I own several cajons (8 now I believe) from different companies. This is my second Sela and it does not disappoint. Cosmetically I love the look of it, the black body and dark faceplate are stunning, most importantly it sounds awesome. The hard splash front plate definitely provides a deeper bass tone than the standard sela tapas, however, it does not significantly take away the snap of the snare (especially if you install 2 snare units in the drum as I have done). I have not used it in a live situation yet but will do so this weekend. I have no doubt that it will perform perfectly as my other Sela cajon has for quite a while. This is a great product. Fit and finish is superb along with the sound quality- love the snare on/off mechanism (best in the business as far as I am concerned).