Toca Premiere Congas - All weather congas

[TriniYanki]

Hi All,
Has anyone tried the Toca Premiere all weather Congas? Fibre glass body and synthetic head. Can the head be replaced with a natural one if so desired?
Thanks Eric

[congabebe]

previous rantings of joy "I bought 11 and 11 1/2 inch conga and quinto Toca Premiere series (red to black fade). I got them from AJ's Percussion in Tampa off ebay. Great price (buy it now price) and great shop to do business with. I think they are good drums. They tune easily and have a good sound. I wanted something that would be good in all weather conditions. And that would not be too expensive.
congabebe "

Musician's friend (musiciansfriend.com) is selling them the 11 and 11 1/2 for $139 a piece. I wanted to get the tumba but they are not selling them now. I love mine. I will say the conga stand that LP makes for Aspires doesn't hold them well. That is what I bought from Aj's Percussion when I first got them. I found a CP double stand that is thicker at Mars, (might have been an older model that was on sale), it works great. If you want a bigger drum than the Aspires and you like the fiberglass, you can't beat that price. There are some great deals on Ebay too if you are patient and have about $800. I saw new set of Matador's (3), red wood with stands sold for $632. I love wood too, I just wanted the fiberglass cause they are supposed to be brighter and cut through. As for using a skin instead of the synthetic heads? I want to try it cause I have heard such great things about the sound of buffalo or mule skins. So far, I have not heard that you can't use them. From what I can tell you can buy any brand as long as you measure it and buy the correct size. Maybe someone will know on the forum. Good luck on shopping. If I had the money I would have 2 sets of drums, there are too many good choices out there.
congabebe

[JohnnyConga]

Ok here we go "Ist skool" versus today's skool. I tried the new Tocas with the synthetic head. Sound like garbage cans to me. You know, how artificial do do you want your sound to be? or do you want the original "designated" sound, of natural heads and natural body. Fiberglass is from nature with man's hands stuck in it. I like fiberglass but only with "real" heads. I do endorse Pearl Elite Congas,I have the blond wood ones with the Water Buffalo heads. To me they are one of the best sounding wood congas around, and there are a lot of good ones around today. I also like mule skin,though tough on hands. and i have to go thru Venezuela to get any. But my heads have been on my drums now for 5 years and no problem. I changed the tumba once cause I didn't like the thickness of the skin,it was too thin for the tumba. The guys who put the heads on are in Thailand,and they put on what's available. The original 28inch Salsa Model LP for me is one of the best models, ever. that's my take on it.....At your Service...JC JOHNNY CONGA.....

[timo]

Why don't you just go assasinate a mule at your local ranch . You'd save the trouble of going to Venezuela.

But i got to admit that Pearl Elites sound good, I personally prefer natural with natural, wood with some dead mule on it, sounds good to me.



Edited By timo on May 21 2002 at 23:33

[congabebe]

Johnny,
I appreciate your comment. I really don't have alot of experience like you do and I can hear they have a different sound than the ones at the drum shop that I can't afford. I want to try the real skin but not sure what brand to check out and what will fit on my drums. I am still learning. I want them to sound good and so I tune them. When I first got them it took a while to find the right pitch for the drum to sound right. The looser the head the more overtones it makes and it doesn't sound good. The only why I can describe it is to say that the drum is not in pitch with itself. So, I have kept tuning it up til it has a certain tone. I have alot of drummers that have been playing set drums who have heard me with the band, who say they sound great, so maybe it is the way they are mic'ed and run through the PA system. Or they may not have heard a real conga player. I had been playing some old Cosmic Percussion fiberglass with the original heads from 1985?. So to me they sound great. I got a lot to learn and I will keep your comments in mind. I have been listening to tapes and cd's of congas, but I have yet to see anyone play that has your experience locally in Memphis. The only time I have seen a touring band with a conga player it was Samuel Clayton with Little Feat. Long time ago. To long for me to remember what I was seeing, except it was a good concert. I know that the wood congas do have a certain tone compared to the ones I have but for now they are the best I could afford.
Thanks,
congabebe

[benbaboon]

bebe... if your budget changes a bit, the toca traditional wood model comes with real skin on wood and sound really great, especially when you consider the price.
I'm no way near as experienced as Johnny, but I feel I have enough knowledge and experience with conga sound to make this recommendation.
-bb

[JohnnyConga]

Hello Timo....DO you have some kind of problem with me,you sound atagonistic in your post about assasinating a mule, for skin.? ......JC JOHNNY CONGA...

[JohnnyConga]

I could also say why don't you go kill a few Horses for the glue you used to make your drums. Peace JC JOHNNY CONGA...

[JohnnyConga]

This is for CongaBebe....Tks for your response. The cosmic ones you have are actually for kids. Move up to LP Matadors. they are reasonably priced and sound great. You may also want to look up my good buddy in Nashville Glen Caruba,who works for Pearl Drums. Tell him I sent you. and as for this weather proof conga thing,just put some baby powder on your heads if your outside and it's humid, you will save $1,000 on those all-weather drums....At your service...JC JOHNNY CONGA....

