Bongo Letdown?

[drgroovenstein]

I noticed some wonkiness from my E string last night through headphones as well. Funny you mention it. The open A doesn't seem to match the A on the E string, for example. I calked it up to pickup height, since I haven't messed with that yet. I just switched to EB strings. To me it sounded like alot of overtones on the E string. Anyway, it wasn't a huge issue, just different than the A-D-G which sound fine.

 

[SteveB]

I would love it if someone from the company could give me some ideas about this...is this just the way the Bongo sounds?....the other ones in the store don't sound like this.

Sir Funkytown,

Call that Customer Service number that maddog posted. EBMM doesn't really purport to have web-based customer service (even though they do an awful lot for us forumites). The 'official' channel is via telephone. I'm sure they'll hear you out and give you some good suggestions.

 

[adouglas]

I've found most sound guys to be quite deaf.

What?

 

[adouglas]

FWIW, I use a Bose PAS. I know a lot of people don't like it, and that's cool...everyone's entitled to an opinion. But it really, REALLY works for me.

It does have to be set up and operated correctly, which a lot of people don't do. I can certainly make it sound thin and crappy...but I can also make it sound fantabulous. Here's what works:

1) A modeler or preamp (I use a BassPODxt, emulating an SWR with a 4x10).
2) All of the Bose extended-bass stuff. Mine has four subwoofer modules and the external Packlite amp. Total wattage is about 1000, total speaker cone area is about that of a 4x10.

I went through a lot of comparison trials before settling on this...compared it to my rig, compared various configurations of the Bose, etc. This won in the end.

The sound is KILLER, to my ear, to the rest of the band, and to the audience. If I can ever get any of the forumites out to hear us play, they'll be able to attest to it.

 

[Big Poppa]

THe bongo wan not designed for the Bose system period. If you use the Bose system you need the pod or sans amp or something to emulate a preamp.

As with most basses the bongo will not do well in most headphones, the preamp out put was not set for headphones.

On a scope the strings are brilliantly balanced. If your E is crapping out the preamp is clipping or the speakers.

Lastly, it just may not be for you. No hard feelings.

I get a little testy when one player using the Bongo in a way that it wasnt designed posts numerous complaints, then the next guy comes along and it gets frustrating.

Sir Funky we have been through this and I know athat you are a great player in the Abba band. Have you taken the Bongo into a store and tried a preamp with more head room? More Power? THe 18 volt preamp is high output.

 

[roballanson]

Well just so's you know BP, the wonderful white SR5 HS I have over here is as near to perfection as the tone is to godliness..... Have now used it at a couple of gig and it has left my guitarist wondering if he needs a bigger amp to cope with it, particularly switch positions 1, 2, 3, and 4...

No worries or complaints.

 

[adouglas]

THe bongo wan not designed for the Bose system period. If you use the Bose system you need the pod or sans amp or something to emulate a preamp.

Now, that's interesting. I'd love to know the reason why you say this, but I won't further derail the thread.

As always, BP is spot-on. As much as I love my Bose system, I absolutely agree that to get the best bass tone out of it you do need a preamp or modeler.

BTW...if any of you ever has a chance to use your conventional rig next to a Bose, try taking a preamp out and plugging it into the Bose. The results are pretty cool...that's how I ran mine before going all-Bose.

 

[tadawson]

I don't think the Bose is that bad really. For gigs that are large enough, we use an added 18" powered sub as well. Usually the poles are reserved for really small coffee house stuff and church services. Otherwise, we break out the amps etc.

I guess we will have to agree to disagree. Every Bose system I have ever heard has sucked harder than the vacuum of space . . . . .

- Tim

 

[maddog]

I guess we will have to agree to disagree. Every Bose system I have ever heard has sucked harder than the vacuum of space . . . . .

