Stagg US60-S Soprano Ukulele, Natural

The quality of this uke is alright, not amazing.A fingerboard is supposed to be slightly convex (i.e., higher in the center under the C and E strings), but this one is slightly concave (i.e., higher on the edges under the G and A strings). That's not good, but I don't think it affects the playability that much. There are no dead spots (every note on every string rings out nicely).The action out of the box was way too high. I hade to file the nut slots down and also remove the saddle and file that down. (The saddle is tight, but it will come out if you carefully wedge an eyeglasses screwdriver under it and work it out. It's thankfully not glued in.) I was able to get the action down to where it should be, but note that the bridge is pretty tall and the saddle is not, so there's not that much room to lower the saddle.I think the bridge is plastic, not wood. The nut and saddle seem plastic, not tusq and definitely not bone. Switching the nut & saddle to tusq or bone might improve this uke a lot.The black strings it comes with felt like thin junk toy strings. I replaced them with the white Aquila nylgut strings. At $8 per set, I don't know why all ukes don't just come with those. They sound and play MUCH better.I paid about $80 on Amazon. It was the cheapest solid top uke I could find. It has a pretty nice tone, but it is not very deep or loud sounding. The sustain is fine, not great.Overall there's nothing wrong with it, but I don't think I'd pay $80 again for one. I got this as a gift for someone, and I just felt like getting them a solid top. That said, I'm not sure it necessarily sounds better than a good laminate uke. For this price I think I'd maybe check out the Lanakai laminate one with intonation adjustment.For slightly more, check out the Ohana SK-20S. That's my main uke. Paid $110 for it. It sounds very deep, sustains great, has a nice convex fingerboard, good intonation, and plays well. Really amazing instrument, especially for $110. However, with any of these relatively cheap production ukes there is a lot of variability. You can get a dud solid top or a great laminate one. But I do think you're much more likely to find a really nice ringing, deep sounding uke with a solid top.One other thing, the photo on Amazon is not really correct. The real color is much more red and bright. Also, the tuning pegs stick out the side of the headstock (like just about every other uke), even though they are invisible in the picture. They're not those weird tuning pegs that stick straight out the back of the headstock. This uke looks like every other soprano uke out there.

The uke being sold is actually a Stagg US60-S. The nylon bag it came with is actually pretty good quality and makes carrying it around easier. For the Amazon price of $50, you will not get a better uke. The sound and quality both struck me as great the moment I opened the box. If you want a good, affordable uke that will inspire you to keep playing, this is it.

This ukulele ranks right up there with some priced much higher. Excellent material, finish, and has exceptional tone qualities - and that is really what counts in a ukulele. It is very well made and finished, and for the price, it can't be beat.