Graham Greenbag
Well-known member
I’ve been playing a few years now and firmly believe that it’s the player that makes the music and not the instrument BUT I also feel that lesser sound quality reduces my satisfaction and can go unnoticed. Of course a better player can use their skills to make cheap instruments sing, but the rest of us are going to struggle.
How is it that satisfaction levels change over time? Well I can only relate to my own journey so far. Like many other folk I started off with cheap starter Ukes fitted with basic strings and needing a darn good set-up. Those original ukes are long gone, they made music but I found slightly better entry level / intermediate instruments which gave me more satisfaction. Sometimes you play two of your instruments side by side and (via your better educated ears) the differences really hit you, and so the journey of steady upgrade commences. At first that’s better strings and laminates and later it’s solid tops and bodies - and there’s lots of quality variation in laminate, string and solid too - it’s a process of luck, misadventure and expense.
My best Ukes, Ohana 35 series, aren’t anything that folk here would think special but they are better than most folk in a Uke Club would use. What I’ve noticed though is that playing any of my other instruments is now less satisfying than it used to be, and that the better sounding the instrument the more that I choose to practise - perhaps because I’m getting more back from playing.
What have others found? What now sounds relatively dull to your ears and, without breaking the bank (not everyone can afford a Timms), what’s moved you up a level in terms of playing satisfaction.
How is it that satisfaction levels change over time? Well I can only relate to my own journey so far. Like many other folk I started off with cheap starter Ukes fitted with basic strings and needing a darn good set-up. Those original ukes are long gone, they made music but I found slightly better entry level / intermediate instruments which gave me more satisfaction. Sometimes you play two of your instruments side by side and (via your better educated ears) the differences really hit you, and so the journey of steady upgrade commences. At first that’s better strings and laminates and later it’s solid tops and bodies - and there’s lots of quality variation in laminate, string and solid too - it’s a process of luck, misadventure and expense.
My best Ukes, Ohana 35 series, aren’t anything that folk here would think special but they are better than most folk in a Uke Club would use. What I’ve noticed though is that playing any of my other instruments is now less satisfying than it used to be, and that the better sounding the instrument the more that I choose to practise - perhaps because I’m getting more back from playing.
What have others found? What now sounds relatively dull to your ears and, without breaking the bank (not everyone can afford a Timms), what’s moved you up a level in terms of playing satisfaction.
Last edited: