What Is The Best Electric Ukulele To Buy

I decided to buy one for a review and was extremely impressed. The build quality and craftsmanship were excellent, and the uke sounded great. I felt it was an amazing value and one of the best overall beginner ukes on the market.

what is the best electric ukulele to buy

The concert-sized KA-CE and tenor-sized KA-TE are among the least expansive electric ukuleles in the Kala lineup. These models only cost about $50 more than their non-electric counterparts, which is a pretty good deal considering the high cost of a quality aftermarket pickup.

Generally being more expensive than their acoustic counterparts, electric ukuleles tend to require more research to make sure you spend on the right model. There are plenty of options on the market, but which are the standout models in each category?

The Luna Tattoo Acoustic/Electric (compare price on Sweetwater, Amazon, and Guitar Center) is a concert-sized ukulele that sounds great without requiring the upfront costs of the premium options. While some people have hands and fingers tiny enough for a smaller ukulele size like a soprano, this concert size is ideal for most people.

Like the Luna Tattoo Acoustic model, this acoustic/electric model also has a mahogany construction that produces a resonant and clear sound. And with the EQ capabilities of this preamp, you can adjust the bass and treble channels to dial in the perfect sound balance for your situation.

The Lanikai ACS-CEC (compare price on Sweetwater and Amazon) is a concert-sized acoustic/electric ukulele that you should consider a premium option. At almost seven times the price of the budget option and four times the Luna Tattoo model above, this instrument is for the people that do not mind paying a high price for the best quality.

This concert-sized ukulele has a cutaway shape with an acacia wood body. Acacia wood resonates with the rustic, bold, and percussive tone of authentic Hawaiian ukulele playing. This instrument also has maple binding that helps with sound quality and looks visually beautiful.

The Aklot AKES21 (check price on Amazon) is one of the most popular ukuleles for people on a strict budget, and it is a cutoff point for an article on the best electric ukuleles. If you can afford better instruments, you probably should, but this ukulele will still do the job if its price is at the top of your budget.

The Luna Uke High Tide Baritone Ukulele (compare price on Sweetwater, Amazon) is next in this collection of the best electric ukuleles because it is a professional quality instrument that is not quite as expensive as the premium option listed above. This ukulele is one of the top products, and this instrument sounds just as good as it looks.

This ukulele has a zebrawood body, which has a different sound quality than the mahogany-body constructions and is aesthetically pleasing to the eye. More specifically, with sound quality, this material resonates a bright sound that brings clarity to the high and low overtones. This clarity combines nicely with the baritone size of this product to create a balanced sound.

Considering the size, you should have hands that are large enough to feel comfortable on the large fingerboard. With 19 frets and a wide fingerboard, the right player can make this ukulele sound fantastic!

An acoustic-electric ukulele, this model is a tenor size that is large enough to produce a professional quality of resonance and projection. Mahogany wood comprises the body and neck of this instrument, which in combination, has a warm tone.

This Cordoba ukulele is not in the budget category of electric ukuleles, but if you appreciate quality, it should stay on your shortlist. Many folks cannot justify the cost of a premium instrument like the Lanikai ACS-CEC, but still want to avoid feeling like they sacrificed quality for the price.

And this Cordoba tenor electric ukulele sounds fabulous, looks sleek, and is designed to make playing as easy as possible. It has a traditional Portuguese design with a soft cutaway that makes access to the higher register far easier. Cordoba also includes thoughtful and beautiful detailing that adds a visual experience to the remarkable sound quality.

Like the pattern you may have noticed with the higher-end ukuleles in this article, the combination of a solid mahogany body and rosewood fingerboard in this ukulele work together to create a uniquely warm and rich sound quality. You will not be saving the most money on this instrument, but you will get close to the premium sound and feel.

