Low G on a Soprano?.....YES!

Doc_J

Doc_J

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Anyone else got low-g strings on a soprano and likes it?

I put a set of Ko'olau Alohi low-G strings on my Kamaka HF-1 soprano, last night. Wow! I love the sound the uke makes with these strings.

Actually I ordered the wrong set. I wanted Alohi high-G, but hey I thought I might as well try it. After the strings settled in I really liked how they sounded. The wound low G string is perfect- very balanced with the other strings, not too loud like many low-G string sets I have tried on Concert and Tenor sizes. I don't know if it is the soprano size or the Alohi strings or the combination. But, I like these Alohi low-G strings on my soprano better than the low-g Worth CD strings I got on a concert.

I had Aquila high-G on the uke, and they seemed just a bit over-powering on the Kamaka. I'm definitely keep this Alohi set on the uke.

--- addeded
Here are some sound samplers of the same Kamaka soprano with low and high g strings (excuse the crummy playing)

Kamaka HF-1 low g Ko'olau Alohi : http://www.box.net/shared/og7b1b5rs3

Kamaka HF-1 high g Aquila Nylgut:http://www.box.net/shared/cp4s5adn69
 
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Doc_J said:
Anyone else got low-g strings on a soprano and likes it?

I put a set of Ko'olau Alohi low-G strings on my Kamaka HF-1 soprano, last night. Wow! I love the sound the uke makes with these strings.

Actually I ordered the wrong set. I wanted Alohi high-G, but hey I thought I might as well try it. After the strings settled in I really liked how they sounded. The wound low G string is perfect- very balanced with the other strings, not too loud like many low-G string sets I have tried on Concert and Tenor sizes. I don't know if it is the soprano size or the Alohi strings or the combination. But, I like these Alohi low-G strings on my soprano better than the low-g Worth CD strings I got on a concert.

I had Aquila high-G on the uke, and they seemed just a bit over-powering on the Kamaka. I'm definitely keep this Alohi set on the uke.
Click to expand...

Yes, and Waverly Street #149 will soon have a low G also...!!! Ha! Ha! Ha!
 
Don't Know about Koo lau Alohi Low G ..but like the high G....love them Koolau Alohi strings for a while ....I have 4 sets now..wow...they are great!!
 
Could you post a sound sample? I have heard that the Soprano body does not handle it too well and want to judge for myself...and if I want to buy strings I have to pay shipping and what not, so getting around to it is not likely until I need a few sets.
 
I've found the silver wound low g string from Aquila to work well on the sopranos. It's fairly thin and always fits well in the saddle and nut slots. And it's not over powering
 
Heh... I have a low G sopranino! WITH a MiSi pickup!

Yes. I did lose my mind a while ago. Why do you ask?
 
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I have had a Low G string on my Ohana SK-35G many times, and liked it for some songs. Before I traded it off, I kept my SK-70 with a low G and my SK-35G with a high G. It just depends on what you are playing whether you want that sound, or not.
 
Doc_J said:
OK. Here are some sound samplers of the same Kamaka soprano with low and high g strings (excuse the crummy playing):eek:

Kamaka HF-1 high g Aquila Nylgut:http://www.box.net/shared/cp4s5adn69

Kamaka HF-1 low g Ko'olau Alohi : http://www.box.net/shared/og7b1b5rs3
Click to expand...
Thanks for that Doc- guess I will no longer believe what I read- sounds brilliant with a Low G on it doesn't it? A lot mellower- I think my desktop player is getting this treatment- it is a Vita so it could use some mellowing
 
Thanks for the sound samples. Your Kamaka sounds great with both the high and low G strings. Do low G strings cause more wear on the fretboard?
 
I have Fremont Blacks with a Low G on my Martin S-O. I don't play it enough to have much of an opinion yet. I stupidly busted the slot in the nut when I was trying to widen it for the low G (I'm not the most handy guy in the world, to be understated about it!). I did take the S-O to a luthier when I was having some work done on another uke, and he replaced the nut, so at least it doesn't buzz and try to hop off the side of the nut now. But I still haven't played it a lot. I like the IDEA of it though. Otherwise, that uke would NEVER get played. At least it fills a niche now, even if it's a niche that I haven't utilized very much.
 
kulasingz said:
Thanks for the sound samples. Your Kamaka sounds great with both the high and low G strings. Do low G strings cause more wear on the fretboard?
Click to expand...

You're welcome. I think I like these low-g strings better on it, for now. As TCK put it, the uke is a lot mellower with them.

The wound low-G string (silver wire?) could theoretically cause more wear than a polymer string, but I don't think it is an issue with most wood fretboards. A noted exception is the flea/fluke with the molded polycarbonate fretboard. I believe a wound string can wear grooves in the molded polycarbonate frets.
 
Yes, in the Herb Ohta book of the Jumpin Jim Ukulele Masters series the foreword says it was Herb Ohta who first propagated the low G tuning. If you watch his youtube videos, he mostly plays a Martin style 3 with a low G, and it sounds fantastic.

I also put a low G on my HF-1 once. It sounded great, but I would have to rework all my arrangements. It's so much easier if you can use the high g to play melody notes on it.
 
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