BONGO it is!

[Koch Sanchez]

So I had picked up a SR5 and been on the fence between a Bongo and SR - played the SR5 for several hours and its going back.... Just something about the neck on the Bongo that I liked better.

Now I just need to decide between a 5 HSC and a 4HH - I'm leaning toward the 4 because its a bit cheaper and the local GC has it so I can get the one I actually played (vs. ordering the 5 online and not being able to play it).

Any opinions on the 5 HSC vs. the 4 HH?

 

[HELLonWHEELS]

I have a bongo HS and I love it to death except that there is some hum on the Single Coil pick-up.

Also i found the necks on the bongo 4 and 5 to be very different. If you have played a bongo 5 and liked it go for it. If you haven't wait and try to play one before you buy.

 

[roburado]

I think I'll want a 4H when it comes time. I haven't played a Bongo 4H, but I've played the SR 4H and HH. There's just something about the simplicity of 4H and the great tone, the pickup in the sweetspot, etc.

 

[Koch Sanchez]

Haven't played the 5 - but I played the 4 and loved it!

 

[HELLonWHEELS]

Haven't played the 5 - but I played the 4 and loved it!

Definitely play a 5 before you make up your mind.

 

[soniq]

Think hard...are you really going to use that low B? Or is it going to act as a thumb rest ?

 

[Koch Sanchez]

I'd probably never use the low B but I'll look "cool" with it there - my musician friends will be like "that guy can play a FIVE STRING" makes me feel important.

 

[adouglas]

It's easy to get used to a 5 string. Once you do, it's hard to go back...you find so many uses for it.

The fifth string opens up whole new ways to play your lines.

There's a lot more to it than the notes below low E.

 

[Baird]

A couple of quick points IMO....

- If you are planning to slap, don't but the HH. Very hard to manouver as the pickups take up most of the space between the neck and bridge.

- Buy a 5 string, but don't judge the sound of the low B string until you have a chance to play it in a band. It sounds floppy when playing alone, but amazing in a band environment. Alao, It took me a few weeks to get used to the 5 string (I played only 4's for 20+ years) but now a 5 is all I generally play.

Just my $0.02

 

[PocketGroove82]

Baird, I agree with you about the slapping/HH thing.
Traditional thumb slapping is a little difficult on the HH due to the pups placement near the fingerboard. It requires one to modify their technique.

But.

I gotta disagree about the B string. I've never played an EBMM with a floppy sounding B string, solo or ensemble playing.


I'm not trying to get into an opinions war or anything but, what type of strings/gauge are you using?

 

[adouglas]

I gotta disagree about the B string. I've never played an EBMM with a floppy sounding B string, solo or ensemble playing.

+1.

Including the Bongo, I've owned four different 5-string basses.

The Bongo has the tightest, punchiest, growliest B string of the lot. Feels just like all the other strings on the bass.

Before I discovered the Bongo I was seriously considering buying a 35" scale bass just to get some more definition and tension on my B string. With the Bongo....no need.

YMMV...it's all a matter of perception.

Actually, one of the remarkable things about the Bongo is how consistent it is, string-to-string. My former C*rv*n had a wimpy G string that I'd avoid whenever possible. The Bongo does not.