Ukulele Guy

So I got an e-mail from a nice fella named Rich Cichowski. He runs an eBay guitar store (www.abetterguitarstore.com) and he's a big fan of Orcas strings.  So, we get to talking and he's telling me about Orcas strings (which I will review now that I have some) and also about the new Tenor Banjo Ukuleles from aNueNue.  I'm super intrigued especially when I see how pretty these things are.  Check it out:

Click on the uke to go to their site and see what else they offer, but then come back here because they don't sell direct and Rich has the goods!  The banjo ukulele in the picture is a concert, I believe, but the one Rich sent me to test out is a tenor.  I literally just opened the package but I was so excited that I had to tell someone.  Don't worry, though, videos and reviews will be forthcoming on both the aNueNue Banjo Ukulele and the Orcas strings.  Although, I already broke a string with my stupidity, so I'm going to order another set from Rich as soon as I post this.  Heh... no one has ever accused me of being the Ukulele genius, thank god.

Anyway, in the meantime, check out Rich's stuff.  Here is his Orcas stuff:

And here are some of the aNueNue ukuleles you can get from Rich:

Best Match Items Ending First Newly-Listed Items First Price + Shipping: Lowest First Price + Shipping: Highest First

aNueNue BANJOLELE 1 SOPRANO BANJO UKULELE with HARD CASE Orca Strings $339.99 Time Remaining: 16d 2h 29m Buy It Now for only: $339.99

aNueNue Banjolele II Banjo Ukulele Concert Curly Maple Fingerboard Neck $499.99 Time Remaining: 16d 2h 31m Buy It Now for only: $499.99

Holy smokes. I'm freaking excited! My first banjo ukulele experience!

EDIT: Turns out the aNueNue Banjo Ukulele I'm testing out is a Concert, not a Tenor like I said above.  I think I got it confused because Rich was talking to me about aNueNue's 6-string tenor ukuleles and I transposed it somehow.  Anyway, I've got the aNueNue Concert Banjo Ukulele out of the case, I've got the floating bridge in place and I'm stretching the strings right now.  The tone is soooo much more different than I'm used to.  I'll tell you more once I get a video recorded.

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So, after my last post about my new Aquila Ukulele Strings, I got a fair amount of feedback from my Twitter buddies.  @ApollosTowel (from Finland, no less) had the following to say (I'm paraphrasing):

The rule I use is Koa Ukuleles sound best with Aquila or D'addario Strings.   Mahogany Ukes sound better with Worth. The exception to this is Koaloha. Spruce goes either way.
Laminates generally like Aquila Strings (except for Kiwaya) as well. I think Worths are so much better than Aquilas on Flukes and Fleas.
Kiwaya laminates tend to like the fluorocarbon types, including Worth. The same rule applies for their solid ukes.

@hermanvdc had this to say on the subject of Ukulele Strings:

Indeed, Aquila helps give more brilliance to cheap ukuleles but on good the better ones Worth and especially Orcas sounds better!

So, I figured that I should post this so that everyone can make up their own mind and then give you some links to buy Orcas and Worth Ukulele Strings.

Orcas Ukulele Strings:

Best Match Items Ending First Newly-Listed Items First Price + Shipping: Lowest First Price + Shipping: Highest First

aNueNue BANJOLELE 1 SOPRANO BANJO UKULELE with HARD CASE Orca Strings $339.99 Time Remaining: 16d 2h 29m Buy It Now for only: $339.99

Anuenue Ukulele Orca Floor Stand NEW $36.99 Time Remaining: 21d 19h 20m Buy It Now for only: $36.99

Worth Ukulele Strings:

Best Match Items Ending First Newly-Listed Items First Price + Shipping: Lowest First Price + Shipping: Highest First

Worth Highest Quality Concert Ukulele Strings 2 Sets $15.50 Time Remaining: 8d 16h 20m Buy It Now for only: $15.50

Worth Highest Quality Tenor Ukulele Strings 2 Sets $15.50 Time Remaining: 26d 16h 13m Buy It Now for only: $15.50

Worth Highest Quality Brown Concert Ukulele Strings 2 Sets $16.00 Time Remaining: 26d 16h 14m Buy It Now for only: $16.00

Worth Highest Quality Brown Tenor LowG Ukulele Strings 2 Sets $18.00 Time Remaining: 26d 16h 15m Buy It Now for only: $18.00

Worth Highest Quality Briown Tenor Ukulele Strings 2 Sets $16.00 Time Remaining: 26d 16h 16m Buy It Now for only: $16.00

Worth Highest Quality Tenor LowG Ukulele Strings 2 Sets $16.50 Time Remaining: 29d 2h 23m Buy It Now for only: $16.50

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