ISLA PERCUSSION - Discussion, Quality, Experience, etc

[109-1176549166]

bongosnotbombs,

Yup, I got my Gon Bops CA for just $240. Plus, the seller "threw in" a free bongo bag. It's not the best bag but it's decent. I don't even use it for my bongos. (I have a much better one). But, I do use it as an additional percussion utility bag.

I can see how you like the old Sol. And I definitely would have considered them, too, if only Akbar Moghaddam were still making them. However, to me the real clincher for the Gon Bops CA was the price. I agree with you that they sound better and are better constructed overall than the LP Giovanni which costs even more than the Gon Bops.

The Timba, JCR, Matthew Smith and Sol costs even more than the LP Giovanni which, as you and I agree, sound inferior to the Gon Bops CA. However, the practical doubling of their prices does not warrant their superior sound (IMO, minimal), if any, over the Gon Bops CA.

I'll try to bring my Islas tomorrow. But, I'll most probably be coming late 'cause I sing during the noon service at my church and have our usual family lunch after at a restaurant every Sunday.

Hope to see y'all, my brothers/sisters (Bay Area CongaBoard members, that is, and even some out-of-towners who can make it),



Edited By mjtuazon on 1184455507

[Tonio]

Hey Charlie and Tonio, I was wondering if you guys attend the Thursday night latin jazz jam session at Voz Alta downtown? I live in San Diego also, and I go to the jam every thursday. It is a great place to go and make contacts and sit in and play. It is led by the trumpet player Bill Caballero. If you want more info I would be happy to help you out.

I'll make a new topic on this aptly named Voz Alta downtown SD. (open discussion forum)
T



Edited By Tonio on 1184461028

[Tonio]

Yes, I'm extremely happy with my Gon Bops CA: great sound, design, materials, weight, comfort (between the legs), color choices and (mine is Cherry Stain color--to try to match my Pearl Red stain Islas) and price! I credit mainly my ownership of the them to your excellent advice.

As you know, I debated long and hard choosing from among the Gon Bops, the Timba and the JCR. (I wasn't aware of the Matthew Smith then.)

Manny, Glad your diggin' the GB CA Bongos!! How is the roundness of the macho? Is it clean round? To the T?
Could you measure it, to see if there is +- 1/4" difference in roundness?

What is your opinion of tone based on the skin vs the shell?e.g. does it sound like the skin is too thin for the shell?

Sorry if I sound like an interogation. Just trying to get your opinion, and compare to what I remember about the former Gon Bops.

T



Edited By Tonio on 1184463395

[109-1176549166]

Tonio,

I believe that Yambu321 (Charlie) can best articulate the answer to your questions about the Gon Bops CA. He has more experience than me with it and has owned other top-of-the-line bongos to be able to make a more credible comparison.

Yambu321,

Bro, I hope I'm not putting you on an uncomfortable spot here. But, I do highly respect and value your inputs re: the Gon Bops CA and bongos in general. Thanks in advance!



Edited By mjtuazon on 1184464110

[Tonio]

Manny, all you have to do is measure it?? I had a GB Int'l model back in the 70's. The macho went out of round pretty drastically after a few years. It was about 1/2" off in some spots, so it was really hard to tune. It never got as high as I wanted.

Macho side of bongos has a tendacy to go out of round, because you crank it up. So if its off alittle bit, after a few years it gets worse. Changing heads help but after a certain point its lost.
T

[109-1176549166]

Manny, Glad your diggin' the GB CA Bongos!! How is the roundness of the macho? Is it clean round? To the T?
Could you measure it, to see if there is +- 1/4" difference in roundness?

What is your opinion of tone based on the skin vs the shell?e.g. does it sound like the skin is too thin for the shell?

Sorry if I sound like an interogation. Just trying to get your opinion, and compare to what I remember about the former Gon Bops.

