Bongo Question

[jones4tone]

What does PDN stand for?

Preferred Dealer Network. EBMM makes special runs, with unique finishes and/or materials, available for order for limited periods through only PDN dealers. Most recent case was the "Starry Night" run offered in June 2016, which is still featured in the "slider" at the top of the EBMM home page.

 

[TherealAC]

Get the Bongo maaan

 

[Oldtoe]

I play Bongos while sitting all the time, and I have never noticed them digging into my leg. It sits on my right thigh on the curve made by the lower horn and bout. It really is a very comfortable shape sitting or standing.

 

[five7]

Most comfortable bass I have ever owned body and neck and so many tone possibilities. Stupidly sold mine and need another one badly.

 

[bovinehost]

TWhat I have noticed what several reviewers have said is that .... it doesn't cut through the mix when recording.Seeing as I will only be using it sat down at home for recording those two points are important to me.

Well, there certainly is a powerful electronics package in the Bongo and anyone who can't get one to sit nicely in a mix is doing something entirely wrong with the instrument or at the board. I recorded this with a Bongo 5H:

I can't imagine complaining about the bass. Other things, sure. (BTW, the pedal steel and piano are by our own Psycho Ward, aka Chuck.) It was a very simple signal chain. Bongo, Markbass rig, mic, slight compression at board. Boom. Done.

I of course, recommend the Bongo above all else.

It's what I do.

 

[Moose308]

I own a Bongo. I own a Stingray. I also own several Fenders. Of course, they are all different animals.

Each bass brings a something a little different to the table. That said, my go-to bass is always my orange Bongo. Everything on it just works. I feels just fine sitting on my leg, and feels quite nice hanging from a strap. It seems to cut through as well as every other bass I have when being recorded. If there are any recording problems, the first thing I would look at would be how fresh are the strings, then the EQ, then the bass.

I am not sure what I would do if I ever lost my HH Bongo. I know if I had to sell some instruments off, all my Fenders would go before I sold my Music Men.

 

[Edmang]

Bongs are my favorite followed by the stingray. To me Bongos are very versatile tonally and I like having the extra frets on the fretboard.

Ideally you should try each to see which you prefer, but seems that may not be possible. Search the web for sound examples to help with the decision.

You will have a great bass no matter which EBMM one you choose.

I also have issues with the colors changing for the basses on the music man web site. Some do work, most do not for me.

 

[Karl]

Well, there certainly is a powerful electronics package in the Bongo and anyone who can't get one to sit nicely in a mix is doing something entirely wrong with the instrument or at the board. I recorded this with a Bongo 5H:

I can't imagine complaining about the bass. Other things, sure. (BTW, the pedal steel and piano are by our own Psycho Ward, aka Chuck.) It was a very simple signal chain. Bongo, Markbass rig, mic, slight compression at board. Boom. Done.

I of course, recommend the Bongo above all else.

It's what I do.

I was looking forward to hearing that bovinehost but the video is unavailable, but I think I get the gist that the Bongo will sit very well indeed in the mix. I just need to decide whether it is going to be a HH or HS and with or without piezo,but what does having the piezo give you in regards to tone?. Sorry about being a pain but if I ordered one tomorrow I would only receive it in October due to shipping and I would not be sending it back to wait another six months for a different model.

Thanks.

 

[jlepre]

I have owned SR5s, ST5s and Bongo 5s, and I have to say that the Bongo is very punchy, but with the twist of a couple knobs, can be tamed. Playing in a sitting position can be a bit tricky, but if you keep her on a strap at the time, you should be fine.

The SR5 is a great bass, as well as the ST5. The ST5s that I've owned were a little bit more mid focused, but sounded very similar to my SR5s. I too like the tear drop PG over the massive SR5 PG, but I'm not sure if the SR5 specials come with the teardrop or not.

I'm sure someone will chime in.

 

[steevo]

That is a beautiful looking Bass steevo I wonder if there is any real tonal differences between the Sterling and the Stingray ? I know that the Sterling is cheaper and I have read many good reveiws from Sterling users online . I am in a bit of a quandry now as i do prefer the teardrop pickguard on the Sterling compared to the one that is on the Stingray.Would I be right in saying that all Stingray 5 string 3 band basses do not come with the traditional teardrop pickguard? and if that is the case then I may go for the Sterling instead. I know that it is just a visual thing but when you fork out for new you want the look to be right.

Its not the cheaper sterling by musicman bass karl, it's an Ernie ball musicman. That pickguard is specific to the sterling bass and I love it, a very elegant look. Sound wise, compared to the stingray I find the sterling doesn't have that high end fizz that stingrays are known for, its not quite as aggressive on the treble side although ive heard the sterling is a more aggressive sounding bass, I haven't found this with mine. Another plus for the sterling is the neck profile, its beyond belief how nice the necks are, smooth and sit in the hand beautifully.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Golem]

...............
and worries that it might be uncomfortable to play in
a sitting position with the weird shape horn digging into
your leg. I suppose if that is the case it is something
you would just get used to,or it might not be the case
.......

There was a thread about that [maybe I started it, but
don't recall]. Anywho, it's a very divided house here
concerning the sitting thing and the curve and the horn.

