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kinda new, returning after a long time away. Got a serious question question

GarPor - 8-3-2022 at 07:33 PM

Hello everyone, I have been a long time fan of the oud and really want one, but corvid stopped that. Post corvid it was hitting the road and taking any gigs to feed my family. Things have settle downed now I can finally start looking to buying a oud. My Background: pro string musician and harp player for over 30yrs.

So I know i want a medium-semi-pro type Oud. In my mind; the guitar world version would be like 800 to 1200 dollars. Definite a solid top, prefer all soild wood. Decorations or lack not a deal killer; but, it would be nice. I understand like guitars all the shiny bling is put on either super low end guitars or super high end.

Anyhooo i need to know if there is a list of venders that I can trust. Reverb, Amazon has so many not sure If they are trust worthy or scams. I've found Salamuzik, a few on Reverb all claiming to be in Egypt. I also found out that goolging Oud gives me perfumes lol.

Not trying to be a dick or racist, but I've been scammed before on ethnic insturments online and well I'm not rich that I can afford to go trail and error. Not sure what oud I want either, I really fell in love after Brandon Acker from youtube played one and it was like love and angels etc... lol

I appriciated any and all advise. Take care

Brian Prunka - 8-3-2022 at 08:49 PM

Welcome to the forum! Congrats on starting your journey playing oud.

If you search for buying advice on the forum you can find a lot of helpful suggestions.

Here is a search on "buying", you could try related terms - purchase, advice, beginner etc.
http://www.mikeouds.com/messageboard/search.php?token=&srchtxt=...

Here are a couple of threads on the subject:
http://www.mikeouds.com/messageboard/viewthread.php?tid=18899#pid12...
http://www.mikeouds.com/messageboard/viewthread.php?tid=18353#pid11...

If you include your location, it's easier to help - there are a lot of members on this forum from all over the world who might be able to point you toward local resources.

Quote:

So I know i want a medium-semi-pro type Oud. In my mind; the guitar world version would be like 800 to 1200 dollars. Definite a solid top, prefer all soild wood. Decorations or lack not a deal killer; but, it would be nice. I understand like guitars all the shiny bling is put on either super low end guitars or super high end.

Most ouds will have solid woods - the real issue with the wood is often how well the wood is seasoned to prevent cracking etc. A moderate amount of decoration is common on Arabic ouds, Turkish ouds tend to be more minimalist. There should be at most a very thin finish on the face. Many ouds have unfinished faces, this is normal. A shiny face usually results in a weak sound. On some high-end ouds there can be a very careful french polish that is pretty shiny, but if the oud is not very expensive and the face is shiny it is usually a cheap varnish that will dull the sound.

Other things to look for are the quality of the pegs - good pegs have a subtle 30:1 taper, and are either ebony or rosewood. It's not 100% giveaway but if the knobs look shaped by hand the pegs are usually bad. Some cheap Turkish ouds have plastic pegs. This is better than bad wooden pegs, but not ideal.

If you can look at a good picture of the nut and string spacing - really look for how even the string spacing is and whether the nut is bone or not. Accurately cut/drilled string spacing is a good overall indicator of the quality control and attention to detail of a maker or factory. A bone nut will cause fewer tuning problems than a wooden or plastic one.

Quote:

Anyhooo i need to know if there is a list of venders that I can trust. Reverb, Amazon has so many not sure If they are trust worthy or scams. I've found Salamuzik, a few on Reverb all claiming to be in Egypt. I also found out that goolging Oud gives me perfumes lol.

I wouldn't buy an oud from Amazon. Reverb or eBay might be okay but is really only as trustworthy as the individual sellers.

There are some reputable sellers here that post from time to time, and Mike has some ouds for sale above. Several of the "Apprentice Ouds" here look like good options:
https://www.mauriceoudshop.com/apprentice-ouds/

There's a company that posts on here called 'Sam Ouds' based in Egypt that it seems like some forum members have had good experiences with.

I've had several students get ouds from Sala Muzik and they've been decent instruments if not anything special. Sala is professional and fast in my experience - I've gotten other things from them (a stand, some drums) and been happy with them. But they are a Turkish company and I think their Turkish oud selection is better than if you want an Arabic oud.

Most commonly cited/available low to mid priced Arabic makers are Sukkar and Zeryab. They both make a range of instruments and the upper grades are suitable for professional or semi-professional use.

