Pono Parlor Guitar Owners...

dtrimar15 · #1 12-23-2013, 09:28 AM

Wondering if you guys can tell me a little more about this brand. Are you happy with your purchase, etc...

Looking for info about all of the guitars, but specifically the following:
Pono O-10
Pono O-20
Pono OP-10
Pono OP-20

Would love any insight any of you have about those in particular. I know they're all pretty similar guitars which is making it pretty difficult to decide between them.

Thanks!
-Dan

DrRhythm · #2 12-23-2013, 09:34 AM

Paulzoom's your man on Pono Parlours - might be worth a PM

acousticjazz · #3 12-23-2013, 12:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dtrimar15

Wondering if you guys can tell me a little more about this brand. Are you happy with your purchase, etc...

Looking for info about all of the guitars, but specifically the following:
Pono O-10
Pono O-20
Pono OP-10
Pono OP-20

Would love any insight any of you have about those in particular. I know they're all pretty similar guitars which is making it pretty difficult to decide between them.

Thanks!
-Dan

Hey Dan~ I've owned a OP-10DC for about six months now so maybe I can help a little. That model is cedar (BC Canada) over acacia (from Indonesia) with a cutaway and nitro finish. It has a short scale 24.75, 1 3/4 nut, and the neck is a comfortable & fast. For a parlor, she has quite a bit of volume, can take light to medium strumming without breaking up, but really excels in fingerstyle work (It my "classical" steel string). In the past six months the bass has become more defined and present. Pono builds a great guitar in general and keeps the same standards as Ko'olau (John's son is quality control) but they are hand built in Indonesia. For the money, they are on par with Eastman acoustics, with the same attention to detail both inside and outside the box, the bracing, finish, woods, etc. I'm really enjoying mine, so much so that I ordered another, a OOOO-20DC (cedar/mahogany), which I received about two weeks ago and I'm just as impressed with in tone and construction. I believe if Ko'olau/Pono was interested in making these available at mom & pop shops they would have a lot of success, I know their ukuleles get a lot of respect already. John also gives you a couple days to decide if you like it due to not being able to play it before buying, if you don't you just have to ship it back and your out just a small amount of change.

The models you listed I believe are satin finishes and non-cutaway. Both of mine are nitro finish, so you may have to wait for Paulzoom to chime in on that finish. And when the model does not have the "P" attached its all acacia or mahogany. I'll go ahead and attach some photos here for some eye candy. Here is the current link to the spec sheet, the website is down for building, so I'll add the link for Pono on Ko'olau's website:

http://koolauukulele.com/wp-content/...ail-Direct.pdf

http://koolauukulele.com/pono-guitars-2013-models/

I'm truly love my Pono's... maybe a spruce top next year....

They are great instruments on a budget, and are on par in build quality & tone with any of the big name brands and probably more hand made too. Hope this helps!

dtrimar15 · #4 12-23-2013, 12:52 PM

Super helpful, Jazz. Glad to hear for sure that the company is making quality instruments.

Basically it seems like the difference between the O-10/20 and the OP-10/20 is that the O-10/20 have solid headstock and all Acacia/Mahogany and no binding as opposed to the OP-10/20 which are Acacia/Mahogany back and sides and Cedar/Spruce top with slotted headstock and Koa Binding.

I'm having a hard time weighing wether it's worth the extra $150 to have slotted headstock, binding, and a cedar or spruce top. I'm really not sure if these upgrades are all just superficial, though I do like the slotted headstock a lot. Also at this point it seems from the videos that the O-10 all Acacia model might sound best of all the models I'm considering but also can't really make much of a judgement from a youtube video.

Ps: Those are some beautiful guitars you've got there.

JohnW63 · #5 12-23-2013, 02:06 PM

The cedar will be a different tone than spruce. Probably better for finger style stuff and moderate strumming. I call it moodier than spruce. Spruce will be brighter and hold up to harder strumming without losing note clarity.

