OP
OP
don_b
Well-known member
Ya know now that I’m a one uke man maybe the gotoh UPT aren’t so pricey after all…
One Uke Only
- Thread starter don_b
- Start date
I'm settling into one beater, plus one of what I'm calling the Artist in Residence, aka, the good one. 
The beater is for playing as backup in the usual fashion, but also for experimenting with changing out tuners and saddles and such. And the Artist in Residence has its temporary-ish nature built into the name. I have it for as long as I have it, then move it along for whatever reason.
Whichever one it is now is almost irrelevant. It's not THE ukulele. It's THE ukulele until it's not, at which point another will be. Maybe the next one will be bigger or smaller or cheaper, or another wood or more strings, or..... Who knows? I don't need to. In fact, knowing that I only want one "the good one" at a time was putting too much pressure on myself to find THE ukulele, along with the pressure I was putting on myself re: "but what if I change my mind later????"
That may sound insane to you, which is fine, because I am.
Bipolarity, schizophrenia, ASD, I got plenty of 'em. (UAS isn't an illness, imo, but a condition. ) It helps me a lot having fewer objects in my life to deal with. I'm too obsessive to be able to manage the idea that, if I had a bunch of ukes, that I'm NOT PLAYING ALL THESE OTHER UKES. Every moment I spent with one would be time that I couldn't spend with the others. The guilt and resentment and distraction would suck all the joy out of the whole enterprise.
It also helps that the two have their roles. Sitting in the case most of the time is what the beater is supposed to do. The Artist in Residence is supposed to be replaced eventually. No particular timetable, and if I wind up with three in the house because of the timing of a UPS pickup or whatever, that's fine, because I know that all will be settling out soon.
So I certainly enjoy watching YOUR UAS, and understand that there's always something new to play. And I will. One-ish at a time.
The beater is for playing as backup in the usual fashion, but also for experimenting with changing out tuners and saddles and such. And the Artist in Residence has its temporary-ish nature built into the name. I have it for as long as I have it, then move it along for whatever reason.Whichever one it is now is almost irrelevant. It's not THE ukulele. It's THE ukulele until it's not, at which point another will be. Maybe the next one will be bigger or smaller or cheaper, or another wood or more strings, or..... Who knows? I don't need to. In fact, knowing that I only want one "the good one" at a time was putting too much pressure on myself to find THE ukulele, along with the pressure I was putting on myself re: "but what if I change my mind later????"
That may sound insane to you, which is fine, because I am.
Bipolarity, schizophrenia, ASD, I got plenty of 'em. (UAS isn't an illness, imo, but a condition. ) It helps me a lot having fewer objects in my life to deal with. I'm too obsessive to be able to manage the idea that, if I had a bunch of ukes, that I'm NOT PLAYING ALL THESE OTHER UKES. Every moment I spent with one would be time that I couldn't spend with the others. The guilt and resentment and distraction would suck all the joy out of the whole enterprise.It also helps that the two have their roles. Sitting in the case most of the time is what the beater is supposed to do. The Artist in Residence is supposed to be replaced eventually. No particular timetable, and if I wind up with three in the house because of the timing of a UPS pickup or whatever, that's fine, because I know that all will be settling out soon.
So I certainly enjoy watching YOUR UAS, and understand that there's always something new to play. And I will. One-ish at a time.
bbkobabe
Well-known member
I only keep one at school... My trusty Kala Travel tenor... does that count?
AND: Baritones don't count either, right?
(Full disclosure: I have 4 more at home... 3 if baritones don't count)
AND: Baritones don't count either, right?
(Full disclosure: I have 4 more at home... 3 if baritones don't count)
I have 2 baritones. They both sound great. But since discovering re-entry dGBE on shorter scales (Ten, Con, and {gasp!} Sop), I hardly play them.
Re-entry is so very "ukulele-like," (duh), and I love it. The Bari's would be the ones I'd sell first (well, one of them
In fact, they both, just now, went back into their cases. To Tim and you, thanks! I needed the nudge.
