I think it's an opportunity missed by Martin on these HPL ukes. They are really good for what they are but making them look like koa seems a little disingenuous, especially koa. I don't know how much it would raise the cost but this seems like the perfect uke to do in a sunburst finish on...or a couple of nice middle of the road colors. Thanks Baz, as always, nice job.

Nice! I suppose they used real koa for the photo finish, and they selected it with their hands rather than their feet. They just need to rephrase the advert.

That neck looks fantastic! I imagine the HPL resists humidity well (it is a kitchen countertop material, after all). Street price on these in the USA is $299. I may get one for the beach house.

I bought the soprano version back when you reviewed that and have really enjoyed it! This looks like a great one, also! Thanks for the review!

I have a “koa” hpl Single 0 and Dread (guitar player here) and I love them.

Thanks you for the review! Very informational and helped me a lot.

I love this uke because I can hang it on my wall without worrying about the humidity. As someone that owns one, I can honestly say that it sounds less boxy than this video portrays. It does not sound like wood, but it certainly doesn’t sound like a plastic uke. If I had one complaint, it would be that I don’t care for the tuners, and I don’t prefer the thin frets that Martin uses on these. They are not difficult to play on, but the thin frets are just not quite as smooth and comfortable to play as say the frets on a high end uke. Overall, it is still one of my go-to ukes to just noodle with on the couch. Wonderful review Baz! 🫵🤘

I really like this uke! I love the color and it sounds fabulous and finally people who can't afford a wooden MARTIN can finally have a MARTIN for their collection! I wish they had this in a baritone! Great instrument!!

This one looks nice. I don’t need solid wood if it sounds great. Martin is just a traditional ukulele maker and I love them. Have not been able to buy one so I go with the solid mahogany Ohana 35. I like that Martin will still take chances and experiment with woods and different materials for Ukuleles. I really like the sound of this one. Your right it doesn’t sound like wood but it is closer to a spruce top sound. Very good review…thanks Doc

I absolutely love this one. Why not add this one to my collection!! Thank you.

Somewhat a coincidence, I bought this ukulele a day before this review was published. Have been playing it non-stop since then. Such a sweet sounding uke.

My OX soprano is my go to travel uke. Whether it’s on the bus to uke class, in the trunk of my car, or under a plane seat,I never worry about it. Plus it sounds great and is very comfortable to play.

Very happy with mine. When I picked it off the wall at the store, a tuner needed a tension adjustment. An employee tweaked a screw, tuned it and struck a cord. I had the same surprised reaction as you😂

Very impressive. This may just be my next uke. Love love love martin!!!!

This is my main gigging uke. I also have a C1K, which is a bit warmer (because it’s real tone wood), but I love both of them. I can play either all night. Glad they’re in the UK now.

Hello! thank you so much for this review! I wasn't sure if I should get this uke for my brother who's been playing uke and guitar for a long time, but now I'm convinced! thank you so much again!!😄

Another interesting UKE to listen too and view. Great review as always. Would love to know if Martin are looking at this as sustainable instrument. Liked the sound, finger board I agree should be darker, would look better. Sustain was also good. Actually agree with another comment, would like the Uke in sunburst or dark, to match inside. Have a great week

Cool, I have a Martin OX Bamboo soprano (in green) and like it a lot! Would like a concert version as well. I prefer the bright colors of green, blue and red that they made for the OX Bamboo though because to me it is just plain wrong to try to make it look like it is made out of wood when it isn't, that is something I appriciate with Bonanza, their hpl doesn't look like wood at all. I'm gonna hold out for a version with another screen print I think, if that doesn't get announced in a year or two I'll most likely grumble a bit and then pick one of these up! Great review as always.

Thanks for you showing the ukulele ❤ .😊

I Love mine. Still cant figure out why people are so critical of Martin. I challenege anyone talking crap to actually play one for more than 5mins. Get one! You will love them too. All of them really.

I ordered my T1k back in February and I’m still waiting. I was unsure about getting the T1k until I watched your review on it, so Martin owe you a pint. 🍺

i have the enya tenor HPL which plays great with better (preferred) strings and very sturdy. HPL sounds great trypically. i would love to see Martin try these OX in tenor. i thought they had but could find nothing on line.

I've been getting that urge for a new uke. This was at the bottom of the price range for now, but it's the one I'm going to choose! A Martin 0 soprano is calling me from a distance, though. I hope they don't run out of sinker wood before i get to it! Call the ukulele treatment center! PS. I looked for a review here for the Martin 0 soprano but didn't find one. Am i missing it? Thanks so much.

Thanks for another great review!

Thanks for this great review. I'm a ukulele newbie and I'm heavily leaning toward buying this instrument. In reference to your comment at 2:45-ish, for what it's worth, in Martin's defense, when I read the sentence on Martin's website that reads "we hand-selected the finest Hawaiian koa . . ." in the context of the sentences that precede it and follow it (which specifically reference HPL), I thought that Martin was simply stating that the HPL IMAGE that they've used for the instrument is based on and replicates the finest Hawaiian koa.

Thanks for a nice and well done review ❤ A stunning instrument indeed 🙂 To me, it have another important thing: You showed it a bit quickly, but I recall I saw position mark at the third fret, on the side. Good ❤ I wish all ukes had that. This one I will buy as soon as my budget allows 🙂 Have a nice evening, and a good week to come.

Thanks for the fair and clear (as always, thanks) review, Barry. some years ago, I did two extensive reviews on UU of the Blackbird Clara ukulele. I thought it was absolutely great (once I got the strings right). As you describe this Martin, it doesn't sound like a wooden instrument but it sounds very good, not like a plastic instrument at all. I loved it. I didn't buy one because it was about three times the price of this new Martin. I would think there's quite a market for this one.(It might even include myself!)

