New Uke Day (NUD) NUD - Martin 0 Tenor Sinker Mahogany

[Tom51251]

My initial impression of Martin’s 0 Tenor Sinker Mahogany Ukulele

• Solid Sinker Mahogany
• Neck - looks like Mahogany but not sure - Martin doesn’t say
• Strings - Martin Premium Ukulele strings -

Martin knocked a home run with the 0 Tenor Sinker Mahogany ukulele. It arrived today and I’ve already spent over an hour playing it. Instead of giving you the specs you can get those on Martin’s website.

After opening the box, my first impression was WOW! After the first strum I knew this one was a home run and will join my Kamaka HF-3. I’m not going to compare the two ukuleles since they are made of different woods and are only different in that one is a sweet orange and the other a Georgia Peach.

The tuners are Graph Tech tuners. I have those on a Loprinzi and have never had a problem with them. Some would disagree, but I think they are great tuning machines. I’ve had good experience with them over the last several years.

The “0” came strung with Martin Premium Strings. I was not sure about the stock strings if I would like them or not. Typically, I prefer carbon strings. The verdict is still out as to whether or not I replace them with Fluorocarbon strings. They sure sound good, plus, they feel great to the touch.

The “O” came setup and ready to play! I am really impressed with every individual note on each string. The intonation is spot on all the way up the fretboard. Every note rings clear - no dead spots! I don’t know if that is due to the strings or not. Also, I’ve never played a ukulele that has the balance when playing chords as this ukulele.

The only negative I have is the gig bag. This ukulele deserves a better case.

Tom

 

[M3Ukulele]

Do you have any pictures? I’m familiar with the StreetMaster but didn’t know about the “0”

its Always nice getting a new ukulele and especially if your really happy with it. Congratulations!

 

[Tom51251]

The pictures are not the best. A couple of things I forgot to mention. First, the ukulele is very light. Its voice is very resonant with lots of sustain. The tone is very similar to the Collings T1 that I passed along to my daughter.

 

[Tom51251]

Do you have any pictures? I’m familiar with the StreetMaster but didn’t know about the “0”

its Always nice getting a new ukulele and especially if your really happy with it. Congratulations!

I did

Do you have any pictures? I’m familiar with the StreetMaster but didn’t know about the “0”

its Always nice getting a new ukulele and especially if your really happy with it. Congratulations!

M3 I have played the Street Tk1. They have a great sound easy to play, and great intonation. There doesn’t seem to be a lot of love on the forum for contemporary Martins in general and especially for the Mexican made ukuleles. I really think the Mexican made ukulele are built and sound as good as good, as any ukulele in its price range (in my opinion better than most).

The O Tenor Hog is probably the best tenor I’ve ever owned and played. It is very similar in sound and build as my Collings UT1 mahogany, but tone is much sweeter.

 

[Nickie]

Congrats. Nothing like a Martin.

 

[EarthSea]

I picked my 0 Tenor Sinker up the other day and it is all they said it would be plus some, this uke will be a collectable for sure…. Now Martin have discontinued making this model in favour of the soprano, I suspect stock around the world will dry up fast. Oddly it is almost identical in size and shape as my T1k but the sound is in a completely different league..

 

[Tom51251]

I picked my 0 Tenor Sinker up the other day and it is all they said it would be plus some, this uke will be a collectable for sure…. Now Martin have discontinued making this model in favour of the soprano, I suspect stock around the world will dry up fast. Oddly it is almost identical in size and shape as my T1k but the sound is in a completely different

I picked my 0 Tenor Sinker up the other day and it is all they said it would be plus some, this uke will be a collectable for sure…. Now Martin have discontinued making this model in favour of the soprano, I suspect stock around the world will dry up fast. Oddly it is almost identical in size and shape as my T1k but the sound is in a completely different league.

Here is an interesting interview with Vince Gill discussing the stash of Sinker Mahogany that our ukuleles were made from - https://guitars.com/vince-gill-talks-about-martin-sinker-mahogany-guitars-gruhn-guitars / You are right the SM O Tenor has been discontinued. You have a keeper! Don’t sell it.

Tom

 

[EarthSea]

Here is an interesting interview with Vince Gill discussing the stash of Sinker Mahogany that our ukuleles were made from - https://guitars.com/vince-gill-talks-about-martin-sinker-mahogany-guitars-gruhn-guitars / You are right the SM O Tenor has been discontinued. You have a keeper! Don’t sell it.

Tom

Hey Tom, thanks for the link.
On another issue….. I’d be interested to know if you have changed any action on your 0 Tenor Sinker? I’m thinking that the nut is good but the saddle could come down a little bit. I did this on my T1k and it made a huge difference to the ease of playing, the strings were much lighter to press on the fret board. I’m thinking I’ll swap the saddles and check first, if I do I’ll post and let you know the result. The sinker uke sounds perfect but the strings after a little heavy to press on the frets as you move up the fret board.
Also, have you tried the Aquila Red strings on the sinker?
Cheers.

 

[Tom51251]

Hey Tom, thanks for the link.
On another issue….. I’d be interested to know if you have changed any action on your 0 Tenor Sinker? I’m thinking that the nut is good but the saddle could come down a little bit. I did this on my T1k and it made a huge difference to the ease of playing, the strings were much lighter to press on the fret board. I’m thinking I’ll swap the saddles and check first, if I do I’ll post and let you know the result. The sinker uke sounds perfect but the strings after a little heavy to press on the frets as you move up the fret board.
Also, have you tried the Aquila Red strings on the sinker?
Cheers.