These details aside, the Lanikai MA-CEC has a mahogany body and satin finish that look great and resonate beautiful sounds. In particular, the cream binding makes a stark contrast to the darker mahogany body. Other notable features of this ukulele include:

Firstly, this ukulele is concert-sized, which means it will grow with you and is a suitable instrument should you ever find yourself performing. Secondly, this particularly Lohanu design includes an arched back that produces the darker sound of larger instruments while still having the playability of the smaller size. Other notable features include:

The Kala KA-CE Acoustic Electric (compare price Amazon and Guitar Center) is a concert-sized ukulele that uses mahogany for the body and neck construction. If the previous Lohanu model struck you as below your budget, this instrument could be a solid upgrade.

The thoughtful combination of mahogany body and neck, rosewood fingerboard, and precise construction means that the standout feature of this instrument is sound quality. You might not find some of the aesthetically pleasing features of other ukuleles in this collection, but you can count on a professional sound and feel.

As a bundle, this package includes a gig bag, extra strings, picks, and a cleaning cloth. And lastly, at this point, you should understand that larger-size ukuleles tend to be more expensive, and you should buy the size that most fits your playing ability and body type. Although the tenor ukuleles produce a better sound, if it is too big for you, then you will not enjoy playing on them!

While this Kala model does not have the usual combination of high-quality mahogany wood in the body and rosewood on the fingerboard, this instrument still has visual beauty and makes an authentic ukulele sound. The body is made from teak, an Asian wood that has fantastic durability and a varied grain structure that produces unique visuals.

Despite the name and clear aim at beginners, the materials and build of this instrument surpass some of the more expensive models from other brands. So even though Ellen may not be as reputable of a ukulele company as Luna or Kala, this instrument comes with several noteworthy features.

Firstly, this product is a concert-sized ukulele, something that beginner kits avoid. While soprano instruments are good for absolute beginners, concert sizes grow with you, and you can eventually perform with them. With more frets and a 23-inch length, you will learn to play on an instrument that sounds deeper and teaches you more professional finger placement.

Lastly, as you would expect from a beginner kit, Ellen provides all of the accessories a beginner might need as they dive into the art of ukulele playing. Besides the 12mm-thick gig bag for traveling, this ukulele also comes with an extra set of strings, a strap, three picks, a suitcase amp, and an AC adaptor.

So with ukuleles, avoid the cheapest ones unless you are on a strict budget or you are shopping for an extremely young beginner. You can consider the budget option at the top of this article as the cheapest that is worth going, as anything cheaper is usually made of cheap wood or, even worse, plastic. Plastic ukuleles rarely stay in tune, and the sound quality is awful.

The most expensive ukuleles are made in Hawaii, and you usually have to buy them directly from a small manufacturer. But luckily, big-name companies like Martin, Fender, and the brands in this article approach ukulele making with the same rigor as they have with other instruments.

And like most products, investing in a high-quality ukulele from a reputable brand means you will have a more durable instrument. Expensive materials and thoughtful construction create an instrument that will maintain its quality over time.

So if you can afford the slightly higher prices, you should avoid ukuleles laminated wood or cheap plastic materials. Cheap material cracks and scratches easily, and the unstable construction makes an instrument that will go out of tune easily.

The soprano-sized ukulele is the smallest, and it can easily create the traditional Hawaiian ukulele sound of percussive harmonies. This size is ideal for beginners because it gives them easier access to the fingerboard, and it is great for children or adults with small hands. Soprano ukuleles are also ideal for traveling because they are so small!

The next larger category from the soprano size is concert ukuleles, which were many of the products in this article. The name of this size comes from the fact that it is a large enough instrument that you can perform more advanced music on them with a resonant and projecting sound quality.

If you have only experimented with playing a soprano ukulele, you might not even recognize the length, width, and weight of a tenor model. Most professional players tend to use tenor ukuleles, both for the superior sound quality and the wider neck size.

The largest size category for ukuleles is baritone, which is large enough to start having a tone quality similar to the guitar. The baritone size naturally gets more expensive, and it is unnecessary for most players. Only consider this option if you have extremely large hands or if you are a guitar player who wants a smoother learning curve to the ukulele.

The quality of the instrument is indeed about how it sounds and not how it looks. But most people want an instrument that looks beautiful, and the cosmetic factor of ukuleles is something that fits into the traditional Hawaiian roots. 041b061a72