by Kevin Anderson » Tue Feb 19, 2008 2:00 pm
Hello all!
I'm now the proud owner of a pair of Meinl Floatune congas, one 11" and one 12", purchased for a really great price off nice guy on Ebay.
I'm just a beginner, and have only ever used a set of LP Aspires. Nice enough drums, but I felt I needed an upgrade If I was to improve my skills.
The Meinl's look almost new, and are in fantastic condition. Came with bags and stands too, so I got the whole package! The skins aren't the factory ones, I believe; they're some 'True-skin' Buffalo hide ones, made in Thailand (as are the drums).
Very different tone compared to the cheap Aspires.
Anyway, with these sizes, 11 and 12 inch, does that make them a Conga and a Tumba? Or a Quinto and a slightly-larger-than-the-normal -11.75 Conga?
The larger drum sounds fantastic; really deep woody boom to it. The smaller drum has me a bit confused, as I'm not sure where to tune it to. I'm used to a good high with the tiny 10" LP drum (My Aspires we're the 10" and 11" set), but should I expect a similar 'high' sound from the 11" Meinl? How easy is it to damage a drum or skin by overtightening? Do the skins need any special oil or treatment? I've been de-tuning them after playing; seems like a sensible thing to do.
That's a lot of questions in there; but any advice would be much appreciated by this happy drum owner!