T

Tonio,

My GB CA are just about 2 months old. I measured the diameter of the "macho" at various points. Not surprisingly, I didn't see any + or -1/4" difference in roundness. Not yet, at least. And I hope I never do.

I highly suspect that comparing my bongos to your 70s GB Int'l is like comparing apples and oranges. As you may already know, GB is now owned by the Drum Workshop (DW). They've even convinced Akbar Moghaddam (for the right price, I assume) to give up running his own boutique percussion company in San Francisco, Sol Percussion, and join DW as their fulltime employee tasked to set up and supervise the "elite" group that makes all GB CA series (congos and bongos) in Southern California. Therefore, it's highly likely that my GBs are an entirely different "animal" from your GBs which were produced under the helm of it's original owner, Mariano Bobadilla.

My bongos may (or may not) have the improved technology over the older GBs to avoid the very problem that you had with your older ones. I'd like to assume that they do. In fact, I expect them to.

Yup, I did notice that the skin (horse head) on the "macho" is rather thin for the shell. But, unfortunately, I'm not in a position to say if it's too thin or not. I've never owned another pair of bongos before. (I'm a recent convert from electronic percussion, my Roland Handsonic 15, to acoustic percussion.) Neither have I taken the time to observe the skin of other brands at local musical instrument stores to be able to make a comparison with my GBs.

All I can say is that the skin seems to easily take the tension related to the key (B - D two octaves above middle C) to which I tune my "macho" with. The perceived "thinness" of the horse head, IMO, contributes to its nice attacking sound.

In the beginning, I used to detune my bongos totally after each use per the advise of my friend, Yambu321. Then, I heard and read somewhere that detuning them with just 2 to 3 turns are sufficient. So, I did this so that tuning them back would be much easier. Then, as Yambu321 reiterated to me the advantage of detuning them completely, I'm now back to completely detuning them after each use.

Therefore, by doing this, I predict that it'll be more highly unlikely that the "macho" of my bongo will go out of round during the rest of its lifetime. If it still does, then I'll just have to charge that to experience and either have it repaired or replaced with an even better set of bongos.



Edited By mjtuazon on 1184735585

[bongosnotbombs]

I detune 2 full turns on the macho, and 1 full turn on the hembra!
seems like a lot of work to fully retune everytime, but to each his own.
and man! I missed your Isla's at the park! Sorry you could'nt come man!



Edited By bongosnotbombs on 1184552716

[yambu321]

.

[109-1176549166]

Hi bongosnotbombs,

The full retuning that's inevitable from fully detuning is obviously more work than that required from doing only 1 or 2 full turns of detuning. For now, I'd say that, speaking just for myself, it's better to be completely safe than sorry.

Yup, me too! I'm sorry that I couldn't come. My wife and children suggested that we all have lunch in San Francisco and do some window/actual shopping in Union Square. And so we did. But, I'm sure there will always be a next time.

Had I been able to come and brought my Isla, I most probably would have brought only the quinto.

Hope you guys had a lot a fun! Please do share your experience with the rest of us here in the forum.

Thanks in advance,



Edited By mjtuazon on 1184578769

[yambu321]

.

[109-1176549166]

Hi Yambu321,

Thanks a lot, Charlie, for coming to my rescue!

I knew that I wasn't wrong in recommending you to address Tonio's question re: the GB CA. You really can best articulate why the GB CA is currently among the best bongos out there.

So, did you, Tonio and folkloricoSD get to eyeball and jam at Voz Alta last Thursday? I'm quite curious.

A most Blessed Sunday to you, Bro!



Edited By mjtuazon on 1184554530

[yambu321]

.

[blango]

Wow,

Got a chance to play a set of Isla Canoe wood Bata this weekend!

It was the set they are taking up to Humbolt to sell at the workshops.

Some lucky person is going to completely score with this set. It sounds like Cuban Cedar, the real deal.

I also played a pair of Isla Canoe quintos. - they are freaking sweet! The requinto is so cool looking, and has a clear bright tone, with mahogany like overtones.

