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UNPLANNED DOWNTIME: 12th Oct 23:45

cheap ukeleles

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imaloneimalone Frets: 748
edited March 2014 in Acoustics
As per subject...
A friend's stag party is coming up and for reasons a uke might be a good thing to have along. If it survives (odds are it will) it might be nice to have a usable one. On the other hand a couple of hundred pounds on a high end one would not be a great idea (especially as I'm not terribly set on having a uke) any decent cheap ukes? Have read discouraging reviews for the tanglewood TU6.
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  • ICBMICBM Frets: 69426
    Mahalo ones aren't bad. My kids have a couple of the funny graphic ones which are about £25, and I've got a Koa wood one that was about £90.

    "Take these three items, some WD-40, a vise grip, and a roll of duct tape. Any man worth his salt can fix almost any problem with this stuff alone." - Walt Kowalski

    "Just because I don't care, doesn't mean I don't understand." - Homer Simpson

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  • ToneControlToneControl Frets: 11438
    must be an ebay quest?
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  • imaloneimalone Frets: 748
    ICBM said:
    Mahalo ones aren't bad. My kids have a couple of the funny graphic ones which are about £25, and I've got a Koa wood one that was about £90.
    Thanks!

    ToneControl said:
    must be an ebay quest?
    Point. Though still handy to know which ones to look for.
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  • EricTheWearyEricTheWeary Frets: 15603
    ICBM;181418" said:
    Mahalo ones aren't bad. My kids have a couple of the funny graphic ones which are about £25, and I've got a Koa wood one that was about £90.
    My cheap Maholo uke does not stay in turn at all! Any way to get it to?
    I’ll handle this Violet, you take your three hour break. 
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  • ICBMICBM Frets: 69426
    EricTheWeary said:
    My cheap Maholo uke does not stay in turn at all! Any way to get it to?
    Are the strings still very new?

    What are you tuning it to? (G C E A or A D F# B?)

    "Take these three items, some WD-40, a vise grip, and a roll of duct tape. Any man worth his salt can fix almost any problem with this stuff alone." - Walt Kowalski

    "Just because I don't care, doesn't mean I don't understand." - Homer Simpson

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  • thermionicthermionic Frets: 8909
    I've been thinking about this - what's the ukulele equivalent of the £200 price point of far eastern guitars? You know when they move beyond junk and start to be decent budget instruments (solid top, laminate back and sides things from Sigma, Recording King, The Loar etc).

    I have two nieces who are very interested in music and somebody suggested they'd enjoy a ukelele for Christmas and asked me how much they cost. They cost anything from £20 to £1000+ but when do they cross the line from toy to something you could persevere with?
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  • EricTheWearyEricTheWeary Frets: 15603
    ICBM;181667" said:
    EricTheWeary said:

    My cheap Maholo uke does not stay in turn at all! Any way to get it to?





    Are the strings still very new?

    What are you tuning it to? (G C E A or A D F# B?)
    just the original strings it came with. I don't think they ever held well or played in either. I haven't picked it up for months but I think GCEA.
    Fairly sure new strings would help!
    I’ll handle this Violet, you take your three hour break. 
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  • MistergMisterg Frets: 212
    My son's got one of those Maholo ones - just keep tuning it up, the strings keep stretching for weeks, but they do eventually settle down.
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  • ICBMICBM Frets: 69426
    edited March 2014
    EricTheWeary said:
    just the original strings it came with. I don't think they ever held well or played in either. I haven't picked it up for months but I think GCEA.
    Fairly sure new strings would help!
    Mine all have the original strings on and they're fine.

    They do take a while to stretch in though, like all nylon strings.

    thermionic said:
    I've been thinking about this - what's the ukulele equivalent of the £200 price point of far eastern guitars? You know when they move beyond junk and start to be decent budget instruments (solid top, laminate back and sides things from Sigma, Recording King, The Loar etc).

    I have two nieces who are very interested in music and somebody suggested they'd enjoy a ukelele for Christmas and asked me how much they cost. They cost anything from £20 to £1000+ but when do they cross the line from toy to something you could persevere with?
    I would say my £90 one is a proper instrument and not a toy, probably about what you mean as the equivalent of a £200 guitar.

    "Take these three items, some WD-40, a vise grip, and a roll of duct tape. Any man worth his salt can fix almost any problem with this stuff alone." - Walt Kowalski

    "Just because I don't care, doesn't mean I don't understand." - Homer Simpson

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  • BidleyBidley Frets: 2890
    Lag do ukes at most price-points, if they're as good as their guitars they'll be mustard.
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  • UncleDaveRulesUncleDaveRules Frets: 0
    Hi there, I recently purchased a Makalo Dolphin for around £32 and bought new strings for about £4. After about an evening of hardcore playing (if you can do such a thing on a ukulele!) the strings are pretty stable now. A great sound for such a low price and it even has a little dolphin as the bridge!

    Highly recommend them for the price, the surprisingly good sound and the beautiful array of colours you can buy them in.


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  • DodgeDodge Frets: 1296
    I bought a Bruko for around £70 - all solid woods and hand made in the uke capital of the world.....  Germany.  Looks like Thomann have stopped selling them now though, so no help whatsoever.  ;-)

    It's a good instrument though, well built.
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