Review Details

Pono Mahogany Tenor (MT 6587)

Product Rating:

Product Review (submitted on November 5, 2012):

I have an Islander concert with laminate mahogany that has nice tone for the price point. When HMS' sale came up on its popular models, I jumped at the chance to get a solid mahogany ukulele.

I liked the look and reputation of Pono and my playing can't justify a Ko'olau yet, so I took a chance on the MT. I was not disappointed. The uke has a lovely warmth and mellowness that is a nice contrast to the brightness of koa. I changed the strings to Worth clears with a low G on the endorsement of Andrew (thanks again) and I find that it enhances what makes the tone of mahogany so appealing.

I ordered the uke with a Pono passive pickup installed and played it clean through a Vox AC4TV for fun. No problems, just nice, clean tone. Good for playing softer stuff by John Mayer, Jason Mraz, Bruno Mars, etc. Hawaiian songs still sound good, but just not as bright.

The finish and quality of construction is very high as you might expect where the final setup is done on O'ahu at Ko'olau. I have looked over the uke thoroughly and cannot find any flaws. I find the fret ends not as comfortable as on my Keli'i ukes, but that's just a matter of preference.

Since it is a solid uke, it comes with a free humidifier courtesy of HMS. Hard to find service where the company continues to answer questions after the sale like Andrew did with me. I have no hesitation recommending this ukulele and definitely recommend purchasing from HMS. For context, this is the third instrument I have bought from HMS and had delivered to Canada.