[congabebe]

Johnny,
I wasn't sure about if the Cosmic congas were for kids, but these look like the Matadors, except narrow and like I said the original heads. They are old and I did use baby powder on them, the heads have not been maintained like you are supposed to. Detuning, so they have probably been tightened and tightened. No telling. When I went shopping for Congas, I wanted the big fat looking in the middle style. And I went with fiberglass because, Memphis is humid. And the LP drums looked good but I couldn't afford the Matadors. What I wanted was the Matadors, but they start at $500 a set on ebay, low but still out of my range. And so these looked like the same style shape, and as for the heads, I figured it would be good to have something that stayed tuned easily. I have some Matador Bongos, love em. And I had heard fiberglass was brighter on any drum. Toca is cost less r than LP, I heard that it was a company started by the Pete Esquevito and Richard Steinholst. Both are specialize in Latin percussion music. So, I went for the deal. There is a disadvantage when you are a novice. It all looks good. I had heard of Pearl but no one pushes Pearl like they Push LP and Toca and Remo. I had seen them on Ebay, but rarely. This must mean no one wants to sell theirs after they get them. My dad had some Pearl drums... still has them from 1950 or so, no telling how long he's played them. So, I know Pearl has good instruments, but with congas? (since Pearl is not so advertised and the Memphis Drum shop does not have a set of congas on display) I figured they weren't good. I found out they make "Afro djembes" and they sell them at the drum shop. Maybe your buddy Glen needs to call them? Do a clinic, promote them. Just an Idea. In any case, I am happy with my Toca's. Down the road when I can say I have some real talent playing, I will buy me some more. I will check out Pearl's congas because you recommend them. In the meantime, someone needs to get Memphis to sell them. Sometimes, the best instruments are not advertised. They are not mass produced and they are better instruments because of it, but I didn't know and so I went with what I read on the internet and saw. LP is high, even the student models. But what makes a good conga. The skin. I have heard this. What about the shape of the drum, the thickness of the wall of the drum. The process of making a wood drum is on the LP website but if you look at a picture of a Toca or LP wood verus a Pearl, no way to set them apart. So, If you were to pick up the drum and turn it over what makes it better than the other drum. Why do the put a band on the Fiberglass drums? Or the hand made drums ? That is what needs to be mentioned. I couldn't find anything that said that on the internet. I know how to tell a good flute or saxophone and it isn't the price. Name brand helps, but there are certain things they do to the best flutes that they don't do to student flutes. So, How a bout some clues, do you have any? What actually makes a good sounding conga? I need to know and you have given me good advise already so I will be taking notes.

And as for looking up Glen Caruba, I checked out his website. Looks interesting. Do I call him direct or does he work at Pearl in Nashville and I have to call Pearl? I have heard that he is good and a friend of mine saw a clinic that he did and he said it was great. So, I had actually heard of him before you mentioned him from a professional drummer. I am just starting to take this more seriously. I was going to look for a teacher locally first, see what I can learn. I have been using videos and trying to imitate the music that I hear. I feel like I need some drumming basic's under my hands before I seek out a pro like Glen. I told you before, I studied Flute and Sax, classical and Jazz, in theory. I can read Treble and Bass clef, but Drums are new and so far I am just having alot of fun. I have baffled my friends cause I went from sitting in the audience to playing in the band. The musicians in the band have been playing over 20 years and they didn't expect me to take it so seriously. I have really surprized some people. But I am a novice. And I have a long way to go. I don't know if I will be able to go on tour with Phil Collins or Sting, but I can play my heart out with J.A.M.B (Just Another Memphis Band) and that maybe all I do with it. And if you want to add me to your list of people that use drumming for therapy, I can tell you it is the best way to exercise you body and free your mind than anything else I have tried. Anyway, That is where I am coming from. I am past the age of a high school student. I am not going to set the world on fire with my talent, but when I play I can get people to dance and have a good time on a Saturday night.

For now, I am soaking up this web site, it is great and I am very glad that you are so active in it. I really do appreciate you comments and advise.

Thank you,
Congabebe

[timo]

HI JC, Sorry, I didn't mean to offend you, I was just saying that you might be able to get mule skin from some rach where there have mules, it would save you the trouble of going to Venezuela.



