Review: Ohana SK-270M Super Soprano is a Punchy, Deep-Sounding Ukulele

BY EDDIE SCHER | FROM THE WINTER 2025 ISSUE OF UKULELE

The first ukulele I ever played—and one that still holds a special place in my heart—was a soprano with a concert-size neck that a friend had brought back from Hawaii. Since then, I’ve come to realize that this setup makes a lot of sense for a lot of players, even though it is relatively uncommon.

The Ohana SK-270M is a solid acacia super soprano ukulele—that is, a soprano body fitted with a concert-size neck. This type of body-neck combination affords the traditional tone and compact size of a soprano with the longer scale length and wider fretboard of a concert. Ohana calls this a long-neck soprano, but it would be equally accurate to think about the SK-270M as a small-body concert. Either way, you end up with a neck that is several inches longer and slightly wider than a traditional soprano, giving your fingers some extra room to get around the fretboard. And while I love sopranos and the challenge of moving around in a confined space, I quickly came to appreciate the extra room for fumbling around.

Looks

The SK-270M is solid acacia with beautifully colored abalone purfling around the body, rosette, and headstock that give this ukulele a truly distinctive look. The abalone is highlighted with dark hardwood binding that contrasts nicely with the flamed look of the acacia. The hardwood fingerboard is not bound, but it is thick enough that from the side it looks like dark binding and complements the upscale look of this uke nicely. With the exception of dot fret markers instead of bird inlays, this uke looks very similar to its top-of-the-line koa cousin from Ohana, the CK-570G, though it is most closely related to the SK-250M, another long-neck acacia soprano with a cedar top.

Acacia compares nicely to the more traditional ukulele tonewoods. In fact, the Hawaiian koa tree is a species of acacia, but other species of acacia are more abundant and less expensive than koa. To my eye, the acacia on the Ohana looks indistinguishable to the two other koa ukuleles I have around my house, leaving nothing to be desired in the beautiful wood department. The top, back, sides, and headstock show a straight, wide grain and a deep, reddish color with a lighter golden stripe down the middle of top.

Tone and Playability

This uke is proof positive that the neck does influence the sound of an instrument. To my ears the tone, not surprisingly, lands somewhere between a traditional soprano and concert. It sounded a little deeper, a little darker than a typical soprano, but still had plenty of the snap and brightness I associate with that size. And it never strayed far from the warmth and woody tone that I expect from a solid wood instrument.

It can be difficult to put your finger on an exact “classic koa” tone, because the wood doesn’t have a totally predictable sound. Depending on the density and weight of a specific tree or slab, you can end up with a range of tones. But I always come back to a few elements shared by ukuleles with these tonewoods, starting with a deep warmth and a balanced brightness. These characteristics readily apply to this Ohana super soprano. There’s plenty of volume and snappiness when you dig in, but there is something downright tropical about the sound when strummed.

Because it doesn’t have the volume or punchy directness that’s helpful for cutting through other instruments, I might not select this ukulele for ensemble playing. Granted, those are qualities that are rare in any koa or acacia instrument.

The SK-270M is built with the precision and playability fitting a higher end model but at a very affordable price. The gloss finish is flawless, though to my ears isn’t helping the tone shine through off the bat. But like all new instruments, this uke will benefit from continued play and will open up in terms of tone and volume as it matures. 

Conclusion

This super soprano ukulele delivers with a full, rich tone that I think captures that tropical je ne sais quoi, with a big side helping of pizazz. There’s nothing holding a player back from getting everything they would want out of this ukulele from day one.

This ukulele is currently in production at Ohana and expected to be widely available in February 2026.

BODY Soprano size; solid acacia; hardwood binding; abalone purfling on body and rosette; gloss finish

NECK Mahogany; concert scale (15″); 1-3/8″ nut width; bone nut and saddle; hardwood fretboard and bridge; 19 frets (14 frets to body); abalone purfling around headstock; Grover open-geared tuners with gold finish

OTHER Aquila high-G strings

MADE IN China

PRICE $369 street

ohana-music.com