A ukulele I am utterly delighted to be able to bring you this week. This is the limited edition Kala 20th Anniversary Pan Pacific Deluxe Soprano Ukulele. Hubba Hubba.
I first learned about these from a video Alex Beds made at the Southern Ukulele Store when he visited the Kala stand at NAMM this year and I was immediately spellbound at an instrument that ticks all my boxes. This is the 20th year for Kala and this is one of a few ukes that they decided to put out to celebrate that milestone. Now.. BIAS alert. I LOVE soprano ukes and even more so I adore the old vintage style models that hark back to the earliest days of the instrument. And with that in mind it's hard for me to avoid that bias in my review, but I will try!
SUMMARY VIDEO REVIEW
So, as I say, after 20 years in ukes Mike Upton wanted to put some special models out to mark the big birthday. This soprano is actually one of a pair (specifically this is the KA-F8D-KOA-S), with the other being a very similar 'non-deluxe' version called the KA-F8-KOA-S. I have both with me, but my review scoring will be messed up if I try to do a double header. Fear not though, in my video review I do play both and explain the differences as I do in this write up. These are made from some solid Hawaiian koa sets Mike acquired over a decade ago and was waiting to find a use for (more on that later). And nice sets they are judging by the ones i've seen. This is an all solid koa ukulele in a very vintage figure of eight style with a pinched waist that immediately screams of the earliest luthier builds such as by Nunes and Dias that came about after the instrument arrived across the Atlantic. Now, wood is variable and I have to say that as pretty as this one is (with some lovely shimmery stripe in the faces) some are more shimmery than this! Blame that man Alex B who weeded out the best of the bunch for SUS!! Still, this is quite beautiful with a warm orange glow that I am very taken with and some great stripy shimmer in the top particularly. There are other ukes that have gone with this vintage styling and whilst it would probably be wrong to compare a brand like Kala to bespoke luthier builders, my mind does go back to the Ohana SK-28. I did like that model, but on looks of the body the Kala wins hands down for me and makes the Ohana look like a cheap imitation. For the record on the wood, I see that the standards are listed as 'premium Hawaiian koa' and the Deluxe as 'high figure master grade Hawaiian koa'. That suggests that you will get more interest on the Deluxe, but from images I have seen of the standards, they are hardly shabby either!
The bridge is a very traditional and simple slot style which is in great shape. Saying that, a bit of chamfering of the edges would have been nice, but maybe I am applying modern finishing expectations to a vintage styled uke. This deluxe version gets ebony whereas the standard gets rosewood if such things matter to you. That holds a straight topped bone saddle and a string spacing of 39mm.
Both versions of the soprano are decorated, but the deluxe version gets a bit of extra trim. What we have is a Nunes style rope inlay (in maple and rosewood) around the sound hole with an inner and outer ring on both instruments, but the deluxe gets extra rope binding around the top of the body and mahogany binding to the top and back. I like both, but have to say that the deluxe really does the 'heritage look' justice more fully. I love these bindings and inlay, and they are perfectly suited here. And despite Kala being a largely 'factory' brand this feels like anything but a factory finish. It's a poly gloss rather than something truly vintage like a shellac, but it's been done open pore and not buffed to flat mirror. It gives it a vintage hand made feel which again I think really suits the uke.
Inside is largely tidy (bit of glue seepage) and has notched linings and regular looking braces. It's also really lightly built with thin tonewoods, very much like the old Hawaiian models were. That bodes very well for projection and resonance.
The neck is made of okoume with an obvious heel joint and an incredibly well hidden headstock one. That's a reliable wood I guess, and expecting a fully koa instrument may have been a request too much. The specs don't suggest a vintage style dovetail or violin style joint (and there is no button on the back piece) so I'm presuming a regular joint. Whilst it tapers to a slightly skinnier nut that I usually want I always point out the combo between width and profile is also helpful to my hands. Thankfully, the back profile here is quite squashed and flattened so I find it comfortable. The width comes in at 35mm and spacing of about 28mm which is not the skinniest you will find anyway. It's glossed which, if honest, I would prefer satin. Very easy to tone that down with fine wire wool if you are so minded.
The fingerboard on the deluxe is ebony (the standard gets rosewood) and is in great condition. Thankfully this finishes flush to the body top in true vintage style which is a great touch. Naturally you get 12 frets stopping at the join and they are dressed very nicely and the board is edge bound too. You get no outward markers (fine with me!) but you do get side dots at the 5th, 7th and 10th. It would have been nice I guess to get some rope down the fingerboard as a final deluxe flourish but we can't have everything.
Beyond the bone nut is a crown headstock (of course) but not quite the usual Kala shape - here they have straightened the sides vintage style which works to great effect. That's also faced in figured koa. What also harks of those instruments of old is one of my favourite things about it - the logo! For these, Kala have developed a brand new logo for the Pan Pacifics which bears the brand name and an image of arm wrestlers in a kind of 'coat of arms' style. In what was news to me, Petaluma California, where the Kala HQ is, was once the arm (or wrist) wrestling capital of the world, and that's what it represents. It's quirky and fun whilst not 'copying' the older instrument logos directly gives a feel of them. I absolutely love it.
The tuners are great too. These are Der Jung planetary pegs which are, in my experience, comparable with Gotoh UPTs. Had they NOT put rear facing pegs on this model I would have cried, so I am delighted to see these. I use these pegs on other ukes of my own, but have not seen them with these tiny buttons before. These work so well on that scaled down headstock so it doesn't feel busy or cramped. On the deluxe the metal hardware is gold, and on the standard it's silver. That's no biggie of a difference.
