Fender Mino’Aka CE Concert Ukulele Review – Another Winning Ukulele from Fender

Body And Neck:
Hardware:
Sound:
Value:

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If there’s one instrument that can usually make a musician happy, it’s a genuine Fender – whether that’s a guitar, a bass, or a ukulele. So it’s appropriate that today we review the Fender Mino’Aka Concert uke, as Mino’Aka literally means ‘to smile’ in Hawaiian. This concert ukulele features in our chart on the best ukuleles under $500, so let’s see if it can raise a real smile…

Body & Neck

Just a quick glimpse at this ukulele is enough to tell you that it’s a Fender – mainly thanks to the distinctive Telecaster style headstock which is branded with the iconic gold Fender logo. The body is a concert size, with a shallow single cutaway on the treble side, giving good access to the higher frets – there are 19 of them in total, sitting on a good rosewood fretboard.

The three-piece mahogany neck is very playable, as you’d expect from a higher-end Fender, with a glossy finish. The body itself is made entirely of laminated koa. Perhaps at this price point you’d expect some solid wood in the construction, but the laminate is to no detriment of the sound and still looks lovely – a varied grain finished in gloss, with an attractive abalone acrylic rosette, all surrounded with aged body binding.

Hardware

Don’t confuse this version with the cheaper Mino’Aka, as this premium model features electronics (to quickly differentiate, note that the cheaper version has no cutaway).

There’s a Fishman Kula preamp/pickup system, which comes with volume controls and 3-band EQ (bass, middle, treble) along with a convenient built-in tuner. A good system, which is complemented by some decent hardware. On the Tele headstock, you’ll find a set of four sealed chrome tuners, while there’s also a rosewood bridge, a synthetic bone nut and saddle, and a set of quality Aquila Nylgut strings. Unfortunately it doesn’t come with a case, which is a bit of a blow – you’d usually expect at least a gig bag at this price range.

Sound

It looks good, but what does the Mino’Aka sound like? Pretty great, in fact, offering all the classic ukulele sound you could wish for – bright and happy, but well-balanced in tone. Acoustically, it has a good voice for a concert-sized uke, but plugged in via the quality Fishman system you can go as loud as you like while retaining clarity, with the EQ controls giving you great sound-shaping capabilities.

Conclusion

It’s all laminate and has no case, but even at under $500 the Mino’Aka shows pretty good value – mainly thanks to the unique style, the feel and the sound on offer. It makes for a great travel ukulele, and – with a good pickup/preamp system – it’s excellent for performances and recording. Overall, a winner from Fender.

For more info about the Fender Mino’Aka CE Concert Ukulele, click here.
For more Best Ukulele Under $500 you might like, click here.