From what I've heard and from the little time I've spent actually playing the Bongo, it's a nice bass. A good variety of tones possible. There are a few cons against the Bongo.
- Short scale. This affects the five banger models. The B string isn't as tight and is, as some say, "floppy".
- Two Bongers have had this experience so far: http://www.ernieball.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=2865
- No official hardshell case.
The only real concern should be the first problem, as a floppy B string ain't fun to play. There's one more issue - the looks. It seems to be like a love it or hate it kind of design.
But Mr. Jack, the local Bongo enthusiast, should be along anytime now to give you the downlow on Bongos.
Anyway, havb phun shopping fer a bass! Try 'em all out and see what you like. Good luck on your purchase and rock on!
- Short scale. This affects the five banger models. The B string isn't as tight and is, as some say, "floppy".
- Two Bongers have had this experience so far: http://www.ernieball.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=2865
- No official hardshell case.
The only real concern should be the first problem, as a floppy B string ain't fun to play. There's one more issue - the looks. It seems to be like a love it or hate it kind of design.
But Mr. Jack, the local Bongo enthusiast, should be along anytime now to give you the downlow on Bongos.
Anyway, havb phun shopping fer a bass! Try 'em all out and see what you like. Good luck on your purchase and rock on!
Aussie Mark
Well-known member
midopa said:
Wrong. Bongo scale length is 34 inches = LONG scale
http://www.ernieball.com/mmonline/specs/instruments_bongo.html
fifthorange
Well-known member
GET THE BONGE, DUAL HUMBUCKING PICKUPS, YOU CANT GO WRONG
bovinehost
Administrator
Yes, I would have to say that the last time I checked, the Bongo was indeed a 34" scale, not short by any stretch of the imagination. EB 5 string basses are usually touted for their tight B strings. The Bongo is no exception to that - mine play very well, and as I've mentioned, I've ditched a 35" USA Lakland and kept the Bongo, for whatever that's worth.
I still have two other 35" scale basses, two Reverends, and I don't notice any real difference in the "tension" of the B strings between the Revs and the Bongo.
Regarding the case, that is certainly true. The Bongo 4 will fit into a number of good HS cases, though, including two I originally used for Fender Jazz basses.
The Bongo 5 will fit into almost nothing except the case that Bass Central has commissioned. I am not a fan of the case, but it does protect the bass. Nothing more, mind you.
The Bongo is a good choice, a versatile machine, and there are literally untold numbers of threads here on the Forum, easily found by using the 'search' function.
A bit of research here should yield a lot of good information.
Good luck!
I still have two other 35" scale basses, two Reverends, and I don't notice any real difference in the "tension" of the B strings between the Revs and the Bongo.
Regarding the case, that is certainly true. The Bongo 4 will fit into a number of good HS cases, though, including two I originally used for Fender Jazz basses.
The Bongo 5 will fit into almost nothing except the case that Bass Central has commissioned. I am not a fan of the case, but it does protect the bass. Nothing more, mind you.
The Bongo is a good choice, a versatile machine, and there are literally untold numbers of threads here on the Forum, easily found by using the 'search' function.
A bit of research here should yield a lot of good information.
Good luck!
Aussie Mark
Well-known member
midopa said:
True, however in the bass world, 34" is universally regarded as "long scale". Off the top of my head, short scale is 30.5", and medium is something around 32". If you want to talk about "extra long" scale, please see my 39" scale fretless.
Aussie Mark
Well-known member
midopa said:
It's tuned to standard tuning, but the distance between each note is longer. Good thing I have big hands
The neck has side dots at the 5th and 12th positions, to give a point of reference for fingering. The 39" scale is larger than a 1/2 size upright bass, and a couple of inches shorter than a 3/4 "full size" upright.It hasn't got any show time from me yet, however I will definitely use it at an "unplugged" gig when the time comes, or if I get involved again in live theatre backing bands or an acoustic duo/trio.
Aussie Mark
Well-known member
Yes, the paisley P is a nice bass, and I agonise before every gig about which basses to take with me. Usually I just go with the first 2 that pop into my head, and on other occasions I take a more pragmatic "horses for courses" approach. I took my TBird to rehearsal last night and after 10 minutes reminded myself that I need to play that baby more often. Fortunately, none of my basses are dogs, and they have each held their own in all kinds of gig situations at one time or another. Most of the time, my Stingrays are my "go to" basses that I can count on to suit any situation, whereas something like my Les Paul or the Thunderbird are only really suited to full on balls to the wall rock gigs, because of the growl of the high output pups. The others are all nice basses and get gigged regularly, but not as versatile as the Stingray in my opinion.
spectorbassguy
Well-known member
kr_vital said:
My Bongo 5 has more tone variations than any bass I've ever played/owned. Currently it is replacing my Ken Smith BT5G as my main fretted bass, and Ken Smith makes a GREAT bass. I have the Humbucker/Single Coil p/u config and can dial in any sound I want with the 4-band E-Q (Bass, Lo-Mid, Hi-Mid, Treble). Also it's 18 volts which makes for tons of headroom.
If you're a slap guy, try one out using this setup:
Bass: 90%
Lo-Mid: 0%
Hi-Mid: 20%
Treble: 100%
Awesome thump and bite!
Regarding the low B (if you're a fiver), I replaced the E-B Regular Slinky strings with T-I PowerBass and found that the B string is much more taut.
Have Fun - Bongo is my recommendation!
huber
Well-known member
i've been playing it every week for 3 months, and almost have enough money for it.....and it's definately worth it
the look might take awhile to get used to, but it plays and sounds great
the look might take awhile to get used to, but it plays and sounds great
