What skin thickness is recommended?

Skin thickness is recommended relative to the shell size- the larger the shell, the thicker the skin. This produces a balanced sound across the entire set of drums.

Warm and classic sound with crisp slaps, round open tones, rich bass and controlled overtones:

Bongo Macho: 1mm

Bongo Hembra: 1.4mm

Requinto:  1.8mm

Quinto: 1.8mm

Conga: 2mm

Tumba: 2.2mm

Super Tumba: 2.4mm

Djembe: 1mm

Bright and resonant sound with very crisp slaps, longer sustain and more overtones:

Bongo Macho: .8mm

Bongo Hembra: 1.2mm

Requinto:  1.6mm

Quinto: 1.6mm

Conga: 1.8mm

Tumba: 2mm

Super Tumba: 2.2mm

Djembe: .8mm

Dry and woody sound with crisp slaps, shorter sustain and highly controlled overtones:

Bongo Macho: 1.2mm

Bongo Hembra: 1.6mm

Requinto:  2mm

Quinto: 2mm

Conga: 2.2mm

Tumba: 2.4mm

Super Tumba: 2.6mm

Djembe: 1.2mm

Traditional very dry and woody sound with the shortest sustain and next to no overtones.

Bongo Macho: 1.4mm

Bongo Hembra: 1.8mm

Requinto:  2.2mm

Quinto: 2.2mm

Conga: 2.4mm

Tumba: 2.6mm

Super Tumba: 2.8mm

Djembe: 1.4mm

Posted in .