new ukulele... Ovation

[masterbuilt]

I might not buy an Ovation guitar, these days, but I really love this new ukulele. I have owned many ukes over the 40+ years I have played them. Well, I considered several ukes that don't look like ukes... a bell-shaped re-issue of a vintage Washburn, a "Vita Uke" that was designed by guitar and ukulele virtuoso Roy Smeck, and I settled on the (Applause) Ovation ukulele. Here is the model:

 

http://www.musiciansfriend.com/document?cpd=0OEY&doc_id=99371&base_pid=550005&index=0

 

This little uke has a solid spruce top, electronics, and holds tune very well.

[Terry Allan Hall]

I've always wanted to try one of those...Ovation also makes an a/e mandolin and an a/e mandocello that are pretty decent values for the $$$.

[masterbuilt]

I've played around a bit with their mandolin and it sounded nice and punchy.

 

I have heard Tom Harker (ukulele man) live playing a model similar to the one I bought and his sounded terrific with Aquila Nylgut strings.

[masterbuilt]

Playing the new uke, I found that there was a little buzz on the "A" string (re-entrant tuning traditional soprano style) and I decided to swap the GHS strings for Aquila Nylguts. The buzz did not entirely go away... but, it is at the saddle where it buzzes... not very common. So, I tried polishing it with a dremel tool, buzzes a bit less, but, occasionally audible to the point of annoyance. I contacted Ovation/Applause and asked them to send me a new saddle to put in the bridge. If they do it, I'll see what happens. If they don't do it, I might just cut a bone saddle. I really like the uke otherwise.

[jakebible]

Let us know if you find a solution to the buzz problem. I have the same issue with my applause uke. I took it to a tech and he shaved the nut, shimmed the bridge and put concert strings on instead of soprano strings. It was fine for a few weeks, but now it's back to it's buzzing ways. I just emailed Ovation today. Hopefully they can shed some light on this.

[TN.Frank]

Compared to a "Real" mandolin(F style, solid top, back and sides) I thought the Ovation was a bit lacking BUT it does have electronics so you can always plug it in to an amp to boost the sound. The uke looks nice, they seem to have a basic theme with their instruments so a person could buy a guitar, uke and mandolin and have kind of a set that all looked the same, that's a neat idea.

[Terry Allan Hall]

Compared to a "Real" mandolin(F style, solid top, back and sides) I thought the Ovation was a bit lacking BUT it does have electronics so you can always plug it in to an amp to boost the sound. The uke looks nice, they seem to have a basic theme with their instruments so a person could buy a guitar, uke and mandolin and have kind of a set that all looked the same, that's a neat idea.

 

Yeah, you're right...like pretty much all Ovations, the mando is really a plug-her-in axe...nice amplified tone, fair-to-middlin' unplugged tone.

 

You're right about the look the same thing, too...the mandocello looks like a really big Ovation mando/normal sized Ovation guitar.

 

[TN.Frank]

I really do like the look of the Ovations, if they sounded better I'd like to get one but since I'm pretty much an un-pluged guy I'd rather just get something like my Yamaha or Regal.

[halmot]

Last Spring I saw Greg Hawkes (formerly of the Cars, currently playing keys for the Turtles) play one of these Ovation ukes at a Turtles show. I think they're pretty cool. My wife's Flea is of similar construction -- plastic bowl, wood top, and it sounds very good.

[jakebible]

I just heard back from Ovation regarding the strings buzzing with my uke. Apparently because of their unique construction the neck and top are sensitive to humidity changes. This fits my observations. The problem can be worse with brand new ukes because they haven't had a chance to settle and get broken in. I'll keep y'all posted to see if this theory holds out.