Opinions on Bongo Bass?

[Stub Mandrel]

Has anyone mentioned that  lime wood is generally thought of as the premium timber for woodcarving and turning. It is light but strong and takes a clean cut in any direction.

[Lfalex v1.1]

3 minutes ago, Stub Mandrel said:

Has anyone mentioned that  lime wood is generally thought of as the premium timber for woodcarving and turning. It is light but strong and takes a clean cut in any direction.

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

[petecarlton]

2 hours ago, Dad3353 said:

Fixed. 

Whoops, sorry!  Misread it!

[Moldsight]

Not sure if I actually love it or hate it....... can't afford it for sure though!

Now if that toiletseat pickguard turned into a space hopper shape utilising the eyes at the 24th fret, two horns and teeth between the pickups that sure would make me smile. 

[funkgod]

had one for a short while, sorry to say i did not like it, for me i need an all rounder bass, for all styles, what i found was for slapping it was useless as the neck pick up was really close to the neck and i need a bit of space there to get my fingers under the strings, if they had moved both pickups back a few inches then great, but , just could not get along with it so... back to the G&L.

[TJ1]

Ok based on the reviews here and other places I got this new Bongo from gear4music.

I am sure there are more sensible things I could have borrowed 2k for, given I am definitely not at pro level - but WTF.

Anyway my First impressions are that it is very well weighted and comfortable but need to play it more to comment on the tonal qualities. If I was 14 I might like the sparkly blue, although personally would have preferred a more toned down colour - but the availability was not there.

[Owen]

I am 55 and I LOVE the sparkly blue. 

[Woodinblack]

Yep, sparkly is good, might have gone for a brighter colour but looks good!

[Bassman666]

I bought my Bongo 5 HS used without having ever tried one but was always curious. Once you put the marmite looks to one side, it's a stunning bass. The basswood body may put people off, however I feel that some basses rely more on the construction/materials used and others the electronics. The bongo I believe is the latter. I feel like the body wood could be any type and a bongo would still sound like a bongo due to the neodymium pickups and hot preamp. It's one of them basses that I think once you've played, you will like it more. Maybe not enough to buy one, but enough to realise why so many people love them 

Edited January 30, 2021 by Bassman666

[SpondonBassed]

...and another thing... why would anyone name a bass after a drum?

[SpondonBassed]

On 24/01/2021 at 12:38, Moldsight said:

Not sure if I actually love it or hate it....... can't afford it for sure though!

Now if that toiletseat pickguard turned into a space hopper shape utilising the eyes at the 24th fret, two horns and teeth between the pickups that sure would make me smile. 

A sort of... bass hopper?  Cool.

[Guest]

4 hours ago, SpondonBassed said:

...and another thing... why would anyone name a bass after a drum?

Um, becuase... they play it in the Congo?

[mingsta]

I got my 5HH Stealth new for the princely sum of £560 (plus shipping and taxes, which added a couple of hundred iirc) from the US back in about 2008. 

Along with my Japanese sadowsky metro its the nicest playing bass I've owned, fast neck and nice low action thats basically not moved or needed any adjustment in over ten years. 

Tonewise, the I read that basswood was deliberately chosen for the bongo for its tonal qualities. I've found that while the bongo has a fair bit of built in flexibility due to the pickups and eq, it's definitely got a signature tone, which I'd describe as a very focused lower mid punch with a bit of zing on top (but not quite up to extent of a stingray). It's definitely its own beast, which I find a refreshing and useful addition to my stable of J, P, Ray archetypes. 

I find the position of the pickups limits a bit of the HHs flexibility. Together they work very well but I find the neck pickup a bit too bloomy on its own due to being a far bit left of the P position. I tend to leave the pan at 50/50. 

I tried a Dingwall NG2 at Andertons a while back and was massively impressed. Another one to consider if you're looking at the bongo. Both mould breaking basses with big, punchy and articulate sounds. 

Edited January 31, 2021 by mingsta

[SpondonBassed]

17 minutes ago, FDC484950 said:

Um, becuase... they play it in the Congo?

Oh right.  Fair enough then.

[Stingray5]

6 hours ago, SpondonBassed said:

...and another thing... why would anyone name a bass after a drum?

Maybe for the same reason anyone would name a drum after a bass... (i.e., the bass drum!)  
...and yet another other thing - they're both part of the rhythm section!  

I rest my face, m'lud!  

[SpondonBassed]

22 minutes ago, Stingray5 said:

Maybe for the same reason anyone would name a drum after a bass... (i.e., the bass drum!)  
...and yet another other thing - they're both part of the rhythm section!  

I rest my face, m'lud!  

No TLRTs but take it from me that I'm howling with slight amusement.

[Stub Mandrel]

7 hours ago, SpondonBassed said:

...and another thing... why would anyone name a bass after a drum?

The same reason they named a drum after a bass? <RATS - BEATEN TO IT!>

🙂

Edited January 31, 2021 by Stub Mandrel

[SpondonBassed]

And that reason...?

Just to arsǝ everyone off I reckon.

[ern500evo]

I had a 4HS in the stealth finish. It’s a very versatile bass, and I actually quite like the look of them, it’s different. I had a couple of things I couldn’t get on with, finding a comfortable place to anchor my thumb, the H felt too far back and the S too far forward, I could’ve had a thumb rest fitted but I was a bit reluctant to stick a cheap plastic thumb rest on an expensive bass. The second was the stealth finish on the neck, I found it felt really sticky when my hand got sweaty. I traded it for a Dingwall NG2 in the end. Sometimes I wish I’d given it a bit more time. The 18v pre amp is very hot and only small tweaks make big changes to tone. I think a telling point is that most people on this thread who have owned a bongo, sound regretful of moving them on 

[4000]

On 30/01/2021 at 09:44, TJ1 said:

Ok based on the reviews here and other places I got this new Bongo from gear4music.

I am sure there are more sensible things I could have borrowed 2k for, given I am definitely not at pro level - but WTF.

Anyway my First impressions are that it is very well weighted and comfortable but need to play it more to comment on the tonal qualities. If I was 14 I might like the sparkly blue, although personally would have preferred a more toned down colour - but the availability was not there.

That’s the best colour!

[Daz39]

1 minute ago, 4000 said:

That’s the best colour!

And about £1,200 cheaper than the new price range announced....!

[levelken]

Weapon bass!!!  slap tone incredible and the array tones from the bass in amazing.  Really depends on what kind of bass player

you are.  If you like HIFI slap tones go for it!

[MacDaddy]

On 18/01/2021 at 00:44, WinterMute said:

I've had a stealth 5 string bongo for s few years now, it's a great bass for the kind of music I play, yes the 18v pre-amp is hot, but as long as the system you're running it with has enough headroom on the input, you're golden. 

I use mine with a Helix Stomp and a Shelford Channel in the studio and it provides a real contrast in tone to the SR5 and the fretless. It's got a real presence in the low end that cuts live.

The G is a little close to the edge of the fretboard on first playing, but you get used to it, can't say I've noticed any problems with comfort, standing or sitting.

 

I can't see it, where is it?

[WinterMute]

1 hour ago, MacDaddy said:

 

I can't see it, where is it?

props...