Now that you’ve had the opportunity to read about twenty brands offering ukuleles, you have a more in-depth idea of what each offers in regards to quality, value, and selection. You have probably gathered that the top of the line ukuleles are handmade by master luthiers with custom offerings, while the brands offering mostly budget models are typically manufactured overseas. If you’re a huge fan of bass and it’s something you can’t live your life without, you’d love ukuleles made of spruce. This difference is why choosing your tonewood carefully is so essential. While the best way to do that is to try them all out in a store, here are some of the key things to look out for. Tonewood Guide: What’s the Best Wood for Ukulele? Koa

Pono: Pono ukuleles are handcrafted using high-quality materials to ensure great sound and playability. Their instruments are also available in a variety of styles, sizes, and colors, making them perfect for any player looking to customize their instrument. Alternatives to Solid Wood Ukes Can you tell if a ukulele is made of solid or laminated wood by merely looking at it? If not now, you’d be able to tell the difference after I’ve cleared all your doubts about these two wood types. Solid: Rosewood is a cherished tonewood for several reasons. It is one of the rarer woods for instrument making, and its unique brown color is guaranteed to make anyone look twice.

Introduction

Spruce features a light blonde color and is every so often used in combination with other hardwood (maple, mahogany, rosewood) in different parts of the uke. You don’t have to play by any rules, and that’s the beauty of owning a ukulele—you take it anywhere you with, play any song on it, be it happy or even sad, however, some folks believe that ukuleles are only for happy songs, but that’s not true. Once you’ve mastered the art of playing a uke, you can give the music any shape you like. Another important factor to consider is the size of the ukulele. Ukuleles come in four different sizes: soprano, concert, tenor, and baritone. The size of the ukulele will affect how easy it is to play and the overall tone of the instrument. Soprano ukuleles are the smallest and easiest to play, while baritone ukuleles have the deepest sound.

You don’t have to force yourself into buying something that breaks the bank—and guess what—that’s what we, at UkuleleAdvice, believe in. Usually found only in fretboards and finishing because of its rarity and price, finding an ebony ukulele should feel like winning the lottery. That’s probably the question you have on your mind. However, is there such a thing as the “best” wood? I prefer to ask it this way: which wood is the best for who? With that in mind, let’s discover the most common ukulele wood types and what sets them apart from one another. MahoganySeveral tonewood species perform better with age, so if you’re interested in a spruce ukulele, give it some time to develop and show its true colors. Your ukulele might sound different even an hour after stringing it up for the first time, so we suggest playing it for some time before you make your final decision. Koa is usually found in top-notch ukuleles and it’s one of the tonal woods that is greatly desired by ukulele lovers. Koa offers high-end articulation and blends midrange focus. In a ukulele’s case, the wood choice can highly impact how resonant the resulting sound will be. Accordingly, your own choice of ukulele wood material will also depend on what sounds you’d love to hear out of your ukulele. You may choose to opt for a ukulele that features a combination of tonewoods, or you can go for one that features an exclusive type of wood. Which Wood Is Best for Ukulele? You might not find a mango ukulele unless you search far and wide since they’re not as common as they used to be. One of the more traditional ukulele tonewoods used along with koa, mango wood originated in India and is perfect for ukuleles.

Laminate ukuleles refer to ukuleles consisting of several thin layers of wood merged together on the ukulele. Laminates are widely spread among entry-level ukuleles, and that makes sense. At this point, you’re still trying yourself out, and you certainly won’t go for the most expensive ukulele; it’s great to find a budget-friendly option that also offers decent quality!So, if you’re looking for a mix of strength in the mids and lows but warm sound, that’s the synonym for spruce. It sets a new definition for “well-balanced” tones. Not to mention, the sound of spruce is known to get even better by time since it’s among the types of wood that changes by the days. That being said, you have to be very careful with your ukulele if it’s made of solid wood. Laminated wood:

Note: On top of the tonewoods affecting how the ukulele sounds, it’s also about how you strum your uke—i.e., whether you go easy on the strings or hit them too hard. Solid vs laminated Wood: What’s the difference? Despite the more or less neutral tone, cedar does serve complex overtones owing to the density of the wood, so playing a cedar ukulele is always guaranteed to be a treat. You’ll find cedar topwood with laminated bodies in several budget ukuleles as well. Rosewood

Luthiers often used different tonewoods for different parts of a ukulele. In this section, we go over some of the common choices. The Top It’s a go-to wood for professional ukulists because it is also lightweight. The tones you’ll get from mahogany are sweet, or you will find a sweet and warm balance in the tones. Despite the high price tag, a rosewood ukulele is worth it, with a bright and rounded sound and incredibly long sustain. It accentuates your instrument’s crisp highs and deep lows, helping you showcase your uke to its best capability. Mahogany genuinely shines when it comes to soft and warm, focused tones that you would traditionally expect from a ukulele. It’s all about mid-ranges and frequencies, so if that’s the sound that appeals to you, you won’t find better than mahogany to grant it to you.