New Bongo, initial observations

[midopa]

I've been in a similar situation ever since I got my Bongo. My previous bass was an ESP B205 that just didn't cut it. I'd end up having to raise the pickups substantially and dig in real hard just to be heard. Now with the Bongo, I can just tickle a string and the walls are shaking!

Another thing is that I've gotten used to the feel of playing on substantially raised pickups. The pickups on the Bongo, as I've found, need to be relatively low (on the ESP, the neck humbucker was close to 1/4" away from the strings!) or else your strings are gonna feel the force of those evil neodymium magnets!

Any tips from fellow Bongo players? I've been practicing quite a lot to get used to the feel of the pickup heights. Perhaps I'm missing some subtle thing that can speed the whole process along?

 

[cheezewiz]

Don't be afraid to turn down the treble a bit, either. I have never liked dimming the treble in the past, but the Bongo EQ has the frequency set so high that it really only takes the edge off without muting it at all.

I absolutely agree Mr Monkee. By the second set, I had the treble turned way below center, and was using the high mid knob as more of a treble control. I did notice that the frequency on the treble knob was set very high, and it seemed to accentuate clank, brought about by my poor right hand technique, more than just about any other treble control I've tried. Its absoltely wonderful that the Bongo seems to have the ability to control a myriad of sound and technique problems by the versatility of the 4 band EQ.