Aklot Acousto-Electric Ukulele Review

Aklot Acousto-Electric Ukulele Review

Buy it at Amazon: Aklot Acousto-Electric Ukulele [Affiliate Link]

Takeaway: Great starter uke, sounds beautiful, acousto-electric version best of both worlds.

This ukulele comes with a bunch of accessories: a fabric carrying case, a neck strap, an extra set of nylon strings, both a felt and a plastic pick, a microfiber polishing cloth, and a starter booklet. The body of it is made from solid mahogany that is both beautiful and durable. The fret board and bridge are nicely constructed and sturdy. This is my first ukulele and not really having that much experience with stringed instruments before (I play the piano) I wanted the get something that was good for beginners. The "electric" version was a great option because it also functions as an acoustic uke. It also has a built-in tuner which is super easy to use. The instrument came with two CR2032 coin cell batteries which are installed next tot he 1/4" output jack (face down in the receptacle). This powers both the onboard tuner and the pre-amp for using the ukulele as an electric instrument with an amplifier or PA system. The sound, either way, is quite good with clear, warm tones. The action is supposed to be "low," though without having any basis of comparison, I still found it a bit of a challenge in the beginning to press the strings down all the way against the fret board to make a clear note (without buzzing). Perhaps it's just an issue of finger strength though since I'm not used to playing it yet.

Tuning the ukulele for the first time went quickly and the tuner LCD turns a nice bright green so you know when you've hit the sweet spot. I did find with the new strings I had to end up tuning the strings, especially the 'C' and 'A' string every few minutes because the nylon string would stretch and the note would go flat. But with the worm-drive tuning pegs I didn't have to worry about the strings loosening on their own from lost tension. It took about a week for the strings to settle, and now I only have to tweak the tuning a little before practicing/playing. Although the ukulele has pre-installed strap buttons for an over the shoulder strap, the included strap doesn't actually used them; instead it wraps around the bottom of the uke and hooks into the sound hole, so it would work with ukes without the strap buttons too.

The little starter booklet was helpful in understanding how to read the ukulele tabs, which is very different from the sheet music that I'm used to. The instructional videos on the Aklot website basically go through the instruction booklet tips. It's helpful for a first-timer, despite the robotic voiceover and the poor English grammar, sentence structure, and word usage. The videos/booklet certainly could be better executed, but they're short and worth a read/watch. It took a couple hours of practice to get the hang of strumming vs plucking and getting the fingering down for a few basic chords, but I can get through the booklet's beginner songs like Twinkle Twinkle Little Star and Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer without much difficulty. One thing to note is that if you want to use the ukulele with an amp/speaker remember to turn off the tuner. The sound will not transmit through the cable (not included) if the the tuner is on. You can also adjust the bass, middle, and treble range output from the tuner control panel when using it as an electric uke. The amp is a great way to have a concert with a large gathering or play outdoors because it can produce the sounds much louder, but I like that you can switch to acoustic for more intimate settings and practice sessions.

Overall, for my first ukulele purchase, I'm completely satisfied with the product so far. The instrument sounds great, feels nicely constructed, and is fun to play.

Buy it at Amazon: Aklot Acousto-Electric Ukulele [Affiliate Link]