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  #1  
Old 06-13-2016, 12:47 PM
Shades of Blue Shades of Blue is offline
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Default Ukulele questions...

Hi all,

I'm heading to Charleston, SC for vacation soon and I'd like to pick up a ukulele there if possible. I want to learn to play it and hope my daughter will want to learn as well.

First of all, does anyone know of any good shops in Charleston or any cool shops where I could get a nice ukulele?

Second, what should I look for and what price range am I looking at in order to pick up a decent one?

Thanks!
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Old 06-13-2016, 12:57 PM
ebick ebick is offline
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One thing you may want to understand has to do with the size. Soprano is the smallest uke. Then concert, then Tenor. You can also get a baritone uke. You might want to experiment with the different sizes to see which one suits you the best. My first uke was a concert, but I found that because of my big fingers, the tenor was a better choice for me. Soprano, Concert, and Tenor are all strung the same, expect that you can get a low G on the bottom instead of a high G as an option. The baritones usually have the low G.
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Old 06-13-2016, 01:06 PM
cu4life7 cu4life7 is offline
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For me, ukes are worthy of buying in the 200+ range. If I were looking, I would try to find a Pono model in acacia or similar wood. Great little instruments. Those run around 300 as a bottom. Ukes made cheaply feel like toys, so I would get my hands on as many soprano and concert size ukes I can find and take home the one that sings to you.
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Old 06-13-2016, 01:10 PM
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Geared tuners are nice. Some ukuleles with friction tuners are an invitation to frustration.

Learning to play can be very simple if what you're after is chords to accompany singing. You can use 4-string version of guitar chords because the intervals between the strings match those of the 4 highest-pitched strings of the guitar. But the strings aren't tuned to the same pitches (despite the intervals between them being the same as a guitars), so the D-chord shape on an ukulele won't be a D chord but a G. So, a guitar player can adapt quickly, especially if the G string is tuned low. If the G is tuned high, you can still use all of the "guitar" shapes, of course, but you get a more distinctly ukulele sound because of the high string (what's called re-entrant tuning).

For someone with no guitar familiarity, it's still easy to learn basic chords. Many will involve fretting only 1 or 2 strings. I've see a room full of kids learn to play chords for pop standards from days of old with only an hour's instruction. In fact, Hawaiian resort hotels often offer these classes and novices really go from zero to accompanying themselves singing in an hour.

On the other hand, you can play very complex stuff on ukulele, so despite being easy to get started on, it's not by any means limited to simple accompaniment. Good fingerpickers can do amazing stuff with the uke.

Have fun. I think ukes are inherently mirth-evoking instruments and should be pursued in that vein.
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Old 06-13-2016, 01:10 PM
MikeBmusic MikeBmusic is offline
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Note that a baritone uke is tuned D to (high) E, just like the top 4 strings on a guitar.
There are many ukes available in the $100-$200 range that would suit a beginner.
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Old 06-13-2016, 01:24 PM
Earl49 Earl49 is offline
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If you are willing to spend around $200-225, I often recommend the Kala Thinline Travel Uke. It is a thin body, but sounds bigger. All of them sound quite good (they now have all four sizes) and are well made and well set up.
http://www.kalaukulele.com/ukulele/thinline-travel

I have fairly large hands, and I strongly prefer the tenor size, although I CAN play any of the four. You can also get free basic instructional materials from my ukulele club's website.
www.boiseukulelegroup.com

And don't be too surprised if this thread gets moved over to "Other Instruments" pretty quickly.
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Old 06-13-2016, 02:28 PM
reckhart reckhart is offline
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Get a good uke. I bought a Pono AT, which is a solid body acacia, after being frustrated with a couple of attempts to go cheap. Great instrument for $350. Spend some time on the Ukulele Underground forum. They have a beginners section that will answer many of your questions. And check out their youtube channel. Here's one of their many play along videos. It's a pretty kickin' version of Jimi Hendrix's Little Wing.

https://youtu.be/ALTKER_NkX0

Ukulele Underground forum: http://forum.ukuleleunderground.com/forum.php

Last edited by reckhart; 06-13-2016 at 02:54 PM.
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Old 06-13-2016, 03:22 PM
Br1ck Br1ck is offline
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Another vote for Pono MT. This is a very nice uke. Kind of the Martin 15 series of ukuleles. They mostly ship direct with a pro setup and 2nd day air shipping. The instrument is something that might meet your needs for a lifetime. I also have two Pono guitars.

The tenor strung high G is my favorite. I played a lot of ukes when shopping. Some of the koa Hawaiian ukes that were $1000+ weren't better.
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Old 06-13-2016, 07:41 PM
MC5C MC5C is offline
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if you are a guitar player then tenor strung low G is seamless to move into, and you will fall in love with it. Its exactly the same as guitar with a capo at the fifth fret. If you are brand new, then any of the soprano to tenor will do you well, and to be honest, to start anything will do. The $100 you spend will live forever as a cottage, beach, camp instrument after you learn a few things from it and move on to a slightly, or significantly better instrument. Uke is one place where anything can be so so much better than nothing. They really are just plain happy things to play.
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Old 06-13-2016, 08:15 PM
lfoo6952 lfoo6952 is offline
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Another thing to look out for is nut width. I think 1 3/8" might be the narrowest width you will find on the market, and it might not be appropriate if you have fat fingers. A 1 7/16" neck is more comfortable, for me anyway.

Good luck in your search.
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Old 06-14-2016, 07:39 AM
Shades of Blue Shades of Blue is offline
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Thanks guys!

Right now I'm looking at a Kala Concert Gloss, a Fender Nohea Tenor, and a Lanakai CKGC concert.
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Old 06-15-2016, 05:23 PM
reckhart reckhart is offline
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Let us know what you end up with. I would also recommend getting the Daily Ukulele books. Everyone in our uke club has them. There's a yellow one and a blue one. Tons of great arrangements for the uke.
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