OK, yes, 2025 was a ukulele year I wanted more focus on the value end of the scale. But it is now December and we all need a treat ahead of Christmas don't we? This is the Kiwaya KPT-F Tenor.
Kiwaya are a Japanese brand that I have reviewed many times before, but mainly in their more common soprano varieties. They've always done extremely well on here and exude that trademark Japanese precision and quality to their builds. I love them myself, and freely admit that sounds a bit biased from the off, but.. just look at this one... WOW.
SUMMARY VIDEO REVIEW
The KPT-F Tenor is a very high end ukulele that you are not going to see many of as World of Ukes, who lent me this had to beg to get it! Kiwaya actually have a few brand names, with many of their instruments being sold in Japan under the 'Famous' brand, and 'Kiwaya'' being used for the western market. At the high end of their ranges they also have a series under the 'Peerless' brand name available mainly in Japan. And, this IS one of their Peerless models, but... made for the UK market so carries the Kiwaya name. Still with me? Good.. let's just say - 'it's a very high end one'...
Naturally this is an all solid wood tenor in a traditional (i.e. not exaggerated) double bout shape. I think that suits it. The soli d body woods here are all Honduran Rosewood. Which is just staggering to look at. You don't see a great many rosewood ukes, but I sense the reason for that is because it is ruddy expensive! It is, though, a nice tone wood, used by some high end guitar makers. This has a gorgeous red / brown glow and interesting grain that is nicely matched in the pairs of the set. Just stunning and a real head turner for this alone.
Naturally this is an all solid wood tenor in a traditional (i.e. not exaggerated) double bout shape. I think that suits it. The soli d body woods here are all Honduran Rosewood. Which is just staggering to look at. You don't see a great many rosewood ukes, but I sense the reason for that is because it is ruddy expensive! It is, though, a nice tone wood, used by some high end guitar makers. This has a gorgeous red / brown glow and interesting grain that is nicely matched in the pairs of the set. Just stunning and a real head turner for this alone.
The bridge is a tie bar with an intriguing asymmetric shape and interesting kind of dish effect below the saddle. The wood was not specified on the spec but I am wagering that this is ebony. It's extremely nicely finished and smooth. That holds a straight topped bone saddle and gives you a spacing of 41mm.
The decor was always going to be a bit blingy being a high end instrument, but rather like the Kala last week, I don't find the abalone purfling here to be too much, rather that it suits the darker body. That's trimmed in black and repeated for the sound hole rosette. Pairing that on the top and back is maple binding which gives a great contrast and adds to the special look with the back losing the abalone, but keeping the black purfling edge. It's then finished in gloss which is flawless to my eye and makes the wood grain of the rosewood shimmer and shine. Lovely.
Inside is extremely tidy with notched linings and thin braces with nicely curved tops. The lower bout of the top is vertically braced as you can see.
The neck is made of mahogany and is glossed. Yes, I would prefer satin, but this is a show off uke and i'm not wholly surprised to see this. I guess another surprise is the obvious heel joint which does stand out to me visually, but do bear in mind there is no technical reason why that is 'wrong'. I do like these wider squat heels though. What I also adore is the shallow nut profile and 37mm nut width and 29mm spacing which is extremely comfortable. Many Kiwaya ukes are like that and it's one of the things that suit me down to the ground with the brand.
That is topped with more ebony for the fingerboard which is in wonderful condition, ultra smooth and has nice end shaping and slightly rolled edges. It's not edge bound but the dressing of the very traditional skinny almost bar style frets is immaculate all the way up the neck. You get 18 of those joined at the 14th. Abalone dot position markers face out with a larger single at the third, double at the fifth, triple at the 7th, double at the 10th, a P marker at the 12th and a double 15th. That P marker is the P from the Peerless brand logo linking this model to the true roots and looks great. In fact they all do and add another layer of interest to the uke. Naturally they are paired on the side. Some people saw the pictures and thought this was a radiused neck and even to my eye it looks a bit like that. It's not in the specs though and if there is a radius it's extremely shallow. Answers on a postcard...
