Clearwater Ukulele
Clearwater are a UK based musical instrument company who sell a number of re-branded ukuleles – most notably their version of the BugsGear EleUke and their Harmony Vita uke copy.
On Amazon UK
On Video
Copyright © 2024 // All rights reserved // Powered by WordPress // Uke Hunt theme by ø // Privacy Policy
23 Comments
I own the NEW CLEARWATER TENOR ELECTRIC UKULELE IN ROSEWOOD, and have for several months. Firstly, the sound quality is superb. I play with guitarists and the tinny sound of a soprano often sounds cheap and shallow compared to the guitarists. Not so with this instrument. The electric pickup system is very good, offering clear feedback and huge volume. The frets take a bit if getting used to, especially from a soprano uke, but they offer a well spaced area to play. The dark rosewood styling is different and looks great, as well as the stylish f hole on the body. The tuning is good, staying in tune for several days, and each string rarely straying far from the desired note. I recommend this uke to anyone with an eye for quality and playability.
Thanks for the review, Jonathan.
Has anyone tried the solid telecaster shaped clearwaters that are cropping up on ebay? Quite fancy an electric for quiet practice and am torn between these, Eleuke and Risa.
I just got a Clearwater Pineapple soprano for the pick-up feature but I can’t get on with it.Changed strings immediately for Aguilas and it still sounds shocking.I don’t know if the shape affects the tone but I find it virtually unplayable which is a great shame as I look set to play my first uke gig in a few months.HELP!
Hi. I need to revise my previous review.Played around with tuning and managed to get it about right.Sounds quite sweet but I am afraid struggles to hold the tuning for much more than a song.Definataly a wise move to dump the original strings.Happy strumming.
I have had a Clearwater roundback concert uke for a couple of years now and I must say I am really pleased with it. It cost less than £100 at the time (although it now seems to be unavailable) but if the quality and sound of this particular model is anything to go by, I would recommend Clearwater ukes to anyone looking for a reasonably priced yet good quality instrument. It is well constructed with a solid spruce top, rosewood fretboard, mahogany neck and a bone nut and saddle. It has a lovely tone and a clear, bright sound but without sounding harsh and is surprisingly loud when played acoustically (perhaps due to the round-ish back shape). It does have a built in passive pick up but without tone or volume controls. However I rarely use it and then only through a cheap Yamaha practice amp, so I don’t really feel qualified to comment on it’s efficacy.
I recently visited my local uke store with a view to a possible upgrade. I tried out several different ukes but I found that I was playing instruments costing more than twice as much before I even started to be tempted. In the end I decided to stick with the Clearwater and intend instead to invest the money in a new Clearwater soprano of which will post a review at a later date.
Before I end, a brief word about the strings. Unlike the uke in the previous review, mine arrived already fitted with Aquila clear nylon strings which I changed a few weeks ago for D’Addario black nylons. It still sounds pretty good but the Aquilas definately gave it a fuller and more rounded tone so it’s back to Aquila at the next string change.
Just sent off for the Clearwater tenor electric Uke from eBay. Looks great!
Will review it once I get my hands on it 🙂
Im waiting for delivery for the clearwater tenor uke will review soon
I’ve just recieved a Clearwater Tenor Ukulele from “The Really Useful Music Company” via ebay. It’s the “High Gloss Mahogany” model UCW2T. On first inspection I was delighted with the quality. It looks fantastic, I bought it as “B-grade” but in all honesty, if I’d looked at it in a music shop I probably wouldn’t have noticed two places where there is a tiny amount of extra glue that squeezed out at the side of the fretboard and on the bridge – I only found them because I was expecting something!
Of course I’ve had to tune it up and as the strings have not settled down yet can’t speak as to longer term tuning. That said it tuned up easily enough and the geared, screw tensioned, machine heads are of good quality, it’s pre-fitted with Aquila strings so I’m hopeful for long term stability. The action is ok, perfectly playable, though it could be improved and there is easy scope for that if it becomes necessary. It plays very nicely and I am delighted with the tone. Nominally it is a £70 instrument discounted to £60, with a further £15 off because of the B-grading. For £45 (Inc delivery) I think it is tremendous value for money. And I would say that if you don’t want to risk the B-grade, it would be worth consideration at the full price. All in all I am very pleased with my purchase!
I too have just ordered the ‘B’ grade ukelele from the really useful music company. I’ll report back once it has arrived. Can anyone reccomend a good amp for tenor ukes???
