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Thread: A tale of two djembes...Toca vs. LP Aspire

  1. #1

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    Cool A tale of two djembes...Toca vs. LP Aspire

    This is a review of two djembes--a Toca and an LP Aspire--that I played at the same time earlier today at a drum shop in Granite City, Illinois. My drum-teacher buddy had just taken delivery of them the day before and their heads were not totally "broken in," so these observations are preliminary and I will update them!

    #1) Toca (12 1/2" head, fiberglass shell wrapped in an orange pattern)

    #2) LP Aspire (14" head, fiberglass shell wrapped in a black-and-orange African pattern)

    Both are distributed by Kaman Music, but both have decidedly different sound and performance qualities,so the comparison is more like a Chevrolet to a Buick.

    The Toca is lighter (I would estimate the LP weighs approximately 18 pounds and the Toca, about 13 pounds) and slightly shorter than the LP (LP about 22 inches tall, Toca about 20). Both have goatskin heads (in fact, other than the size, they appeared identical).

    The Toca feels like it's built to a price. Ironically, the Toca has a small, hard-to-grasp black rope handle at the rim that recalls the traditional African djembe, but the LP is easier to handle despite its larger size. The Toca's rims are the old-fashioned style (read uncomfortable) and the bongo/conga-style tuning lugs are harder to tune properly than the LP. When one of the employees tried to tune the Toca to a pitch of B, he found it took longer to tune it than the LP--and it didn't stay tuned. Again, the heads were not stretched properly, so this may have been a factor. I had trouble keeping the Toca steady between my legs while playing (I was wearing blue jeans) because of the shiny wrap, so a serious djembe player would need a strap. Approximate list price: About $200.00.

    The LP Aspire has the trademark Comfort Curve rim (which makes it less painful to play hard rimshots like I do) and was easier to tune and keep tuned. While both the Toca and the LP had a deep, "ballsy" bass tone when hit dead center, the Aspire's head seemed to be breaking in faster than the Toca. The shiny wrap also posed a few slipping problems when I played it seated between my knees; plan on getting a strap here, too. The LP Aspire's approximate list price is about $250.00.

    If I were buying one of these two, I'd plunk down the extra $50 and go with the LP; as 1DrumBum and I will tell you, the larger the djembe head, the deeper the sound you'll get. This comparison proves at least, in this case, you really do get what you pay for!

    As I said, I'll update the review in a couple of weeks (after I break them in by some more test playing!)

    keep the beat goin' ... Don't keep it to yourself!

    Charlie

    "If a man does not keep pace with his companions, perhaps it is because he hears a different drummer. Let him step to the music which he hears, however measured or far away." --Henry David Thoreau, "Walden," 1854

    "There's a lot to be said for Time Honored tradition and value." --In memory of Frank "fiacovaz" Iacovazzi

    "Maybe your drums can be beat, but you can't."--Jack Keck

  2. #2

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    Great review BB. Thanks

  3. #3

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    O.o alot to read.

  4. #4

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    BB, you are the man! Awesome review. I'm gonna have to go check out one of the LP's!
    Da' Bum
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  5. #5

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    Thanks for the info

    Bongobro.

    Good deal
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  6. #6

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    Cool A tale of two djembes...Toca vs. LP Aspire

    THIS IS A BONGOBRO UPDATE!!!

    Okay, now that I got your attention , here is some updated information on the two djembes...haven't played them since the original "test," but I have some model numbers that I should have included earlier.

    The Toca djembe is model SFDJ-12--it has a 12-inch head and is approximately 23 1/2" tall.

    The LP Aspire djembe is model LPA632VSB; it has a 12 1/2"-inch head and is approximately 25" tall.

    (Hereafter I measure the size, rather than guesstimate! )

    At my next drum lesson, I will play them again and give you some updated impressions.

    I now return you to my regular sig:
    keep the beat goin' ... Don't keep it to yourself!

    Charlie

    "If a man does not keep pace with his companions, perhaps it is because he hears a different drummer. Let him step to the music which he hears, however measured or far away." --Henry David Thoreau, "Walden," 1854

    "There's a lot to be said for Time Honored tradition and value." --In memory of Frank "fiacovaz" Iacovazzi

    "Maybe your drums can be beat, but you can't."--Jack Keck

  7. #7

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    i love the LP, i bought a similar djembe
    www.myspace.com/maudeephyfe
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  8. #8

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    Cool A tale of two djembes...Toca vs. LP Aspire

    As promised, I played both of the "test" djembes today (see the original post) with the following results:

    The LP Aspire stayed in tune and, in fact, sounded even better than ever. As I suspected, the head "broke in" faster than the one on the Toca; I was playing along with a jazz vocal and, the way I was playing, it sounded like I was playing a snare (with the snare off) with my hands...it sounded cool...still has a good sound when hit dead center, and is smoothing out on the rimshots...

    The Toca was still out of tune (a bit too high) and sounded awful...and after the test (a/k/a my drum lesson), my drum teacher was last seen trying to kick the Toca down a couple of notches...

    So my original impression about the LP Aspire djembe still stands...of the two, the LP is the better buy (and I see 32nd HeartBeat concurs already)...
    keep the beat goin' ... Don't keep it to yourself!

    Charlie

    "If a man does not keep pace with his companions, perhaps it is because he hears a different drummer. Let him step to the music which he hears, however measured or far away." --Henry David Thoreau, "Walden," 1854

    "There's a lot to be said for Time Honored tradition and value." --In memory of Frank "fiacovaz" Iacovazzi

    "Maybe your drums can be beat, but you can't."--Jack Keck

  9. #9

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    Default Re: A tale of two djembes...Toca vs. LP Aspire

    Try a Bougarabou. It is c cross between a conga a djembe. Much more tonal range and sounds much better with congas. Basically Djembes sound good with ....... other Djembes.

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