outside together, and I quickly realized that I should bring one of my Magic Flukes, rather than a koa uke. It's generally windy, and there's the music stand, switching books, turning pages, etc. It's too easy to get a uke banged-up. The composite body of the Magic Flukes doesn't care about that.
 
I would easily consider adding a production uke from Rebel/Thailand or Romero Creations/Vietnam, or Pono/Indonesia... new or carefully used.

merlin666 said:
After visiting the three K factories in Hawaii several times for me there is no way to consider an Asian mass produced uke ever again. However, I am just a casual fun player and don't see myself spending more than $1000 on a uke. The solution is to buy a used uke where around $500 you can get mighty fine preloved Hawaiian instruments that are many notches above any new China built uke for that price.
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Because this hasn't been beat to death enough yet I figured I'd add my two cents. Right now the ukes I play most are

1. Blackbird Clara - A very nice instrument ($1500ish new - I got a good deal on a used one)
2. Gold Tone Little Gem Banjo Uke (cheap plastic banjo uke)
4. Flight Travel Uke - the cheapest of the cheap plastic bodied uke (I spent $40ish).

Those ukes speak to me and work for my music. The Clara gives me a ton of expressiveness - great dynamic range - it sound great finger picked, strummed, loud and soft. The Little Gem has a great percussiveness and a huge sound (can you tell I like loud ukes). The flight uke just happened to be the most perfectly set up uke I've played (totally random - I've played others of the same model and none had as good a setup), and I like its brash tone (it doesn't hold up for fingerpicking the way the Clara does). You could buy about 30 of the Flight uke for one Clara, but they both bring me joy (but it was the Clara that made me a better musician - see dynamic range above).

I've sold because they didn't speak to me - a firefly banjo uke, a deering banjo uke (both objectively better instruments than the Little Gem), a Pono solid mahogany tenor and a Gold tone resonator uke. And I probably lost some money on those sales, but if you think of it as an instrument rental, I didn't pay much for the months I had them, and I learned stuff about what I liked.
 
I find that, in general:
More expensive tenors sound better than inexpensive or mid-range ukes. But there is a rapid drop off of increasing better sound after $1500 - $2000.
More expensive tenors are usually easier to play, if comparing well-setup instruments. The neck shape, size, frets and finish just feel better in my hand.
Bling does not improve a uke's sound. The jury's out regarding the figure in the wood. A side sound port may make the sound easier to hear by the player.
Some features, such as radiused fretboards, arm rests, rounded edges, make playing easier or more enjoyable.
Amplified ukes sound pretty much the same through one amp with correct preamp settings.
There are always exceptions to these rules.
Most ukes are fun to play. And sound reasonably good.
 
I'm so glad everyone here in this forum responded to this question and the related question I posted in the "buyer tips" thread. Honesty, forthrightness, experience and willingness to share opinions and recommendations helped me decide to purchase a Koaloha opio acacia concert ukulele. It's a beaut to look at and sound samples are very encouraging and right up my street.
I will admit I was initially obsessing on Anuenue but didn't want to wait months to make a purchase, nor did I want what Kenn2018 mentions: "bling". Glossy is pretty and so is abalone inlay but, I don't need it (albeit anuenue sound great).
I'm looking forward to receiving my new ukulele and many thanks again to everyone here that helped me make that choice!
 
Congrats on the purchase!
I never tried a Koaloha/Opio, but I am also impressed with the sound I hear from those ukes when other people play and record them. Though I like my own Anuenue, I think you made the right call going for the Opio.
Good luck with the Ukulele!
 
Congratulations on making your choice. Apparently you gave it a lot of thought. Sounds like a good one. There are so many Ukes out there at so many price points and so many selections. But that's half the fun of picking put a Uke. You gave it good thought. Enjoy the new Uke. Hope it's in your hands soon and it gives you much pleasure. I wish I had your restraint - I have more Ukes already than I should. Don't regret any choices I have made but mine's a whole another story. You are giving it all good thought and controlled, I bet you will like that new Uke. Congratulations again. Good Job picking your Uke.
 
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I'm a little late to this thread, but I'll make up for it by rambling unnecessarily.

Eggs_n_Ham said:
I really like Duke, Ortega, Snail, Flight and Pono. I went back and listened to reviews on youtube about these ukuleles and am wondering: are these ukuleles *really any different, really any better* than a well made inexpensive ukulele? At what point do you really hear the difference between a good ukulele and a really fine ukulele? If you had a budget limit of under $500 u.s.d, would you consider any of the ukuleles I've named and if not, what do you recommend?
Click to expand...

Of the brands you listed, I'd only consider Pono (Duke for a banjolele).

I struggled with the same thoughts earlier in my time with ukuleles, and I owned instruments between $150 and $3000. My current take on it, based on just my own experiences, is that there is a "sweet spot" where you get the most quality per dollar (or euro!), and after that the returns diminish quickly and you increasingly pay for "bling" and prestige. Where that "sweet spot" is, that is hard to say. For me, with a ukulele, it's probably somewhere between $350 and $1000, but manufacturing processes have improved tremendously in recent years and the quality of instruments coming out of China is markedly better than even just a few years ago (brands like Kai, for example). I do think you can easily find a "forever" ukulele for under $500, absolutely, and it may play and sound better than some substantially more expensive instruments. Especially if you buy it from a place that sets it up properly.

