can we discus congas?

Greetings,

I am a novice conga player and african drummer (dounoun, djembe, sabar) living in tallahassee. I came across your site and wanted to ask you for some advice.

I own two gonbop drums that I think are from the 70s. A quinto and a conga. I would like to know more about them.

I would also like to ask you about vintage conga drums, whats what, what is good, and what can be obtained relatively easily... How do I go about researching this.

I also want to know about more recent drums form the 90s and 2000s

the reason is be cause I am approaching a professional level and need right now at least one more conga and a tumba so I can practice with more than 2 drums....

the music being practiced is folkloric cuban, haitian, brazillian, and puerto rican stuff as well as popular music of these countires and african countires and calypso (trinidad, other west indian nations) and jazz/soul/funk

I dont have much more than 500 to spend on one drum or perhapse 300 per drum if I was going to buy two.

Maybe one day I will get a set of some signature drum that costs upwards of 800 per drum, but I just want quality drums that I can work on and perform/record on for now.

And I dont really know much about this stuff.

My teacher thinks that a matador or bauer would be the way to go, he doesnt think i can afford for example a patato, giovanni or armando paraza signature drum, and we are not sure what makes those drums so grerat.

if u can tell me about drums that would be wonderful and if u know how i can find more info on my two gon bops that would also be great.

thanks

The extent of my conga playing is a single lesson with my old percussion teacher, some 20 years ago. Not much help, then. However, I wanted to alert you to these:

http://www.pearldrum.com/Products/Percussion/congas-and-bata/travel-congas.aspx

Apparently, they're more than just the conga equivalent of the drum practice-pad as they're pretty loud and deep sounding (though you might need to mic them in some situations). They got a really good write up in a drum mag review I saw recently. Hell of a lot easier to lug around, but best to test drive them before buying (what sounds good to the ears of the average drummer can be very different from what a seasoned player hears).

Wait for Slaphappy drums to get here. He's our hand-drumming expert 'round these parts !

Gon Bops are great drums. I purchased mine in the seventies and and I'm still satisfied with them. If you want more info on gongas go to www. congaplace.com , It's an excellent site. You may find a used drum from that period to complete your set and not break the bank.

Vintage Gon Bops are some of the most valued Congas out there , up there w/ old school Valje's.

Unless you have damaged or sub-par Gon Bops I wouldn't be replacing them anytime soon.

If you want more drums to hit look into some bongos or a tumba to add to your Gon Bops.

As for research.......tried google?

As for the Gio sigs , they're awesome if you have the money , but a matador w/ a "Hand Picked" head will be close less pretty approximation.

It's all a little weird in the context of someone with Gon Bops asking about Matadors......

Thank you. YOu are very helpful.

I will look for more vintage gon bops.

I need at least one more drum.

What about bauer?

How can I find out what condition my congas are in and what model number they are (the gon bops)?

I'd go for bongos , as for the state of your drums goes , if you don't post pics we have to assume they don't exist. But really do post some pics.

Do an image search and compare what you see in your house to what you see on the screen , also dig in w/ google and I'm sure you'll find a whole community of Gon Bop enthusiasts.....just gotta let your fingers do the walking.

Tony at Tony's Conga Blog suggests that when/if I do feel like buying something more expensive and current, i should look into isla percussion http://www.islapercussions.com/ and Matt Smith http://www.ritmostudios.com/My_Homepage_Files/Page1.html as an alternative to LP Galaxy and other signature drum series from LP.

Just thought I would share the new companies I discovered, Isla especially seems like a good instrument for rumba (folkloric) and salsa as well as latin jazz!

http://www.volcanopercussion.com/

whats the opinion on these?

lol

i just realized the price ranges from 900 per drum (mango wood) to upwards of 2000 per drum (koa wood)

geez!

looks pretty sweet

I played congas in the 70's with the Towson State Jazz Ensemble. There were only 2 killin drums back then...Gon Bops and LP. Both had great sound, LP with more volume because of the fiber glass while Gon Bops were warmer because of the wood. Gon Bops usually sold in pairs while LPs came in a trio...quinto, conga and Tumadora. Hardware was very similar and I think Gon Bops had thinner skinned heads. These vintage drums are IT!!! imo

So.......if you were to buy the full package, Super Quinto (same as a requinto), Quinto, Conga, Tumba, Super Tumba, Boomba (14") and the 7&9 Bongos, it would cost more than your average mid-sized car.

