I happen to order a Meinl ID8-RB IBO drum the same time i ordered this drum and they both arrived on the same day within an hour of each other the Meinl arrived first, so i unpacked it and played it for about an hour and it had alot of various tones between the ceramic, and the fiberglass bottom, as well as a very deep base sound, but it was a huge drum and very awkward and uncomfortable to play on my lap.

Then the LPM 1400 museum series arrived an hour later, now keep in mind the LP is a mere .00 to the Meinl’s 0.00 and yet the LP was packaged much better and also included a booklet telling you about the drum and showing the other models available, not to mention a very cool tightly wrapped round tweed rope stand and this drum was incredibly comfortable in my lap and had very bright and deep bass sounds, and i must admit so much more smooth playing than the Meinl.

It’s just a great drum and has immediately become my favorite out of the 3 i have, the other 2 being the Meinl Liquid IBO drum 0.00 and of course the ID8-RB Ceramic/Fiberglass bottom newer addition, LP really makes a quality product and it will probably get the most play out of the 3 because of it’s great sound and comfort and ease of playing….buy this drum.

I am a bit dissapointed in this purchase. The drum is okay, but it doesn’t have much volume at all, and gets drowned out almost instantly with any more than two other drums playing. I was also dissapointed in the range of sounds produceable with the instrument. Having watched a number of udu videos, I expected more tonal variation.
The finish is passable, but you can clearly see the seam where the two halves were joined together. Again, a dissapointment.
Had I been able to play this instrument before purchasing it, I certainly would not have bought it, even at the low price compared to other udu drums. It may make a better vase than a drum.
I gave it two stars rather than one only because it isn’t a total failure, just a dissapointment.

Was worried when I ordered it that maybe the sound would be poor because of the small size, but I saw a guy on YouTube playing this exact drum and it didn’t sound bad so I got it. Sounds better in person. Not very loud but udus tend to not be loud anyway. Really sweet air sounds, good variety of them too; the resonance on the two holes (especially the hole on the body) lasts long enough for you to manipulate the hole and change the pitch which produces something of a wah-wah effect, very strange and interesting. Some reviewers have stated that the shell sounds are not that great. I think it’s adequate in that area once you learn how to hit it right, but there is a way to make the shell sounds louder. I found a couple of thin key chain rings that fit just right on each ring finger, makes it really ding perfectly, not too loud and bell-like but mellow like the bass sounds, and I go between tapping them or not with ease (this would probably work with any udu, net cost .00, thanks Boomtown Casino!). The walls of the body and neck are pretty thick and I’m not worried about breaking it with the key chain rings. It has an unusually long (goofy lookin’) neck as far as udus go, and this is good because some of the best shell sounds are there, an advantage this udu has over alot of other models. Even though it’s the smallest udu I saw on the internet (although quite a few of them are only about a half inch taller) it is larger and heavier than I expected and it is weirdly good looking (except for maybe the low relief lizards on the sides, oh well, still looks great on the coffee table). After about an hour playing and experimenting with it I was able to rock it very well, intuitive and easy to learn. Also: it trips out everyone who hears it, but if you position it upright on its twine base they all think it’s just a weird vase. Definitely worth the money, especially if you’re into unusual percussion instruments like me.