Last edited:
bbkobabe
Well-known member
I have 2 baritones. They both sound great. But since discovering re-entry dGBE on shorter scales (Ten, Con, and {gasp!} Sop), I hardly play them.
Re-entry is so very "ukulele-like," (duh), and I love it. The Bari's would be the ones I'd sell first (well, one of them
In fact, they both, just now, went back into their cases. Thanks to Tim, and you. I needed the nudge.
Well... now that we all agree that baritones don't count... maybe you should sell one to me!
I could take it to school...
Can't do it. High g, low g, soprano, concert, tenor, super tenor, baritone. No 2 of each sound alike. Have to keep them all.
It’s comforting to know I’m not the only one who feels guilty about my relationships with inanimate objects. I sense, quite often, that I’m hurting Soprano A’s feelings when I pick up Soprano B. I’m not kidding. And I sense both of them sulking in their cases when I’m not playing at all.
RPAtech
Well-known member
- Joined
- Dec 20, 2021
- Messages
- 81
- Reaction score
- 180
It would be difficult to have only one for me. My reason for feeling this way is the differences in sound. I like Soprano and Tenor ukuleles so I go back and forth between them.
I could go down to two ukuleles though and be happy.
If I had to choose just two, it would be my Kiwaya Tenor (I love the neck and sound) and KoAloha Soprano (I love that Soprano chime and punch). I'd be happy with those two.
I've learned from archery that if you have too many bows, some of them just never see much use.
It's a bit different with instruments since there's a rabbit hole of different sounds, neck feel, etc.
I could go down to two ukuleles though and be happy.
If I had to choose just two, it would be my Kiwaya Tenor (I love the neck and sound) and KoAloha Soprano (I love that Soprano chime and punch). I'd be happy with those two.
I've learned from archery that if you have too many bows, some of them just never see much use.
It's a bit different with instruments since there's a rabbit hole of different sounds, neck feel, etc.
Yup you're not the only one. Fortunately, I have only three (ukuleles, plus one requinto) to rotate through, but I'd not touched my reentrant tenor for a few days and was hearing it calling to me: "what, am I no longer good enough for you? you have to leave me sitting here idly without playing me? I thought that you loved me!" I feel my instruments pining for me when I'm not playing them, lol. I won't even go into listing my other instruments, which haven't been touched in years, poor things. I think they've given up trying to convince me.
I respect someone with just one ukulele, for the longest time Jake had just his Kamaka tenor. He is the shining example of “beware the man with one gun as he probably knows how to use it.
Me on the other hand I am the shining example of the opposite side of that, see list of ukes below, lol. I come from a carpentry background so I absolutely love the look of different woods. They are objects of visible beauty as much as sonic beauty to me. Anyways……….that’s my excuse and I am sticking to it.
Me on the other hand I am the shining example of the opposite side of that, see list of ukes below, lol. I come from a carpentry background so I absolutely love the look of different woods. They are objects of visible beauty as much as sonic beauty to me. Anyways……….that’s my excuse and I am sticking to it.
OP
OP
don_b
Well-known member
I would watch at least a 45 minute episode of a beauty and the beast inspired story that centers on sad ukuleles lol
OP
OP
don_b
Well-known member
I wonder if it’s relevant that I have settled into the Longneck Soprano size, and I find there are simply way fewer models to browse and pretend I will buy. Regular sopranos, concerts, and tenors just feels like nice ukes that are the wrong size for me now. I have looked at the Ohana long neck, but no interested in buying it. Same with the Flight longneck. Eventually I run out of longnecks at an obtainable price point for me, my Kiwaya is probably at the highest obtainable end. Just thought of this.
Well I am in the same range of long neck soprano. I have a Shima, Millar and a Famous and want the Kiwaya. My holy grail model that i can’t find anywhere is the Famous FLS-kk, which is the Kobayashi model made for Kiwaya’s 100th anniversary a few years ago. If anyone has one they don’t want, I would take it. But with the “one out for one in “ I would have to narrow all those long necks down to 2. One high G and one low G. So there are lots of choices and I am not even thinking about the K brand long necks!
