Sterling 5HS Maple vs Bongo 5HH: Back to back gigs, same cab, amp, EQ. Winner is ...

[tunaman4u2]

Bongo 5 HH

Playing through a GK NEO 412 with a Genz Benz Shuttlemax 9.2 left the EQ the same.

The Sterling 5HS felt like it had a hole in the frequency range upper mid region. I felt like the lows where there & the mid grind of course but if I needed some real thick PUNCH on the D & G strings I was super lacking & then would get into the zing range early. On Brick House & Boogie Oogie Oogie the upper notes just didn't have that warm cut and were audibly quiet. Sterling 5HS was set up with a flat EQ except a bit rolled off treble. Went through all the pickup selectors.

Bongo 5HH was awesome last night & the crowd was digging it. I felt like I had better volume balance string to string. My fills were audible & clear. Tone was not muddy by any means. The Sterling 5 HS clearly did a more aggressive clear tone better but the Bongo could get there with the aggressive amp & head combo rolled to the bridge pickup. Bongo had the low mids boosted a tad same for high mids & treble rolled off a bit, lows centered.

Keyboard player whos right behind my amp said night & day. Room was more open gig 2 for Bongo. Strings on the Sterling 5 HS were Elixir SS, Bongo 5 HH old Prosteels I think. I have a bunch of Slinkies & Cobalts ready to go which I like better.

I've been using the Sterling 5 HS almost every gig lately because I can slap it a bit better than the full H at the neck of the Sterling 5 HH & Bongo 5 HH but I'm going to have to make the switch. Funk dance top 40s just needs that thick PUNCH more than super aggression.

The Tuna

 

[Movielife]

Man I love both but the Bongo is so powerful!

 

[tunaman4u2]

I have to break out the Sterling 5HH Mahogany PDN to see if it fills up the upper strings vs the ash Sterling 5 HS. The Bongo just totally rocked it though

 

[73jbass]

If you get tired of the PDN,well, you know who to contact.

 

[pete bass]

Love that shirt !! Been waiting a long time for the Psychedelic renaissance resurgence...

 

[bassmonkeee]

I saw the title and who posted it, and I just KNEW it was the Sterling that won. Color me surprised.

I am a Bongo Man through and through, but I've certainly liked all of the Sterlings I've played (it'd be nice to try one at a gig). Oh, if only I had unlimited funds and space...

 

[tunaman4u2]

I saw the title and who posted it, and I just KNEW it was the Sterling that won. Color me surprised.

I am a Bongo Man through and through, but I've certainly liked all of the Sterlings I've played (it'd be nice to try one at a gig). Oh, if only I had unlimited funds and space...

Yeah, I was pretty surprised myself... but I just couldn't get that Sterling to have any girth on those upper strings when I needed it. To be fair its hard to ask any bass to get EVERY tone in a cover band. The Sterling HH comes the closest with the most ease. The HS takes a bit more tweaking due to the volume drop of the SCs. The Bongo takes the most work to dial in on the fly but I've been keeping it more simple at the bass & letting the shuttlemax tone shapers at the footswitch do a lot of that.

Sterling 5 HH PDN is coming up soon & if its too close to the Sterling 5 HS I'm going to have a decision to make on which one goes because it AINT the Bongo at this point (Unless its for a HS 5 Bongo) I'd really like to try one of those for slapping ease.

 

[five7]

The S on a SH is the same distance from the fretboard as the H on a HH bongo. There is more room in between the pickups but that is not where I normaly slap.

 

[tunaman4u2]

I slap for only a few songs... I figure I'll let it be ugly for the rest of the songs to be so beautiful! ha ha

The HS Sterling is the easiest to slap by far for me, I miss my pops with the HH sometimes

 

[tunaman4u2]

Time to do a Sterling 5 HH PDN with same amp cab EQ settings.

Sterling 5HH PDN had some warmer girth through the upper ranges than the Sterling 5 HS. The tone is not as clear but having that extra punch to the upper notes really shines through the mix. I usually run the PDNs lows cut off a bit & treble up & its still a warm beast. I also LOVE the 5 position switch on the HH vs the HS because each one has even volume. When I'm rolling with the HS at a gig I never touch the single coil settings, the band gets mad if I drop out. I could simply boost at my pedal but to be honest the bridge H is plenty aggressive for my needs. The 5 HS is awesome. The Ash\Maple combo makes it super aggressive but you can still get warm with the parallel setting.

Looks like the Sterling 5 HH PDN & the Bongo 5 HH stay in the keepers for life club. The Sterling 5 HS may hit the market it I find something else simply on the premise its pretty similar to what I have.

 

[tunaman4u2]

Sterling 5HH getting a setup... Bongo 5HH got new strings yesterday so it was 5HS time to make it happen!

GO BRUINS !!!

Moved my pickup poles towards the G string just a touch... cut my lows at the bass & used more parallel mode. Amp had some extra lower mids & we were spanking the gig. The crowd kept wanting me to do bass solos in the middle of songs... & hell, we won & we all a few to drink so why not?

Cut right through... the band kept telling me to turn down but my volume was REALLY low, it just cut like a knife today.

 

[tunaman4u2]

Back to Bongo 5HH for gig tonight. Its by far the best tone of the 3. I love the controls of the Sterling 5HH a bit more so I can dial in more more tones with ease. If I was in a set it & forget situation, the Bongo is the clear winner. For a cover band playing all over the map... the Sterling 5HH is really really nice. The 5HS is the odd man out for this project. More rock n roll, classic rock where an aggressive tone is needed & the 5HS would be money.

 

[five7]

Your original post said you set the eq on the Shuttlemax 9.2 and left it for all 3 basses. You started with the bongo, was the eq set for the bongo? That would give it a step up on the sterlings.

 

[tunaman4u2]

I dont touch my EQ on the Shuttlemax 9.2. At the bass I leave the EQ pretty flat although with the Bongo last night I like to raise the low mids a touch to get the D & G string volume up without adding clank & thinness.

Its just sweet man... Keepers for life Bongo 5HH & Sterling 5HH PDN... period