Hi Baz, I finally bought one. Day one and I am very impressed! Great jazz sound and an amazing dynamic range for classical music. I too would have preferred a better quality fingerboard material. I bought it for its durability (travelling and camping) but I am going to be playing this regularly. Thanks Baz.

My original oxk is great, great setup out of the box as well. My fave uke I own.

HPL is magical

Thank you for a great review as always 😊 But, would it not make sense to skip the wood entirely? Have bridge and fingerboard made of HPL-kind of material as well? Anyway, seems like a fine ukulele.

I was holding this exact ukulele in store today. Funny. Yeah, the STORE tag didn't say laminate at all. Just that it was KOA. All others explicitly said that

Hi, Barry, thank you for another enthusiastic review! It seems to be really nice instrument, but there is one potential risk correlated to mechanical properties of HPL top... Last month I had opportunity to try one specimen of OXK Concert and the bridge was seriously tilted there by strings' pulling force. I'm not sure is it a rule or just exceptional case, but after that I started to investigate problem on the Internet forums etc. and I found more reports of tilting bridges over longer time of use. Best regards!

I have one and love it!

Now for sale in the UK - email me if interested - and I REALLY DON'T WANT to sell it - great uke!

Love Martin ukuleles. Originals are highly sort I think. These are still QC'd by Martin aren't they? I know too in recent years they are interested using alternates to traditional woods. People do do worry about where they made, it's the quality of the instrument that counts not the country. Good review.

Certainly a nice sound and looks like wood. Maybe tempted.......have a great week Barry

Wow i love it!!!! I almost bought the soprano but the concert wld be nice to have. Martin quality control is top notch. You are correct on all fronts about this instrument. What a delight for the price. Btw, whats the pink uke over your left shoulder? Intrigued. Great review!

Martin has been making their lower priced guitars out of HPL for years, so why not ukulele's - no big deal as long as the buyer knows what they are buying.

As an all-HPL bodied instrument, I think Martin could have chosen a prettier Koa screen print. Why not curly Koa? The fretboard could be darker too, but perhaps a liberal dose of lemon-oil could help in this area?

I feel like you’re paying a lot for the brand… But crap, it sounds nice. Wasn’t expecting such a nice sound.

Another thorough review. My one compliant is that I actually pay attention to your assessments and have bought several ukuleles based on your recommendations. I have bought the Enya Nova pro tenor and concert both plastic as you noted and like them. (The other was a Fender Monticeto which I treasure. It now has Martin flourocarbon strings with low G. Replacing the strings brought up the loudness, your one criticism, without harming its warm sound. A highly recommended change.) Of them the Nova U concert is a favourite but I find the fretboard string spacing tight as you also noted. Have been eyeing the Martin HPL concert as an alternative. From your own experience is the Martin neck and string spacing roomier and would you have a preference as to sound?

This Martin ukulele is a working instrument, not an objet d'art for wall display at a home museum. For those are faithful ukulele players AND also a committed, certified arborist, then your genuine KOA is essential. Otherwise, it sounds great with no weird overtones. What might not have been said or emphasized, is this Martin ukulele is very stable, not subject to humidity warping and 'tough enough' to travel. For those who miss the musty smell of old wood and hide glue, keep an old, poor playing uke on the side for memories.

A much cheaper travel ukulele than a Blackbird. Plus it is a concert with a traditional shape, unlike the Blackbird concert. I wish you'd fingerpicked it a bit more. Thanks Baz.

Sounds and looks nice, but it seems to me that in this price range, you can find a lot of very nice instruments.

Some Worth browns would make it less "Clangy" imo!

Not Bad . . . Decent Tone

I'm looking for a no-fuss outdoor instrument, and this one is on my list. The sound is just incredible ! But those friction pegs, honestly ? No way.

Will you have a review for Kala's new solid electric tenors??

Hi Baz. Thanks for the great review. I have one, and it sounds totally different from the one you reviewed. Mine has very little “chime” and a lot of bass. It doesn’t really sound like a concert sized ukulele at all. I’ve tried several different string sets (Worth clear CM, Fremont clear, Daddario Titanium, etc.), and they don’t do much to bring out the chime at all. Any ideas? The action is great and it plays great, it just sounds to me like a baritone. On an unrelated note, of all the ukulele sting sets you’ve tried, which ones had the lowest tension? Just curious…Thanks again and looking forward to your next review!

Maybe just me -- if it's going to have such a non-traditional construction, why pretend to be wood with a print? It'd be just as easy to do something a little more unusual, or maybe just to offer some options. I get Martin's got a traditional visual "motif" to keep up, but it still seems odd.

I have played these in a few different shops here in the U.S. I was fond of the volume and the tone - particularly impressed by the low end. I ran into sharp fret ends a couple of times, and with every one I tried, I had trouble keeping it in tune during the brief time that I played it. Otherwise, I would have seriously considered purchasing one. I was surprised you did not encounter that problem, Baz. Your experience makes me want to give it another chance.

Just for info seen this for £299 at pmt online

Formica can take a beating

Hello, could you go through the case(gig bag) that is supplied, because if its not up to the job, you could add anther £50 to £75 pound to find a good case that fits. Single or double straps on the back (rucksack style). loop to hand it up on .Pocket big enough to get you notes in. padding depth.Internal neck straps.Feet on the bottom.ECT.Thanks Morph.

Made in Mexico or any other country means nothing to me, sound, craftsmanship, and cost, is what I care about, in that order 👍.

Eraserhead!

one martin I won't be buying

Like the review? I’m asking, not telling.