I never get used to it. I dislike it. But, unlike many here,
I'm not averse approaching my basses with tools For
those who keep their basses pristine, be warned that it's
roughly 50/50 odds that you will not like the sit down
ergonomics of the Boingo. Thaz the bad news. The good
news acoarst is 50/50 odds that you'll be just fine with it.

 

[Karl]

There was a thread about that [maybe I started it, but
don't recall]. Anywho, it's a very divided house here
concerning the sitting thing and the curve and the horn.

I never get used to it. I dislike it. But, unlike many here,
I'm not averse approaching my basses with tools For
those who keep their basses pristine, be warned that it's
roughly 50/50 odds that you will not like the sit down
ergonomics of the Boingo. Thaz the bad news. The good
news acoarst is 50/50 odds that you'll be just fine with it.

Thanks for the info......I think I will need to try one out before forking out my friend. Would a 4 string have the exact same horn shape as a five string in the case of me not being able to try a five string in a seating position?

 

[five7]

yes

 

[Karl]

Well I decided to go for the Bongo 5 H/S/P and phoned my dealer here in the UK where I was told that the Piezo option is now no longer available. I looked on the Ernie Ball website and there is nothing there stating that this option has now been discontinued. Can anyone give me some info on this!

 

[stu42]

Yeah, it's true. I believe Piezo was discontinued on all basses about 18 months ago or thereabouts. If you go to the Bongo page on the Music-Man website, under Custom Options they show the colour options. Click on the word "Configuration" and you'll see what's available for pickups and fretted/fretless options. There's no more options for Piezo (or, sadly, single H configuration on the Bongo 5). I guess piezo wasn't a big seller.

 

[stu42]

I just saw your question asking about what piezo gives you in terms of tone. It's kind of hard to describe. On a guitar, piezo pickups are often used to create a sound that's intended to make an electric guitar sound like an acoustic (to some extent). On a bass, I can't really say that the piezo makes an electric bass sound like an acoustic bass though. To me, it has a very flat (or relatively mid-scooped) sound which is very smooth. It's a somewhat characterless sound compared to the magnetic pickups. You might call it more "hi-fi" compared to the magnetic pickups.

That's my 2 cents. Not sure if that helps. Other guys may have more ways to describe the sound.

 

[Karl]

Thanks for that Stu!......It looks like my UK dealer didn't update the options on their website going back to 2015, but hey the HS version is still going to sound great even without the Piezo and I have just saved myself £300 sterling and I guess you don't miss what you have never had. I have just got wait six months now to receive it which is a pain and it is something I cannot get my head around.

 

[Golem]

If you're buying a fretted bass, my personal opine is you
need not regret the demise of the piezo option. I'm very
into piezo but nearly all of my [way to numerous] basses
are FL. On fretless it's terrific, far from characterless, and
quite versatile.

While I do have many varieties of FL piezo other than my
MMs, there is a degree of tonal commonality underlying
their differences. So, from the variety, I also get to know
the common thread tone-wise.

I have only two fretted piezo basses. One, as with a MM,
has both a humbucker and piezo. From this one example
I can say say that, for me, the piezo just magnifies the
metal-on-metal fret sound. Not being a bass spanker it's
not my idea of a friendly bass. I bought it with intent to
defret it but never got around to it. Also, consider that
even without piezos, MMs feature a bit more fret sound
than most other basses. IOW I would find fretted piezo
MMs even less friendly than my current unfriendly bass.


My other fretted piezo is piezo-only, and is a rather big-
bodied acoustic. When it's EQ'ed to kill the fret clank it's
not very acoustic sounding ... kinda bloomy and boomy
at that EQ. Add some midrange and the metal-on-metal
sound emerges [even with flats, and I NEVER use those
idiotic bronze/brass RW's].

Since most bassers play fretted, it's understandable how
the piezo option didn't sell. Consider we FL players are a
niche market, and not every FL player will shell out 250-
300 USD for the piezo option, it was bound to come to a
sorry end. Anywho, I expect you would've regretted the
expense if you bought a fretted piezo MM ... unless you
happen to be a wild spanker ! And there ARE plenty wild
spankers madly snapping and popping without piezos.

 

[Oldtoe]

I enjoy the piezo on my fretless Bongo, but I don't think you're missing anything by not being able to get it on a fretted instrument. Of course, no one should listen to me. ;-)

 

[strummer]

Hello Peeps.....I am looking to buy a five string active Bass but cannot decide on whether to opt for a Bongo or a Stingray or a Fender Jazz Elite. I am swaying towards the Bongo HH in stealth black so I just wondered what you thought about the three basses that I have mentioned and how they compare.
Also is anyone else having trouble changing the guitar colours on the official website as it would be handy to be able to see the real difference between the black and the stealth.

Thanks.

I'd say you're looking at three very different basses, and that I would personally choose a Bongo 5HH. It's an amzingly versatile bass, comfy as hell to play and you also get to hear hilarious comments about the looks of your bass. Sound wise it can devastate whole city blocks given ample amplification, but it can also be very smooth and will sit perfectly in any mix.
Imho F**de*r built one decent 5-string (the Roscoe Beck V), and those elites don't do it for me...