They have really arrived at a refigned instument. Thanks for keeping the flame burning Mario and Pili!!

Tony

[Tonio]

Manny, Glad your diggin' the GB CA Bongos!! How is the roundness of the macho? Is it clean round? To the T?
Could you measure it, to see if there is +- 1/4" difference in roundness?

What is your opinion of tone based on the skin vs the shell?e.g. does it sound like the skin is too thin for the shell?

Sorry if I sound like an interogation. Just trying to get your opinion, and compare to what I remember about the former Gon Bops.

T

Tonio,

My GB CA are just about 2 months old. I measured the diameter of the "macho" at various points. Not surprisingly, I didn't see any + or -1/4" difference in roundness. Not yet, at least. And I hope I never do.

I Therefore, it's highly likely that my GBs are an entirely different "animal" from your GBs which were produced under the helm of it's original owner, Mariano Bobadilla. [/quote]
Thanks Manny,
Thats what I assumed to hear from you. Thanks Charlie for stepping in.
I realize that the old Gon Bops had its faults in their design, but back in the 70, 80's it was still considered a good design, and sounded awesome. Manufacturing co's do have their unacceptable/QC quotas I would assume. Where old GB or old Valje(Akbar) was concerned I have no idea. Being that the product is of a natural wood and skins, age and use does make a difference in long time use stability. Some may fall short before failure to the product. I don't expect a drum to last forever without some kind of rework after a certain time from use( or abuse), temperatures .
I have seen SOS Valje's, LP whoever fail. As a matter of fact I have seen just 2 weeks ago, a SOS set crack in 5 places between the staves mid belly on the exterior. I couldn't beleive my eyes, they were only 4 years old???
If Akbar is following the old GB's design-in the shell, I think it woud sound great. The hardware, excluding the crown looks to be the same design, whcih is a good thing. I think the new crown is nice work.

In the short term I beleive I will get a set, before they get too busy and loose the QC integrity. But with a 3 month waiting period I would hope they have a good team to oversee it. Not that I could make one myself.

Comparing old vs new GB may not be a fair comparison, but all I have is word of mouth and what I have seen/played to make judgement on who gets my mula

T

[109-1176549166]

Thanks Manny,
Thats what I assumed to hear from you. Thanks Charlie for stepping in...

...In the short term I beleive I will get a set, before they get too busy and loose the QC integrity. But with a 3 month waiting period I would hope they have a good team to oversee it. Not that I could make one myself...

T

Hi Tonio,

You're more than welcome!

Good news! You need not wait 3 long months! I suggest calling Bentley Drums in Fresno. Their website is: http://www.bentleysdrumshop.com/.

Check them also at EBay. That's where I initially found them.

I got my GB CA for "only" $240 and it even came with a bongo bag. Their ad on EBay said that the bag costs $50 retail. But, that's most likely just hype. It's a no-name brand that's made in China and probably costs between $10 to $20 only in my estimation. But, I took it anyway and I'm using it as an additional hardware bag. Regardless, I think that it's still a great deal considering the quality of bongos that I was buying!

Charlie was lucky enough to have bought his GB CA even cheaper. But, I believe that that was because the store where he bought it from wanted to move their inventory fast and decided to put it on "sale". It's probably impossible to get the same bongos for the same price.

Talk to Dana. He's the owner. He's a drummer himself. Tell him I referred you to him. Don't worry, Bro, I don't get any commissions for referring customers to him. He provides great, personable customer service. Tell him that it's just my way of showing my appreciation for his excellent service.

Above everything, I didn't have to wait. Dana didn't have the color I wanted (cherry stain), but he immediately called DW/Gon Bops and got back to me within about a couple of hours telling me that it was available. I got my bongos in just 2 days.

If you're not picky about color, I almost sure that he has the GB CAs in natural stain color in stock as their EBay ad would most likely indicate.

Best of luck,



Edited By mjtuazon on 1184645904