Thoughts on Mele ukes

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mandrew

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What are the general thoughts on Mele versus Mainland or Ohana?
 
Hmmmm, kind of depends on which Mele vs which Mainland vs which Ohana. I am a huge fan of the "value/price" index. I have a Mele solid koa tenor that I was worried about. It "opened up" rather suddenly, now sounds sweet and loud. My son has a Mainland long neck concert pineapple I think is amazing, and I know there are some Ohanas out there that are incredible values for the money. Not sure I'd pay full retail for a Mele though. Just got a used Mele solid mahogany soprano for $125. Action at nut too low, needs 1/2mm shim or new nut. Glad I didn't buy it new, but it's loud resonates well, and with Hilo strings, has that real "Hawaiian" sound.
 
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The Meles I have seen and heard have been very nice instruments with a great sound
 
I had the chance to play a Koa Mele tenor and I thought it was fantastic....it is on my "to buy" list!!
 
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I love mainland as much as i love Mele. If I had the money to buy a mele or mainland, I'd go with Mele unless I wanted to spend the extra money on something else. But then again, it would depend on the wood combo. I have owned 3 mainlands (I liked all but only the current one wowed me) and still own one (red cedar/rosewood). I have owned 6 or so Meles (koa/mahog, all mahog, all koa, concert and tenors 4 and 6 strings) and currently only own one (redwood/koa). I let the other Meles go in trades that I ended up regretting.

The mainlands and ohanas are factory ukes while the mele is handmade. This is another reason why I prefer Mele. But if you ever get a chance to meet HoosierHiver then you become a mainland fan as well.

So my advice is to get one Mele and one mainland:) But if I had to choose it would be a Mele b/c of the handmade factor and Cheryl taught me my first uke chords.
 
Just back from Maui and bought a Mele Soprano. The sound is wonderful! Handmade and absolutely beautiful. Love it. Great quality for the price.
 
PhilUSAFRet said:
Hmmmm, kind of depends on which Mele vs which Mainland vs which Ohana. I am a huge fan of the "value/price" index. I have a Mele solid koa tenor that I was worried about. It "opened up" rather suddenly, now sounds sweet and loud. My son has a Mainland long neck concert pineapple I think is amazing, and I know there are some Ohanas out there that are incredible values for the money. Not sure I'd pay full retail for a Mele though. Just got a used Mele solid mahogany soprano for $125. Action at nut too low, needs 1/2mm shim or new nut. Glad I didn't buy it new, but it's loud resonates well, and with Hilo strings, has that real "Hawaiian" sound.
Click to expand...

Hey Phil, if you dont mind me asking what do you mean 'open up'? I always hear that solid wood opens up to your personal taste..can I get more depth into this? PleasE!
 
NYG010 said:
Hey Phil, if you dont mind me asking what do you mean 'open up'? I always hear that solid wood opens up to your personal taste..can I get more depth into this? PleasE!
Click to expand...

I got the Mele Koa tenor several years ago, but I didn't play it much. Sound was "dull", not a lot of resonance, not loud. Was exploring which new strings I was going to try. I still had the original Hilo strings. Asked for advice from Mele, UU, someone suggested I lower the tuning a half-step, or a step. I did, sounded loud, sweet and wonderful. Then my son came over, returned it to regular C tuning, the same tuning and same strings I had when it was "dead" sounding, and it was still loud, sweet and resonant. I can't explain it. If one agrees with ukes opening up, I never heard of one this "dead" doing so this quickly. Very odd. I may never know. Lowering the tuning a step, then returning it to normal a month or so later is all I did. I now love it very much.
 
Thanks for the links. That tenor slim line just got into my head along with the 6 string.

I wonder if a UU'er got that Mele mahogany concert on ebay 2 days ago for just under a hundred bucks?
 
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