practice tomorrow night with the Bongo... yikes

[shakinbacon]

I'm getting nervous

I'm still a relatively new Bongoloid and don't feel confident I can get "the sound" for next band practice tomorrow night.

I've played for hours with the bass's eq (amp flat, subtle changes to Bongo EQ, volume 75%, etc) and cannot find the golden sound yet. I know this is impossible to convey, but I'm looking for low end with clarity, no honkiness but the ability to cut through a mix and shake the rafters

So far with my 5HHp I've found two main sounds I like (50%=center detent)

1) 50/50 neck & bridge pup, 60/40 mag/piezo, boost low mids 70%, boost bass 60%
2) piezo only, boost low mids 60%, boost hi mids 55%, boost bass 75%

any tips and encouragement would be appreciated.

This is a Christian worship band playing, rock/pop'ish stuff with drums, two guitars, pianos and lotsa vocals.


Thanks everyone!

 

[Grand Wazoo]

I tell you what, without any advice from any of us here, I guaranee you that you will come back tomorrow to chant about your bass sound which will effortlessly come through with wonderful performance and to the pleasure of all your co-players. Keep the amp settings flat, then use the bass eq to dial frequencies as requested. Rest assured the Bongo is a force to be reckon with and more than likely your sound will be killer regardless.

Because it's a Bongo!!

Enjoy!

 

[patobrujo]

you don't have to be nervous... you have a Bongo man!! my advice is not to rush things up, once you get there, start with everything flat and work from there. It can take time to find the right sound specially if your rehearsal is in some place else (change in room accoustics).

With time and more rehearsals you will find THE sound your looking for, just take it easy it's a bongo and it always sounds right... just knock'em off

Let us know how everything went...

 

[five7]

It will come together when you practice with a band. Playing by yourself doesn't always let you settle into a tone that works.

 

[shakinbacon]

Thanks. Its my first "outing" with the instrument

I like the "don't worry you've got a BONGO!" mentality

It brings a smile to my face

I'll report back here after practice

 

[the unrepentant]

do you know what my drummer said the other night after i complained about the amp at the practice rooms? "i see an amp, it's a bass amp. I use it. Bass sounds like bass." I can't say i was surprised, he IS a drummer after all

 

[adouglas]

I've got an HHp and your #1 sound is close to my settings with that bass, with the exception of the bass boost. If I boost my bass, things start falling off tables.

Don't forget that all rigs differ, so asking for exact settings means NOTHING if you don't have the same rig.

Also, don't forget that most people (like, 99+ percent) can't tell the difference between subtle differences in tone. You're stressing over something YOU hear, but nobody else notices. The other day one of the guitarists in my band was fretting over something or other and for the life of me I could not hear anything wrong.

Finally, don't obsess over settings. USE YOUR EARS.

Step out in front of the band and (this is critical) listen to the WHOLE band as if you were listening to the radio. Don't focus on your tone. Focus on what the BAND sounds like... all of it.

Putting out that sweet, juicy tone that we all crave in a band setting really doesn't serve the whole band all that well, more often than not.

You may find that the tone which works best with the whole band playing sounds thin, honky and too quiet to you when you solo it.

What you want to listen for is being able to hear everyone clearly, with the most important parts (the vocals, usually) sitting on top.

I'll PM you in a minute with more.

 

[shakinbacon]

report back

Practice with the Bongo went better than expected

While I'm still tweaking to dial in "the tone" I feel like I'm pretty close

I found with my amp flat the following to give very close to the sound I'm looking for

pickup pan 50%, mag/piezo 65% (in favor of piezo), high mid 60%, low mid 50%, bass 60%, treble 50%

It sounded really really thick, punchy and cut through pretty well.

I didn't tell anyone I was bringing the Bongo.
The worship leader immediately noticed the bass... by the sound: "whoa, that sounds great. Very thick. Is that a new bass? That is the most industrial design looking instrument I've ever seen" He commented several times on it. He asked why did I get it to which I shrugged and replied "I'm very picky when it comes to sound" He laughed with a big smile on his face.

The piano and guitar player also gave unsolicited positive feedback

The soundman didn't say anything (he's picky like me) so I asked him "hey, I have a new bass and you didn't notice? (in a joking manner)" He said, "so that's what it was. I was wondering why it sounded different. It sounded like it is voiced lower than your other (SR5HH) bass" I asked if he liked it and he said yes but wasn't falling over himself though.

