Kala KA-15S Mahogany Soprano Ukulele

Previously I wrote a review regarding the Makala Shark Bridge Soprano Ukulele. Unfortunately, with that particular uke, it arrived in very disappointing fashion. The workmanship [or lack thereof] and quality control issues forced us returning it, and spending an additional $10 for the Kala Mahogany Soprano Ukulele. Let me just say that the differences between these two Ukuleles is truly like night and day… …for those of you who DIDN'T read my previous review, I will say that I've been a guitarist for over 25 years. I have a lot of experience in the construction, setup, and playing of acoustic and electric stringed instruments. Specifically I am a rock and metal player, but cull experience from nearly every genre of music. My wife and I were searching for an inexpensive beginner's ukulele for a 5 year old girl to use for her first foray into music. Upon ordering the ukes, we had them delivered to us so that I could go over them, make sure that they were properly constructed and setup prior to sending to her. Being that I have given MANY lessons in my day, and have encountered many different instruments, I know that THE most common reason that a student gives up on a stringed instrument is if it is poorly set-up [i.e., physically hard to play]. NO stringed instrument should require a Herculean amount of strength. The Kala Ukulele arrived very well packed…by both Amazon and from the company. Upon taking the ukulele out of it's second inner most packing box, I could immediately see that it was in fact made of mahogany [intentional mislabeling of construction wood is an unfortunate part of inexpensive guitars and stringed instruments]. Not only is this actual mahogany, but it is a very excellent example of mahogany. The wood is a deep shade of brown with a dark black grain running throughout. The pores of the wood [a tale tale sign of true mahogany] are very visible and clearly indicate that this is an excellent example of mahogany. The fretwork is EXEMPLARY. I've seen $400-$500 guitars have fretwork not as good as this. The brass frets are all properly seated and well finished. For anyone familiar with guitars and stringed instruments, fret ends [the point at which your hand makes contact up and down the neck] can be a very troubling point of contact with inexpensive instruments. However, these frets have been manicured to a level that there is no sensation whatsoever. Another point of emphasis: the nut. The nut, in my estimation is one of THE most important parts of any stringed instrument. A nut should be properly cut as to allow the strings to move without binding [binding creates issues with tuning and intonation] and the nut slots should be cut as so to allow the strings a downward trajectory into the tuning machines [maximizing resonance and projection of the instrument]. Again, this instrument is exemplary as it relates to the nut. The nut is a plastic "bone facsimile" and it is properly cut with an attention to detail I could never have expected at this price point. Tuning CAN be a bit tedious with this uke…the tuners are VERY pedestrian, but at $53 [most tuning machine sets cost more than this ukulele did] one shouldn't expect them to be more than utilitarian. Please be prepared for the tuning machines to slip a bit when tuning…it's very easy to get impatient, but if you take your time it will get to pitch. Once you've tuned the ukulele, as with any stringed instrument, it will be important to stretch the strings and then retune at least two additional times before optimal tuning stability will be achieved. Upon tuning the ukulele, and strumming some chords, I quickly realized what a gem this truly is. The uke is dynamic, resonant, and truly is the sum of all the aforementioned parts. Single notes sing out and have great harmonic content. Chords ring and project very well. I have played every note on the fingerboard and none of them are dead or have any intonation issues whatsoever. To put this in perspective, I just bought myself a guitar three weeks ago. It cost me $2,500. It is the epitome of modern guitar construction and is arguably the greatest stringed instrument I've ever played. But this $53 Kala Uke has a home, in my home, right next to that guitar. I'm not comparing the two; I'm simply saying that the playability is such that I WILL be buying myself one once this goes to our granddaughter. The "dollars per smile" ratio on this thing is incomprehensible. I can not say enough about this Ukulele and if you're in the market for a Uke PLEASE do yourself a favor and buy one. You will NOT be disappointed, nor will you regret it for one single solitary minute.

