What a pleasant surprise it was to play these new drums from Toca. I was skeptical at first because of the great price, but don’t let that stop or fool you. These are really nice , sweet sounding drums, and the finish is beautiful as well.

The drums are commonly sold in a set of conga and quinto and a stand with
a Tumba being sold optionally.

I found the stand to work well. It is heavy duty and folds up nicely when you are not using it. There are also bongos offered as part of a package as well. I tried the bongos and they were quite nice. Crisp, clean and clear tone and not too heavy.

The hardware is very sturdy and the drums are not heavy or too light which is a really nice change after dragging around heavy congas for so many years!

One thing that should be mentioned is that these drums are shorter by about an inch and a 1/2 then Toca’s other models . I am a shorter player and also used to playing the old school LP congas from the 70’s so this was a welcome change for me. I also prefer to play sitting down so shorter drums are more convenient. I do not know Toca’s thinking in making the drums a little shorter but I think it was a great idea none the less.

When you pick the drum up and turn it upside down you see that it all fits together perfectly. There is no strong stench from the inside as there is a many drums. You can still smell a little. My fiberglass drums from the 70’s still stink of fiberglass in comparison!

The drums come in two color choices Available in Crimson Maple Fade (CF) and Natural Maple Fade (NF). I reviewed the Natural Maple Fade. Both choices are quite beautiful!

The skin choices (Bison) on the 3 drums I played, (conga, quinto and tumba) were all matched perfectly. They were not ringy and the tumba gave a full deep rich tone. I cranked the quinto right up there as high as I needed it and there was no hesitation in turning the bolts on the lugs. The conga or segundo stayed where it should right in the middle and provided a nice melodic note as well. I would prefer a slightly thicker skin on my tumba but that is hit or miss with any company and also a matter of personal choice.

The drums project well and we played them in an ensemble setting with two large surdos, bell and clave and they did just fine.

Everyone that played them at the session was impressed and commented on their sound and beauty, too!

Fit and finish is great, the rims are curved are very comfortable and the only thing that this drum is missing or I would like to see added would be rubber tubes or plastic on the bottom so the drum does not scratch the floor and rubber bumper pieces on the hardware so the drums do not scrape each other or anything else.

Other then those minor suggestions I feel everything else on the drum is great. It is my opine that this series from Toca represents the best bang for the buck in a new conga drum series and I highly recommend them.

Toca is committed to being green and environmentally-friendly. The wood we use is harvested from a plantation in Thailand, where our drums are then lathed and handcrafted by local musicians. This carefully managed resource is much easier on the environment than wood taken from primary forests.

In conclusion, with this series of drums Toca has really pulled off a coup, doing something no one else has done, at least for a long time. And that is to offer a premium sounding drum that will pretty much stand up to anything out there at a price way below competitors.

Details on the Toca Congas:

28″ tall 2 ply Asian Oak shells
Durable high luster chrome hardware
EasyPlay Hoop equipped with top grade Bison head
Fully adjustable double conga stand with single top plate mounting bracket (No need for 4 mounting screws, stand has only one clamp device)
Qunito is 11″ and the conga is 11-3/4″ with Double Stand, 12-1/2 Tumba Drum.
Available in Crimson Maple Fade (CF) and Natural Maple Fade (NF)