Lfalex v1.1

Makes sense, given that the Bongo is very much a design in 3 dimensions.

Not heard of that one before, but there's ways around that sort thing; the old cocktail stick and glue trick for straplocks, maybe swap out steel fixings for brass or stainless alternatives. You'd like to think that manufacturers would have done their homework on an issue of this nature.

I figure everyone has their "thing" Some people like fishing and spend their money on gear and permits. Some people put blingy wheels and loud exhausts on their cars. For some of us, it's basses. As long as it's affordable and doesn't harm anyone then it's all good.

This. Also cost me 30 years' worth of vinyl LPs, a lovely hifi, half a house, all my amps & cabs.. Sold them all to make ends meet. Managed to keep the very best couple of instruments.

Atlansia; So many pickups, so little time!

Most of those are at very least interesting. Some are lovely. But oddly not the Oxford!

I'll play; *Westone Raider One- my first bass Columbus Series 2 jazz fretless- truly awful, I still have the neck for "home defence" *1996 Vigier Passion series3 standard V- The bug had bitten at this point. Amazed that I bought such a superb instrument that's grown with me with so little knowledge (and ability!) 1997 Warwick Streamer LX VI- My first Six. Bought it instead of a Ken Smith. Good bass, but should've gone for the Smith. 1990 Musicman Stingray V fretless- really well made, but I ran it EADGC with rounds when it should've been BEADG with flats. Ovation Celebrity IV- Acoustic with a piezo and preamp. Suffered the limitations common to all Acoustic basses. Ibanez SRX700- Fast and easy to play. My main gigging bass for many years.Not the most sophisticated tone. Didn't like the pickups. Iceni Zoot Chaser prototype- super punchy (East preamp & Duncan MM) Neck wandered a bit! *Hohner B2a V- I revisit this occasionally, and it's always better than I remember it being. Yamaha Attitude 10th Anniversary Billy Sheehan signature- Monster instrument, brilliantly well-made, but ultimately it made me sound dull. I couldn't get it to "sing" 2004 S1 USA Fender Jazz- nice but it had to go when downsizing due to divorce. Ibanez EDB 600- bought for £80. I loved this. Then it fell off the sofa and the body cracked in half... *2002 Warwick Infinity SN IV- Pretty, chambered Zebrano body. Can sound like a right little hooligan when you dig in. Played arguably my best gigs with this. Maybe that's a coincidence, maybe not... Status Streamline IV- 🙄 Not a good experience. Left under a dark cloud at a huge loss. *1997 Warwick Fortress MasterMan V- Ugly. Crazy. One MM pick-up. 2x2 band EQ (one per coil) balances and plays superbly. *Ibanez EDB 605- Replacement for the broken EDB600. I love this one, too. *NS Design CR5 upright- A fix for the fretless itch. Big, deep voice. Nice and compact. Don't use it enough *2003 10 string Chapman Stick- Weird but good. Oh, the tone of the thing! Difficult to master. Makes you wear your trousers like Simon Cowell because of the need for a belt. Those marked * are still in my possession.

Nevertheless, cheap they ain't, and even if you bought them direct from BassLab, you'd still get hit for import taxes post-Brexit. So that €3350 just became €4020. Plus, presumably, shipping and currency conversion... eeek!

http://www.ghservices.com/products/basslab/price.html

Start saving!!

Looks like the Auerswald is wooden, but the reasons for the "bow" seem to be the same as for the (composite) Basslab. It's interesting to note that both manufacturers make models without the bow, which makes me wonder how useful it really is. As far as the Roland is concerned (want there a guitar model also?) It was to improve the neck rigidity and thus the clarity of the vibrations reaching the synth pickup.

I've always liked these. Basslab's founder, Heiko Hoepfinger writes a good column on premier guitar.

My '97 LX6 had SD Basslines soapbars as MEC didn't make pickups that big at the time. They sounded rather nice, even with the stock 2 band MEC EQ...

This.

I always aim to get as low as it can go without buzzing when I'm playing as hard as I normally might. Then I'll adjust the pickups for string-to-string balance (in terms of output). Bear in mind that some Westones have adjustable polepieces, so these should be used instead. I run the pickups as close to the strings as possible, but not so close that they produce wolf-tones, obstruct my playing or collide with the strings.

Only OD and distortion I've used that I like is by way of an Ampeg SVP-pro; more or less the pre-amp from the SVT-II. Drive comes from the dedicated circuit using an AU7, so it's less full-on and more adjustable. Distortion comes from overloading the gain stage (an AX7) It's possible to use both together for complete madness.. I still can't find much use for it in a musical setting, though!

Basswood is fine. However, it has three significant issues; Appearance- like Poplar and Alder, it lacks much obvious grain or figuring and isn't a particularly attractive colour. This explains why it's usually only available in solid finishes. Name- If it were called Tilia bassguitaris superioris, I'm sure people would love it. Being saddled with a plain old name like Basswood just evokes responses like "Yeah, right." Reputation- because of the two above, at best it gets ignored, at worst branded as a cheap substitute. I've played Bongos and liked them without knowing or particularly caring what they were fashioned from. Conversely, lovers of natural finishes and multi-laminate through- necks might be suspicious of what's lurking under that solid finish; what are they trying to hide? I think the Bongo's price reflects the amount of machining required to get the shape, the cost of the pickups and the (presumably expensive) 4 band EQ, plus a little bit for it being a Musicman..

I just Googled it. Yes. The group of trees are called Lindens. The most common example of which in the UK is apparently the Lime tree (not the citrus one)

http://blog.music-man.com/instruments/the-history-of-the-bongo-bass/ Might be of interest to some.

Maybe Chris Bangle designed it? He worked for BMW about the time the Bongo came out.

For me; Fender Roscoe Beck V G&L ASAT Musicman Bongo V HS (I've yet to find a Precision that does it for me, but a HotRod P deluxe with a humbucker at the bridge came close) I don't own any of those, though. My Warwick Fortress MasterMan V scratches the MM itch quite well, and the Infinity SN IV makes some nice noises, too.

I really liked the ones I've played. I'd gladly have one in the collection. It'd have to be a fiver, though. Not too fussed about colours and shapes, it's more about balance, feel and tone for me. Probably why I like them when others are less keen.

And then this happened...

+1 Imagine the system combined with a Lightwave- style optical pickup, for example.

I think I prefer the look of the new Ibanez SR600E/605E/606E don't know what the price differential is, though.