Kala Travel vs Ohana Slimline - a travel uke comparison.
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- Опубликовано: 27 апр 2020
- *OK, so I realised after recording & rewatching this video that the Macbook mic doesn't really accurately pick up the actual sounds of these ukuleles, so don't take what you're hearing through your speakers or headphones as 100% true sound. Still, the subtle differences & nuances can be heard I think, & I hope they help you differentiate between both instruments.
Kala Solid Spruce Travel Concert (KA-SSTU-CE) vs Ohana Slimline Solid Top 22E Series. Both are concert sized & feature a spruce top with mahogany back, sides, neck & headstock, with black binding & a satin finish. They both also ship out with Aquila strings.
The main differences in terms of fittings is that the Kala uses a Graph Tech NuBone® nut & saddle, & the fingerboard is made of laurel whilst the Ohana has a bone nut & saddle, & the fretboard & bridge are rosewood. What that actually means for sound & feel, I'm not really sure, but I'm pretty sure it's got much to do with production & marketing...
As mentioned in the vide, the Kala features die-cast chrome tuners with black buttons while the Ohana uses Grover open geared tuners. I can certainly vouch for the Kala machine heads holding tuning forever, or at least for many months hibernating in the case. I'll update this description for the Ohana gears eventually sometime. Eventually. Sometime. Like I said, I only picked up the instrument last night.
The biggest difference in terms of hardware is certainly the active B-Band pickup system in the Kala Travel ukulele, which features volume & tone controls, & requires 2x2032 cell batteries. On the other hand, the Ohana Slimline uses an under-saddle passive pickup with end-pin output jack, & doesn't require any batteries. Ever. If you're interested to know how they compare, I will update this part of the description too eventually, but for now I can confidently say that the Kala B-Band pickups are absolutely amazing, & perhaps the industry standard benchmark when it comes to sound quality.
Thanks for watching my video, & feel free to drop any comments or questions & I'll try to be as helpful as I can with your queries. If anybody wants to donate or sponsor a Lanikai thin concert ukulele in either maple or bocote, (or both?) I will be very happy & love you long time, & will promise to make another better prepared comparison video... =P 
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what a brilliant review still can't make my mind up on which one to buy you made them both sound so good, looking forward to your next reveiw
Thanks for the review ! I just bought the Ohana slimline in the tenor size (TKS-22E). I wanted a electric/acoustic with a passive pickup to keep the uke light-weight. So far I love it !! Also the price was a lot better than the Kala travel uke. I look forward to an update on the Ohana once you've played it for a while. 🎶🎵🎶
I have the same Kala travel uke but without the pickup so this comparison was very interesting.
I just sold the Kala to buy another Kala concert travel uke in spruce & spalted maple with a cutaway & it doesn't have a pickup too... There is a part of me that wants to install a pickup on it (even though I know I don't really need it & most likely won't use it anyway as I have a few others I could use if I had to...), but I prefer the aesthetic that the spalted maple & cutaway adds to the look & feel of the instrument. I just couldn't bear to completely do away with the beautiful tone & finish of the beautifully crafted Kala travel uke! =P
Great insights Jon...Well Done
good review thanks
Thanks Denise, I've been meaning to make a third instalment video after a few changes to my travel uke collection to include the Enya carbon fibre Nova U with built in effects! Procrastination is not my friend though... =P
This guy's fantastic! YEAH BABY!
Those 2032 batteries are used in most electronic tuners. In fact, of the many clip-on tuners I have used, all took 2032. Another consideration is that the side control on the pre-amp includes a tuner.
So yeah. It would be bad to have a battery fail during a gig. For those who are not concerned about that the pre-amp means it will work with more amps, and may give you a louder sound in some amps.
There are pros and cons to both active and passive pickups.
I love the quickly rechargeable preamped pickup on the Misi
Trio. It uses a capacitor rather than a battery. It only takes 60 seconds to charge the capicator, which is good for hours of play!
Yeah most of the bigger ukes with preamps come with a handy tuner as well, unfortunately the travel ukes don't (probably to shave those few millimetres off the width of the body). Perhaps not having to power a tuner & screen might possibly mean that the battery life lasts a bit longer? I sometimes park my ukes in their cases too long for me to leave the batteries in them so I always try to have them out with a spare anyway.
Been meaning to do an update to this video as I've swapped some gear around & now own an Enya Nova U which is charged by USB & Comes in with built in effects like echo & delay & chorus! Watch this space... eventually. =P
🎶🎵🎶🌴🙂👍
Thanks but it would be good if you didn’t force your voice in singing that song - it’s a gentle tender song the way Elvis sings it.
Thanks for your feedback Lisa! I'm not Elvis, & will never ever try to sing like Elvis, because it would never compare. I personally prefer covers to take on a different spin to the original piece, to take some ownership and variation of the song being paid homage to, otherwise it's just a bad copy rather than a fresh perspective. Anyway, this video wasn't about doing a cover, just a comparison for anyone who might be stuck on choice between different travel ukes. ;)