Strings - a beginner's debacle

I bought my ukulele in March, 2012. I didn't know anything about ukuleles except I wanted one and I recently had come upon enough money to buy one. When I walked into the store, I was carrying my sleeping child, and therefore didn't even play any of the selection. The salesman gave me a quick run over of the different types of ukes, I grabbed the one that sounded the best that he played, felt the neck to see if it was comfortable in my hand, and that was just about it.

I have loved the sound my ukulele makes, and around Christmas of 2013, I began thinking that I should probably get new strings. They aren't expensive, and they make the instrument sound so much cleaner and crisper. It was silly to have waited so long, right?

I went to my local music store (not the same store I bought my Cordoba denty face) and asked if they had concert ukulele strings. He looked at me and said, "those are just normal strings, right?" Um... sure? I assume so. He grabbed the first thing he saw, handed them to me for $6, and that was the end of it.

I'll just skip to the lessons learned in my experience.

1) When buying strings, Soprano and Concert ukuleles generally use the same strings (it's the high G tuning). Tenor ukuleles typically use a low G, and bass ukuleles are tuned like a guitar. So make sure you buy appropriate strings for your respective instrument. It's important.

2) Make sure you get strings that are standard tuning: G, C, E, A. It turns out the guy grabbed strings that were tuned a full step up than standard tuning: A, D, F#, B. You can still tune these strings to standard, but they sound dull and are super loose.

3) Make sure you double check the color of your strings. I spend enough time posting my silly videos that I've grown fairly accustomed to my bright white strings. I ended up getting clear nylon strings, which are difficult to see, especially when you're not using a real video camera.

4) Youtube has many, many videos on changing strings, but there aren't solid videos on how to tie that knot on the bridge of the uke. Trial and error. Just make sure that knot is tied properly before you cut the excess string off or you'll eventually pull the knot out and have a significantly shorter string.

So anyways, I'l buying new strings because I'm disappointed with the ones I did get. If anyone out in the world wants to be string brothers/sisters, I'm going with Aquila, Standard C tuning (AQU-AQ-S ). I have heard good reviews on these strings, and will have to keep my fingers crossed that they meet my needs. Here is hoping.

Once I receive them, I'll post a video on how I changed strings for anyone in the same boat.

It's important to get new strings often enough, but after an experience like I had, I'm wondering if I'll ever get new strings again! Kidding. I just now know a few things about what not to buy. I'm confident I'll make different mistakes in the future.

Tuning your ukulele, and the best way to do it

I have probably mentioned this before, but it needs to be reiterated constantly. If your ukulele is out of tune, it sounds absolutely dreadful. You might not know this, but I bet you do! There is a very fine balance between a perfectly in-tune ukulele and a slightly off key one. The problem is, if it doesn't sound right, you're going to think you aren't very good, get discouraged, quit, and then I won't have anyone reading my blog anymore.

Assuming anyone reads this.

Also assuming anyone would be so rash as to give up playing the ukulele. Silly Spoon.

Tuning is the essential beginner function, important way beyond any other fundamental you'll ever learn because you HAVE TO HAVE A TUNED ukulele.

Click to buy!

There are a number of ways to get in tune, but my highest recommendation is a tuner that you can carry with you anywhere you go, like a clip on tuner seen here. This will give you a perfectly tuned uke every time. G, C, E and A.

But let's say you don't want to get the fancy thing, there are other ways. Do you have a piano? Do you know the notes on your piano? Find middle C, G, E and A. Simple enough. Play the note, get your strings to sound the same.

Tuning fork? That's complicated, but quite doable.

If you have a smart phone, there are many different tuners out there that will mimic the sound (kind of like tuning with a piano), but not as good as something that will dial in the actual note you're playing (like the clip on tuner I mentioned - the Lanikai CO-UT Clip-on Ukulele Electronic Tuner).

So there you have it. The best way to tune your ukulele is to have a tuner. I said it. I'll post a video of how I like to tune my ukulele.

That's all for now.