Review Details

Gretsch 9120 - Mahogany Tenor Ukulele Package

Product Rating:

Product Review (submitted on October 10, 2013):

I really enjoy playing my Gretsch 9120.
The intonation on the Gretsch is excellent. On mine, I have a ding in on the 10th fret of the G string. So, that D is a little hard to play. However, I regularly play all way to the 12th fret and it sounds clear and clean all the way there.
In comparison to more expensive ukuleles it is not loud. However, that was a plus for me. In the time that I have owned my Gretsch it has opened up to be a fuller brighter sound. This happened when I started tuning with tuning folks instead of electric tuners. So, I do not know if it is a results of me learning to tune my instrument better of whether is has to do with the wood opening up by using a tuning folk. In either case that instrument has the potential to have these full beautiful bell like tones.
I live in the Philippines, where we have 6% humidity in the dry season followed immediately with 94% humidity. The change wreaks havoc on all instruments here. So, even though the Gretsch 9120 has a plywood body, I would still recommend using a humidity control system in your case. You are going to love this instrument and of course you are going to want to protect it.
One of the best experiences about buying this ukulele from Hawaiian Ukulele Supply is that they had a beginner’s package that they offered me. It had a Uke Crazy Case and a book called Play Ukulele Today. I am really thankful to the sales person for directing me to it, because I really enjoyed learning from this book. I had learned a lot from the Internet, but the book filled in a lot of the information that I was missing.
I tried a low G on the Gretsch and went back to the high G. It sound much better with the high G. This instrument is not meant to play with a low G. If you want a low G tuning buy a more robust instrument. The tuners are not strong enough and the body is not strong enough for the low G string even if you are using Aquila Red strings. The Gretsch really sings with the high G tuning. It is designed for it. With the high G tuning it produces an angelic sound.
The Gretsch 9120 has a plywood body. The fret makers are painted on. On my Gretsch there are rough spots on the neck where it was not buffed out properly. None of this affects the playability of the instrument. If you want a solid body you are looking for the Gretsch 9120 SM. The SM also has the beautiful inlayed fret markers.