MEINL Floatune Wood Djembe Natural 12 In

I tried the Remo 16" but didn't like the "pingy or tinny" sound it gave on base, tone or slaps and returned it. A lot of people gave good reviews, so maybe I just couldn't figure out how to tune it correctly. Even tried using Moongel but didn't like the results... flattened the base too much. I bought a set of Meinl FWB400 Bongos, after comparing to a set of LPs, and love their crisp tones... then read a lot of reviews, bought the Remo 16" Djembe, returned it, and decided to try the Meinl Floatune 12.75. The base sounds are excellent and although the Floatune system looks a little funky, the sound and feel are terrific. Very solid construction and easy to tune with tuning lugs. I also bought the Meinl Steely II Djembe Stand. Very glad I did... rugged, sturdy but would have helped to have directions to assemble. Took several failed guesses before we got the nuts & bolts set up right, but once we did, it too is excellent... adjustable, can angle one leg lower to get an angle on the drum head. I'm just getting back into percussion after being away for years and had never even heard of Meinl. What's a German company know about bongos & djembes? Evidently a lot! Most companies are having their hand drums made in Thailand anyway.