a new bass and a lesson learned ..

[arrowheadguitar]

I had a GAS moment in a music shop the other day and went home with a Stu Hamm sig Urge 1.

I picked it because of the shorter scale length, though it also sounds pretty good and has a pretty wide range of tones.

I played it for a few days and decided I was pleased with my purchase.

Now you're probably beginning to ask yourself if I'm asking for a stern telling off from the mods and BP for praising another manufacturer's product (though I've deliberately avoided mentioning the name).

Well here's the point.

I was playing it through my rig the other day and making some nice noises and then swapped it for my Bongo 4HS.

It never ceases to amaze me just how much more tone there is in the Bongo than anything else I've ever owned, and sometimes it seems I need to play other basses to remind myself just how much I love it and the noises it makes.

What a bass.

Much as I still like the Urge, I'm wondering how long it'll be before it gets sold to buy another Bongo.



Paul.

 

[shamus63]

What's the return policy of the store you bought it at?

Beats losing money for Buyer's Remorse.

 

[Psycho Ward]

I bought a non-EBMM bass the other day, but I'm excited about it! I feel no guilt because this bass is soooo different from any of my EBMM's, it's a lot like an upright. Totally different in use and function, no real competition for the electrics.

G.A.S. is an evil thing, I've bought four basses (so far) during my wait for my lefty Bongo. I've heard rumors that there is some sort of delay with this batch of HH Bongos. I only hope it comes before I buy again!!!

Of my SR5, SR4 and Sterling, I keep coming back to the SR4, I love them all, but there is something very special with the SR4. It's just so damn pretty, good feeling and sounding... God EBMM's are so good!!!

 

[heath_the_great]

i like those stu hamm urges....the first ones more than the seccond...but hey, this is comin from a guy who used to own one of stu's kubickis....what can i say

 

[barkatozz]

I have one of those Urge I basses & am probably going to trade it or sell it to fund another Bongo.

 

[Bill]

I only have 3 basses...and the good ol' SR4 feels like "home" to me. Like Chuck said, it looks good, feels good, & plays good!

I saw two 5-string desert gold Bongo HHs in the New Orleans GC yesterday on clearance. I wanted to play one of them, but I was pressed for time.

 

[Golem]

I had a GAS moment in a music shop the other day and went home with a Stu Hamm sig Urge 1.

I picked it because of the shorter scale length, though it also sounds pretty good and has a pretty wide range of tones.

.................Much as I still like the Urge, I'm wondering how long it'll be before it gets sold to buy another Bongo. Paul.

If you need to play a short scale due to the reach, or speed, or any reason other than to play a more compact ax, there's a way to do it on the Bongo or any full scale bass, but it does require fussing over string tensions and choice of strings. Just go for 'D' tuning.

When a bass is in 'D' tuning, the EADG fret is about 31" from the bridge. OK, you now have to fret what used to be your open strings [hey, that's a good thing] but the reciprocal benefit of that is that if you do reach out past the EADG fret, you have 2 semitones more low notes on each string.

You can also use 'C#' tuning, which alleviates some of the string choice headache, but is less intutive to play on the neck [IMveryHO].

 

[strummer]

So why not tune it in B instead?

 

[Golem]

So why not tune it in B instead?

If the idea is to create the familiar feel of a 30" short scale, it's the C# and D-tuning that put the familiar EADG at 30" or 31" from the bridge. Certainly, if B-tuning puts stuff where you want it, and you don't have a problem with the notes below D or C# on the low string, of course that's an option. I was just describing a way to put the familiar short-scale note placement onto a 34" or 35" neck.