From the photos he sent they look like beautiful drums.

I have a 4pc set of Valje drums (quinto, conga, tumba and supertumba) and matching bongos I bought new in 1977. They're great drums, sound and look good. I recently found a small crack developing in the supert so I went on-line to get information on how to fix it. One thing led to another and I ended up sanding the lot down and fixing all the nicks-n-scratches that came about with 30+ years of haulling around. I re-finished them in water-based Clear Varathane (Diamond Clear Coat Gloss). They turned out spectacular!

They sound as good as they look.

I sent Ralph Flores (Tom Flores' son - My drums were built in Tom's shop on Sunset Boulevard. LA in 1976). Ralph replied with a nice email and said they look new.

I took this photo a couple of days ago in my front yard right after I put the hardware on the last drum. It took me five months to re-finish all the drums (still have the bongos to do). It was well worth it. They SPARKLE .

We repaired a nice Valje awhile back , it was an awesome drum , best tone of any Conga I've played.

You can sell the farm, buy gold plated, diamond studded congas if you want but it won't make you a better player or a professional and 99% of the people that would be impressed would not know the difference. I would spend the money on related percussion instruments and put the rest in the bank, or mattress. No telling where this economy is headed. If you hit the big time you may reconsider but from what I can tell, Your not there yet.

Ya - I'm not in the big time and I never will be. That doesn't concern me. I'm an average player - been around drums of one sort or another for 50 years or so. I wasn't saying these drums were the greatest or that they even sound good live - I've only heard them on Youtube. I was mearly stating there are some pricey drums out there for those that may want to buy them. I initially contacted Tom at Volcano to enquire about conga heads. The drums do look nice you have to admit. However; I also like Gon Bops, some of the LP drums, Sol (DW) and Ralph's Resolution drums look beautiful. I'm sure there are tons more out there that too. It's nice to have a variety to chose from that's for sure.

Cheers,

Kona

thank you.

i will look for more vintage gon bops! or valjes

i can use the extra money for skins and other things!

what do u guys know about the NEW gon bop drums?

how do they compare with the old ones?

for example - a conga and a tumba on sale here

http://cgi.ebay.com/Gon-Bops-Alex-Acuna-signature-Conga-Set-859-99_W0QQitemZ400048029977QQcmdZViewItemQQptZLH_DefaultDomain_0?hash=item5d24b88119&_trksid=p3286.m20.l1116

all this talk about some of these nice drums here is making me feel a bit lacking with my lp Performers. but they work for me as of now! I bought a set of quinto, conga and tumbador, plus bongos, plus a Meinl bongo stand and an lp triple stand for $650.00, ever so slightly used!

I really need to get a third drum asap.

I need a conga

it needs to blend with my vintage gon bop tumba and quinto

i cant wait around to find a vintage gon bop or valje although i know they are both awesome and affordable... (I got my two gon bops for 300 for both)

for about 650 I can get isla percussion drums, congas or a tumba.

I have heard they are the real deal and I would prefer to support those guys more than lp right now, and while i know that gon bop is back in business. something about the uniqueness of these isla's and the good things i have heard about them for rumba and folkloric playing makes me think they are a good long term purchase.

what do u guys think.

a bauer would cost about 500 for a conga

dude get some bongos.

leff it!

a wa mi say. i need another conga for calypso and tumbao

firell. u si mi? STRAIGHT!

I was quoted (by Tom Alexexander himself) as high as $6,000/drum in Koa wood - "In Gallery price" - I never did ask what "In Gallery" was. However they are nice looking drums.

Kona

Top-of-the-line Gon Bops are superb drums! The Galaxy line in LP is not too shabby too

The Valje's were "killin drums" back then and they really took off when the likes of Santana's percussion player(s) started to use them. Just a little Valje history too to add to your post.

Great post - thanks

Keep up the good work with the lessons - liking it....

Kona