Octopus Ukuleles is a British company established in 1990, coinciding with the resurgence of public interest in the instrument. Most of its operations are based in the UK (apart from manufacturing, which is based in China) and it offers three progressive levels of ukuleles: Academy (entry level), Rosette (mid level) and Premium (top end). Within each level, there is a range of sizes: soprano, concert, and tenor, as well as the option of electro-acoustic models and different designs.
Octopus kindly loaned me two different ukuleles from their Rosette series to review: a soprano, and an electro-acoustic tenor with a wave motif. Before playing the instruments I took a good look at the boxes, which display six essential chord charts (C, C7, F, Am, D7, G7) along with three diminished chords (C sharp, D flat and E flat). Also pictured are details of the free Octopus Ukulele Academy videos, the build of the instruments, and endorsements from the player Andy Eastwood. This gives the sense that you are buying in to an expert-endorsed package to support your ukulele playing. It also immediately appealed to me as a resource-hungry educator – anything that offers free resources is worth a second look, at least.
Build materials and construction
Opening the box, the gig bags are great quality: padded, sturdy stitching, zips and backpack-style straps; really comfortable to wear, which I did for a few days, sharing the carrying responsibility with a couple of eager 8-year-olds. The build materials and construction of both ukuleles are of superior quality: open pore natural sapele body, solid laurel fingerboard and bridge, superior diecast chrome tuners (similar in construction and functionality to a much more expensive design of tuners) and Aquila super nylgut strings. It speaks volumes that Octopus Ukuleles will only use Aquila strings; I completely agree that these are the best quality, enhancing the sound of any ukulele that they are on.
Soprano ukulele
On the soprano ukulele the sound is clear, even at the bridge-end of the fretboard, and the fret spacing is spot on. I usually shy away from cheaper sopranos as the intonation and clarity on upper frets tends to be poor, but this little uke holds its own. The secure tone doesn't waver, even when finger placement isn't consistent.
Electro-acoustic tenor ukulele
One of the features of the tenor ukulele that I was most looking forward to experiencing was the passive pickups. So, what is the big deal? Passive pickups don't require a battery or external power source to function, whereas active pickups do. The obvious benefit is that passive pickups avoid the horror of batteries running out during a performance. While this is a huge plus, the tone which was achievable on the tenor was more expressive than the active on my other ukuleles of a similar price. The pickups are sensitive to the vibration of the strings, picking up much subtler tones and timbres, adding greater depth to the sound. The ukulele itself has the same superior build quality as the soprano, and when the tenor wasn't plugged in it packed a real punch. If I were being really picky, the string spacing on the bridge was a little uneven for me, and I'm slightly uneasy that the laser cut wave motif strays into the bridge area. Having said that, for the incredibly affordable price and overall quality, these are inconsequential details.
Affordable quality
So how much is it? The soprano ukulele has an RRP of £49 and the electro-acoustic tenor ukulele outfit, with wave motif, has an RRP of £69. I wasn't aware of the price before I put them to the test. When I found out the price tag, I was amazed that such superior build quality, sound and intonation was achievable for the price. There isn't another ukulele that rivals this. And if you don't want to take my word for it, Octopus ukuleles are endorsed by a range of credible and experienced ukulele performers and educators – you can read what they say on their website at octopusukulele.co.uk/pages/our-associates. As it says on the box, their main endorsement is from the inimitable Andy Eastwood, who says Octopus ukuleles are ‘everything you want from a ukulele – playability, build quality and amazing affordability’. And who am I to disagree? He also produces an ever-expanding series of videos, called the Octopus Ukulele Academy, which is available on their YouTube channel: youtube.com/@OctopusUkulele. This Academy offers tuition for players of all levels, and the opportunity to ‘Ask Andy’. Such extras bring very welcome added value.
The Octopus Rosette soprano Ukelele UK230S costs £39 incl. VAT (RRP £49); the electro-acoustic tenor (wave motif) UK230TWE costs £59 (RRP £69). Other models (with prices) available are at: octopusukulele.co.uk
