mynan
Well-known member
I'm in Chicago visiting the inlaws so I took a little trip to the Arlington Heights GC today. They had a Stealth Bongo 5 HH there a few months ago when I went there to get my Markbass 151HF, but I was so distracted with the Markbass stuff that I didn't have a chance to play it. Thankfully, it was still there. I'm looking to add another EBMM bass in the next year, and I wanted to actually play a Bongo 5 to help me decide whether it's going to be a Bongo 5 or Sterling 5.
I put it through its paces through a Markbass CMD102P. There's probably not much I could say that hasn't already been said. It's a tone monster. I can definitely see why it's been called the "swiss army knife" of basses. I have to admit that it's more versatile than my SR5 and seemed a little more punchy with both pickups full-on than my SR5, especially the B-string, and the 4-band EQ certainly doesn't hurt.
I did, however, find that I prefer my SR5. Maybe just because I'm more comfortable with it and maybe just because my head was spinning from the drastic tonal changes that the Bongo controls were capable of making, but I prefer the pickup switch and controls on my SR5. It may not be as versatile as the Bongo, but I like the tones that it makes. The SR5 just seems warmer to me...more natural.
Therefore, I've decided to wait and see what the Sterling 5 brings. Bongoloids, feel free to try to change my mind.
I put it through its paces through a Markbass CMD102P. There's probably not much I could say that hasn't already been said. It's a tone monster. I can definitely see why it's been called the "swiss army knife" of basses. I have to admit that it's more versatile than my SR5 and seemed a little more punchy with both pickups full-on than my SR5, especially the B-string, and the 4-band EQ certainly doesn't hurt.
I did, however, find that I prefer my SR5. Maybe just because I'm more comfortable with it and maybe just because my head was spinning from the drastic tonal changes that the Bongo controls were capable of making, but I prefer the pickup switch and controls on my SR5. It may not be as versatile as the Bongo, but I like the tones that it makes. The SR5 just seems warmer to me...more natural.
Therefore, I've decided to wait and see what the Sterling 5 brings. Bongoloids, feel free to try to change my mind.
