Mine is a Spalted Mango TU-C concert uke by Lanikai. Very good intonation all the way up the neck. I can’t say how it compares sound-wise to other wood but I think a lot can be done by experimenting with strings to achieve brighter or warmer tone. I will say Lanikai has a US support contract and their support could be much better than it is. I was looking for information about installing a pickup and endpins for a strap and they had no information or manufacturer recommendations other than finding a luthier and that any changes would void a warranty. Since Lanikai won’t do post-sale modifications this means you can’t purchase modifications without affecting the warranty. Still, I would put my investment into the instrument itself and the SMTU-C is an excellent choice, that also comes in a tenor version. I would check Musician’s Friend or Sweetwater as they seemed to have the best pricing.
