These are professional instruments.

Although amateurs and beginners can enjoy these excellent drums, only players with advanced technique will truly be be able to release and control the incredible variety of tones they can produce.

Skilled drummers constantly and intuitively adjust their hand positions in order to mute or allow various degrees of ringing.

The user review comments about the ringing tones are made by players with apparently limited technique.

It is also possible that these same players have not tuned their drums properly before playing them.

As for whether or not they sound like 'authentic" rope-tuned djembes, in the hands of a genuinely skilled hand percussionist, "traditional" djembe's pale by comparison.

Further, anyone who has ever tuned a rope drum will surely appreciate that the Remo Djembe (which comes with a tuning wrench) can be tuned in less than 5 minutes - this can be critical when needing to tune to a specific pitch before a performance and having limited time to do so.

Unlike wooden drums with "natural" heads, these hold their tuning very, very well and are far less affected by changes in temperature and humidity

The 14" version is very popular and you will see them being played on stages all over the world by some of the finest percussionists in the world (for example, Ernie Adams and Gumbi Ortiz, who play with Al Di Meola).

I use the 24"x12" Remo Djembe in my church's youth band, and i just have to say it sounds great!! I had played one at a Guitar Center i visited and decided I had to get one, and as soon as i recieved it in the mail i was in love!! It has a nice high sound along with a very deep bass sound when hit in the middle. Although there is some ring to it, it's not enough to make it sound bad. This djembe sounds great when played along with acoustic guitars also. A great deal!!

Students Beware! My 12" Remo travels easily, likes rain and is generally tough as nails, but it doesn't mix with a group of carved and strung djembes. If you are a beginning student of West African rhythm as I was when I bought my Remo, you would be better off with an instrument sounds like the drums you will be trying to imitate. The Remo sound is quite different, whether the "ring" is controlled or not. The head is also less sensitive than goat skin, which makes you work harder and leads to less control. So, students beware. Remo djembes are a good value and a lot of fun, but if you are learning djembe, choose a more traditional instrument.

this unit is solid. It will break the floor b/f it breaks. It is heavy duty traveling djembe. Great sound and projection. It is HEAVY though, not for kiddos to play w/. But can't be beat on durability and construction and sound. love it!

I first played one years ago when my friend purchased one. I don't know what I waited for, putting off owning one for myself. The lows are deep and rich as the slaps are crisp and punchy. My only complaint is the ring that sustains after each strike, yet it's not anything that you can't muffle out. I would suggest this drum to any beginner to expert player.