Ady
Ive got about 1 week ago a clearwater concert also a second from e bay found it hard to keep in tune but seems to have setteld down you get what you pay for but love the plastic back witch gives it a different sound.Got from the same place great service and come well packed think the nut needs filing a littel ordered drunk so was surprised to see it was semi/eletric and for £45 quid think its a top buy
My Clearwater is the UCW2T tenor, it joins a stable of other B grade repaired ukes ranging from a Carvalho, to a Freeman,a Stagg,a Vintage,a Mahalo etc. My Clearwater was sold as B grade because it had a few minor scratches and a bit of errant glue by the bridge. A gentle application of T Cut or Brasso and it was good as new, but gentle is the operative word or you will get a slightly matt finish. It plays beautifully, nice round bright tone, stays in tune and following a slight lowering of the bridge, the intonation is pretty good right up the frets. Mine came through Amazon, rapid safe delivery and all for about £44.
You will not be disappointed.
Hi,
I just bought a Clearwater electric concert uke, and it sounded great until I plugged it in, and the top string is completely drowned out by the others… has anyone else had an issue like this?
i’ve had the clearwater soprano uke in seafoam green for a good few months and i must say it is superb! i’m buying another clearwater uke soon and i have to say the sound quality is of a much higher standard than things such as mahalo or tiger. definitely recommend! 😀
I have the Clearwater Roy Smeck Vita style uke and it is fantastic. It was also pre-fitted with nyglut strings and the sound straight out of the box was amazing! I had been previously learning on one of those generic £20 Ukes you can buy everywhere so when I tuned it up it sounded like heaven! I’ve now owned this ukulele for about 11 months and it is extremely high quality for the price; despite the fact I only originally bought it because it was an extremely beautiful and unique looking instrument. I will definitely be buying Clearwater in the future!
Playing a Clearwater round back baritone tuned gcea (low g) find it rich and warm in tone and easy to play. And plenty of volume when plugged in !
I live on a horribly tight budget and was looking to see if I should move up from soprano to concert without spending large £. ( I wanted to see if my small hands could work a concert fretboard).
Ebay had/have the Clearwater ABS Concert from new for sub £25 inc. delivery. A safe gamble I thought although a totally plastic uke – really ???? Hmm.
Anyway, got it in all it’s glorious skyblue colourway and have to say a pretty happy purchase.
Happy because it stays in tune, is loud, incredibly lightweight and helped me decide to stick to soprano sizing in the end. Job done. But not a waste as it lives in my living room, all cheery and indestructible and I can smile on as my kid and her friends play around with it without me having a seizure !
I still pick it up and play it every now and then – I have to admire it’s durability and loudness – but I am still in love with my little Ohana SK50. Till the next distraction 😀
I recently got given a clearwater ukulele. Its the cheap Soprano one – I think its about £20 on Amazon. I usually play the Makala Dolphin (which I love !). Must admit though that I really like the Clearwater Uke too. For a cheap Uke it has a great sound and stays in tune very well. It has a crisp sound and you can get quite a good tone variation on it. I would definitely recommend them.
Can anybody provide for me the fret spacings on the Clearwater solid body, tenor, electric ukulele please?
Thanks,
John
As a newcomer to the ukelele I could not claim that my opinion carries any weight, but I am very pleased with the ukelele. I had tried several different ukuleles locally and was intending to buy one from a local shop but saw this for sale and as it seemed a very good bargain bought it direct from the Really Useful Music Company, despite not having beeen able to try it in advance.
The sound seems to be very good – clear and has good sustain and it looks like a thing of beauty.
I was doubtful about buying one with a pickup as I thought the quality could not be very high but as I thought I would be unlikey to use it much it did not matter. Whilst it has no on-board controls it works well enough when I ran it through a POD HD500X with a pre-amp setting into a small Marshall amp.
I have just received a Sea Foam Green Telecatster electric Uke by Clearwater, I have yet to plug it in but here are my thoughts so far:
It came very well packed, with plenty of bubble wrap and it’s in perfect condition (no surprise there!) The action is very nice, the neck is perfectly straight and it plays really nicely. If it sounds as good as it looks then I can only recommend it for the price.
It came from The Really Useful Music Company.
Two thumbs up!
I have a Clearwater UCW7B/PU roundback Baritone ukulele and I am extremely impressed with the tone and ease of playing. I play without a strap but I found the composite back very slippery, making it difficult to hold, but a piece of velcro tape stuck on the back easily overcame that little problem. My only disappointment is that I am unable to find a hard case to fit it.
I have a Clearwater Barritone uke which I love. Only problem isthaq the nut which secures the pickup unscrewed itself and is rattling around inside. My hand is far too large to fit in the hole. Any suggestions ?
Got something to say?