KalaKA KA ATP CTG C EQ Solid Cedar Top Acacica Back Tenor Ukulele with Cut-Away/Case

This is the second review of a ukulele that I've written in two days (the other being the EleUke). The first and obvious thing to say about the Kala ATP-CTG-CE is that it is a lovely looking instrument with a Solid Cedar Top, Acacia Side & Back, all with gloriously dark red Paduuk Binding. The slotted headstock and high gloss finish set everything off to perfection. However – none of that matters in the slightest if the sound and tone of the instrument doesn't live up to expectations.Happily they do … in abundance. The tone is clear and bright without being at all jangly. Fret finishing and rounded-off fret ends make it an absolute pleasure to play. The sound can be as loud or soft as you wish without losing definition or clarity. There's no muddiness here. The inbuilt tuner is a boon and the volume/tone controls work smoothly without having problems of suddenly increasing or decreasing the output signal. Grover open-gear tuners ensure tuning stability and can be adjusted if you wish. Build quality is first rate and despite looking very hard, I've not found a single example of careless glueing or poor craftsmanship. As for the actual practical value of the cutaway – I'm not sure. If you're a budding Taimane Gardner or Jake Shimabukuro , then maybe yes. But there's no denying that it looks great.My only niggle with this ukulele was one purely based on my own preference. I like a nice low action and I found the original action to be a bit too high (for me). It was perfectly playable and there was no problem, but nevertheless I did lower the action. There was no need to start at the nut as that was fine, so I shaved off some of the underside of the bridge (or is it the saddle? I'm never sure which is which). The effect has been to make the playing experience MUCH better (for me).At around £375 (August 2018), this isn't the cheapest tenor ukulele on the block. But you need have no fear about whether or not it's good value for money – it most definitely is.I have one other excellent Kala electro tenor (KA-TEME) which, at nearer to £140 is a lot more affordable but it still has the same tuner and EQ system installed.https://www.amazon.co.uk/Kala-KA-TEME-Mahogany-Electro-Ukulele/dp/B003YJ7AJ8/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1533392580&sr=8-1&keywords=Kala+KA-TEME

Top class uke for the price. The cedar top is brighter than you might think it would be but in a clearer way rather than in a thin bright tone way! It will get better too as I own the acoustic only version of this which apart from the cutout is identical, that one has opened out with playing and sounds gorgous now so I've every reason to believe this will do the same. The pre-amp is great and the tone controls actually make a difference to the sound which makes a change, I think it looks lovely with the contrast red stringing and of course the beautiful slothead tuning system which I love on anything.It's a step up to sort of Intermediary type of players who want to do open mike and small gigs and for that type of use I think you'd be hard pushed to find much better at the price. Well done Kala for producing something good enough to enjoy that sounds lovely at a price that keen amatuer players can be proud to own and enjoy!

Just a beautiful instrument! Very nicely made with a great, clear tone! I own five Ukuleles - three tenors, a soprano and a concert! Although I have Hawaiian Koa built Ukes, costing three times the price, this Kala is a cracker!Bought it to play a couple of gigs at the Cavern, in Liverpool - DI’d straight into the PA; perfect crisp and punchy sound!Slotted headstock looks fantastic and works extremely well! I paid less than £250 for it - brilliant value!Fingerboard and bridge rosewood was very dry initially, but I always treat my instruments with F1 Oil as a matter of course!This darling sits, in its case, by my sofa arm and is my pick-it-up-every-day and strum/pluck away ukulele! Enjoy!