bongo bass..help with knobs

[notpete3]

I just purchased a bongo 5 string (metallic orange) with 2 humbuckers and dont know what all of the knobs are for. Could someone please tell me where to find a diagram of the knobs or optimal settings.

Thanks in advance

[adouglas]

Here:

http://www.ernieball.com/mmonline/techinfo/

[1Echo]

1: Volume
2: Pickup blend
3: Low mid/high mid EQ
4: Low/high EQ

As for optimal settings ...... I use a ton. The beauty of the Bongo is in its versatility. I also play everywhere on it from near the bridge to over the 24th fret --- lots of tonal variety.

[Goofball Jones]

1: Volume
2: Pickup blend
3: Low mid/high mid EQ
4: Low/high EQ

As for optimal settings ...... I use a ton. The beauty of the Bongo is in its versatility. I also play everywhere on it from near the bridge to over the 24th fret --- lots of tonal variety.

Anyone gotten close to the coveted P-bass tone? I'd expect a HS would be easier to achieve that one than a HH? Dunno, haven't tried one yet.

[mynan]

Could someone explain to me why the P-bass, or J-bass for that matter, tone is "coveted"? This is nothing against GJ, but it seems like that question gets asked a lot. That or "I wonder what a MM would sound like with a J-pup?" To me, a F****r just sounds like a dumbed down version of my SR and trying to make my SR sound like a F****r would be like trying to somehow muffle the sound or like trying to get lost in the mix. It just doesn't make sense to me. Maybe I'm just not nostalgic when it comes to my bass sound.

I look at it like, if I wanted a F****r sound, I'd go back to playing a F****r. Hell, they're cheap enough. I could buy two. Then I'd sound like everyone else, but be left with that "It sounds good, but there's someting missing" feeling.

Sorry about the hijack.

[Goofball Jones]

Could someone explain to me why the P-bass, or J-bass for that matter, tone is "coveted"? This is nothing against GJ, but it seems like that question gets asked a lot. That or "I wonder what a MM would sound like with a J-pup?" To me, a F****r just sounds like a dumbed down version of my SR and trying to make my SR sound like a F****r would be like trying to somehow muffle the sound or like trying to get lost in the mix. It just doesn't make sense to me. Maybe I'm just not nostalgic when it comes to my bass sound.

I look at it like, if I wanted a F****r sound, I'd go back to playing a F****r. Hell, they're cheap enough. I could buy two. Then I'd sound like everyone else, but be left with that "It sounds good, but there's someting missing" feeling.

Sorry about the hijack.

So, you're not a fan of the Dual HH or HS Stingrays since they don't exactly sound like the traditional SR...at least unless you're in position #1? I see you have a SR5 HH, do you play it only in #1 position? All the EQ wide open? Or do you adjust your tone per song or what? And why do I always see "get lost in the mix"...wtf is that? 50 years of people playing basses and many have no problem "getting lost in the mix" at all with whatever bass they play. Passive, active, p-bass, j-bass...whatever. If you're getting lost in the mix, perhaps it's not the bass itself.

But anyway, the P-bass and the J-bass are the standards. If I'm up there on stage and a song comes along that calls for a P-bass tone, I'd rather just adjust the controls on my current bass instead of having to take it off and put up another one. It also cuts down on a ton of other equipment I don't have to bring along if I can get tones as close as I can to other tones. Not exact, but close.

Also, I'm pretty sure you can say Fender here. You won't catch on fire...But to take your argument further as to why you won't buy a Fender...why buy a EB/MM because you'll sound like everyone else out there with one. That is if you buy into the myth that it's the bass and not the bassist.

[adouglas]

I suspect it's because so much of our musical lexicon was recorded with one of those two basses.

My own view is that what's more important is your own sound (specifically the sound in your head), not someone else's, so I don't buy the whole "coveted tone" argument myself.

I can see the desire, though. I mean, if people are willing to spend five figures on a repro tribute instruments simply because their hero played a guitar just like it, I can see why they'd want to get the exact same tone as well.

My criterion isn't whether my bass can sound like another bass. My criterion is whether my bass can sound good to me when I play it.

[Goofball Jones]

Hell, I'm just looking for something versatile to play different songs. Don't want them all sounding the same way on every song. If I'm playing "Longview" by Green Day and then next song up is Higher Ground....should I keep the same tone on my bass? I say no....but I guess if I kept it the same, it would be my "style"!

[adouglas]

Well, that's a different thing than trying to get a specific tone that sounds just like a P-bass.

I can tell you with absolute confidence that the Bongo is able to leap tall buildings with a single bound when it comes to versatility. I can get every sound I've ever wanted out that preamp really easily.

[mynan]

I think you're jumping to a few wrong conclusions...

I have an HH because of the versatility, not just because I love the traditional SR sound. I would contend that my HH in position 5 sounds better than any F****r I've ever owned or heard, so saying that a song calls for a "P-bass tone" is like saying that the song calls for worse tone. You might as well say that the song calls for a boat oar with strings and pickups.

If you need versatility, the HH has it, but I wouldn't want my new F-150 to run like a Model T.

[adouglas]

50 years of people playing basses and many have no problem "getting lost in the mix" at all with whatever bass they play

I'd argue that yes, they did, but there was nothing better at the time so nobody noticed.

Ever listen to old recordings and notice how lousy the sound is compared to a well-produced current record? The recordings haven't changed, but your expectations have. When you experience better sound, your standards of what's acceptable shift.

I often wonder how amazing all those old Led Zeppelin tunes would have sounded if JPJ had had access to a bass that *really* could cut through the mix instead of a Jazz.

Nevertheless, if your goal is to make it sound muffled and indistinct because that's what the song calls for, then sure, you can do that.

I play several old (60s) songs in my band...e.g., Beatles "Don't Bother Me." I get this nice lo-fi 60s vibe by simply killing the treble and hi mids on my Bongo. Works great.

[Goofball Jones]

Cool! You guys have talked me into it! I'm getting a P-bass then instead of a Bongo or SR4!

Thanks!

[Goofball Jones]

I'd argue that yes, they did, but there was nothing better at the time so nobody noticed.

Ever listen to old recordings and notice how lousy the sound is compared to a well-produced current record? The recordings haven't changed, but your expectations have. When you experience better sound, your standards of what's acceptable shift.

I often wonder how amazing all those old Led Zeppelin tunes would have sounded if JPJ had had access to a bass that *really* could cut through the mix instead of a Jazz.

Nevertheless, if your goal is to make it sound muffled and indistinct because that's what the song calls for, then sure, you can do that.

I play several old (60s) songs in my band...e.g., Beatles "Don't Bother Me." I get this nice lo-fi 60s vibe by simply killing the treble and hi mids on my Bongo. Works great.

Um, no, I've never noticed that. All I notice is how much better tunes were from back then without all the crap they over-produce now with Pro-Tools. I guess I'm alone in thinking that Led Zeppelin 1...which was recorded AND mixed in under a week sounds much better than many things out there being done today. And, JPJ sounded fine to me...as did Entwistle and Geddy and James Jamerson and ....well, the list goes on and on and on.

But I see your point, I guess Geddy should dump that pawn-shop Jazz he has and get something that really can cut through the mix!

We've also gone WAY off topic...but that's my fault.

[mynan]

...something about a nose and spiting your face.

[Goofball Jones]

...something about a nose and spiting your face.

Lol, of course, I was joking