I like cedar over mahogany and would like to try cedar over rosewood. Many classical guitars have that combination.

dtrimar15 · #6 12-23-2013, 02:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JohnW63

The cedar will be a different tone than spruce. Probably better for finger style stuff and moderate strumming. I call it moodier than spruce. Spruce will be brighter and hold up to harder strumming without losing note clarity.

I like cedar over mahogany and would like to try cedar over rosewood. Many classical guitars have that combination.

Thanks so much, John. Sounds like I would be best suited to get Spruce over cedar as I expect to be doing both finger style and strumming.

Do you have any input on what all Acacia might sound like vs Spruce top with Acacia back and sides or what all Mahogany might sound like vs Spruce top with Mahogany back and sides?

Also, do you have any input on if there will be any difference in sound for a solid vs slotted headstock? I've heard some say the different angle affects tone a little bit. Also, is there any reason to have bindings other than for looks? If I were to badly ding up the corners of the guitar would I actually be able to replace the bindings?

Thanks so much everybody!

dtrimar15 · #7 12-23-2013, 07:29 PM

Bumping this up to the front page

JohnW63 · #8 12-23-2013, 07:43 PM

I really don't know much about Acacia as a tone wood.

An ALL mahogany guitar has a fair amount of "punch" and is often used in blues, perhaps more fundamental sound and less overtones but.... I played an all mahogany Taylor and it was still nice and warm without losing the nice overtones, so it may have as much to do with how it is BUILT more than what it's made of.

Rosewood99 · #9 12-23-2013, 11:01 PM

Can't say enough about my Pono. Solid acacia, does well strumming and finger style. Even does ok flat picking. John the owner has great customer service as well.

I actually brought my Pono with me on my flight up north for Christmas. I'm using DR rare mediums.

dtrimar15 · #10 12-23-2013, 11:04 PM

Can you speak at all to the difference in the O vs OP lines at all?

Rosewood99 · #11 12-24-2013, 08:47 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dtrimar15

Can you speak at all to the difference in the O vs OP lines at all?

OP is not a line, it is one specific model:
OP-10DC Parlor 13 1/2″ body width. Solid Acacia back and sides. Solid Cedar top. Cutaway body. Abalone rosette, Koa binding. Ebony fingerboard and bridge.
Slotted Headstock. 24 3/4″ scale. GlossFinish.

http://koolauukulele.com/pono-guitars-2013-models

dtrimar15 · #12 12-25-2013, 10:59 AM

Right, so it looks like they offer an O-10 and O-20 which are either all Acacia and Mahogany with no binding and solid headstock and then the OP-10 and OP-20 which are Acacia back and sides or Mahogany back and sides and then Cedar or Spruce top with bindings around the side and slotted headstock.

What I'm wondering I guess is if that's really an upgrade or not. From the videos it sounds to me like the O-10 all Acacia model is the nicest sounding one (although it's really hard to tell).

Also wondering since I've never dealt with the company if they make the guitars to order? Would it be possible to order for instance the all Acacia model with a slotted headstock?

Thanks, again, all for helping me answer all of these questions!
-Dan

acousticjazz · #13 12-25-2013, 11:57 AM

Hey Dan~ I think the binding is mostly cosmetic, it is there if you would like it to be. You should drop John an email, he's great to work with and might be able to do that for you (slotted headstock). Good luck!

dtrimar15 · #14 12-26-2013, 01:39 PM

So I emailed John and he says they can do the OP-10 in all Acacia rather than Acacia back and sides and Cedar top. Now, before I pull the trigger on that I'm just curious to know if it will be a better guitar with a Cedar top?

Rosewood99 · #15 12-26-2013, 02:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dtrimar15

So I emailed John and he says they can do the OP-10 in all Acacia rather than Acacia back and sides and Cedar top. Now, before I pull the trigger on that I'm just curious to know if it will be a better guitar with a Cedar top?

Neither is better. It depend on your playing style. The Cedar top is often preferred for finger style. The Acacia top is a bit brighter and is great for strumming. Having said that both can do finger style and strumming just fine. I'm pretty happy with my OP-10. I changed the strings to some DR Rare mediums which tamed the brightness a bit but also gave it a touch more punch.

This is my model: