8.1.2013

I very nearly cancelled my order for this ukulele when I learnt, on checking with Norman's, if I would be getting a Stagg, but was told that it would be a Rocket, but exactly the same otherwise, also when the despatch appeared to be a bit delayed. I am very glad that I didn't in the end. This item arrived before Amazon had properly indicated that it had been despatched. More importantly I now realise that both Stagg and Rocket are Brands used by the same manufacturer, so I need not have been concerned at the apparent discrepancy, even though the description of the item said, (ambiguously to my mind), that an identical Stagg alternative might be supplied.I am really impressed with the workmanship of this ukulele.As indicated by two labels on it, the quality control in the factory is very important to them. This genuinely has a solid spruce top as opposed to being a laminate, and the finish is excellent. The frets could have been smoothed down very slightly more, as they protrude very slightly, but this is much less a problem compared to some ukulele's that I have seen, and a careful buffing with an emery board will sort this out. They certainly do not scratch as in another ukulele that I tried, and perhaps I am being a bit too nit picking on this.The back seems to be very slightly bowed, a bit like with violins, which, as with some other ukes, helps to project a better sound. In this respect, I was quite amazed at the volume and sound that this uke gives. With the Aquila Nylugut strings on it as standard, (and not needing to replace those supplied on arrival, as can often be the case), this combination must really help greatly. For replacements you need to get Aquila Nylgut Concert Ukulele (ukelele) Strings, but shop around here on Amazon for the best inclusive price.As most uke players know, at first new strings need patience with a fair bit of re-tuning for a few days when first installed. I was not surprised when I experienced this when the uke arrived. However after stretching the strings, (advice on this can be found in some books and on the web), I have found that they have settled in nicely. I don't think I am going to have to re-tune that much from now on, in common with my experience of Aquila Nylgut stings in the past. This is the first day as well !I am not sure if the quality of this instrument is due to Norman's setting it up before despatch as some good suppliers do, or if it was set up properly at the factory, but either way, I am most impressed with its standard and can see myself being quite happy with this uke for many years from now, without necessarily wanting to upgrade to something more expensive.On a final point, the gig bag that this comes in is, like many that come with such instruments, really only a flimsy cheap dust bag, even though it has a carrying handle. To be sure of keeping one's ukulele safe whilst out and about, I would strongly recommend the extra expense of getting a good quality padded gig bag. I have found the Tom and Will cases to be very good with their excellent padding and construction, and would recommend purchasing their Tomandwill 66UKC Concert Ukulele Gig Bag - Black with Navy Trim with Grey and Navy Piping. This has 20mm padding and I like these because the rucksack type straps can be fully removed if not needed, unlike other cases. As others have commmented, whilst not the most expensive, it is not the cheapest, but it is a good investment at a reasonable price.

3.6.2015

My background:- I'm a long-term guitarist and wanted a cheapish uke that I could put in my baby daughter's nursery and have little singalongs and do nursery rhymes etc. So basically I know about stringed instruments and knew the differences between playing a guitar and uke, but wasn't after something pro-level and didn't want to spend much more than £30 only to find I'd wasted my money on something too cheap and nasty to be playable.After reading up on them I was in two minds between going for this which will no doubt appeal to my daughter one day or one of the more naturally-finished ones but I'm glad I did - despite looking a bit childish this is definitely more of a legit instrument than a flimsy toy.

2.10.2011

I bought two of these Ukuleles as my partner and I had decided to learn together. The Stagg US10 arrived very well packaged and come with their own nylon case. As other reviewers pointed out, despite the low cost, these instruments look like 'real' instruments rather than novelty items. The sound seemed good enough from the start, although I had purchased some replacement strings Aquila Nylgut Soprano Ukulele strings (key of C) as another reviewer said that they would improve the sound of the Ukulele immensely (they do).I would also recommend purchasing a chromatic tuner with your instrument - I bought this one Tanglewood TCT1 Chromatic "Traffic Light" Tuner which makes life a lot easier,

6.6.2011

Great Ukulele for beginners. Apparently the Ukulele is hand made, I believe this is not mentioned in the description.I'm having great fun with it. At first you might have problems with the Ukulele going out of tune quickly after tuning it. The strings need about a day to stretch out a little. After that the strings are fine.Although the strings are fine, you can't really expect to have great strings for a low budget Ukulele. So I would recommend that you buy a set of new strings. This can change and improve the Ukulele a lot and you can enjoy much better sounds for only a small price. Personally, I have purchased a set of Aquila Nylgut Soprano Ukulele (key of C) strings which are recommended by a lot of people.

13.10.2015

Essentially the best entry-level ukulele I've come across. A strong (not solid but that's to be expected) wooden body, a resilient plastic composite neck, a decent bridge, excellent geared tuners, and good strings too. A Mahalo of the same price is all plastic, cheap-looking, cheap-feeling, and cheap-sounding; Stagg in turn gives you something of almost mid-range (quasi-professional) standard in comparison. The string action is pretty decent too, meaning a relatively comfortable play, even for absolute beginners.I genuinely trust Stagg to produce quality entry-level instruments that give people the strength to learn on and hone their basic skils; they built not just my first uke,

21.8.2014

This was bought as a present for my wife who loves it. I have a number of ukuleles of varying quality and cost and for the £40 I paid for it, this uke is great. It has a solid Mahogany top which gives it a great tone. Intonation is perfect throughout the fretboard and the action is great too. It even came with Aquila strings so no need for a string upgrade which is often the case with cheaper ukuleles. One thing to note is that colour in the photographs isn't a good representation of the actual product received which in reality was much redder than the brown in the picture. This was not a disappointment as the red colour really looks good. For £40 I cannot fault the quality and it exceeded expectations.

4.6.2011

The ukelele arrived in 3 days, much faster that I thought and indicative of good service. The instrument, itself, is so small, but the tone, when tuned is excellent. I bought an electronic tuner for just under a tenner and this is invaluable as the uke needs tuning from the start and every ten minutes thereafter. I understand some better strings give better sound and better in-tune duration, so I ordered a set of nylgut strings. This all might sound a bit inconvenient, but being new to a musical instrument it adds to the experience in my opinion. With a book and Youtube videos, plus some help from my musical son, I was up and playing something within hours having never played anything before.

24.9.2014

My Uke arrived today, and I'm quite pleased with it.Quality of the supplied strings aside (they're streeeetchy, as noted by other reviewers), the rest is great:The body is a sprayed matte finish with no marks at all.The neck is every so slightly twisted compared to the bridge, but this is so slight that it's barely noticeable unless you squint along the length. It certainly won't affect playability.There are no high frets, and it can be played quite hard with no buzzingContrary to other reviews the fret markers are definitely inlaid into the face of the neck (plastic rather than mother-of-pearl!). There are also small white paint dots on the top edge.For such a small instrument,

14.2.2016

You get what you pay for, its not going to be the best one out there due to its price but its a relatively good make even though mine had a few pieces of rushed paint work here and there but I didn't buy it for the look of it and bought it more for the actual instrument and sound of it. I found it difficult to learn and I'm not going to blame it on the product but it definitely could have been in better shape.I'm pleased with the product and the bag as a addition, would recommend you switch out strings since the ones I received didn't seem to be the best shape, once again you get what you pay for and additional costs for a better experience is something we have to do with a majority of things.

17.4.2012

I bought this product because it had the best reviews and was not disappointed. Like most ukulele's when starting out, you'll have to tune it quite a lot and if you're not accustomed to tuning an instrument you might find it tricky at first like I did. However, after 2 days practice I tuned it perfectly and began learning it. Once you get the hang of tuning it becomes second nature. I'm currently learning "somewhere over the rainbow" and it really is a great little starting instrument and lots of fun.**PROS**-Super easy to use-Cosmetically nice to look at-Strings aren't that bad quality even though they are plastic-Small, compact, easy to transport**CONS**-Strings go out of tune quickly at firstIn conclusion,

20.1.2017

This is a great little ukulele and produces a good sound. I bought this for fun and to teach myself the ukulele and it is great for that purpose. The strings do not always ring clearly especially when playing high cords and perhaps better quality strings are needed. It arrived very out of tune but with the right tuner it is quite easy to tune and the strings don't feel like they are going to snap which was good since I have often had a violin string snap in my face. It will go out of tune in the first few days but eventually the strings will settle down. This really is a great piece of kit for a super price so I recommend it.

2.9.2012

This Stagg Ukulele US10 is great for a beginner Ukulele player. I picked it up and have learnt so much in a week! But I do have a few cons which I need to explain, firstly being the weight, this comes to me as personal preference as I like things that have a good weight to them, this however, does not. Secondly it feels and sounds very much like a toy, which after seeing other Ukulele's has made me realise that I need an upgrade pretty soon! Despite the light weight feel and toy-ish sound, it is still a solid Ukulele and a top buy for ANYONE, looking to get into ukulele, and doesn't have a huge budget for the instrument!

1.3.2017

It's a decent beginner uke. Be sure to get a tuner if you don't have one because it will frequently need tuning for the first few weeks. After a while it will settle down. A fair amount of pressure is required to hold each chord but I see this as a bonus as it will help strengthen your fingers and make you a better player overall. The colour is nice and is a solid matt black finish. Honestly if I were to buy again I would be tempted to go for an Octopus over the Stagg. Having said that I'm not disappointed, and if you want a solid black beginner uke you can't go too far wrong with this.

17.3.2015

My first uke, bought as a present, however I have played guitar for many years.I have been very happy with this instrument. it appears to have been set-up well and once I had changed the stings for a set of Aquila strings, which improved the tone, I have hardly had to touch the tuning (after a short time for the strings to settle). It has a very warm and bright sound.Stagg uke's have received poor reviews from many reviewers who undoubtedly have more experience with uke's than me but as a relatively inexpensive brand, I find it provides great value for money.

6.8.2014

This is a lovely instrument to play at a bargain price. As other people have said, it drifted out of tune quite a bit, particularly the A string, but give it a couple of days because I found that once the string has bedded in it was fine.If you wanted to be pedantic you could say that the action is quite high near the base of the neck but it's still playable and it's not exactly an instrument you'd want to be shredding on and doing sweeping arpeggios. It's about strumming and chords.The high point is the tone. I was surprised how sweet it sounded.

Stagg US40-S - Reviews

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