Getting a Pickup Installed:
In addition to deciding what pickup you need/want/like, you’ve got to consider the process of getting it in your uke. External solutions not included, installing a pickup, at the very minimum, requires drilling a hole in the tail block of the ukulele. This is where the endpin jack is mounted. The only part you see is a little button about the size of four stacked pennies, but this will forever become a part of your instrument.
Before you despair, remember that an endpin doubles as a strap jack!
Once you decide that “Yes! I want a pickup!” you’ve got to find somebody who can do the job. It’s certainly a project you can do yourself. There’s not much to it, really, and you’d save some money. But if you’ve never done it before and expect a great sound from a nice instrument, it might be a good idea to find a third party to do the work.
It’s a fiddly task and getting it correct makes all the difference in the world, believe me. Because of how a pickup works, the sound can be downright terrible before you might realize that something isn’t right. If you redo the job, you might find the same pickup sounds fabulous. Which is why it’s nice to get it done right the first time.
Chatting with some ukulele friends should turn up some luthiers competent enough to do the job. The procedure is pretty much the same as for guitar so even if your local music shop isn’t too hip on ukes, their luthier can probably do the install. But get a couple opinions. There are a lot of competent folks up for the task, but there’s also plenty of schmucks who are looking to make a quick buck and get you out the door.