congaplace.com

I recently had a yard sale and unloaded three sets of Congas that I wasn't using. I then turned around an decided to get a road kit to take the pressure of my old Gon Bops.
I decided to get some "Tuff-Enough" remos'
The are heavy duty and really sound great when trying to compete with loud rock/funk situations. the Tumba was a little "ringgy" for me but the conga and quinto sound crisp.
Bags with wheels are not a bad Idea ...as they are Heavy but sure live up to their name....Built like a tank
I got a real deal on them as they were going to the Pancho Sanchez sig. models at Woodwind& Brasswing and got the 2 for less than $400 on a close-out. the Tumba will have to come later.

I"m real happy with them and they tune-up and down quite well
I highly recomend them as a giging set
Here's a pic of first one I bought tried to work in with a couple of LP for Knocking around and street gigs....Ended up getting second one...113/4 conga



Edited By Bongorific on 1191075305

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I've heard they're about the loudest congas on the market, due to their Acousticon shell.

Can someone compare the quinto on this set to a Patato Valdez quinto?

Is it worth the expenditure, if I already own a Fiberglass white Patato quinto?

I ask because I'm perennially in non-miked or under-miked situations, and I want to cut through.

A rumbero friend of mine in PR told me, "man, I don't even have to hit them hard...they play themselves". I wanted to know more about the congas after that comment, since this guy lives rumba and plays with Los Majaderos.

I have a new Jimmy Morales 11 inch for sale. It has a NuSkin head. 275.00 plus shipping. Buck

basically, I'm looking for the loudest quinto possible...I'm kinda tired of not being heard through unmiked situations and try as I might to get miked properly, in many playing situations, it's just not a realistic expectation that there will be appropriate miking for the conguero. Not every show I do has 3 or 4 mikes to mike each conga properly. So, I'm trying to solve the problem by getting the best equipment available for that type of job. It's one of the reasons I got Patato congas....the few I played were LOUD.

Alternatively, affordable studio-quality mics that I can hand sound men would be appreciated. Recommendations for them, I mean.

POST REMOVED BY THE AUTHOR

Quit setting up in front of the trombones

In the last gig's case, I think it was an issue with the monitors. The director of the group admitted that the monitors were weak because the signal to the monitors was mixed with the PA out...splitting the signal. He's now bought a better mixer, with the ability to split signals. let's see if that fixes the problem with THAT band.

But, by and large, congas (and the need to have them equalized with sufficient treble to hear baqueteo, finger work, heel toe, slap nuances, etc) are underappreciated in miking situations. Ignorance on the part of non-congueros...for them...it's just all about the "Pack, TUM, TUM...Pack, Tum Tum" and nothing else.

For my technique, here are two videos of my playing. If anybody can notice something I'm not noticing, please post here.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WwymCjEoedA

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jlOrsDS_h9A

Firebrand, very nice playing! You get a nice big sound from your hands. I really dig your band, Too. Wish there was something like that near me! Buck

Firebrand,
By now you should know that--unless you are in a strictly Afro-Cuban project-- congas/congueros will get no (or hardly any) respect , and be looked upon merely as ornamental sound tapestry --- nice to have, but if you can't make it to the gig, they'll get along fine without you. If you rely on others (the band leader or the "sound guy") to mic you expect to get screwed. I come loaded with 5 mics mounted on my CongaPlayts inside my congas, fed into a cheap-ass Tapco/Mackie mixer with one output to the PA, and insist my level be as loud as the drums. You're still going to be "ornamental sound tapestry" and get little respect, however you will be heard. And if you don't like the sound of drums being miked from the inside, I still suggest you get your own clip-on mics and mixer.
viewtopic.php?f=14&t=5380&p=54613&hilit=congatick#p54613

Umm, are your drums sitting flat on the ground? I can't tell, but it looks like it on the vids. I love my LP conga feet and tilt my quinto. Had to take the plywood from under my drums that were sitting on carpet the other day as I was too loud on an unmiced gig a few weeks back.

Thank you for the compliments. Yes, the congas are on the floor, except for the quinto, which I tilt a little.

What are CongaPlayts?

I'm going to consider 4 sets of LP Conga Feet...I prefer to play sitting because I'm lazy and don't want to stand the whole night...but if I can get the advantage of not having the congas on the floor (louder resonance), that might be worth the feet. Plus, my Patatos are NOTORIOUS for being unstable, especially if hit hard...it's the thin bottom under a fatter belly. This might help.

I think the conga feet will help. As much as providing a little more volume I think lifting the drums gives a wider spectrum of frequencies, and maybe one of those frequencies might be just the one to cut through.

A conguero and teacher friend of mine plays in a local salsa band and one night he uncharacteristically had his hands taped up. In between sets he was complaining about not being able to hear himself. I told him that he sounded great in the house and to STOP SETTING UP IN FRONT OF THE BRASS SECTION. So that's where my previous smart ass comment came from.

Another friend was using this massive LP stand that held three congas. You could use it to change tires on your cement truck before the gig. He forgot his drums for a gig and called me just in time to bring mine, with the LP feet of course, and I haven't seen that heavy stand for a long time. Never really got a good explanation on how he forgot his drums but it was all good in the end. It was a private party with lots of good eats and drinks for free.