Ukulele is one of my favorite instruments to play. They have such a beautiful voice – a sweet, full, vibrant tone. I feel the Hawaiian vibe it delivers, and that is the best sensation. But for some people, this sweet and kind of soft sound cannot be enough. Sometimes you might still want to get traditional sound, but with more power and edge to it. That is exactly why electric ukuleles were invented. You get the original tone as well as the electrified one. In this article I will give you general information about electric ukuleles and how do they differ from the original one. I made some research into this matter and prepared a list of best electric ukuleles that are available on the market today. Here goes the list. Enjoy.
Top 5 Best Electric Ukulele
| Image | Ukulele Model | ||
|---|---|---|---|
 | Oscar Schmidt OU2E Mahogany Concert Acoustic-Electric Ukulele Bundle |  (4.9 / 5) | Check on Amazon |
 | Cordoba 20TM Tenor Cutaway Acoustic-Electric Ukulele Bundle |  (4.8 / 5) | Check on Amazon |
 | Epiphone Les Paul Acoustic/Electric Ukulele | (4.8 / 5) | Check on Amazon |
 | Luna Tattoo Mahogany Acoustic-Electric Concert Ukulele Bundle |  (4.7 / 5) | Check on Amazon |
 | Kulana Deluxe Soprano Ukulele |  (4.6 / 5) | Check on Amazon |
Oscar Schmidt OU2E Mahogany Concert Acoustic-Electric Ukulele Bundle
Oscar Schmidt OU2E Mahogany Concert Acoustic-Electric Ukulele Bundle is definitely what you were looking for if you are just starting out in music. The instrument comes in an all-inclusive package, so once you get it you will be able to rock out. Plus, additional accessories usually cost a lot of money, so if you are on a budget, fully packed bundles undoubtedly are things to look for. The pack includes Gig Bag, Austin Bazaar Instructional DVD, Clip-On Tuner, and Polishing Cloth. They are all very much needed and useful. The instrument’s body is made of mahogany, which enables for the full and sweet sound. A thin neck, with a rosewood fingerboard, enables for easy and fast playing. The instrument’s design is very minimalistic and natural, with satin finish. Oscar Schmidt OU2E Mahogany Concert Acoustic-Electric Ukulele features active pickup system, so it will stay in tune for a long time. This instrument has surely a lot to offer for such a budget-friendly price.
Pros:
- Easy to use electronics
- Comfortable
- Bargain deal
Cons:
- Not the best gig bag
- Not the smoothest fretboard
Cordoba 20TM Tenor Cutaway Acoustic-Electric Ukulele Bundle
Cordoba never ceases to amaze us with how well it can combine affordability and high-quality craftsmanship, together with amazing sound and impressive look. The instrument’s aesthetics are truly work of art. Cordoba uses Portuguese ornamentation and exotic woods to create an exquisite design. The instrument is fully handmade. Pretty impressive huh? The mahogany body adds full tone of a tenor uke to the instrument. It has slim neck, with a rosewood fingerboard that delivers easy playability. The instrument has nice hardware, so will hold the tune pretty well. Aquila Nylgut strings add more clarity and vibrancy to the tone. Cordoba 20TM Tenor Cutaway Acoustic-Electric Ukulele comes in all-inclusive package, so you get all the necessary accessories – Hard Case, Tuner, Austin Bazaar Instructional DVD, and Polishing Cloth. Additional accessories generally cost a lot so this package is undoubtedly a great deal for the price.
Pros:
- Easy to use electronics
- Great tonewood
- Good volume and balanced tone
- Quality hard case
Cons:
- If you are a beginner this might be a bit pricey for you
- Instructional DVD is not really helpful
Epiphone Les Paul Acoustic/Electric Ukulele
| Build Quality: | |
| Hardware: | |
| Electronics: | |
| Sound: | |
| Value: | |
| Average: | |
Even though I can’t take you somewhere over and beyond the rainbow, I can definitely promise to take you to the places you’ve never been before. Every instrument is a journey – some are more interesting, and others are dull. But we can’t deny that every new ukulele is an adventure filled with new experiences, feelings and lessons. What if I told you that there’s one particular model that will always brighten even the most lackluster days? What if I told you that it’s called Epiphone Les Paul Outfit? – I guess you’d jump from excitement (at least I would). Nope, it’s not a shrunken version of the legendary guitar – it’s simply a transformed version! I don’t think it will be surprising but Les Paul sounds extremely beautiful in the ukulele body. This particular model has promising features, including a mahogany body with AAA flame maple top and okoume neck. Les Paul Outfit is a concert size with 15” of scale length. It’s an acoustic-electric model, i.e. it’s powerful as hell. Listen to it unplugged and then plug it in and you’ll see how a single ukulele can transform right in front of you. This little beast gains so much strength that it could even throw you over the rainbow!
Pros:
- Beautiful design (like a true Les Paul)
- Powerful, impressive sound
- Durable
Cons:
- You might want to replace the strings
- Doesn’t have a volume control
Luna Tattoo Mahogany Acoustic-Electric Concert Ukulele Bundle
The incredible uke surely delivers the most authentic vibe of Hawaii. If you look at its aesthetics you can feel the mark of Hawaiian traditions, and history on the body. Not only does it look good, but sounds good as well. The body of this uke is made of select mahogany, so delivers a nice, full tone, both plugged or unplugged. The body of this uke is covered in lots of tattoos. The engraved drawings are based on waves and sharks’ teeth which are also echoed as fret markers. The symbols have sea theme. The strong geometric pattern of black tattoos on brown skin will impress anyone who sees and plays this amazing uke. The instrument rarely goes out of tune. This uke comes in all-inclusive pack, so the minute you get it you will be equipped with all the needed accessories. Luna Tattoo Mahogany Acoustic-Electric Concert Ukulele will produce nice sound in a budget-friendly package. The exotic design of this beautiful uke surely will teleport you somewhere on an island, or on any kind of adventure. We would definitely recommend you to give it a shot.