Beyond the bone nut is an asymmetric headstock faced in what I think may be maple, stained in a greyish blue which looks wonderful. The Kiwaya logo is inlaid in pearl at the top.
Also top end are the tuners with set of gold hardware Gotoh UPT's. These are just flawless and come with the vintage style keystone shaped black buttons which add more pizazz. Also on the back is the stamped serial number and your notification that it is made in Japan.
It is finished with a set of Worth Brown strings and an excellent quality fully hard case to cosset the beauty. But you just know this ain't going to be cheap. Rosewood isn't cheap. Ebony isn't cheap. Gotoh pegs are not cheap. Being made in Japan is not cheap.. So this will set you back a cool £2,799.... That is a lot of money. I can see where the money is on this one, but bear in mind just what a range of ukes that price will open up to you (largely anything at all!). That makes it a very specialist purchase indeed!
But still, I can't find anything wrong here. It looks wonderful, the build and finish are wonderful and the whole thing oozes class. UTTER class. The set up is impeccable to, but you'd expect that from World of Ukes. Rosewood is a heavy wood, as is ebony for that matter and you do feel it on this. It's an 800g instrument which isn't cumbersome, but you will find lighter tenors. Still, it feels re-assuring and balances nicely.
Tone wise, Rosewood is known for it's sustain, complexity and overtones with pronounced bass and trebles. What I do find with Kiwaya instruments generally too is that they are quite laid back and not instruments that bark or wake the dead - more instruments for introspective play. That's not to say quiet, but just not in your face. It's the case here on the volume which is much more subtle. You'd not take it for a thrash in the local pub (though I doubt anyone would take a near three grand instrument to do that!), so it's more for relaxing with or close mic recording. What is absolutely lovely though is the shimmery sustain which warbles and sounds like more than one instrument is being played as it harmonises back with itself. Complex indeed!
Strumming it is a real joy with tonnes of character and interest to the notes as they overlap and work with each other. In fact it's one of the most characterful sounding instruments I've come across. Yes, you need to dig in a bit to get the volume up, but I'm not sure that's really the point of it. It's a naturally jangly sound, but with a warmth to the shimmer which is extremely pleasing.
Fingerpicking is bell like in clarity and extremely pretty making it a joy to listen to. Throw in some accompanying strums to your tunes and you are in heaven. And all this on a neck which is super comfortable to play on. I could play this for hours. Again, it's laid back and you may need a bit of effort but it's so pretty. And on the projection point - bear in mind this is a brand new instrument. That wood needs to open up over time which may well change things the more it is played.
I said at the top that Kiwaya are built with precision and this is no exception. A wonderful build, and wonderful details and finish on an extremely classy looking package. A charming complex tone that makes for a very VERY serious ukulele purchase if you have the funds.
Very highly recommended.
UKULELE SPECS ROUNDUP
Model: Kiwaya KPT-F
Scale: Tenor
Body: All solid Honduran rosewood
Bridge: Ebony, tie bar
Saddle: Bone
Spacing at saddle: 41mm
Finish: Gloss
Neck: Mahogany
Fingerboard: Ebony
Frets: 18, 14 to body
Nut: Bone
Nut width: 37mm, 29mm G to A
Tuners: Gotoh UPT
Strings: Worth Brown
Extras: Hard case
Weight: 800g
Country of origin: Japan
Price: £2,799
UKULELE PROS
Ultra classy looks
Great build and finish
Great tuners
Amazing sustain with huge character and shimmer
Laid back but very pretty tone
UKULELE CONS
Nah
UKULELE SCORES
Looks - 9.5 out of 10
Fit and finish - 9.5 out of 10
Sound - 9 out of 10
Value for money - 9 out of 10
OVERALL UKULELE SCORE - 9.3 out of 10
UKULELE VIDEO REVIEW
Excellent review! I own a Kiwaya Koa Tenor KPT-5K and will attest to the build quality of these instruments.
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