Bongo 5 Feel vs. SR5 feel...

[pearlredburst]

Hey guys!

I frequent the 6-7 stringer side of this forum more often. I'm planning on buying a bass in the next day or two. I really am intrigued by the bongo...Can people give me an idea comparatively on what these basses both feel like (bongo 5 and SR5)? I searched and couldnt really get much more than they feel "like a dream" or metaphoric things like that. Also, what is the major difference in getting a HH and an HS configuration sonically? Im leaning towards a bongo, but am still un sure. Also, anyone interested in selling their Bongo 5 or SR5? Haha

Thanks guys!

 

[ekb16b]

if you can find a 20th sr5 get it and thats all ill say

 

[strummer]

First, you have the painted vs oiled neck. I prefer a nicely worn-in painted bongo neck, but I'm guessing that since you play guitars you'll probably feel more at home with the SR5.

Then you have the body shape. Here the Bongo excels imho, the body sits extremely comfortably on me. Not that the sr5 doesn't, it's just that the bongo feels more like an extension of me.

Apart from that, the feel of the two are very similar to me.

And I prefer the HH to the HS.

 

[adouglas]

I've owed something like 13 basses over the years, so I've had some exposure to different body types.

I'm also kind of picky about ergonomics in general.

The Bongo is, hands down, the most comfortable bass I've ever picked up.

 

[the unrepentant]

I tried a bongo four once, and it was EXTREMELY comfortable, much more so than the SR5 i tried, but it did sound awesome. None the less, if i had the choice between a bongo 5 and a 20th SR5, it would be the 20th hands down.

 

[jlepre]

I have played pretty much every 5 string from SR5 to Sterling 5 and Bongo. I personally prefer the SR5's unfinished neck because it just feels faster and smoother. Also the 5 position switch is NOT available on the Bongo, but some would consider that a plus because there is a blend control. So the variables are a little different. I actually have a Bongo 5 HH/P on order because you can't get the HH/P in any other ball.

As far as the HH vs HS, I prefer the HH for the overall tonal pallete. The HS is nice too, but the overall tones possible on the HH is unbelievable.

BTW I have a sweet SR5 HH for sale as we speak...(Shameless PLUG!)
just check my sig.

John

 

[LoEnd]

I have played both the SR's and I own 3 Bongos, and I have to say that I prefer the Bongo's to the SR's. The feel of the Bongo is AMAZING, I could never really get that cofortable with the SR's. Plus imo the tone of the Bongos just RULE. I don't have 1 bad thing to say about the bongos.

But, you should play one to see for yourself. Everyone likes different things.

 

[pearlredburst]

these are all GREAT replies guys. I really like the bongo; I've played one before. The wife however, hates the design of the bongo (sorry BP!) and likes the classyness of the SR5. She wanted me to build one with warmoth parts, but I think I'd like to give my money to EBMM once again after the purchase of my 7 string. I think I'm going with a bongo...now...a color....

 

[Basstige]

I'll offer another vote for the Bongo 5. Sorry if it's a little long-winded....

Although my current Bongo stable is a mere one 4HH Stealth, it
was actually the five-string Bongo that got me interested in the model in the first place, after noodling around on one at music store one afternoon. I played a few other EBMMs that day, but a Bongo 5 H was the only thing I actually plugged into an amp. A severe shortage of funds at the time kept me from buying it, but the hook was set.

About a year later, a different store was blowing out gear as part of a moving sale. Prices were good. That day I played a nice variety of EBMMS, from Sterling to Ray to SR5, but a Bongo 5 was the clear winner for me. Still broke. Sorely tempted, but didn't pull the trigger.

I ended up with the Stealth 4HH only because the store where I bought it (not either of the ones noted above) offered a better-than-great price, plus gave me a reasonable amount on the 05 StingRay I traded in. But if that store had had a Bongo 5 on the floor, *that's* the bass I would have started my Bongo career with.

And a general +1 to everything that's been said about the great necks and uber comfortable bodies.

In my brief time here, I've seen a few people -- eggman for one, I believe -- talk about going "all Bongo." At first, that concept seemed strange to me. I don't own a ton of basses, but the half-dozen or so I do have are pretty good, I think, examples of their breed. On a gig, I like being able to switch between, say, my 64 P with flats and my 77 4001 with rounds. Those two basses will cover a lot of sonic ground and are fun as hell to play.

But I can see the day very soon when the two basses I bring to a job will be a Bongo 4 w/ flats and a Bongo 5 with rounds. If you're a bongoloid, what more do you need?

 

[Eggman]

Hey guys!

I frequent the 6-7 stringer side of this forum more often. I'm planning on buying a bass in the next day or two. I really am intrigued by the bongo...Can people give me an idea comparatively on what these basses both feel like (bongo 5 and SR5)? I searched and couldnt really get much more than they feel "like a dream" or metaphoric things like that. Also, what is the major difference in getting a HH and an HS configuration sonically? Im leaning towards a bongo, but am still un sure. Also, anyone interested in selling their Bongo 5 or SR5? Haha

Thanks guys!

I have a 20th Ann SR5 HH for sale - see the for sale section.

 

[bovinehost]

I can see the day very soon when the two basses I bring to a job will be a Bongo 4 w/ flats and a Bongo 5 with rounds. If you're a bongoloid, what more do you need?

To put flats on the fiver, too?



Well, these are all great comments and there's very little I could add to the already excellent advice.

I went Bongo early and never looked back. I keep a few non-Bongos around here and there, but I've had to face it. I'd really rather be playing a Bongo.

Jack

 

[Basstige]

i wouldn't say no to flats on the fiver, Jack. I usually experiment a lot with strings on any bass I own, anyway -- especially early on. Currently, as great as the 4HH Stealth Bongo sounds with rounds, I'd like to hear it with flats. And my general preference with fivers is rounds. Plus, I've got a couple of new 4- and 5-string sets of my flats of choice on hand and ready to work.

I must admit to finding the dual-humbucker layout a little restrictive for slapping space. Slap isn't a big part of my personal portfolio so it's not a big issue, but that's why I lean to a single-humbucker Bongo (with rounds) for my next fiver. That would be my "do-it-all" bass with the 4HH in reserve, ready to offer a different flavor of Bongo with the flats.

 

[woody357]

Who has the smallerneck and tighter string spacing, the Bongo 5 or the SR5?

 

[strummer]

Who has the smallerneck and tighter string spacing, the Bongo 5 or the SR5?

They feel identical both width and spacing wise.

 

[mynan]

Who has the smallerneck and tighter string spacing, the Bongo 5 or the SR5?

They both have the same string-spacing...

I have both, but I've never done an A/B comparison. The Bongo feels faster to me, but I couldn't tell you why.