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Posted: **Tue Apr 13, 2004 3:33 pm**

Hello all your bongoceros.... i just bought a pair of Meinl Bongos the free-ride series FWB5OO. the HEMBRA is 9 inches.
i took off the animal skins and mounted some Remo fiber-skyn on them, and they some just awesome, loud, crispy and with a lot of pop and volume...mucho ache!

Michaelangelo Rosario
bluebossa80@yahoo.com

Posted: **Thu Apr 15, 2004 3:01 pm**

Enjoy your bongos. Did you get a good price for them? I know some dealers are selling the Meinl's Free Ride with 9 inch hembra for a great price. (A little over $100. I think aj percussion in Tampa is doing even on Ebay). Somebody mentioned, I think here, that Meinl is discontinuing the 9 inch hembra model.

Question? When you play them between your legs, what about the double A or M in the middle instead of a bar, does it feel comfortable to you? I've play some and they feel strange like the bongo is "shaking".

Enjoy....

Saludos!

Posted: **Thu Apr 15, 2004 8:05 pm**

....Hello Mr. Raymond.. thank you for your note. i got the free-
ride bongo from A.J PERCUSSION in Tampa FL. I got a great buy and i order the Remo fiberskyns from Interstate Music. i am telling you they sound great. for some reason the 9inche hembra has more bass and volume than the standard 8.5. you can hear the difference. the free-ride connection beween the macho and hembra is very stable and sound. all and all for the money this is a great buy.

Mucho ache!
Michaelangelo Rosario
bluebossa80@yahoo.com

Posted: **Thu Apr 15, 2004 8:24 pm**

I have Fiberskyns in one of my LP Generation II and they sound great too! Like it better than the NuSkyns.

Yes, a 9 inch hembra will give you a more traditional deeper sound. I am getting some Pearl Elites here soon which are 9 also.

Glad your happy with your bongos.

Saludos!

Posted: **Fri Apr 16, 2004 2:02 am**

Sounds like a good deal, would love to get bongos with a 9" hembra! I need to check those Pearls too. How much are they going for?
Though I already have LP Gen II, and LP Valje with Fiberskyn on macho.

T

Edited By Tonio on 1082081027

Posted: **Fri Apr 16, 2004 3:23 am**

saludo all your Bongoceros the Meinl free-ride is for the money the best pro- Bongo on the market. they are beautiful made. the workmanship, sound, quality and the 9 inch hembra is the bomb! i think by me adding the Remo Fiberskyns i bought the drums to a new level in-terms of sound. for some reason if i have to go back to animal skins then mule head skins will be the way to go. imagine the Meinl free-ride with a mule head skin, great sound, volume and warm- round sound.
i think i am the first person that came up with this combination

mucho ache!
Michaelangelo Rosario

Posted: **Fri Apr 16, 2004 4:36 pm**

Hey guys the Pearl Elite has a 9 inch hembra too. I have a set and I luv them. I have believe it or not, mule skin on the hembra and a Nuskyn on the macho.. Question for the group....Why is the Hembra(female) called the hembra? and why is the Macho(male) called the Macho?....Let's run this one down...... :;): JC JOHNNY CONGA....ps Zaragemca can you chime in on this one too?

Posted: **Fri Apr 16, 2004 5:50 pm**

.. Good afternoon all your Bongosero from EL BARRIO
NYC: the Meinl free-ride Bongo is a unique drum due to the fact that the Macho and Hembra is attach together
by the heard wear instead of the bar. i think this is a great creation by the company. the drums are attach by the head wear which makes it easier to work on each drum individually for repairs such as mounting skins
and cracking of wood.
The Peal elites are nice bongos, i own a pair of the congas but the Meinl -free-ride are a better due to the fact they are constructed of a highly quality. i disagree with Mixing animal skins with Remo- nuskyns and fiber skyns.. what i am talking about for an example animal skin on the macho and fiber or nuskyns on the hembra. i think you get a much better balance in sound if you stick to either animals skin %100 or go with Remo %100
mixing and matching the macho with animal and the hembra with Remo doesn't give you the balance and the consistence you would need in your attack while playing,my advise will be is to go with one or the other..i believe whole heartedly, as percussionist we have to be creative but yet consistent with the sound that we are projecting.
the small drum is the dominate and leading drum that is why it is call the MACHO.. the big drum plays a secondary role and that why it is call the HEMBRA..i hope this information will be very informative to you all.. thank you in kind and remember to play your asses off.. Que viva la musica!!