I've noticed that when I had very expensive ukuleles, I didn't enjoy playing them as much as I would have liked. I admired them, I was in awe of them -- but I wasn't comfortable around them. Every ding, every scratch had a price tag attached to it, and that wasn't fun. I'd only sometimes take them out, but usually play my cheaper ukuleles. But the more unique ones, the ones hard or impossible to replace, I felt somewhat intimidated by. I outgrew this after a while, though. After the first few dings and the resulting despair it gets easier. :)

If you have special requirements, or you want a unique instrument tailored to your needs, that will cost extra. For example, I'm currently having a banjo built by a luthier because I wanted certain specs, like stainless steel frets (I don't want to have to send the banjo somewhere for re-fretting every few years), a specific tone ring, a specific nut/neck width, a particular scale length, a custom inlay, etc. Without the special requests, I could have gotten a similar quality banjo for less, and there is a good chance it would probably play the same and sound equally good (sound is very subjective anyway), but it wouldn't have the specs that I wanted. (But plenty of "stock" banjos still cost more than the one that's made for me, because I don't need it covered in inlays, with carvings in the wood, gold plating, etc.)

The point here: Most very expensive ukuleles are custom jobs, made for someone who knew (or guessed) what they wanted. Or they are commissioned and purchased by collectors who are either well off or who enjoy ukuleles so much that they spend a significant portion of their spare money on instruments. Even normal, average people spend (waste) money on all sorts of non-essential things: vacations can cost thousands, eating out can easily be $100+, iPhones that get replaced after a couple years run at $1000, video games cost $60 a piece and may entertain for only a few hours, and so on. At least with a ukulele (or other instruments), you get something "for life" that also retains (or even gains) a good chunk of its value.

I'll add that this forum here can drive UAS badly, and you may get sucked into the belief that you have to have exotic and desirable instruments in order to belong. We talk a lot about instruments here, and not as much about playing them. Don't feel that way, though. People here are very welcoming, and you don't have to have an expensive instrument to be allowed into the club! Very, very few people here are "pro players". Most of us just play for fun, enjoy the community surrounding the uke, and love sharing thoughts and opinions.
 
Mivo said:
I'm a little late to this thread, but I'll make up for it by rambling unnecessarily.



Of the brands you listed, I'd only consider Pono (Duke for a banjolele).

I struggled with the same thoughts earlier in my time with ukuleles, and I owned instruments between $150 and $3000. My current take on it, based on just my own experiences, is that there is a "sweet spot" where you get the most quality per dollar (or euro!), and after that the returns diminish quickly and you increasingly pay for "bling" and prestige. Where that "sweet spot" is, that is hard to say. For me, with a ukulele, it's probably somewhere between $350 and $1000, but manufacturing processes have improved tremendously in recent years and the quality of instruments coming out of China is markedly better than even just a few years ago (brands like Kai, for example). I do think you can easily find a "forever" ukulele for under $500, absolutely, and it may play and sound better than some substantially more expensive instruments. Especially if you buy it from a place that sets it up properly.

I've noticed that when I had very expensive ukuleles, I didn't enjoy playing them as much as I would have liked. I admired them, I was in awe of them -- but I wasn't comfortable around them. Every ding, every scratch had a price tag attached to it, and that wasn't fun. I'd only sometimes take them out, but usually play my cheaper ukuleles. But the more unique ones, the ones hard or impossible to replace, I felt somewhat intimidated by. I outgrew this after a while, though. After the first few dings and the resulting despair it gets easier. :)

If you have special requirements, or you want a unique instrument tailored to your needs, that will cost extra. For example, I'm currently having a banjo built by a luthier because I wanted certain specs, like stainless steel frets (I don't want to have to send the banjo somewhere for re-fretting every few years), a specific tone ring, a specific nut/neck width, a particular scale length, a custom inlay, etc. Without the special requests, I could have gotten a similar quality banjo for less, and there is a good chance it would probably play the same and sound equally good (sound is very subjective anyway), but it wouldn't have the specs that I wanted. (But plenty of "stock" banjos still cost more than the one that's made for me, because I don't need it covered in inlays, with carvings in the wood, gold plating, etc.)

The point here: Most very expensive ukuleles are custom jobs, made for someone who knew (or guessed) what they wanted. Or they are commissioned and purchased by collectors who are either well off or who enjoy ukuleles so much that they spend a significant portion of their spare money on instruments. Even normal, average people spend (waste) money on all sorts of non-essential things: vacations can cost thousands, eating out can easily be $100+, iPhones that get replaced after a couple years run at $1000, video games cost $60 a piece and may entertain for only a few hours, and so on. At least with a ukulele (or other instruments), you get something "for life" that also retains (or even gains) a good chunk of its value.

I'll add that this forum here can drive UAS badly, and you may get sucked into the belief that you have to have exotic and desirable instruments in order to belong. We talk a lot about instruments here, and not as much about playing them. Don't feel that way, though. People here are very welcoming, and you don't have to have an expensive instrument to be allowed into the club! Very, very few people here are "pro players". Most of us just play for fun, enjoy the community surrounding the uke, and love sharing thoughts and opinions.
Click to expand...

Thank you for the great reply! As I read other replies and posts throughout the forum I got some really good insight into buying a mid-priced ukulele. As I looked and researched ukuleles many had appointments that I really didn't want to pay for or were unfortunately for me, out of stock for months. That forced me to look harder and a little deeper and by luck I came upon a Koaloha opio acacia concert ukulele at my price point. I looked for reviews and sound samples, really like what I read and heard, so I made the purchase.

I'm really looking forward to getting it and hearing the difference between my 60$ ukulele and the opio!
 
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