Several things I noticed in the live setting:
1) The eq controls are powerful, musical and not "touchy" like other basses I've owned. While a little does indeed go a long way, the controls are smooth and not on a hair trigger.
2) I liked the piezo option waaaayyyy more having played live. It definitely adds a different kind of definition to the sound. I didn't think I liked it for a while when at home but now I thank God I did get the option.
3) The most important controls for getting the tone I'm looking for seem to be the pickup pan (I generally don't like the pickups solo'd but like varying degrees of mixing the two), piezo/mag pan and HI/LO mid and bass controls.
4) Even with the eq knobs in center detent the sound is responsive and controllable with finger technique
5) The noise is quite low
6) I prefer the pickups to be equal height (if I use the FAQ setting for the neck pickup I find the tone not as thick and the volume drop too drastic as I dial in more neck pickup)
7) While I got the thick tone I was struggling to dial in a twangy fingerstyle edge at times. This could have been the room
8) BP is absolutely right regarding have the volume at 75% and adjust from there based on pickup and eq settings.

Anyway, thanks for everyone's feedback and encouragement. The Bongo passed the audition with flying colors

 

[Grand Wazoo]

I knew it.... there was no doubt in my mind, I've been there too and hearing is believing.

Well done.

 

[patobrujo]

great news!! i knew a bongo couldn't let you and your bandmates down...

 

[LoEnd]

That is awesome to hear, I always start of flat on the preamp of the bass then adjust as needed. Different venues have different acoustics so I play to the room. This also gets you really good at knowing your on board preamp and what it actually does. You can't go wrong with a Bongo

 

[shakinbacon]

reminicisng

The more I think about the practice the more pumped I am about the bass and what it is allowing me to do.

On the way to work I was realizing that I'm closer to the "sound in my head" than I ever have been. That my friends, is a cool feeling


I have the performance on Sunday and I'll report back.

 

[rizzo9247]

Great stuff.

These types of threads make me want to get that bongo sooner than my wallet does

 

[shakinbacon]

gig went very well

The bass sounded fantastic.

The soundman really liked the Bongo ("I got gobbs of signal and the noise you had issues with before are gone")

The tone was THICK and yet cut through. I found I was making tiny adjustments on the eq and piezo/mag mix which was quite powerful.

Let me just say
I love this bass
I love this company
I love this forum

Life is good

 

[Manfloozy]

The bass sounded fantastic.

The soundman really liked the Bongo ("I got gobbs of signal and the noise you had issues with before are gone")

The tone was THICK and yet cut through. I found I was making tiny adjustments on the eq and piezo/mag mix which was quite powerful.

Let me just say
I love this bass
I love this company
I love this forum

Life is good

Amen brother 'bacon! I am thrilled for you Sir!

 

[adouglas]

See?

Less is more.

Great story.

 

[oddjob]

The Bongo is the best thing since sliced bread

 

[shakinbacon]

The Bongo is the best thing since sliced bread

The thing about the Bongo is it is quite complex - to the point that I wasn't sure I even liked it for several days. It took a while of manipulating the knobs and gigging it for me to realize this thing is a keeper. Its weird that I've played bass for 25 years and generally know how to get the sound I'm after... with an amp. Doing it with a bass alone is a bit of a revelation.

I think the turning point for me was trying not to make the Bongo sound like a Stingray, Pbass, Jbass, etc but making it sound like the tone I had in my head.

Perhaps this is why the instrument hasn't been flying off the shelves. I'm glad to see the electronics are being packaged in other instruments in the Musicman line. The preamp is very powerful and subtle at the same time. The boys definitely did their homework on the Bongo.

 

[oddjob]

I think the turning point for me was trying not to make the Bongo sound like a Stingray, Pbass, Jbass, etc but making it sound like the tone I had in my head.

There you go!!! You are right. When I first got mine, I had no clue as to what I actually had. I had to step back and step away from it to hear it with new ears. Once I got over the "it's not a Ray" thing the tone just sang from the bass.

Very glad things are working out for you.

 

[AtomicPunk]

I, too, came from a Ray into Bongo Heaven.

Took a few minutes to get something to start with and then a few tweaks here and there and I had what I wanted. It's a dream. Love mine and you would have to pry it from my cold dead hands.