Hey thanks for the review, Molly! I was always curious about this product… it seemed more like a toy than an instrument to me, but an interesting concept nonetheless! Maybe it’ll evolve into something else eventually, who knows 😊
I think it really depends on how you look at it.. I think it's a lot like a synth, which can be a fun toy for kids but some people have made real art with them!
Have you seen Lottie Canto's Colour Palette electric kalimba? It's built into an effects peddle and is way more advanced than what you have here (he's actually a maker of guitar peddlers and not a kalimba player, and most who've bought it don't seem to be kalimba players!) It is made with real kalimba keys, but since it's amped (you do need to jack it into an amp) you can often use you finger pads and not your nails! I have one and love it. They are released in small batches and sell out within seconds so you do need to be persistent if you wasnt one! There are a bunch of demos on RU-vid including a bunch by Emily Harpist! - will you be at the Somerset Harp Festival?
I feel like the electronic kalimba itself is not a bad concept. Instead of a "kalimba" sound that sounds like something from Yoshi's Island and a few Windows GM sounds, it could have sounds of several types of kalimbas/mbiras, tuning settings and an audio output jack (and maybe also a MIDI output), and if possible, also a more realistic playing style that involves plucking, and I imagine it being a pretty good instrument!
so its just a keyboard but with looooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooong keys/
Hi Molly - I bought a solid body chromatic kalimba from Bugs Gear and it is really really soft - do you think the hollow core kalimbas are louder? I know I need a chromatic kalimba though and also do you have any good resources for learning how to play a chromatic kalimba?
Hi! I saw 2 different brand of the electric kalimba, one is the Play Well brand, and the other brand is Smart Tuna, do you know witch one is a good one? Thanks.
You are always so cheerful it's hard not to watch your videos. This was very helpful as well because I was not certain if I was going to buy this for me Mum or not and now I am. Thank you so much for the awesome review, if things go well I may buy two. 😎👍
