So I was looking and looking for a UT3K : the aNueNue Koa Bird Tenor. I love my spruce/rosewood Moon Birds. I really wanted to try out an all Koa ukulele with the same style and feel as the Moonbirds.
However, the 3K models of the Koa Birds are hard to find. Then I came across a video of the aNueNue LOUT : the Lion Orange Ukulele Tenor sized. It is evidently an artist signature model for the chinese band "Lion."
It looks much like the Moon Bird with the same body style, but instead of the moon theme, it has a Lion on the fretboard. Instead of a moon spruce top over indian rosewood body, it is a cedar top over Koa. It also has a slothead like my Light Bird.
And finally, the top is finished a screamingly bright ORANGE with something in it to make it have little pinpoints of shiny sparkle under light. Looking closely at the finish it seems like theere might be some little chips of something in the paint to cause that sparkle. I couldn't capture it well on video though. It's really hard to convey the intensity of the Orange of this uke. Photos don't seem to capture it. Even the case is orange, but otherwise looks like the blue leather case that comes with the Birds.
I actually really like the in-your-face Orange-nish of it! And it sounds much I was hoping, with the cedar taming the koa a bit. Feel wise, it seems exactly like holding and playing my Moon Biird, except the neck feels a bit lighter due to the slotted headstock. Width of the nut and radius on the neck seem the same as the Moonbirds.
I'm still going to keep an eye out for an all Koa Bird, but I think this one is a keeper! Note: the fretboard IS definitely a bit wider at the nut than the moonbird ( A visual comparison with them face to face made this quite evident). Visually comparing neck depth and profiles, the LOUT looks a litte deeper and a bit more "C chaped" than the "D shape" of the moonbird beck profile.
However, the 3K models of the Koa Birds are hard to find. Then I came across a video of the aNueNue LOUT : the Lion Orange Ukulele Tenor sized. It is evidently an artist signature model for the chinese band "Lion."
It looks much like the Moon Bird with the same body style, but instead of the moon theme, it has a Lion on the fretboard. Instead of a moon spruce top over indian rosewood body, it is a cedar top over Koa. It also has a slothead like my Light Bird.
And finally, the top is finished a screamingly bright ORANGE with something in it to make it have little pinpoints of shiny sparkle under light. Looking closely at the finish it seems like theere might be some little chips of something in the paint to cause that sparkle. I couldn't capture it well on video though. It's really hard to convey the intensity of the Orange of this uke. Photos don't seem to capture it. Even the case is orange, but otherwise looks like the blue leather case that comes with the Birds.
I actually really like the in-your-face Orange-nish of it! And it sounds much I was hoping, with the cedar taming the koa a bit. Feel wise, it seems exactly like holding and playing my Moon Biird, except the neck feels a bit lighter due to the slotted headstock. Width of the nut and radius on the neck seem the same as the Moonbirds.
I'm still going to keep an eye out for an all Koa Bird, but I think this one is a keeper! Note: the fretboard IS definitely a bit wider at the nut than the moonbird ( A visual comparison with them face to face made this quite evident). Visually comparing neck depth and profiles, the LOUT looks a litte deeper and a bit more "C chaped" than the "D shape" of the moonbird beck profile.
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