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KoAloha Pineapple- Regular or Long-Neck?

Quite a few times I have had customers choosing between these two models. Same ukulele but the second has a concert length neck, 2" longer. So a longer scale gives a higher tension which will have a slight affect on the tone. In this video you can hear these two models back to back, same exact body but different length ...
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6 Kanilea Concerts – Back to Back

So this video shows 6 models, all concert size, all koa wood, all made by Kanile'a Ukulele and played by Corey Fujimoto. Five of them have the regular concert scale length neck and the SC has the tenor scale. First up is the K1-C in gloss. Kanile'a has a beautiful gloss finish and this is their standard Koa, still super ...

Lichty Custom Baritone Ukulele

Always a treat to show a Lichty! Rich and soulful. Excuisite in build but made for musicians to use and love.  Those that desire the connection and inspiration you can experience with acoustics of the highest caliber.  I truly beleive that There is no "best"!. Great instruments excel and inspire in different ways. Variety is the spice of life and I ...

KoAloha Custom Solid Body Tenor Electric!

This is a 7 piece neck-thru solid body tenor from the ever innovative KoAloha company. Not only is it the coolest thing I've ever seen but the sounds you can get are endless! KoAloha knocks this one out of the park. How's Corey's sample?
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3 KoAloha Soprano’s Compared-KSM-00, KSM-02 & KSM-T2

Here is a short video/sound sample of 3 KoAloha soprano's. All three are gloss so this is not a gloss vs. satin comparison. We'll have to cover that another time. This shows the 3 neck lengths that KoAloha offers for the soprano size. The regular KoAloha has the 13" soprano scale and has become a classic little cannon of sound. ...
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HMS Listening Booth – 4 Kanilea Tenors

So here's another listening booth and this one has 4 gorgeous tenors crafted on the windward side of our island, Oahu. These all retail between 12-1500 usd, they are all Koa, and they are all Kanilea. This audio slightly differs from previous "listening booths". In logic I did a stereo spread from the mono signal to "open it up" and ...
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HMS Listening Booth- 3 Hawaiian Tenors

This "Listening Booth" has a Ko'olau T100 Spruce/Rosewood, a deluxe koa Tenor Kanile`a, and a koa tenor KoAloha and a Corey Fujimoto. All seemed exceptional to me. This was done as dry and flat as you get. No compression beyond what must happen at upload, just bare mono. Earthworks setup is talked about in the last blog... This comparison is ...
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HMS Listening Booth – Pono Tenor in Various Tonewoods

This is part of a new series of videos that we will offer for your comparison purposes. These are recorded with a Earthworks QTC-40. It is known for it's flat frequency response and for being accurate and uncolored. It is brought to level with an Earthworks ZDT preamp that is also known for it's exceptional transparency.  It is then recorded through a Apogee interface ...
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The Ukulele – Still Fighting for Respect?

I never liked plastic ukes. My dad thought they were cool. He always had a "TV Pal" hanging along side vintage Hawaiian ukes. I guess for those that lived in their hayday it has a nostalgia appeal. And I know some Plastic ukes are better than others. But to me they represent the root of a misconception. A violin is not considered ...
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Building a Pono Ukulele

"Keep it Pono" is local for, do it right, or show excellence in what you do. For Ko'olau owner John Kitakis,  affordable excellence has been a search and struggle. But the light at the end of the tunnel keeps getting brighter, "All of this has not been a waste of time. After over 8 years we finally have the Pono ...