Pros:
- Beautiful design
- Good sound
- Durable gig bag
Cons:
- Action might be low
- Tuning issues (but it is pretty common with a lot of ukuleles in the beginning)
Kulana Deluxe Soprano Ukulele
When picking the perfect instrument to enjoy for years to come, having numerous options is important. Your taste in musical instruments often depends first on how they look and then how they sound, especially if you are a beginner in the musical world. Which is why it is nice to have two versions of the same exact model easily available. The Kulana Deluxe Soprano Ukulele is a a nice little piece of electric ukulele that you could pick up for less than 50, which on its own is amazing. Though the manufacturer kicks it up a notch, offering you two tonewood variations: the traditional mahogany or the more exotic zebrawood. Both options sound great, through the mahogany has a tendency to sound a little better than the zebrawood, sacrificing the unique looks which would attract the first time buyer. The rest of the ukulele is pretty much traditional, with pre-installed strings and the nut/saddle/bone all being nicely made. Picking this option up will also land you a nice gig bag. A good option for beginner Ukulele players looking for an easy, affordable electric ukulele.
Pros:
- Choice of tonewood
- Easy to use electronics
- Great sound for the price
Cons:
- Not the best nut material
- Sharp frets
If you are a beginner, you might get confused by looking at ukuleles. They look like mini guitars. Well, I certainly got a bit confused the first time I saw this instrument. We cannot be blamed for thinking like this. In reality, ukulele has almost nothing similar to guitar. They are different in size, the principle of operations and generally how the instrument behaves. Guitar has a completely different tuning from uke. So, if you know how to play the guitar it will not be a big of a help in playing uke. You will know generally how to position hand, or usual strumming patterns, but the chords and everything else is completely different, so you will need to start from the very beginning. Ukulele has four strings, whilst guitar has 6 and its standard tuning is G – C – E – A. Each string has a different key, so the guitar chord will be useless here. Ukes sound differs from guitar sound a lot, it is softer in some ways and less powerful lacks volume but surely has clarity. You can find four sizes of ukuleles. From smallest to biggest the order will go like this: Soprano, Concert, Tenor, Baritone. I will describe each one of them briefly. They differ from each other with sound, power etc. The biggest is the most powerful and has more of a guitarlike sound, whilst the smallest has pure, authentic ukulele sound.
When we say electric ukuleles, it can mean three different types of ukuleles.
Solid Body Electric – Which can be described as an electric guitar of a uke size.
Electro-Acoustic – Which we will describe in details in the article.
Acoustic w/ Pickup – is primarily designed to sound best acoustically – a hollow-body ukulele with an added piezo pickups.
Electric ukulele explained
So, what exactly are these electric ukuleles? I surely had that question the minute I heard such kind of instrument existed? Well… let me explain. Electric ukuleles are just original ukes that are amplified. They sound normal when you unplug from the amp. If you add passive pickups to any kind of traditional uke, you will get electric-acoustic one. The same method is used in making electric-acoustic guitars. Those ukuleles are generally equipped with nylon strings. These kinds of ukuleles mainly go for the look of metal-strung electric guitar. Electric ukuleles come in the same four standard sizes as acoustic ukuleles. So, the main aim of electro-acoustic ukuleles is to produce the most authentic, traditional sound of a uke, when unplugged and add more power and edge of an electric to it when connected to amp.
When talking about ukuleles, we need to explain things that affect its overall performance most of all. The material of top affects the instrument’s sound most of all. Ukes can be made of lots of materials, but the most popular among them are Koa, Mahogany and Spruce.The sound is also affected with the material being laminated or solid. The origin of koa is Hawaii, so Hawaiian ukes are generally made of it. The sound produced by koa is nice and sweet. Ukes crafted with koa are generally very expensive. As for the Mahogany, generally it is less expensive, so perfect if you are looking for an affordable instrument. The sound it delivers is a bit softer than Koa. The spruce produces a nice, full, vibrant tone. It is generally used on the lower end ukuleles. As I have told you, material can be laminated or solid. Solid material means that the whole top is of a very high-quality wood, consequently the sound is more authentic, full and sweeter. Solid wood is expensive. Laminated wood is a much cheaper version. In this case cheaper wood is used on the inside one, thin layer of nice wood is used on the outside. It affects the look but not the sound, at all. So definitely go for the solid one.
Conclusion
To sum up this article, I have given you the general information about electric ukuleles. Now you surely have idea about the differences between the original uke and the electric one. I also gave you the list of best electric ukuleles available on the market today. Even though original ukuleles have amazing, sweet voices, sometimes it cannot be enough. You might want to get the soft and full tone it produces, but with more power and edge of electric. That is exactly why electric uke can be a perfect solution. They have the soft, traditional side of ukes as well as growling, modern of and electric. Those two sides are combined in the best way possible, so if you want to get 2 in 1, go for the electric uke. Hope the article was helpful and you made up your mind about which model to get. Wish you all the best of luck.