Finishing it off are a set of Savarez fluoro strings and a branded gig bag made just for these bearing the same logo and coming with a lovely looking red interior. And the price... well this is where I thought there was some mistake. There is a lot to price up here, not least that wonderful koa, but the standard version is only £299. Even better the Deluxe only adds thirty quid, so £329 for this is just nuts in value in my view. Kala UK tell me that because Mike bought the wood sets long ago at a much cheaper cost he wanted to pass that on to customers and has done so. When I saw the first prototypes of these I honestly thought they would be pushing £500. I'm astounded.
The snag? Well they are super limited and I strongly suspect by the time this goes live they may have all been sold. Simply put, there were only so many koa sets in the stash to use up and there is no more. So why the review? Well I think it's important to document things like this and give credit where credit is due to a brand. Of course, there is also the used market so I hope this review helps with that. But in a final 'you heard it here first', Kala UK tell me that whilst there will not be more of these in koa, they are planning to put out an all solid mahogany version as a 'non limited' model. Great news!
In recognition of my bias I have pointed out what I would change (satin the neck, rope binding down the fingerboard) but these are tiny points. I adore this look just fine and was impressed from the moment I first opened the bag. Of course, this is just looks and build though, so we have to hope it doesn't let me down on the play...
Set up out of the box was excellent so no concerns on the front, but it did come from the brand direct. Saying that i've always found Kala setups to be decent regardless. It's really nice and light to hold at only 335g (the standard is the same) and sits in the hands very well. It's a diminutive little thing, but then the original instruments taken to Hawaii were exactly that!
Basics first and I am quite particular about my sopranos. I want them to have punch and projection as they are, predominantly a percussive instrument. And this delivers in spades. Great volume and bark without much effort at all. Sustain isn't half bad either, something I always say is less pronounced on a soprano with the lack of top real estate. But I'm impressed here - theres a lasting ring as good as most others i've played.
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| The Deluxe next to the Standard version |
Now for the tone. Well, of course koa is rich in tone across the range. I actually like my sopranos to be made of mahogany as that more one dimensional woody tone suits the percussive nature of the sound for me. Add to that the fact that sopranos can sound bright by their very nature and I like how mahogany pares that back a little. But it would be churlish to suggest koa has no place in the soprano scale when we have such wonders as the Kamaka sopranos which are true delights. Here there is terrific richness from that koa which gives it a shimmery warble as it harmonises with itself. Strummed it's got the rhythmical bounce that I want from a soprano, but with lots of character which is extremely pleasing (and far nicer sounding than you'd expect from the price!).
Fingerpicking is accurate and just as pretty and throw in some strums to your melody and you are away. Again it's a rich interesting tone played this way and it projects with little effort.
Fingerpicking is accurate and just as pretty and throw in some strums to your melody and you are away. Again it's a rich interesting tone played this way and it projects with little effort.
I said last year when things like the Kala Contours and the Revelator family arrived that I felt that Kala had turned a welcomed corner in getting themselves up to date and applauded them for it. Whilst this is clearly a vintage inspired ukulele it still marks Kala shaking things up for the future and it's great to see them creating yet another buzz in the uke world (i've seen little else talked about in some corners). Sure, I'm biased with vintage style sopranos but trust me - this is a great looking, well finished and great sounding soprano ukulele for a stupidly good price. What I particularly like is this is just not a common or garden Kala template with some rope decor added to it just so they could tick a box of having a vintage model. It's clearly been developed from a clean sheet of paper which gives it a more unique feel. And I am so pleased they did that.
If not immediately obvious, this is very highly recommended if you come across one - and if you can't, keep your ear to the ground on the hog versions or the used market! A cracker that's put a huge smile on my face.
Oh, and I must say - it's particularly refreshing to see a rush for a soprano. You know it makes sense! The TRUE uke scale!!
UKULELE SPECS ROUNDUP
Model: Kala Pan Pacific Deluxe (KA-F8D-KOA)
Scale: Soprano
Body: Solid Koa
Bridge: Ebony
Saddle: Bone
Spacing at saddle: 39mm
Finish: Open pore gloss
Neck: Okoume
Fingerboard: Ebony, flush to body
Frets: 12
Nut: Bone
Nut width: 35mm, 28mm G to A
Tuners: Savarez Fluoro
Extras: Gig bag
Weight: 335g
Country of origin: China
Price: £329
UKULELE PROS
Gorgeous looks
Very light faithful build
Great vintage feel finish
Love that logo!
Great tuners
Terrific punchy volume
Good sustain
Rich shimmery tone
UKULELE CONS
Maybe a satin neck?
UKULELE SCORES
Looks - 9.5 out of 10
Fit and finish - 9 out of 10
Sound - 9.5 out of 10
Value for money - 10 out of 10
OVERALL UKULELE SCORE - 9.5 out of 10
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Lovely looking and sounding instrument. Kala often get a bit of bad press but every so often they come up with some really great instruments. A friend recently bought a Revelator Tenor which is superb. Some years ago I picked up a secondhand KA-ASOV-S (spruce top and ovangkol back and sides) for an absolute bargain price and, to be honest, despite the more modern look, it's just a dream to play and it looks good too. Well done Kala, do more of this!
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