I’ve had a few people ask me what I use in my playing and in putting together the site. So I thought I’d list everything I’ve been asked about (and a few I haven’t). And I’d be interested to know what you use: to record audio, make videos and, of course, what your favourite ukulele is. So do leave a comment.
Ukuleles
What size/make ukulele do you play?
I’m a fully paid up tenor-man these days. My favourite at the moment (by some distance) is my KoAloha Sceptre. But I still have a soft spot for my Ohana which I use regularly.
For quiet and electric playing I use my RISA. My EleUke sucks giant monkey-balls.
Accessories
What tuner do you use?
Mostly my ears but sometimes a Kala KC-02 clip-on tuner
What strings do you use?
What capo do you use?
Shubb mandolin capo. But be warned, it’s not suitable for smaller ukes.
Do you use a loop pedal/effects pedal?
I have a Boss GT-10 which does a whole mess of crap.
Tabs and Chords
What do you use to make your ukulele tabs?
Guitar Pro 6. I’m also using Sibelius (for the top secret Operation Exploding Carrats) which is massively over-priced and complicated for ukulele tabs. I’m beginning to loath it with every fibre of my being.
What do you use to make your chord charts?
I make chord diagrams in Guitar Pro. Then I put together the chord sheets in OpenOffice. I also use OpenOffice for the ebooks but I’m thinking of switching to iWork for both.
Recording
What mic do you use?
The most recent ones have been done with a sE Electronics USB2200a. I’m not a big audio guy so I want something I can just plug into the computer and have it work. This mic is great for me. Pricey but it sounds good and is very easy to use.
Before that I was using a Zoom H2 which is handy for away from the computer recording, equally suitable for use by idiots and much cheaper.
What software do you use to record?
GarageBand. Does anyone have any suggestions on the best book/place to learn this (and iMovie)? I’m still a Mac noob. Before that I was using Audacity.
What do you use to make videos?
I’m not qualified to offer anyone advice on this. I just use the camera in my iMac and iMovie.
Blogging and Site
What software do you use for blogging?
The site is powered by WordPress. It’s hard to think of a reason why anyone would blog using anything else.
Who designed the site?
The site and logo were designed by Ben Lew. Who did a great job. The theme before that was one of the Revolution themes. If you’re really hard core, the theme before that was Cutline.
What do you use to sell your ebooks?
I use eJunkie to sell my ebooks. They’ve been really great. Cheap, monthly flat fee and I’ve never had a serious problem (I can’t even think of a minor one). I started out with ClickBank and they really sucked. It was expensive and I didn’t want to be associated with the junk products that mostly use it.
Misc.
Things that no one has asked about and don’t have an obvious effect on the site but without them the site would suck or possibly not exist.
Online Storage
DropBox A must for anyone who uses more than one computer and finds themselves endlessly uploading to thumb drives. And free (up to a point).
Reading
I reread these regularly to make sure I never do something stupid like getting a job.
Seth Godin The Dip
Ralph Waldo Emerson Self-Reliance
Anneli Rufus Party of One
Steve Pavlina 10 Reasons You Should Never Get a Job
Listening
Watching
TED
Ira Glass on Storytelling Part 3 is essential for anyone who makes anything they care about (and dovetails with The Dip
Note to self : read the last book in your list and ponder about it. Shite, it’s too late already.
Ukulele :
I mostly play on concert size ukes.
I have recently acquired a Koaloha concert Pikake which has an incredible sound and which I really enjoy playing now that Herman has adjusted it to my taste.
But this one is for home playing only. For trips and playing in the middle of nature, I choose my faithful concert hibiscus Fluke.
Strings:
I use Clear Medium Worth strings on both ukes.
Recording Audio (and video) :
I use Audacity and lately, a Q3 Handy Video Recorder. A description is available here:
http://www.samsontech.com/products/productpage.cfm?prodID=2020
It’s great and portable.
Blogging
I entirely agree about using WordPress.