Kala Revelator NSL-B Thermo Cured Spruce and Sapele Baritone Ukulele w/hard case #41580526

In January 2025, we visited the Petaluma HQ of Kala. Spending the day with Mike Upton and Kala USA Custom shop luthier Markos was an absolute treat... seeing the love, care and creativity that is going into the present and future of the Revelator is really soul-enriching. Pete Howlett told us when he created the Revelator that he had hit upon something special and we are happy to have been the store that linked Kala and Pete up in the first place. 5 years on, the Revelator is hitting its stride.

The Revelator design has been successfully passed over to Kala by Pete Howlett, and what a superb job they have done with this, Kala Revelators sound every bit as good as one of Pete's, and feels and looks the part too.

Thermo cured (or torrefied) spruce is a kiln baked wood. Premium wood sets are baked over a long period of time until the molecular structure of the wood resembles the wood structure of vintage wood sets. This spruce top has the strength of a new spruce top but the age and timbre of a 100 year old piece of wood. This has resulted in an extremely open Revelator, with depth and clarity literally baked right into the top.

Tonally its a fantastic choice of wood for the Revelator which is already a very open and sensitive sounding instrument. Any and all styles suit this ukulele and its strengths are that it accentuates volume and an open sound that doesn't compress when you play hard and is giving when you tickle the strings.

This thermo cured spruce paired with the absolutely stunning African sapele is a match to be in awe of. Sapele is not unlike mahogany but with a more "zing". Still warm and balanced with clear lows, it just snaps a little more prominently in the top endof the register, re-enforcing the brightness of the spruce. And lets not forget how easy it is on the eyes. Generally more characterful than mahogany, this example is no exception with stunning contrast and figuring in the grain.

Pete has always described the Revelator as an 'acoustic anomaly'. Basically, he means that it has no right sounding as good as it does acoustically. If you have never heard a Revelator before you might see the slimline body and assume that there is going to be no acoustic volume or projection. And you wouldn't be more wrong! It is loud, lively and characterful, with a fuller tone than it has a right to make. 

In the hand, it is so light (without ever feeling fragile), because it is not a solid body instrument. The body is routed out before the top is glued to it, so very clever acoustic chambers are created which pump out this supernaturally rich and vibrant sound. And when you plug it in, you'll notice a very high quality sound through the installed passive piezo pickup. We chose the premium specs for these customs as we have a fondness for the royal blackwood fingerboard and gold hardware look of these Revelator models.

Highly recommended! Pictures show the actual Kala Revelator you will receive. If you have any questions about this instrument, please drop us an email.

Specification:
Thermo cured spruce top
African sapele body
UV cured satin finish
Royal blackwood fretboard and bridge
Corian nut and saddle
36mm nut width, with 30mm G to A string spacing
Worth Brown A and E strings
D'Addario wound C and G strings
Passive Piezo pickup
Mother of pearl fretboard and headstock inlay
1.4375 inch body depth
490mm scale length
Hard case