Your 8-string uke. Love it? Not a fan?

mikelz777

mikelz777

Well-known member
Joined
Feb 29, 2012
Messages
3,250
Reaction score
3,018
Location
MN metro suburbs
My curiosity has me itching (again) at the idea of an 8-string ukulele. I figure if I'm adding yet another uke to the herd it should be something different. What are your thoughts on yours? Do you love it? Is it being neglected, collecting dust or something you plan on selling? Is it a uke that is good/suitable for every day playing or is it more of a niche type of instrument? Does it lend itself to pretty much all types of songs or more of a thing for certain types of songs or genres of music?

Just looking at what's out there shows me there are multiple choices at reasonable prices. I see that the Oscar Schmidt 8-string is pretty cheap but I have heard so much about their heavy builds and so many unimpressed users that I'm reluctant to fall to the temptation of going with a cheapy just to try one out. If I didn't like it I'd still be out a fair amount of money and if I did like an 8-string I'd probably want a better one.
 
I have an MP 8-string made by Mike Pereira. Spruce top with rosewood body. It's a lovely instrument and sounds sweet with an 8-string set of Living Waters on it. Very mandolin-like sound. I don't play it as much as it deserves. But, for some songs, it's just perfect.

I trying to learn finger-style playing and I am nowhere near able to do that on the 8-string. Though I have had a couple of experienced players make it sing while picking.

For me, it's more of a niche instrument for now.

I've played a Pono 8-string mango and it had a very nice sound. Warm and full. A friend has an 8-string Mahogany Ohana that he plays very well. It's more of a niche instrument for him as well.
 
I have a ortega hydra double neck. Top is 8 strings and the bottom is 4 strings. I don't play it as often as I thought. It can be for sell.
 
I have a Kala KA-8 eight string. It has a nice sound, some what mellow.

I can finger pick or strum - usually I do a combination. It is somewhat more difficult to play as it requires TWICE the finger pressure to depress eight strings. I’d say it was a mid range, Lower midrange price - I recall $250 some 8 years ago.

Fun addition to round out your collection. Sounds fine, plays different and generally affordable.
 
I got a Kala 8-String Baritone last year on a whim. At first I liked the 8 strings, but after awhile I decided the unison paired strings weren't working for me. So then I went down to a 6-string by keeping the octave pairs. That lasted for awhile, but recently I took it down to 4 strings and I'm enjoying it a lot that way (I don't have any other Baritones). I guess my takeaway would be that it's versatile.

I didn't really like fingerpicking the paired strings. I didn't feel like it took more finger pressure. My perception was two strings would vibrate into each other resulting in a buzz if not fretted just right. I don't know if it was me, the uke, or the setup. Maybe if the string pairs had slightly more spacing between them the story would be different.
 
Falcan said:
I got a Kala 8-String Baritone last year on a whim. At first I liked the 8 strings, but after awhile I decided the unison paired strings weren't working for me. So then I went down to a 6-string by keeping the octave pairs. That lasted for awhile, but recently I took it down to 4 strings and I'm enjoying it a lot that way (I don't have any other Baritones). I guess my takeaway would be that it's versatile.

I didn't really like fingerpicking the paired strings. I didn't feel like it took more finger pressure. My perception was two strings would vibrate into each other resulting in a buzz if not fretted just right. I don't know if it was me, the uke, or the setup. Maybe if the string pairs had slightly more spacing between them the story would be different.
Click to expand...

Falcan, your comment reminded me. I agree about the close strings hitting each other. Because of the fretting. But even more so for me, the way I strummed it. If I attacked the strings from too much of an angle, or unevenly, they would hit each other and buzz regardless of fretting. It did require some adjustment to my strum. But, perhaps I have a lazy strum? :confused:
 
Hello,

I once had an 8-string Baton Rouge tenor which I guess is the cheaper 8-stringer you can get. The idea was to tweak it for renaissance guitar tuning, i-e single first string, second and third in unisson and an octave (low and high g) on the fourth string. The instrument in itself was very well crafted and easy to play (with special alliance kf strings) but rather quiet and somehow a bit lifeless because of the laminate top. I eventually sold it and purchased a real renaissance guitar, which is more of a baritone scale-wise. There is a compendium of about 15 books that survived devoted to renaissance guitar. It's a wonderful repertoire, full of intricate polyphony (yes, all that on 4 courses !) that deserves a wider recognition. And an 8 stringer is a good tool to get started, even if it can't compare with the lute-like sound of a real renaissance guitar, with its flush fingerboard and gut frets tied around the neck.
Hope this helps.
Regards
 
I had a Barron River 8 that was spectacular but I sold it to a great friend and regretted it ever since so I'm having another one build for me now by Allen McFarlen (Barron River). I am in the process of rationalising my collection to include instruments with a unique sonic signature.

