Thoughts on upgrading for a 'recreational' conguero

[NickyBajista]

Hey guys, this is my first post here. I've been poking around the site. I am a salsa and jazz bassist and have been studying for 20 years or so. To better understand the music, I've spent a bit of time with each instrument in the percussion section--working on basic patterns and techniques. Basically, learning how their parts relate to the bass and the clave. I think this has made me a better bassist.

I was really drawn to the congas, and when I get a chance, I love to play. I've had a set of Matadors for about 15 years now, but was thinking about uprgrading. I just don't know if it would be worth it. In the end, I comes down to affording them and wanting them, but I just not sure if it makes much sense for a recreational player.

I've been looking at the LP Original fiberglass models. They seem to be 'professional grade' without being too over the top price-wise. I think I would get the best return from these, but would they be a noticable upgrade from the Matadors? If I were to upgrade, I would want something that would be alot better than what I have now. There isn't much point in upgrading to a slightly better model.

Would I be better off getting new skins for the Matadors and trying to get them to sound better? I know technique can make any drum sound better, but I just talking about the inherant charactor of the drum.

I was also looking at some of the hand made 'boutique' congas. While I would love to support a local artisan, I'm leaning away from this option since I mainly play in my room. However, I also know that life is short.....

Does anyone have any thoughts???


I don't really have a budget. I could probably afford a set of Ritmos and not dip into the kids' college funds , but I'm looking for something that makes sense.

[Anonimo]

POST REMOVED BY THE AUTHOR

[Mike]

Matador congas with skins other than the factory ones are really killer congas in the right hands
Cow or mule, you cannot go wrong with either of those skins.

[RitmoBoricua]

Nothing wrong with them Matador. I have seen plenty of "Pros" make them sing. If I were you I would change the heads for sure. There are plenty of choices. I have a Matador on my arsenal and it sounds as good as any other drum I own.

[NickyBajista]

Thanks for the replies! Most of the pre-made heads that I see in stores are either rawhide or synthetic. I would like to try mule or cow, but I've never made my own from skins. Are there any pre-made natural animal skin heads readily available?

[roberthelpus]

There's plenty of info on here and elsewhere on how to change skins. Otherwise, give your location and there might be someone on here that is local to you that can help. If you find someone, I still suggest that you participate. Nothing like being able to say that you did it yourself.

It's not like you can really screw it up. As long as you make sure everything is right before you crank them up (stretch them in a bad way) or trim them (too short,) you can always redo it or make adjustments.

[NickyBajista]

Yeah, I'll give it a shot! Thanks!

[Dicemanb]

Hey Nicky,

Welcome to the forum.
I agree with all the above, new skins will give you a better set of tubs.
Doing your own skins sounds daunting especially after you have taken the hoops out of the old skins and there is no way back, but provided you bone up on all the information on this forum, you cant go wrong.
I did a few years ago and now change skins for friends.

Go for it Brother
Dice

[GuruPimpi]

Hello!

Matadors are great!
Mule skin from L&H percussion awesome!

my 2 cents,

PimpS

[Psych1]

Lots of agreement here - Matadors are the working musicians congas, but they may play something different at home. On the other hand - the LP fiberglass will give you a different sound, not necessarily an "upgrade" but different. You may prefer them. You have probably noticed that most of the posters here have more than one drum.

[Skulmoski]

I would like to try mule or cow, but I've never made my own from skins.

I'm all thumbs when it comes to DIY but I did manage to tuck some of Isaac's mule skins on a couple of my congas. This upgrade improved the quality of sound and my drumming experience. (Thanks Isaac!) There are lots of resources on the web including this site to guide you through the process.

Good luck

GJS

[roberthelpus]

If you do go for something thicker and tougher you might want to have a friend around for some extra hands. I've always found that a moderate amount of beer is beneficial as well

[NickyBajista]

Hey guys, I just put new steer skins on the Matadors last night. It was quite the struggle, but I was able to wrestle them on. I did have a few questions, though.

I measured and 'eyed' the skins while I was putting them on, but this morning I noticed that they are not the same depth on all sides. The skin is flat on top. It isn't a huge difference, but I was wondering if this would affect the tone.