- Tim

In regards to their home stuff I'd have to agree. However, I have not heard the PA stuff and not sure of the design. Everyone I've heard discuss it had positive comments. Maybe they got something right? You know, 10,000 monkeys banging away at 10,000 typewriters for 10,000 years can still churn out a Macbeth.

 

[drgroovenstein]

THe bongo wan not designed for the Bose system period. If you use the Bose system you need the pod or sans amp or something to emulate a preamp.

As with most basses the bongo will not do well in most headphones, the preamp out put was not set for headphones.

On a scope the strings are brilliantly balanced. If your E is crapping out the preamp is clipping or the speakers.

Lastly, it just may not be for you. No hard feelings.

I get a little testy when one player using the Bongo in a way that it wasnt designed posts numerous complaints, then the next guy comes along and it gets frustrating.

Sir Funky we have been through this and I know athat you are a great player in the Abba band. Have you taken the Bongo into a store and tried a preamp with more head room? More Power? THe 18 volt preamp is high output.

Nah BP, you rule, I really appreciate your response. I'm not trying to be negative, I like the product.

I agree, I need a pre-amp for the Bose PAS. I'm still looking around at my options. And I thought I wrote it, but I was not sure if I did, that all my basses sound off in the PAS. The PAS is supposed to do some kind of emulation, but I just am not digging the sound for bass that much.

That being said, I like the Bongo and I am sticking it out. I don't mean to make that sound like it is tough, because it is not. This thing plays better than all my basses. I'm playing it for one long set tomorrow, and two sets on Friday. I'm sure it'll kill through my normal rig.

My headphone setup is a Tascam BT-CD1 + Sennheiser HD-280s. Messing with the pre yielded some good results. I'm happy though the headphones. I think my string issue might have been a not-well-seated E. It wasn't making good contact at the bridge saddle. A firm push down at the nut and the bridge did some good, I think it has been taken care of.

I took the Bongo to my weekly lesson and played it through my instructor's little fender amp and it sounded good. He said he much prefers the Bongo over my other basses, and that is coming from a fender guy. heheh.

Anyway, game on!

 

[drgroovenstein]

Now, that's interesting. I'd love to know the reason why you say this, but I won't further derail the thread.

As always, BP is spot-on. As much as I love my Bose system, I absolutely agree that to get the best bass tone out of it you do need a preamp or modeler.

BTW...if any of you ever has a chance to use your conventional rig next to a Bose, try taking a preamp out and plugging it into the Bose. The results are pretty cool...that's how I ran mine before going all-Bose.

I'm going to try my normal head's XLR out (post eq + speaker emulation) to the PAS and see what happens. I forgot my HD-350 did speaker emulation as well heh.

 

[drgroovenstein]

I guess we will have to agree to disagree. Every Bose system I have ever heard has sucked harder than the vacuum of space . . . . .

- Tim

Well it is good for guitars and vocals, and great at filling a small room without killing everybody that is close to the band. We play >small< venues like coffee shops, but we still wanna rock.

 

[Mobay45]

I run my CDBT1 into my stereo receiver and plug my headphones into the receiver. The sound is actually something that I can use.

Hey Tim, tell me how you really feel about Bose. Quit holding back. Let it all out.

 

[sir funkytown]

You know, I have tons of respect for EB and BP,I really have no desire to be argumentitive...but really, How am I using the Bongo in an incorrect manner?It's not like I'm plugging the headphones directly into the bass, if the preamp isn't designed for headphone use(I actually don't understand that statement), how the heck do ya record with it?

I'm using a GK 800RB and a junior Goliath Cab(and EB strings right now), that seems like plenty of headroom.

Ok....I did a little mod to make it more comfortable for me to slap on...it didn't really change the tone a lot.

I am definatly not critisizing the EB brand, you guys and Fender have changed modern music and made the bass what it is today....but you know...this is a forum about EB instruments, I was just wondering if anyone had encountered the same tone issues as me.

I have been really clear about how much I like the Bongo...if i didn't , I would have ditched it ages ago.

