Review of Remo Darbuka – Doumbek and Frame Drums.
By Matt Stonehouse
For those about to take the plunge and buy a new toy from Remo percussion, here is a quick run down on the above drums.
Pictured above are a few of my own drums that get alot of use! The two Darbuka drums that you see are the weighted solist series. On the left is the 9″ (orange) and on the right the 10″ (green). Having said that i have been known to be colour blind in the past!
Both of these darbuka’s feature the Remo ‘Skyn Deep’ head which has become very popular of late and for al the right reasons. This is such a nicer skin to play than the blue plastic heads found on all other darbuka’s. The 9″ darbuka is a fantastic solo drum and has a mighty tone with great volume. Perfect for those playing split finger technique due to the extra sustain of the drum. This is a wonderful darbuka i have to say. It’s comfortable, solid, tunes well and has a wonderful tone. When pushed hard the Remo soloist Darbuka performes really well with the tone opening up slightly like a valve amplifier. Yes, warmth is what i’m talking about here folks! This darbuka is in my personal collection of drums that come along with me to all of my gigs. Note- It comes with one fault: There is an extra large raise at the botom of the drum behind where your elbow rests. If you are unlucky enough to move your elbow back quickly it will catch this raise and REALLY hurt your “funny bone.” It can make the rest of your gig rather drab. Thats the only word of warning and it does happen less and less these days;-)
Next in line is the 10″ darbuka. This is the largest in the soloist series and another awesome darbuka! It has extra bass due to its larger size and slightly more sustain. Perfect for those playing Turkish technique but do not yet own a ceramic darbuka. I use this drum if i am playing with a smaller ensemble and need some bottom end in the sound. It doesnt cut like the 9″ but still has loads of clarity. It really has a beautiful tone. One thing to remember is hat these Remo soloist darbuka’s have a very different sound to the normal darbuka drum coming out of Alexandria and other Middle Eastern factories. You may wish to have one of each in your collection. The classic Egyptian darbuka really does have a sound of its own and sometimes you will want that tone. At the end of the day it is an option though. With most darbuka drums going for around the $200 – $400 range we can have a few in our collection. I know what your thinking ‘a few in our collection!’ But when we compare our instrument prices with those of a guitarist? Or perhaps a flutist? Or mybe even a concert harpist!? Go ahead and scare yourself ith a google check on a price for a new concert harp and you will thank your lucky stars that you play the darbuka!
So before i get to far from the topic, both the 9″ and 10″ solist Remo darbuka’s are awesome drums indeed. I own both and highly recommend them.
To hear these being played just visit the Fingers of Fury Darbuka site.
Moving right along…the frame drums!
If you have anther look at the photo you will see two Remo Bendirs in the top right of the photo. These are 14″ and 16″ bendirs both with a synthetic fibre skin. The skin is a little rougher and more life like than the skyn deep which is better for a frame drum in my opinion. Both of these drums come with an adjustable snare sound. The snares can also be wound out completely if you wish. These are really great drums with good tone and in a pretty fair price range. I much prefere using these drums in an acoustic situation than microphone becous the buzz can sometimes get a litte scary in the front of house! Thats the problem with drums that sound a little different and many sound engineers that will mix your gigs at festivals. They make perfectly great sounding drum like a bendir sound like a blown speaker.
Next is the Riq and larger Layne Redmond Lotus tambourine. Both great drums with a really nice tone. The Riq has a nice light feel to it which is good for rocking techniques and shaking. The 10″ lotus is thewinner for me though. It has a lower pitch, lighter tin zills and more of an obvious note than a Riq. The Lotus is a very light drum and a pleasure to play!
Last and probably least is the nesting set of five tar style frame drums. There is a problem buying non- tunable frame drums over the net. That problem is the people packing them in such a way that the larger ones get stretched before arrival. Perhaps all of these drums leave the facory the same pitch ie; each 16″ tar sounds the same etc. But with packaging and stretching comes very crappy sounding drums. These are ok drums if you wish to use them for student ensembles but no where near worthy of professional level drumming. Having said that they are also really cheap to buy so what did i expect!
If you are in the market for a top frame drum then i would say Cooperman would be the best bet.
Well, i hope that helps some of you make up your mind. Enjoy your drumming as always and stay well, Matt from Fingers of Fury.
Tags: Darbuka
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