My current signature below shows what I will be ending up with.
 
Yeah, the Ohana 8 string that I bought with a friend is definitely a niche instrument for us. I am glad I decided to get it as a joint project with my uke pal because, as it turns out, both of us only play the 8 stringer now and then. (We live next door to each other so it is easy to grab the uke if the other has it.)
I do find the extra strings makes fretting harder and buzzing more likely especially when playing barre chords. It does have a lovely rich sound and I do find I strum it more than pick.
Kind of fun to have in the herd but definitely not a 'must have' uke.
 
As a player of 12 string guitar in a previous life, I eventually got hold of an 8 string ukulele, Interesting and certainly a fuller sound, but somehow it was neither fish nor fowl to me. So I passed it on to an enthusiastic friend. I suppose if I wanted the 'full sound' my brain was conditioned to 12 string guitar
(which I no longer play at all) but as a ukulele addict, the real uke sound was lost on an 8 string (IMO). So back to 'real' ukes, the four string variety!
 
A large balance of "fun money" in my PayPal account is feeding my UAS and she's a powerful temptress. In the past I said I wouldn't ever fall to her call but I have and she's calling again. The devil on my left shoulder is whispering, "Buy! Buy!" I've listened to that whisper several times. I ended up selling 3 of those and kept 3. The angel on my right shoulder is whispering, "Slow down! Think!" In this particular case, I think that voice is going to prevail.

Multiple people have said that an 8-string is more or less a niche instrument for them and I think in the back of my mind that it would be the same for me. I'd love to play one and I think it would be a lot of fun but after having listened to a bunch of YouTube sound samples I don't see an
8-string as a daily player for me. I think it would end up as something that I would would reach for every now and then or for certain particular songs. I've been down this road before with the idea of getting a banjo uke and a resonator. I ended up concluding that they each had a distinct sound that departed enough from sound of a "regular" uke that those too would have been niche instruments for me.

I might have ruled out an 8-string but that hasn't silenced the call of UAS. Now I've been looking into a 5 or 6 strings or maybe even a vita. I'm a concert guy so some of those choices may not even be a possibility.....
 
I think with ukuleles now, it would be better to sit on your hands for a while. We're about to go into a recession. prices have dropped already.
 
mikelz777 said:
I've been down this road before with the idea of getting a banjo uke and a resonator....or maybe even a vita
Click to expand...

Everyone needs an 8-string, a banjo uke, a resonator, and a Vita Uke. While you're at it, look for a camp uke, a cigar box uke, a sopranino, and a sopranissimo. :D
 
chris667 said:
I think with ukuleles now, it would be better to sit on your hands for a while. We're about to go into a recession. prices have dropped already.
Click to expand...

Is this true? (I'd like to think so!) In all my years browsing ukes online I don't recall ever seeing price drops. For the most part vendors selling the same uke model would ask the same price. If there was a difference, it was usually pretty negligible. Occasionally a vendor might offer up a sale but that was pretty rare.
 
I have a Kamaka HF-38 and love it. Sounds great and is very playable. I use it a lot when accompanying steel guitarists, it fills out the mid range nicely. If there are other ukulele or guitars it can be a lot of competition for that range so I’m less likely to use it in those situations. I also tend to stay a little lower on the fretboard than with a 4 string. I wouldn’t have an 8 string as my only instrument but I’d have it as #3 (after high g and low G 4 strings). Definitely try the one your considering first though, quality really makes a difference in terms of playability.

Here’s a video of Corey fujimoto playing one: https://vimeo.com/187300615
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

T
Accidentally tuned low G string an octave higher - did I damage my new uke?
Replies
4
Views
204
merlin666
M
Freya Vie
Setup Hurts to Play My 5-string Uke – Help Me Please
Replies
10
Views
452
Freya Vie
Freya Vie
W
How to string uke bridge through sound board?
Replies
17
Views
687
spongeuke
spongeuke
cheddar
Newbie buying advice - Kala KA-15C concert uke or Yamaha GL-1 6-string guitalele?
Replies
12
Views
689
kissing
kissing
D
Best Strings & Low G string for Carmel Tenor CT103???? Don't like Worth Browns on THIS uke
Replies
10
Views
723
Thommy_B
Thommy_B
Top Bottom