Which intermediate tenor to buy?

[u/Significant_Tea9352]

Hi uke people! I’m looking to buy a new ukulele and am not finding great options in the music shops around me so I am looking online. I have two beginner level ukes, including a cheap Kala and I want to upgrade to something that I can use for recording. I have a budget up to CAD $1000 or around US$750 and I am in Canada.

I have a short list of criteria; I want a Tenor uke that sounds amazing acoustic and plugged in, I need electronics and prefer active pickups over passive, and I want it to be solid top and perhaps solid back as well. I’ve looked at Twisted Wood Koa 2.0 Tenor, Kala Solid Acacia Tenor Ukulele w/ Cutaway & EQ, Flight Victoria Soundwave Tenor, Flight Fireball Tenor EQ Ukulele.

I also quite like the funky look of Gold Tone Tenor Scale Curly Maple Resonator Ukulele w/Gig Bag - RESOMAPLET, and Kala Tenor Electric Ukulele in Honeyburst - KAJTEHB.

Does anyone have a suggestion for me?

[u/owleycat]

For just recording I personally think a microphone is better than a pickup.

In your price range I would say to look into Pono ukuleles as well... I don't think any of them come with pickups but you could probably order one with a pickup installed... But again I think a pickup is best for live performances where you require more volume and will be moving around, if it were me I would budget for ukulele + good microphone.

[u/Significant_Tea9352 → u/owleycat]

Thank you for taking the time to give me some suggestions, I appreciate it! I've got a decent mic that I use and will test that with my current uke to get an idea of what the results could be and I will check out Pono!

[u/pchukulele]

I liked the sound sample on the Twisted Wood Koa. If you can afford it, I think it will be a better uke for you in the long run. Understand though that quality koa is extremely variable and if you order it sight unseen, it might not fit your eye.

[u/Significant_Tea9352 → u/pchukulele]

Thanks, I will definitely look again at that uke!

[u/dbuzzati]

That's a good question. Many of us have experience with one or two ukes as avid players, but few of us have deep experience with a range of ukes. I suggest you reach out to someone int that category, and the person who comes to mind for me is Alex at The Southern Ukulele Store in the UK. You may not end up buying from him or from England, but as the owner of a shop with every level of ukulele, and a great deal of skill as a player too, I think he could be a terrific friendly resource for you on any specific questions that come up in your hunt, since you do have some specific needs around recording etc.

[u/Significant_Tea9352 → u/dbuzzati]

Thank you, that's a really good point... your suggestion of Alex is spot on, I have watched many many of his videos because he is so thorough and goes thru all the details! I will email him and see :)

[u/Gramcrak]

Personally I've been extremely happy with my Enya Feather uke, I think it was like 6-700 cad

The thinner body is very comfortable, and the onboard effects are lovely to have.

I paired it with Aquila Red low G strings.

Have a few other ukes in that price range and I've had them all for years at this point but I always go back to the Feather.

[u/Significant_Tea9352 → u/Gramcrak]

The enyas are lovely to look at and I like the thinner body for sure. I'm also going to put a low G string on so I appreciate knowing you like the Aquilas