Cheers to you, too!

I found no need to make any change to the action of my O Sinker. I liked it as is and have kept it as is, including the premium Martin Strings that came on it. Before I ordered it, sight unseen, I did ask the owner of the store to have his tech check the action, and make any adjustments he felt necessary. It is important to know that I have full confidence and trust in the owner and his guitar tech. Honestly, I don’t know if adjustments were made or not. I haven’t asked. The ukulele felt right to me right out of the box, and still does after two months of ownership, and daily play time. Also, I think that I must point out that I have purchased and trading numerous high end Martin, Taylor, and Santa Cruz guitars with this dealership over the last 25 years. I knew the dealer I was dealing with - a top notch dealer that put service and good business ethic over profits.

The point is, if you know what you’re doing, and it seems that you do, don’t be afraid to make adjustment, if not, hav a skilled guitar tech or luthier who knows how to make good setups. If you want me to, I will call the tech next week and ask if he made any adjustments to the ukulele before sending it out, and if so, what? Enjoy!

Tom

 

[EarthSea]

Thanks for the tips and offer to chat with your dealer Tom but it’s all good, I’ll try the saddle from the T1k and see if I can lower the strings without losing sound quality, I’m very reluctant to modify the black saddle on the sinker if I don’t need to.
The reason I asked about the Aquila Reds is that I use them on my T1k as I find them not so bright yet still a light string to play. All very subjective i know,

 

[Tom51251]

Thanks for the tips and offer to chat with your dealer Tom but it’s all good, I’ll try the saddle from the T1k and see if I can lower the strings without losing sound quality, I’m very reluctant to modify the black saddle on the sinker if I don’t need to.
The reason I asked about the Aquila Reds is that I use them on my T1k as I find them not so bright yet still a light string to play. All very subjective i know,

I like the Martin Premium strings that came on it. Let me know how you like the Reds.

Tom

 

[badhabits]

Nice...yes, those Martin gig bag are pretty sad, don't even open all the way.. the grey is distinctive tho

 

[Tom51251]

Nice...yes, those Martin gig bag are pretty sad, don't even open all the way.. the grey is distinctive tho

Those bags aren’t just pretty sad, they’re sad, bad, and ugly.

 

[EarthSea]

Hi Tom, I have had a play around with swapping the saddle on the sinker for the lower saddle from my T1k and found no real difference in sound quality so decided to keep the sinker saddle set as it was when I bought it.
I would like to say though, I am sold on the Aquila Reds on the Sinker, the sound quality is definitely much better in my view and well worth trying. It sounds more pure somehow. I have an Aquila (non wire) single low G I want to try sometime, but thats another story.
Cheers

 

[Tom51251]

Hi Tom, I have had a play around with swapping the saddle on the sinker for the lower saddle from my T1k and found no real difference in sound quality so decided to keep the sinker saddle set as it was when I bought it.
I would like to say though, I am sold on the Aquila Reds on the Sinker, the sound quality is definitely much better in my view and well worth trying. It sounds more pure somehow. I have an Aquila (non wire) single low G I want to try sometime, but thats another story.
Cheers

Hi Earth Sea, do you still have the Reds on your Sinker? I kept the Martin Premiums on my Sinker and now ready to try a different string set, though I really like the Premiums. I plan to experiment with Aquila Sugar, Reds, and Martin FC. I have Sugars with Low G Red on my Kamaka concert and really enjoy the sound and action. I don’t plan to use Low G on Sinker.

 

[EarthSea]

Hi Tom, I have settled for Aquila Reds High G on my Martin T1K as I found the Martin Premiums just a bit too bright on this uke.

On the Martin Sinker I have settled for the Martin Premiums with an unwound Aquila Red low G, I realise you don't want a Low G set but I find that as the Sinker is generally darker in tone the brighter Martin Premium strings combined with the bass of the Aquila Low G sounds, to me, just amazing.... I had to play around with the groove on the nut for the Low G as the unwound Low G Aquila Red strings tend to break really easily and I'm not a fan of wound strings on ukuleles period but I have it sorted now and the strings aren't breaking anymore.

I wrote to Martin asking them what Low G they would recommend to use with their Premium strings and they replied saying "They only make ukuleles for High G strings and wouldn't recommend a Low G but for me to experiment". I find this rather odd as the famous IZ played mostly with Low G strings that Martin apparently custom made for him, seeing they make a 1T IZ ukulele in his honour one would think they would make a set of strings to match. I find it all a bit bizarre really.

Hope this helps,

 

[Tom51251]

Yes, it helps a lot. Thank You,

 

[EarthSea]

It's my opinion that all ukuleles come with either a bright tone or deep tone with every tone in between depending on design and materials, choosing a set of strings that is either bright or deep in tone allows the musician to fine tune the sound they most prefer, hence the brighter strings on my Sinker and slightly heavier strings on my T1K.
One can dampen the brightness of a bright sounding uke using heavier strings or brighten the sound of a deeper sounding uke using lighter strings. I have short fingernails picking with my finger tips, this also makes a considerable difference to the sound.
The ukulele is surely not a simple instrument, just a whole lot of fun.