Help me choose my next EBMM Bass

[gkella]

Last year, I bought my first EBMM Bass.
It was a Stealth Black 4HH Stingray.
I absolutely love it.
I want to give it a brother (or sister, not to be sexist).
My gut tells me to get 4HH Bongo.
But I see so many positive comments on the Cutlass and Caprice.
It gets a bit overwhelming trying to figure out the difference between the models.
Can someone give me some guidance as to the characteristics of each model.
What will I find differentiates these models from my Stingray?
Thanks in advance
Glen

 

[bovinehost]

Hey Glen.

First, if you choose a Bongo or if you choose a Cutlass or Caprice, you'll have made the right decision. You'll get different opinions from different forumites, of course, and being opinions, they'll all be worth what you pay for them. Mine is worth exactly that much, too.

If I didn't already have a Bongo, that's what I would get. There is a lot of power in that electronics package, they record exceptionally well, and the ergonomics are fantastic. The Bongo neck makes me smile. Plus, well, LOOK AT IT. It certainly won't be mistaken for a P bass. I am a certified Bongoloid and my red 5H is my desert island bass.

The Cutlass? If what you want is an exceptional passive bass with simple controls - point and shoot - that's a good choice and an interesting alternative to active tone. I like the Cutlass on stage; no knob fiddling, no worries about old the battery is and they look traditional enough to not scare the house engineers.

The Caprice is one step beyond the Cutlass. Smaller body, can sometimes be lighter which is nice for those 3 hour gigs, and more tonal options due to the 2 pickups and extra knobbage. The neck on the Caprice is rounder and thinner (side to side) than the Cutlass, which is a bit flatter and wider. If that's important to you - I like both, but if forced to choose, the Cutlass neck fits me better. But that's just me. If you've played a Sterling (and if you haven't, you should, further complicating the issue), the Caprice is more like a Sterling neck-wise. The Cutlass is closer to the Stingray.

Again, most of this is just opinion, so consider carefully.

Jack

 

[mmbassplayer]

Glen... I say Bongo as well, single humbucker. You already have a 2 pickup bass so now time to simplify with a single pickup. You will never be let down with it. That being said i have been eyeballing a Caprice as of late and wish i had the budget. JOSH

 

[Karl]

If I was you I would opt for either the Cutlass or Caprice, then you will have an active Bass with your Stingray and a Passive Bass with either the Cutlass or Caprice. The Cutlass will cover any P Bass urges to buy and the Caprice will cover any J Bass urges to buy.

 

[gkella]

Thanks for the responses.
I am definitely leaning towards a bongo.
Probably a 4H as I agree with mmbassplayer's comments about my a stingray being a 4HH.
Glen

 

[bovinehost]

For what it's worth, Sterling Ball calls the single H Bongo his "secret weapon".

I guess it isn't really a secret now.

 

[mmbassplayer]

Glen... I must warn you to be careful with a Single Humbucker Bongo, they tend to multiply. This is the first time in over 10 years i don't have at least 2 in the house. JOSH

 

[JayDawg]

I’ve had single and double H Bongo’s. I prefer the single H ones.

 

[gkella]

I have the room in my house, not sure ?I have the room in my bank account.
Thanks for the warning.
Glen

 

[Golem]

`



I've parted with 2 HH Boingos [4 and 5] but
my solo-H Boingo is a lifer.

That said, since you have an HH Ray, a bit of
truthing is in order here. Also, I don't know
what your tonal needs/dreams might be. On
an HH Ray, the neck PU is identically located
as the PU on a solo-H Ray.

The solo-H Boingo PU is likewise located in
the solo-H Ray position. Thus the great love
of it

Unlike the HH Ray, on a dual PU Boingo [HH
or HS] the bridge PU is distinctly closer to
the bridge than the venerable Ray location.
If your tonal needs/dreams include a rather
emphatic bridge PU tone, a dual PU Boingo
is more than happy to oblige, and given its
18v electronics it WILL oblige ! Not that it's
a super huge thing, but all dual PU Boingos
have a 4-band EQ but the solo-H has "only"
3 bands ... might matter to a tweaker who
does a lotta fussy recording, but obviously
no live audience gives a ratzass.