Uke hunt

[ODH]

Thinking of getting a uke - but which one should I get?  Or a mandolin, or what?

Had my eye on that Mandocaster for a while.

[Flash Harry]

Fnarr fnarr.

[Hook]

I have the Epiphone Les Paul  concert uke

runs about $130 and in my opinion is a pretty nice little uke. Good pick up & great with effects. I also have a Lanikai Concert ulk (runs $100 new) & I got my kid a Kala soprano uke ($50) both nice quality ukes. My first uke was a Rouge Baritone uke that was like $30 and quite nice, but I played into the ground (or onto my wall). My mandolin is also a Rouge that runs for like $50-$60 and is surprisingly quite nice.
If you really want a super sweet uke & make me quite jealous you could get this one


Good luck brother!

[Greeny]

My Stagg electro mandolin was only £75 a few years ago. It doesn't get used that much but has appeared on quite a few recordings of mine. It's much harder to play than than a uke though - the fret board is TINY!

I have a Les-Paul looking uke (similar to Hook's one above). Not the cheapest uke - I think it was about £60 or something. You can get a uke for about £30-£35 though, and it would be fine - and fun.

I would go for a uke. Portable and fun, and with a great sound. Mandolins are more specialist.

[Hilary]

You should think about what size you want and whether you just want to mess about with it or you want it to hold it's tuning - a lot of the really cheap ones don't.

I went for a tenor uke as I thought it would be easier to play live as it's a bit bigger and one that would hold it's tuning travelling and under heat extremes (cold weather and hot stages). It's very lovely and sounds gorgeous but a tad expensive (I've got a Kala).

You should also think about whether you want an electro acoustic one or not and how, if you want it for recording, you are planning to record it.

[Oldrottenhead]

i got my uke from argos for under £20 best money i ever spent. http://www.argos.co.uk/static/Product/partNumber/5401068.htm

tho after getting a go on geir's mando i fancy one of them too.

[ODH]

Thanks for all the advice.  I think I'll stick with a uke for moment after Tim's comments.

And that Argos one looks great for the money.

[Oldrottenhead]

 the first couple of days i had it, it was a dog to keep in tune, but once the strings settled down it i have had no problems keeping it in tune. knowing what some uke's can be like, i may just have been lucky. but i love my uke.

[64Guitars]

I don't have any recent experience with ukuleles but I suffered with guitar tuning problems for years until I discovered that the strings were sticking in the nut. This was easily solved with some Big Bends Nut Sauce.

I think many of the low-end ukuleles have a cheap plastic nut. It seems to me that this would cause lots of binding problems with the nylon strings. And I'm not sure if Big Bends Nut Sauce would work because it might harm the nylon strings or the plastic nut. You could write to them and ask. But I think it's best to choose a ukulele that doesn't have a cheap plastic nut. I think better ukes will have a nut made of bone, hardwood, or some high-tech material such as is used in graphtech nuts.

If possible, visit a shop that specializes in ukuleles. They'll be able to guide you better than a typical music store that sells mostly guitars, drums and keyboards. Here are a few in England:

Southern Ukulele Store, Southbourne, Bournemouth: http://www.southernukulelestore.co.uk/

Duke of Uke, London: http://www.dukeofuke.co.uk/

The Uke Store, Batley, West Yorkshire: http://www.theukestore.co.uk/

[cuthbert]

Friction tuners, which are standard on most ukuleles can also cause issues with tuning as they tend to lose their grip occasionally. To avoid that, you could look for a uke with geared tuners - but it's never been a serious enough issue to solve with new hardware, as far as my experience has gone.

If you want a vintage vibe, you may be able to pick up a cheap older uke on eBay. Good quality as well as inexpensive may be difficult to find, though.