Damn those LP Patato's are heavy!!

[bongosnotbombs]

Like really heavy, I thought the whole point of fiberglass
was to cut down on the weight!

I love my new but super used vintage LP
fiberglass conga, but can't really find their
modern equivalent..

Guess I will just have to look out for more vintage
fiberglass.

Not being too experienced with fiberglass drums,
does anyone want to contribute their valuable experiences?

Attachment: http://mycongaplace.com/forum/eng/uploa ... econga.jpg

[CongaTick]

Hmmm.... I've got an LP fiberglass original tumba made in Paliades Nj back in the 70's. Exact same look/color as one in your pix, and I find it extremely light.

[deadhead]

My fiber galaxies were twice the weight of my wood classics, rediculously heavy! Maybe its that kevlar lining they spray on the inside?

I also used to own a set of fiber Toca Players. They were very light weight, but also bottom of the line piles, so I can't rly compare them.

My teacher's Patato was about the same weight as the classics, maybe a tad lighter.

I will never buy fiberglass again, but thats only my personal opinion.

[deadhead]

I love my new but super used vintage LP
fiberglass conga, but can't really find their
modern equivalent..

LP Orignials

[bongosnotbombs]

LP Orignials

I thought about the LP originals, but as we know, they have those dreaded comfort curve rims

I just don't like those comfort curve rims, Does anybody?

To get the traditional rims you either have to modify for more $$$, or get some vintage ones.

and vintage always comes with that extra cool factor that is, oh so important! .................................................G!

[Grateful1]

HiYo Dead Head and Others

Seeing as you are a Dead Head I imagine we have some similiar tastes in music. Grateful Dead, Moe, Allman Bros and Jam Bands in General ( Not to take away form classic cuban/afro styles). Anyways, considering my styles of music I have been leaning toward a nice fiberglass set liek the meinl Fibercraft series or Pearls equivelant. What makes you say you will never buy fiberglass again? I know wood is supposed to sound warmer, and fiber glass projects more. But if I main focus will be more modern styles of music is wood the way for me to go as well?(Meinl Luis Conte three piece with stands or Toca Sheila E Tumba and quinto) or should I go get a top of the line fiber glass.

[bongosnotbombs]

Hmmm.... I've got an LP fiberglass original tumba made in Paliades Nj back in the 70's. Exact same look/color as one in your pix, and I find it extremely light.

Yes, I find it extremely light too! Thats why I like it.
It sounds good too!
My Matador Tumba was breaking my back!
The one I have is a Conga, and now I am looking for
a Tumba to go with it.

[deadhead]

HiYo Dead Head and Others

Seeing as you are a Dead Head I imagine we have some similiar tastes in music. Grateful Dead, Moe, Allman Bros and Jam Bands in General ( Not to take away form classic cuban/afro styles). Anyways, considering my styles of music I have been leaning toward a nice fiberglass set liek the meinl Fibercraft series or Pearls equivelant. What makes you say you will never buy fiberglass again? I know wood is supposed to sound warmer, and fiber glass projects more. But if I main focus will be more modern styles of music is wood the way for me to go as well?(Meinl Luis Conte three piece with stands or Toca Sheila E Tumba and quinto) or should I go get a top of the line fiber glass.

Grateful 1, yes I am a fan of all the bands you listed! Wood is merely my preference. I have owned 4 different conga models 2 fiberglass and 2 wood.

My first set was a fiberglass set of Toca Players. They didn't last long as I found an incredible deal on a Fiber Galaxy conga, and sold the tocas to purchase a matching quinto. As far as sound, durability, projection, etc the Galaxies were pretty high up there, thats why they come with a hefty price tag. They were very loud and had great projection. This ultimately resulted in me selling them as I live in a 3rd story apartment and the fiber was just too loud. I never giged with them, but did have 1 or 2 band rehearsals, and they cut pretty well un-miced. They were also by far the most durable congas I have owned, you could throw them off an overpass and let a semi run them over and they wouldn't break. As far as sound, it just wasn't what I was looking for, it lacked that warm tone that wood gives you, and the overtones were horrible, I couldn't stand the ringing.

I purchased some LP Classics after that which I prefered over the fiberglass. The sound was warmer, and the overtones weren't overpowering like the fiber. Once I switched the crappy synthetic heads for Mules from JCR I had found the sound I was looking for. The slaps were crisp and clean and the open tones were warm and defined and lacked the dreaded ringing. I ended up traded those just a couple weeks ago for a drumset.

My new baby is my recently purchased vintage oak Gon Bops conga. Without a doubt in my mind the Gon Bops sounds better than any other conga I've played. In my eyes, vintage is the way to go, and I won't ever go back, its just a matter of taste.