OP
OP
don_b
Well-known member
...will follow up.
Oldscruggsfan
Well-known member
I'm posting a 2nd time in this thread because TimWilson phrased his (and my own) situation quite eloquently. He said, "It helps me a lot having fewer objects in my life to deal with."
I understand UAS and don't fault anyone for it. But, during the past 7 years in which Terri and I served as "roadies" for each of our kids to repeatedly move in and out of dorm rooms, two-semester apartments, short-term rentals for summer internships and finally from an apartment into a starter home, we vowed to reduce our volume of "stuff". The most-recent move was my elderly mother. After a relatively successful yard sale, we ended up donating two truckloads (lorry loads, for my UK cousins) of her belongings to a local thrift store to fund housing for homeless veterans.
Unlike the Trumps, Martha Stewart, Jeremy Clarkson, James May and the Royals, we have neither the budget nor the physical real estate for a fancy warehouse with industrial shelving & forklifts in which to store piles of the extraneous consumerism we don't use on a daily basis. As a result, we agreed on a rule: "Nothing new comes in unless three items taking up similar space go out.'
Come to think of it, if I keep a uke in my office, that won't break the rule, and I can get in some practice time during lunch. If I keep two in my office, I can alternate them. And, they (especially sopranos) take up so little space. Ugh. UAS has arrived.
I understand UAS and don't fault anyone for it. But, during the past 7 years in which Terri and I served as "roadies" for each of our kids to repeatedly move in and out of dorm rooms, two-semester apartments, short-term rentals for summer internships and finally from an apartment into a starter home, we vowed to reduce our volume of "stuff". The most-recent move was my elderly mother. After a relatively successful yard sale, we ended up donating two truckloads (lorry loads, for my UK cousins) of her belongings to a local thrift store to fund housing for homeless veterans.
Unlike the Trumps, Martha Stewart, Jeremy Clarkson, James May and the Royals, we have neither the budget nor the physical real estate for a fancy warehouse with industrial shelving & forklifts in which to store piles of the extraneous consumerism we don't use on a daily basis. As a result, we agreed on a rule: "Nothing new comes in unless three items taking up similar space go out.'
Come to think of it, if I keep a uke in my office, that won't break the rule, and I can get in some practice time during lunch. If I keep two in my office, I can alternate them. And, they (especially sopranos) take up so little space. Ugh. UAS has arrived.
I have only one ukulele. A Kanile’a K1-T Natural.
I only have one... in my hands at a time.
Minimum: 2 tunings*(1 acoustic+1 electric)=4
Minimum: 2 tunings*(1 acoustic+1 electric)=4
Last edited:
I’ve only had one for almost a year, the 1960’s Harmony I grew up with. Probably $8 new, better than it has a right to be with the crazy birch, poplar, plastic fretboard, and friction tuner build, but it weighs 12 oz and it will probably always be my beater for hiking and camping. If I played with/for other people I’d definitely want a better presentation and tone, and maybe then the Harmony becomes a backup. As long as I’m motivated to practice and learn with the Harmony, I’m not in a rush to add another uke, and I agree with the idea that a simpler life makes me happier. For me, with hiking and camping, my ideal single uke might be a Flea soprano, it seems like other options (Clara) are larger scales, which would become a problem fitting in my camper van’s cabinet.
PeteyHoudini
Well-known member
I couldn't live with just one uke. I love sopranos mainly, but I need a tenor for nice fingerpickings.
I looked at my collection last night and I would be good with the following:
- two best sopranos
- one best concert (for open mic nights)
- one best tenor
- one RISA soprano stick
No LOW G. haha
I looked at my collection last night and I would be good with the following:
- two best sopranos
- one best concert (for open mic nights)
- one best tenor
- one RISA soprano stick
No LOW G. haha