Edited By timo on May 23 2002 at 10:56

[JohnnyConga]

First I will address Timo. No problem man Jah Love ya know. I have a friend here from Venezuela who sells the skins here at 30 to 40 bucks a pop,so I don't need to go there. OK CongaBebe.....What makes a good Conga? Wow here goes .For me the sound is of course important. Which comes from the construction of the drum and the wood that is used. I have played every type of drum imaginable. Examples of great construction would be "Skin on Skin" congas from NYC made by Jay,an old friend of mine and makes the best drums there. Mopercs out of Canada are extremely well made and hand crafted congas. My Pearls of course have rubber bottems and are made out of Siam Oak.Any kind of Oak made drum will sound Great. they are also acoustically designed for maximum response, and the response is Great. then you have Timba congas from the West Coast, they bought out Gon Bops, and my good friend Ritchie Barrientos runs the company. Pearl has just started there Perc. line only about 4 years ago so it's moving slowly into the Perc. field. But the Percussion is worthy of any LP or any other drum out there,take my word. If I could afford it I would have 5 Mopercs, 5 Pearl Elites, 5 Timbas, 5 Skin on Skins....then 5 LP Salsa Models,the 28inch ones. Luved those. the ones you mention with the Wide body is the Old Valje's which were bought out by LP and created the Armando Peraza model. they sound good too, and made out of Cherry wood. I also like Phillipine Mahogony, very warm sound...Hope that helps .You can email Glenn at [email]GlennCaruba@PearlDrums.com...tell[/email] him I sent you....any other questions??? At your service...JC JOHNNY CONGA.......

[JohnnyConga]

I forgot to mention skins....Today you still have Cow. also now they have Water buffalo skin from Thailand. There is also Pig skin,which is very thick but good on a tumba. And then there is Mule. Not to thin no too thick. But hard on the hands,my first Eco-Tone fiberglass conga had mule skin,dark brown and thick,but had a great sound and really toughend my hands. remember the drum you "have" to "Hit",so there will be a certain threshold of pain at first then it will disapear and be replaced with pure pleasure. the quinto uses the thinnest skin,then the conga, next thickest, and the tumba the thikest......Hope that helps...At your Service...JC JOHNNY CONGA...

[congabebe]

Yes, it does help. I love the way the wood looks. Someone told me that they only leave the really good wood congas natural, and the others are painted to cover flaws. Is that true? I saw 2 websites on custom made congas. Fat Congas, boy do they look beautiful. Have you heard of them? And d'Cielo? Can't remember spelling. They take a tree trunk and hollow it out, so it is one piece of wood. Beautiful, very unusual hardware. I have thought about donating one of the oaks in my yard. They said they have to wait for good trees to make them. The one thing that I keep wondering is do you have to periodically oil the inside of the drum? You have to oil wood clarinets, oboes, bassoons, piccolos, so wouldn't you need to do that on a drum too?

I know from your previous comments about the skins. I saw an article on tucking your own skins on LP's web site. Is it that hard to do? I have noticed that the older congas have white skins but the new skins are biege and you can see through them. Also the skin's on my Matador bongos are white and rough. The Aspires and Matador Congas I have seen at the drum shop are slick and shiny. We have a local leather shop, but that isn't the right kind is it? They sell hides and some are soft but wouldn't you have to have a ring or something, you couldn't just slide on any old piece of leather. I have looked at the cuban rims on the Cosmic congas and it looks like there is a ring that goes over the skin and the skin flips up and the collar goes down over it locking it in place. Am I even close on this? I have read they soak the skins in water and mount them, let them dry. So, If I bought some conga heads, lets say cow, and I got them home; would I soak them and mount them and let the dry or ? Would I just put them on and tune them? Premounted? More questions if you're not tired of them already
So, can you buy skins from a 'leather' factory, and in the south there are tons of farms that raise cattle and 'beefalos', goats, and is it possible to buy the skins from them? I have to admit, I am a meat eater, love hamburger, but I have a animal activitist type of reaction to Water buffalos. Aren't they endangered species? Or are they like Moose in Alaska, they hunt them sparingly and under the watchful eye of the game warden? I grew up watching Animal Kingdom and seems like the Water Buffalos got it from everyone, the Tigers and the hunters. I don't think they raise them like we do cows for slaughtering do they? So I am curious if the manufacturers of the Water Buffalo skins discuss this. I am curious. I don't object to hunting, and if you are going to kill an animal, I believe that you should harvest the whole animal. On the other hand, I know that if I had to kill an animal I would have to be real hungry or I would be a vegatarian. Can you tell I have alot of unanswered questions. And I have been saving them up.

Thank you,
congabebe

[benbaboon]

Johnny, I appreciate you sharing the wisdom too
CongaBebe, Thanks for adding a little color to your profile... sounds like you know what makes you feel good and you follow it...I think that's great.
You may want to consider the weight of the drums too, especially if you have to haul them from gig to gig...Sol Percussion (http://www.solpercussion.com) is another custom made brand that makes great sounding drums.
Akbar was a drum maker at the original Valje factory before it burnt down, and he started this brand after they burned down. They are significantly lighter then Skin on Skin or Moperc and they sound great. I have one and I love it...
one disadvantage though....the lower screws going into the shall interferere with the wrench so you don't always get even quarter turns when you tighten it around.
Timo - I knew it right away it was just Timolese humor... too many flying steaks around your part of the world.
Peace -bb