congaplace.com

Hello everybody,

Has anybody seen these drums before? Looks like an answer to competitors' models that feature traditional rims. No information on LP's website, and the only sources seem to be this ebay seller and "GO-DPS".

Hard to gauge quality based on the specs for the congas, but the finish is appealing.

Also, they don't list the size of the bongos. This is a shame because a smaller size bongo thats better made than Aspire/CP lines would be a great deal at the price offered.

Adam

http://www.ebay.com/itm/LP-RUMBA-CONGA- ... tDomain_0&

hash=item23150d39f8

Amazon has a deal on 3 sizes for $449 - free shipping.

I'm waiting to see if Cuco knows anything about the authenticity of this offer. Either Cuco or whoever else here that would know.

I remember when Meinl first came on the scene, they offered a nice wood conga for $125 each size. I bought 2 of them at Sam Ash, NYC. My friend Angel Rodriguez was working there at the time and when he saw me, he told me about the drums right away. I had the drums for years and they sounded great.

I'm hoping this is the same thing. The Amazon site says it's an introductory price offer.

Anyway, even if the ad might have been brushed up by Photoshop,
those drums look OK, but what bothers me is
a) the seemingly cheap production à la Aspire
b) that LP sells this line of congas as something spectacularly new - well,
again they have copied, in this case the Charlie Mariano model from Gon Bops if I am not wrong.
c) even if affordable drums are good, what about their SOUND?

There's a pic of it on Ebay standing next to a Giovanni drum and the hardware looks much better. You can see the contrast in the hardware from one drum to another.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/LP-RUMBA-CONGA- ... 23150d39f8

Tumbas wrote:There's a pic of it on Ebay standing next to a Giovanni drum and the hardware looks much better. You can see the contrast in the hardware from one drum to another.

Of course the Giovanni model has got the far superior hardware?

POST REMOVED BY THE AUTHOR

Leedy2, what you say about these being sub-matador (either on this or one of the other two threads that has sprung up) seems right.

What I've noticed about LP is most of their professional congas are sold separately as a matter of course: think Giovanni, Classic, Matador, and some of the other signature and designer drums. If you want to buy a set with stands, its usually between the dealer and you if you want a good deal.

Budget lines tend to be sold bundled together with stands or bongos or both: CP, Aspire, Caliente, Classic II, Performer, Ardiente, even Matador Custom -- of course these drums are not created equal, but none of them approach the Classic model in quality. A lot of those lines are also "exlusively" distributed by the big box stores. Beginners think they're getting a great value, and then a year later craigslist is full of unplayed student drums that nobody wants (especially "Caliente"). That's LP's strategy, and it probably helps their bottom line.

Here comes "GO-DPS" ahead of LP themselves with an exclusive line of their own, same height and head size as Aspire, sold in bundles. Nice looking, but a little gimmicky. Its a shame they don't put traditional rims on any of their professional drums anymore.

My 2 cents.

POST REMOVED BY THE AUTHOR

Mike wrote:

Tumbas wrote:There's a pic of it on Ebay standing next to a Giovanni drum and the hardware looks much better. You can see the contrast in the hardware from one drum to another.

Of course the Giovanni model has got the far superior hardware?

I should have clarified what I meant -

I was trying to say that in comparison to the photo of the ad, the rumba conga next to the Giovanni conga appeared to have better quality hardware than the rumba conga on the ad.

From the distance the actual pictured conga shows hefty looking hardware. When you see the ad drum hardware, it looks like the lower end hardware.