There are many kalimbas on the market that are much cheaper than the Hugh Tracey Kalimba. Is the Hugh Tracey worth it?
Our biggest competitor is the Pakistani-made “Large Rosewood Kalimba”, distributed by Mid-East Mfg. If you held one in your hands, you would see that it is a nearly exact copy of the Original Hugh Tracey Treble Kalimba. I think they are called “knock offs”. It might even look better on your coffee table, as they have a very nice gloss finish on their kalimba. However, if you want to use the kalimba as a musical instrument, there is no comparison. The Pakistani kalimba’s tines hurt my thumbs (and I’ve been playing the Hugh Tracey Kalimba for 22 years, 21.5 of those years without any pain). When you buy the Pakistani kalimba, it is often not tuned. My wife bought one a few years ago, but within 4 months, three of the tines went dead and would not ring, just “thud”. I can usually fix such problems on the Hugh Tracey kalimbas, but no luck on the Pakistani kalimba. One person who bought a Hugh Tracey Treble from me to replace her Pakistani kalimba told me that her Pakistani kalimba was unpl