Mucho ache!
Michaelangelo Rosario
bluebossa80@yahoo.com

Posted: **Fri Apr 16, 2004 7:07 pm**

Also, I always thought it was hembra because of the larger "hips" [but maybe thats an overfond imagination]
Peace and love
Stu

Posted: **Fri Apr 16, 2004 9:17 pm**

I use a fibersyn on macho and mule on hembra on my LP Valje and they sound great. Though it does require a different technique than 100% fiber or mule it works out great. With fiber you need less effort, mule needs more effort. Actually I think it may be good for building the strength for hembra-at least for me it has helped.
The mix combination sounds good for recording too. I thought at first it may compromise the volume, but its fine. YMMV. That itself would tell you how balanced the mixing of different heads would result.

Hembra-female. Tumba is known for being the mother drum, so I say it was passed down that way, macho -male, well theres already a hembra so self explanatory.

T

Posted: **Sat Apr 17, 2004 4:17 am**

.... Vaya mi gente.. Mr. Toni thank you for your input.i feel that mixing animal skins and synthetic heads on a bongo is not really the thing to do on a professional level..first of all, traditionally, there is basically 4 or 5 different animal heads you can put or conga or bongo drums.. there are calf, buffalo,
cowhide and mule. the companies that have a monopoly on the synthetic heads are Reo and Evens each and everyone of these head i mention both animal and synthetic have their own unique sounds and tone. for an example, mule heads sounds different then calf, Reo fiberskyns sounds different then Evans. you see what i am talking about, it doesn't make sense to put a Remo synthetic head on the bongo macho and put a mule skin on the hembra if you want a uniform sound.
synthetic heads with animal head doesn't give you uniformly a consistent and precise sound. i think it is best to stay with heads that are comparable in sounds such as, mule heads with macho and hembra. calf heads with macho and hembra,and Remo fiber skyns both on the macho and hembra.. look at your bongo like a mathematical equation, what you do to one side you do to the other...

Posted: **Tue Apr 20, 2004 3:22 am**

michaelangelo, como estas?? tell me , aren't the meinl free ride bongos a little heavy?? i could be wrong ok. i have a lp generation III bongos. i'm pleased with the sound and the performance it provides. they also have a 9 inch hembra. my best to you and take care ok. aché to you and all the greats in the forum.'' con el coqui en clave'' your friend, franc:cool:

Posted: **Wed Apr 21, 2004 3:42 am**

Franc.. thank you for the note ... the free-ride. Bongo. is about the same as the generation 2 in terms of weight about 9.5.. i think they are a better design drum all together...as a matter of fact, they are the premire bongos on the market from a major percussion company and i played them all....

MUCHO ACHE!
Michaelangelo

Posted: **Wed Apr 21, 2004 10:40 am**

thanks a lot, michael, it is good to know that. i didn't know the free-ride meinl bongos are the leading in the market. i know that meinl percussion is a great brand, but i always thought that lp, were the leaders.so i was wrong. thanks to God you always learn something new every day. i did once own a meinl free ride bongos. i though i will never buy a pair of bongos again, but were stollen from my home. i love how they sound. i asked you about the weight, even though i have not compare in weight one from the other. thanks again, mi pana!! Aché to you and all in this great forum!! ''con el coqui en clave'' tu bro!, franc:cool:

Posted: **Thu Apr 22, 2004 2:55 am**

.. Mr franc... thank you for your note.. you are right, L.P. is the leader in terms of popularity but Meinl free-ride Bongo for the money in workmanship is the best on the market from a major drum company. the weight is about 9 to 9.5 lb. not heavy at all, but heavy in sound and what a sound.....mucho ache!

Michaelangelo

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