Also, the rim on the quinto sits a bit lower than it did with the old skin. I guess I pulled the ring down a little further. Again, it isn't huge, but does where the rim sits affect tone?

[BMac]

Had I put new steer skins on my old Matadors, I might never have stepped up to Mopercs. Don't get me wrong. I love my Mopercs and will never regret the decision to buy them. But part of my motivation to buyer higher-priced drums was actually frustration over my trials and tribulations with skins and synthetic heads on my Matadors. If I had perfected mounting quality skins before buying better drums ... I may never have crossed the cost threshold.

Well it sounds like you got your new skins mounted ... perfect or not. It's been a few days now since you posted any questions or remarks so the heads by now are probably almost dry and adjustments at this time are a bit late and may be a bad idea. Trying to balance the depth on wet skins is pretty easy. You can just apply a little more tension on the shallow side ... loosen a little tension on the deep side ... and then let drying and stretching and shrinking occur. If the head is a bit too deep overall ... try loosening a little on all sides and let shrinking occur during drying. Significant shrinking can occur ... easily a 1/4 in or more. Just loosen the lugs and come back in 24 hours and they'll be tight again.

But once the skins are dry ... several days into drying ... you might want to leave good enough alone. Applying uneven tensions to a dry head means uneven forces on the drum and possibly pulling it out of round. The tensions needed to affect a dry skin are much greater than that for a wet skin of course.

So let 'em dry and play them. But wait a full week or more. I've made the mistake several times of putting tension on a new skin just several days into drying. The skin can feel generally dry and yet be susceptible to considerable stretching under just moderate tension.

Ultimately your skins are all gonna stretch down as you play ... but you don't want an inch of stretch on the first day. If you think your initial depth is too great ... just detune when you're not playing. Look, you may find me arguing this point with others on other threads. Some people just can't be bothered with detuning and tuning. I always argue that your drums will more likely stay round and your heads will last longer and sound better if you detune between sessions. But I don't think anyone ever argues against the point that detuning will slow down the stretching process that occurs ... especially in humid environments.

But hey ... if you screw up and over-stretch a skin right away ... causing the originally translucent-brown skin to turn white at the edges ... maybe even causing it to separate into layers (been there ... done all of that) with ugly streaks ... then ... well ... you can chalk it all up to experience and start over with a new flat skin.

Having bought better drums or no ... I wish I had kept my old Matadors and perfected the art of stretching new high-quality skins. I sold a quinto and a conga for $150 with crap synthetic heads on them a few years ago. I kept the tumba and finally did a top-notch job of mounting a prime piece of dark steer skin. So I know how great an on Matador with a good skin can be. I highly recommend them.

Cheers!
BMac

[juancho]

Hey guys, this is my first post here. I've been poking around the site. I am a salsa and jazz bassist and have been studying for 20 years or so. To better understand the music, I've spent a bit of time with each instrument in the percussion section--working on basic patterns and techniques. Basically, learning how their parts relate to the bass and the clave. I think this has made me a better bassist.

I was really drawn to the congas, and when I get a chance, I love to play. I've had a set of Matadors for about 15 years now, but was thinking about uprgrading. I just don't know if it would be worth it. In the end, I comes down to affording them and wanting them, but I just not sure if it makes much sense for a recreational player.

I've been looking at the LP Original fiberglass models. They seem to be 'professional grade' without being too over the top price-wise. I think I would get the best return from these, but would they be a noticable upgrade from the Matadors? If I were to upgrade, I would want something that would be alot better than what I have now. There isn't much point in upgrading to a slightly better model.

Would I be better off getting new skins for the Matadors and trying to get them to sound better? I know technique can make any drum sound better, but I just talking about the inherant charactor of the drum.

I was also looking at some of the hand made 'boutique' congas. While I would love to support a local artisan, I'm leaning away from this option since I mainly play in my room. However, I also know that life is short.....

Does anyone have any thoughts???


I don't really have a budget. I could probably afford a set of Ritmos and not dip into the kids' college funds , but I'm looking for something that makes sense.

Here's a nice starting set:
http://philadelphia.craigslist.org/msg/2090775763.html