.....and, I get the feeling you think I'm bragging about being in an ABBA cover band(really....how could I?),it just happens to be where I'm playing the bass.

 

[tadawson]

In regards to their home stuff I'd have to agree. However, I have not heard the PA stuff and not sure of the design. Everyone I've heard discuss it had positive comments. Maybe they got something right? You know, 10,000 monkeys banging away at 10,000 typewriters for 10,000 years can still churn out a Macbeth.

Probably a mistake. They have been sucking for so long, that it had become the norm. Anything else has to be a screwup . . . .

- Tim

 

[tadawson]

Well it is good for guitars and vocals, and great at filling a small room without killing everybody that is close to the band. We play >small< venues like coffee shops, but we still wanna rock.

No highs, no lows, leaves pretty much the guitar and vocal range . . . . . neither one taxes either extreme much, so that makes sense.

- Tim

 

[tadawson]

I run my CDBT1 into my stereo receiver and plug my headphones into the receiver. The sound is actually something that I can use.

Hey Tim, tell me how you really feel about Bose. Quit holding back. Let it all out.

Well, I can tell you that the couple of times I have been to the NSCA (National Sound Contractors Association (?)) convention, that they are pretty much the running joke of the pro sound industry. Claiming to be able to do things that are prevented by minor technicalities like the laws of physics tend to cause one to lose peer respect . . . . .

And, as I have said before, I have never found a Bose system that had tight, clean, lowend - pro, home or auto . . . . it's just all one big boomy glob of s**t . . . .

- Tim

 

[kakobass]

I have a theory about the location of the MM pickup (and this case, a single humbucker Bongo, which I believe has the pickup a tad closer to the neck than other single-pickup MMs).

I used to play StingRays, 4s and 5s and Sterlings, but I could hardly distinguish the fundamentals of the notes when playing live. Everything else about the sound was good: growl, punch, etc. but the fundamentals where always lost.

I tried EQing, more mids, compression, etc., and nothing ever worked - so I had to stop playing those basses live (a few years ago already), and I now play Jazz-type basses with single coils or stacked coils.

But as noted before, FOH engineers loved the sound everynight (in venues from 1,000 to 10,000) and I always liked the sound of MMs recorded; and I always like to hear other bass players playing and MM.

I also have a Ken Smith bass with dual humbuckers, and I experience this same phenomena somewhat, so maybe is the combination of wide humbuckers with active electronics that diminish the fundamentals? Or maybe I'm just used to the clean fundamentals that a single coil provides (especially with pickups closer to the neck, as in a J or P Bass?

 

[Psycho Ward]

I have a Bose PAS and it is without a doubt the best system for my wind controller rig ever invented... period! When I play my VL synths through this system the realism factor jumps ten fold. My three voice rig on a simple horn section of trumpet, tenor sax and bari sax will make heads turn every time. You can hear each individual horn, with the way the sound is projected it gives the effect of having three loudass horn guys standing right there on the stage. Nothing I've ever tried can do this, and believe me I've spent a lot of money trying. My cello (VL physical model) sounds so real you can smell rosin, plenty of lows for a voice like that.

But with bass guitar you have to supplement the system with conventional bass modules. The cylindrical wave theory would require a tower much taller than the 7 foot PAS... I think I read a 70 foot array; it's on the Bose site.

For bass, and bass only I wouldn't use my PAS, I only have one B1 (the bass module, and one more would be really nice on bari sax), I have amps made just for bass guitar applications and are less to carry around. They kill down there.

Now if you're running everything, PA style through a PAS and have the bass modules, you can make some big noise too!

Right now my favorite bass rig is the MarkBass S450/Ampeg 810E (the 810E can punch big time with the right amp... the SVT-CL, though great, doesn't show this cab justice.)

Just my .02... plus tax.

 

[tkarter]

Thanks for explaining all that Chuck. Very interesting.

tk