I know this is more about personal experience with a uke in general than it is about the actual product, but I will get to that, also. I had been trying in vain to learn guitar, and one of my main problems is that my hands are too small to chord properly. That's why I first went looking for a ukulele. I heard that for one, with a smaller neck, and only four strings, it eliminates that issue. Two, it's easier to feel strumming patterns. I don't know if that's true for everyone or not, but it sure has been for me! Three, they're just so darn cute! So after a TON of research, reading reviews, product specs, etc, I settled on this one. It was affordable; and I LOVE the finish. Plus, it comes with aquila strings on it, so I didn't have to restring it immediately. I could focus on learning how to play the instrument before having to figure that out. It arrived a day earlier than the original delivery estimate, first off. Which was good, because I wanted it SOOOOO bad! When I pulled it out of the box, it was so much better than I thought it was going to be! The finish is spectacular! It's a matte finish, so that you can see the beautiful mahogany. The sound is perfect. Like I said, I did a lot of research before buying. One of the things I did was search comparison videos on youtube. Although there were some ukes that topped the sound, the cost was enough of a drawback that I can honestly say that within this price range, there is NO comparison!! I love that I have been able to just pick this thing up and play within a couple of hours. I couldn't do that with a guitar no matter how hard I tried!! All in all, it has been a VERY good little instrument for me so far. As a side note, I purchased a uke tuner from a different seller, and it hasn't arrived yet, so I used my sister-in-law's guitar tuner. I didn't even know you could do that, but it worked! I guess no matter what the range of the instrument, g will always be g, c will always be c, and so on.

Oh my goodness, I just love it 🥰 I changed my strings to Pepe Romero’s Low G ukulele strings. The sound and playability is just awesome! I love the unique sound of the spruce top! Zero complaints!! Tune-ability and tune accuracy are top notch quality. Sustain is great String hight is perfect for finger picking and playing all your chords. No adjustments necessary. Top quality, right out of the box. The quality of your strings makes a huge difference. I am not a fan of the strings that it came with. I feel that they give a dull sound. They didn’t give this awesome little instrument justice. If I didn’t get Pepe Romero strings, then I’d get D’Addario strings which are not expensive at all and sound amazing!

It is wonderful. Easy to learn with and sounds great.

I've been taking ukulele lessons on a beautiful double hole Mele soprano. When I saw this ukulele as a Amazon Prime Day 2016 deal, I thought I'd buy it just to compare since the price was under 60 bucks (interestingly, the price was even cheaper during the week after Prime Day so I feel a bit put off, but I digress since that has nothing to do with the ukulele itself). Anyway, the ukulele arrived in a standard Amazon box, but was then packed in it's own nice sturdy triangle-shaped box inside that. The Kala has a nice weight. It's heavier than the Mele I have and the tuning pegs are bigger and chunky-looking. Cosmetically, the head doesn't match the body color. The body color is stained very dark--almost too dark to see the laser-engraved rosette around the sound hole unless it's in the right lighting. It's still a very pretty little instrument. It's sturdy and seems well-built. What I like about about this Kala over the Mele is that it's much LOUDER than the Mele. It doesn't matter how hard I strum the Mele, I seems to have a maximum volume level and that's all I can get out of it. This Kala doesn't mind letting out more sound. BUT... the Kala sound is much more twangy and not as pleasing as the Mele (however, if I didn't have the Mele to compare it to, the sound difference between instruments wouldn't even have crossed my mind). It also doesn't want to stay in tune for even 30 minutes, but I hope that works itself out the more I play it. Overall, I think this is a fantastic starter ukulele for anyone learning the ukulele. If you haven't bought a ukulele before, make sure to add a clip-on tuner to your cart, too. They're definitely worth the extra money (less than $10).

Wow brilliant sound out of this little ukulele. Holds tuning nice, and the mahogany just makes a beautiful overall sound. Great price, very quick and safe shipping. Very pleased with this company all around.

Let me start by saying I am a musician. I've played a variety of instruments but this instrument is the first string instrument I've played. So although I'm not an expert in string instruments specifically I think I have a little authority in knowing what makes a good instrument. The Kala KA-15S is the perfect string instrument to start out on. The qualities that make it so is the fact that it's high enough quality to be easy to play, while not being prohibitively expensive in cost. Basically, it's the best bang for your buck as a beginner. I got one for me and my sister. Both were in excellent condition. I like mine so much that I got a baritone ukulele so I can have access to a more unique sound in my arsenal of instruments. This instrument comes properly set up (at least the two I bought did), and prestrung with Aquila nylgut, one of the best in the industry. Some reviewers mistakenly call them toy strings because they are not steel strings, they are just ignorant of the fact that ukuleles don't have a truss rod and are too delicate for steel strings. Even classical guitar strings, though they look like metal strings, are just nylon with copper or aluminum wound around them. Only steel guitars are sturdy enough for steel strings, and you wouldn't want your ukulele to sound harsh like a steel guitar anyway. This instrument is easy to play and if you wanted to could use the same instrument up to expert level (although once you hit that level you might want to invest in a $500 dollar instrument and super nylgut strings as they do in fact sound better). I've communicated with other ukulele players and a common problem when purchasing an ukulele is that often the instrument itself is functional, but the frets, saddle, nuts, etc are not set up right, making it difficult to play. This can be corrected relatively easily by going to a local Luthier, but most beginners don't know this. The frets should be level and the action should be as low as possible without buzzing (higher action for more experienced players). Beginners will struggle to play on an instrument that is not fit to play and blame their own lack of skill, and eventually give up. I noticed this when I bought my baritone ukulele. Fortunately the problem for me was that the frets were not level, which is more easily recognizable as the instrument fault not user error. Also the strings were in visibly poor condition. The luthier has it now and says it will cost at least $35 bucks to properly set it up, plus $7 for some decent strings. The funny thing is if I had gotten a kala, it would have only been $30 more and come with a case. Long story short, if you are new to ukulele this is a no brainier. The quality you get for the price is amazing. The instrument should be fine out of the box, but if you are having a hard time with it try taking it to a Luthier before returning it and giving it a bad review. Mistakes can happen even with the best brands and you might just need a slight adjustment.