There are some things to take into consideration when choosing wood or fiberglass. First off will you be giging? If yes, then will you be miced? If you are running through a mic, you don't really need the extra sound projection that the fiberglass offers, but if you are playing an accoustic setup, the fiberglass will cut through the band better. But just because its accoustic doesn't mean you need to cut through so much, there can be too much conga sound. Also from my experience fiberglass is more durable, so moving equipment to and from gigs can also be a factor.

I would suggest playing as many different congas as you can before making a decision. Good luck!

[bongosnotbombs]

Deadhead has some great insight, let me add a bit.

Sound is such a personal thing,

I prefer the sound of my fiberglass LP over my wood Matador,
but I am pretty sure my vintage LP was a high end product back in the day (still is!).

Fiberglass CAN be louder, doesnt have to be though..just play softer with more control.

Ringing sucks, but not all fiberglass rings, I think a lot of it is to do with comfort curve rims and heads.

I prefer fiberglass right now for weight! Durability is also good. I think a quality fiberglass drum with a good head can sound as good as a wood drum.

I would still take a wood drum that weighs a ton but sounds great over a fiberglass one that sounds bad..

but I am going for the best of both, sound and light weight, and that seems to be vintage fiberglass for now.



Edited By bongosnotbombs on 1177442663

[deadhead]

Ringing sucks, but not all fiberglass rings, I think a lot of it is to do with comfort curve rims and heads.

Good point, the heads I had on the Tocas were original, and considering the drum model, they prbably weren't worth a damn. The Galaxies had synthetic heads, which also contribute to ringy overtones, they sounded much better when I swaped them for hand picked. I have also noticed the ring from comfort curve rims. My Classic quinto had the comfort 1 and my conga and tumba had the comfort 2. The sound was much less ringy from the quinto as there was less extra metal. A traditional style rim, although painful on the hands for a while, would be ideal for sound quality.

[taikonoatama]

A traditional style rim, although painful on the hands for a while ...

Painful? There's no good reason it has to be.

I've played traditional rims almost exclusively and I barely ever even touch the metal rim. Perhaps early on I hit it a couple of times and learned to keep away and play more on top - I don't remember. It's never been an issue except with a traditional rim mounted unusually high.

I've heard other people claim they're painful (like salesmen at Guitar Center) and I can only guess that it's marketing and/or learning to play on a comfort curve adversely influences technique - because it's not as painful to hit the comfort curve rim, the base of the palm might slide further down during various strokes. And if someone learned like this, yes, that same technique would indeed hurt on a traditional rim.

Need not, though, with technique appropriate to a traditional rim.

~Taiko



Edited By taikonoatama on 1177446111

[deadhead]

Thanks for clarifying taiko, note I have only played comfort style rims on congas, and was only repeating what I have read. My teacher's batas have traditional rims and they kill my hands. The heads are almost flush with the rims though.

[bongosnotbombs]

I don't find traditional heads any harder or more painfull to play than the comfort curves where congas are concerned.
With bongas the comfort curves make the bongos wider and harder to hold between your legs (no innuendos please!). I don't see any reason for these kinds of rims on bongos at all, one is much less likely to strike a rim.
I do think the traditional rims sound better than comfort curves, and are easier to change heads on, on both congas and bongos.

[taikonoatama]

Thanks for clarifying taiko, note I have only played comfort style rims on congas, and was only repeating what I have read. My teacher's batas have traditional rims and they kill my hands. The heads are almost flush with the rims though.

I can certainly understand how if someone had learned on comfort rims, switching to traditional rims could be painful. I just wanted to point out that there's no inherent issue with traditional rims themselves - it's a technique issue.

As for bata drums - I know all too well of what you speak. Ouch. The sets I've played have all been as you've described, with the rims mounted almost flush to the head. When you combine that with learning to play in a new/awkward position, unperfected technique (speaking for myself) and a teacher or situation demanding loud slaps NOW, regardless of the consequences, it can be a very black and blue experience indeed. Been there.



Edited By taikonoatama on 1177465112

[deadhead]

As for bata drums - I know all too well of what you speak. Ouch. The sets I've played have all been as you've described, with the rims mounted almost flush to the head. When you combine that with learning to play in a new/awkward position, unperfected technique (speaking for myself) and a teacher or situation demanding loud slaps NOW, regardless of the consequences, it can be a very black and blue experience indeed. Been there.

I remember when we first started doing Bata about 6 months ago I couldn't even make it through the 30 minute lesson. My hands and arms were killing me. I've since developed callouses and no longer have problems playing for over an hour. My arms still get tired, its hard to get used to playing, Bata uses an entirely different set of muscles than congas.