Got to help my friend Lee pick out a professional quality ukulele today. We ended up in the largest ukulele shop on the island, Ukulele Pua Pua in the Pac Beach Hotel. The neat thing was that we were able to compare top ukulele makes & models side-by-side (A/B testing.) Brands included Kamaka, KoAloha, Kanile’a, G-String, Keli’i, & Ko’olau. My favorite? I was surprised that it wasn’t even close. KoAloha was by far, the best sounding uke in the store. Being a traditionalist, I’ve always been a Kamaka guy. KoAloha had the best tone, volume, balance, and resonance. Here is a link to the KoAloha website. You can get a “factory 2nd” for $200 off of the retail price (or $750 for the absolutely best tenor uke around.) I may pull the trigger on one soon….