Quote:

Not sure what oud I want either, I really fell in love after Brandon Acker from youtube played one and it was like love and angels etc... lol

Well if you liked Brandon Acker, you're in for a treat when you hear the oud played by an actual oud player! No disrespect to him, he's a really good guitarist and teacher and it's very cool that he did a segment on the oud. But he's obviously very much a novice on the oud (as I'm sure he'd concede).

The oud he played was a Zeryab one if I recall, so an Arabic oud is probably what you want if that's your reference point. The other main alternative is a Turkish oud. Greek and Armenian ouds tend to be in a similar style to Turkish.

Another option is a floating bridge oud (sometimes called "Iraqi" style). This has usually a bit brighter sound and is often played in a higher tuning. I'm not a fan personally for a lot of reasons, but many people like them.

One thing you can do is listen to a bunch of oud players and see what resonates with you:

Some suggestions:

Arabic (fixed bridge, aka 'classic' or 'sharqi'): Simon Shaheen, Farid el Atrash, Nizar Rohana, Anouar Brahem, Rabih Abou-Khalil, George Michel, Riad al-Sunbati, Mohamed el-Qasabgi

'Iraqi'/floating: Munir Bashir, Naseer Shamma, Charbel Rouhana, Rahim alHaj, Marcel Khalife

Turkish: Cinucen Tanrikorur, Yurdal Tokcan, Necati Celik, Munir Beken

coolsciguy - 8-4-2022 at 06:12 AM

Hi Garpor,

Brian pretty much covered it all!

If you like Persian ouds, I am selling a good one that I personally enjoyed playing. Find my post here:

http://www.mikeouds.com/messageboard/viewthread.php?tid=19009

I'll send you a short video of me playing it shortly.

Thanks,

Amir

GarPor - 8-4-2022 at 01:30 PM

Wow Thank you both for your respond and time. It has given a great starting point. I live in Texas and I cannot find any ouds or ethnic instruments in this state, Louisiana, and Oklahoma. I found one oud at a guitar center in 6yrs and when we pulled the strings off the kneck fell apart and my heart just broke. Got my money back, but that was not what i wanted. Thank also about Salaz there is some stuff I liked on there. Take care and God bless to ya and yours.

Brian Prunka - 8-4-2022 at 02:25 PM

I have a friend in Oklahoma who is a great oud player and might be able to help you find something.

I know a few goood oud players in Texas.

I know 4 oud players in New Orleans but I don't think any of them have instruments for sale.

Send me an email through my website if you want and I'll put you in touch.

GarPor - 8-4-2022 at 05:53 PM

Thank you, I checked your links, I foudn some cool ones at a good price. i have a few questions:

1. Why are some wider than others? Is this like a parlor vs dreadnaught type deal?
2. Can you play with your fingers or a guitar pick or do I need that traditional pick?
3. What is the difference between Turkish, syrian, and Arabic other than what seems more strings? is there a sound difference? im looking for something mid range and "desert sounding" I know that sounds tourist stupid, but I cant describe it any other way.
4. do you use straps? every video ive found I notice no straps.

Ps. i live in Houston, I play nylon, steel acoustic, electric, banjo, harmonica, cajons, hand drums. Im interesting in exploring flamenco style music with Oud and bluegrass as a personal project.

majnuunNavid - 8-4-2022 at 07:15 PM

1. Oud come in all shapes and sizes. There is nothing standard. There are lots of differences when it comes to "Arabic" Ouds. Turkish Ouds are more or less the same in shape. It does affect the sound and comfort. I'm a small build but I prefer larger Ouds. The larger the better for me.

2. The tone you get with a guitar pick is crap. I've tried hundreds of times, and will always go back to the risha. The way you play the Oud is different than a guitar. There is more hitting involved; it's more percussive. Think of the risha like a small mallet.

3. If you are looking for "desert sound", then you are safe to go with a Zeryab brand Oud. They are pretty decent. Egyptian Ouds like the apprentice ouds Brian mentioned will get you that too. Though you have to be careful with zeryab Ouds in that sometimes the nut is garbage. If you're interested I can set you up with a zeryab oud fixed with ebony pegs and a bone nut. But it's an extra cost.

4. No straps. Stand with one leg resting on a chair, that's badass.

GarPor - 8-13-2022 at 08:50 PM

Thank you all for the support, sorry for the late response. Had a gig to go too. I decided to get something from Sala. Hoping and waiting it gets here safe and sound. Can't wait to start learning and exploring. Sooooo excited, I think my guitars and banjos will divorce me.