Advise on buying a Bodhran

lollycross · Post by **lollycross** » Tue Apr 13, 2004 6:28 pm

Hi all,
I need to purchase a Bodhran on line. My usual sources don't sell them.
Does anyone have an idea on where to go? I don't need an expensive one, nor a case.
Thanks,
Lolly

OutOfBreath · Post by **OutOfBreath** » Tue Apr 13, 2004 6:35 pm

...don't

ChrisLaughlin · Post by **ChrisLaughlin** » Tue Apr 13, 2004 7:11 pm

My best advice for buying a bodhran is to buy a good one. Don't skimp and buy a cheap one. If you do buy a cheap one you'll be unhappy with it and have to buy a good one a couple months down the road, but only after having struggled to get the right sound out of the thing and convinced yourself that it was your own fault.
I highly, highly recommend bodhrans by Seamus O'Kane - the bodhrans of champions. http://www.tradcentre.com/seamus/

If you want to spend a little more money I also highly recommend Rob Forkner's drums available at http://www.whistleanddrum.com . I hear Kevin Crawford is playing one these days.

Best,
Chris

BrassBlower · Post by **BrassBlower** » Tue Apr 13, 2004 7:16 pm

2 words: Real Skin

Bauju · Post by **Bauju** » Tue Apr 13, 2004 7:30 pm

I don't know anything about bodhrans, but I've seen them on these three sites:
www.folkharp.com
www.andysfronthall.com
www.songsea.com

Parcour25 · Post by **Parcour25** » Tue Apr 13, 2004 9:38 pm

Lolly, are you a registered eBay user/buyer?

On any given day there are 50-60 bodhrans, instructional videos, cases. Quality ranges from poor to excellent, as does price range, very low to pretty high. And you always get instruments for less than retail, assuming you are buying from an individual and not a dealer... which is easy to spot.

I've personally sold 8 bodhrans on there in the last 12 months. (I buy em', try em' and either keep them or sell them). I don't mind giving up 10-20% on resale for the opportunity to pick and choose what I really love, and I have 6 bodhrans in that category right now. Every musician I know does exactly the same thing. What doesn't work for one person becomes the treasure of a lifetime for another.

You should try ebay, it is excellent!

Rando7 · Post by **Rando7** » Tue Apr 13, 2004 9:41 pm

lollycross wrote:Hi all,
I need to purchase a Bodhran on line. My usual sources don't sell them.
Does anyone have an idea on where to go? I don't need an expensive one, nor a case.
Thanks,
Lolly

If you could tell a little more about what your price range is and what quality you are looking for we could probably give you better advice. Whistle and Drum is a good place to start.

blackhawk · Post by **blackhawk** » Tue Apr 13, 2004 10:38 pm

While we're on the subject, are there any good instructional videos, or are they all trash?

MarcusR · Post by **MarcusR** » Wed Apr 14, 2004 4:54 am

lollycross wrote: I don't need an expensive one

Do you need a drum with a good sound?

As with many other things in life you normally get what you pay for.
Stay away from all Mid.east, Waltons, Gremlin and Roundstone drums as you are buying on the net and can't try them out.
The quality of the skin is really everything, and even if you can get lucky and find a decent cheapie, most of them are for tourists not musicians.

I’m with Chris on the SOK drum, Seamus makes some spectacular drums and is on the top of my list. I heard nothing but good things about the meatloaf drums (recommended by Paul Marshall at www.drumdojo.com) even though I ended up badmouthing Rob here at C&F some time ago.

Considering the current exchange rate, a good European drum can be a bit pricy at the moment.
Here are some more links in US and CND:

Albert Alfonso
Mance Grady
Fred Halpin
Bridget Drums

You can also check Whistle & Drum, Blayne is also a frequent contributor here at C&F.

Good luck!
/MarcusR

MarcusR · Post by **MarcusR** » Wed Apr 14, 2004 5:59 am

Parcour25 wrote: On any given day there are 50-60 bodhrans, instructional videos, cases. Quality ranges from poor to excellent ....... I've personally sold 8 bodhrans on there in the last 12 months. (I buy em', try em' and either keep them or sell them)

Q: What if you paid $50 for something that really sucked. Would you still consider to resell that to some poor sucker knowing that he/she would be better off with a cardboard box? Or would you take the loss?

All I can say is that I wasted more money on crappy cheapies in the beginning than it would have cost me to get an expensive professional drum right from the start.

Cheers!
/MarcusR

missy · Post by **missy** » Wed Apr 14, 2004 6:34 am

get a "tunable" one. If you don't, and you play in areas where the humidity changes - you can spend a LOT of time with either a misting device (for when the skin dries out) or a hair dryer (for when it absorbs too much moisture).

lollycross · Post by **lollycross** » Wed Apr 14, 2004 8:05 am

Thanks for all the replies.
I need to use it to record an album. I doubt it would ever be used on
stage or in public. Yes, I noticed TONS on e-bay, but don't want to
have to pay $15 just for shipping and then not have it sound good.
What TONE or KEY or ? whatever one would call it, is it supposed to
play in? (I know tom-toms with deer skin are too low a sound for Irish
music). But what tone does a Goat skin play in?
Thanks,
Lolly

Bloomfield · Post by **Bloomfield** » Wed Apr 14, 2004 8:11 am

lollycross wrote:(I know tom-toms with deer skin are too low a sound for Irish
music).

I think they're fine for American-style Irish music.

I'd borrow a bodhran, along with someone who can actually play it, if it's for a recording.

If you do buy one, I'd go with Fred Halpin's tunable bodhrans.

vomitbunny · Post by **vomitbunny** » Wed Apr 14, 2004 8:25 am

So what's the least you can pay for a usuable instrument?

Bloomfield · Post by **Bloomfield** » Wed Apr 14, 2004 8:27 am

vomitbunny wrote:So what's the least you can pay for a usuable instrument?

I thought this was a thread about bodhrans.

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