Let me just start off by saying I am by no means a professional in the field of music nor am I an ambitious music student studying to become the next Jake Shimabukuro. I'm just a guitar player (and not a good one) who wept and wept because I could not play the dreaded... barre chords. That's right, I wanted to learn to play the uke because my fingers are short and my hand is weak (that sounded weird). Thus. I began my journey to find the most awesome, chick-magnet, best-bang-for-your-buck ukulele on Earth. I searched on Google, hunted in Reddit, and crept through online blogs to obtain the answer. And after my extensive trip throughout the corners of Internet, it was clear... I just needed to find the highest rated ukulele on Amazon. All jokes aside, this is a rough estimate of why i bought the Kala KA-15S Ukulele. It had great reviews across multiple sites, it was made by a reputable company, and most importantly... it was pretty cheap for a beginner ukulele. I was looking for a quality instrument that I could practice with, but also inexpensive enough that I wouldn't feel guilty about it if I failed to learn. My first impression of the ukulele was the beautiful mahogany wood. I picked it up and held it close to my face... and sniffed it. Yes, I smelled it okay? Stop judging. Anyways, I started to play random notes/chords and sang "Riptide" to my SO. Was I off-key? Probably. Did I sound terrible? Maybe. But did my fingertips hurt? NOPE! I couldn't say that about my guitar, Yamaha FG700s, if you were wondering. I did eventually learn the basic chords like C G Am F and some barre chords like B and Bm later that night. And coming from a guitar, these strings were softer than a freshly baked Krispy Kreme Doughnut straight outta of the oven. No kidding. I could actually play simple barre chords for the first time ever AND I didn't cut through another layer of calluses on my fingertips. BOOYAH! (cyborg anyone?) In conclusion, Yes. This is the ukulele you have been searching for. Whether you are an experienced player or a beginner like myself, the Kala KA-15S really does stand out among the rest. I highly, highly recommend this without a doubt. Now if you excuse me, I gotta sing a special song to a special lady. Wish me luck :) Quick note: Tuning this particular ukulele is easy; I personally use an electronic tuner. But the A string seems to go out of tune more often than the other 3 strings. Not sure if that's normal, but just wanted to give y'all a heads up.

Para comenzar está de lujo! Suena perfecto y es muy bonito! Muy recomendable si quieres pasar buenos ratos con el ukelele.

Too good !! Loved the quality and everything else. It sounds cute, the wood quality is also good, the notes and everything, the strings are of plastic wires still sounds amazingg. And it's light weight, We usually carry it around on our picnics / outings.. loved it..

I'm gonna say it straight up before I give this review, I love it. I've played many guitars before but this was my first Ukelele. I adore the sound it makes. It sounds very rich and it projects across the room very well. I'm very picky on minor pitch differences since I've played piano and guitar my whole life and I hear nothing wrong with it. Everything sounds in tune, as it should. As people say, looks come secondary when it comes to an instrument. However, this I think this Ukelele is straight gorgeous. The mohagony really gives it the authentic Ukelele look and there are grooves on the body that gives it an awesome flair. It's very well built. My only concern is that the top string goes out of tune if you play it for a few hours, but I think it's due to it being new and the strings are still adjusting. Nothing to be too worried as you can tune it easy in 2 seconds and hopefully it will be fixed once its been played a lot. Other than that, I'm a happy camper. I love how portable it is, as all Ukeleles are! Plus, the sound just brings a huge smile to my face when I hear it. Totally worth the money, I can't recommend it enough for all those people that want to get their first Ukelele. That about wraps it up, I hope you enjoyed the review. Click the helpful button if it was helpful in your decision so more people can see it!

The best Ukulele ever,upper fast ordering and delivery service outstanding

Love it