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Buying the Ukelele as a gift
analtisanaltofcourse
Registered User new member
Registered User new member
Just as the title says, I want to buy a Ukelele as a Christmas gift, but have absolutely no idea where to start. Price? Size? Etc. This would be for an adult, and since it'll be a christmas present, I'd like it to be nice while staying under 200.
Can anyone point me in the right direction?
Can anyone point me in the right direction?
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Nice beginner ukes are the Lanikai LU21 and the Kala Ka-S, both well under $200.
Anything that isn't painted plywood will very probably sound good, so go for something that looks pretty.
By far the biggest impact on how a ukulele sounds, stays in tune and intonates comes from the strings. A cheap uke with nice strings will sound and play better than an expensive one with the fishing line they sometimes come with. A set of something like Aquila's are really cheap, so get a nice set and fit them!
i have a conert size uke since it is a touch bigger with a slighter different sound, mine is a Kala C-EM which I like a lot.
As far as sizes go, in order of smaller uke to bigger uke it goes: Soprano -> Concert -> Tenor -> Baritone -> Bass. While they're certainly all playable by adults, I'd probably recommend getting a Tenor over a Concert, and if your giftee has ham-hands maybe even getting a Baritone, but Tenor is probably the best place to start.
Having already played guitar before, the two of us were able to play songs pretty much as soon as we picked them up, all it took was finding the equivalent chord shapes to songs we already knew on guitar.
So anyway, I'd recommend getting them a Tenor Ukelele and expect to pay between $110 and $130, a chromatic tuner, and a book on learning ukulele (especially if it's got a chord chart in it)
Musician's Friend has a package that's pretty much exactly what I'm talking about for $200
http://www.musiciansfriend.com/folk-traditional-instruments/lanikai-lkp-t-koa-tenor-ukulele-pack
as far as sizes go, its all about the sound. the soprano's have the stereotypical ukelele sound, as you go bigger they mellow out a bit. so if your giftee likes that sound he may want to stick with the soprano size, unless he is a giant, then go for a concert or tenor, though if he has guitar experience , tbigger will likely be an easier transition
agree about the tuner too
i kind of want to pick up a banjolele myself
You're generally safe with a Lanikai, Kala, or Oscar Schmidt ukulele in the $50.00 and up price range. They're all very comparable, and some are made in the same factories but branded separately.
I would call whichever music store you're wanting to purchase from to get the lowest price possible. Everyone has to adhere to MAP pricing with almost every uke brand, so they'll all advertise the same price, but will get you a lower one if you call them directly.
IMO the Lanikai's have been the most popular and reliable. I currently play an LU21C which has been great to me for the last year. The brands I mentioned before sell all of their ukuleles strung with Aquila strings, which are the standard for uke strings. This makes a huge difference and is another reason for buying from them.
Currently this is the best deal around for a beginner kit.