I use Cobalt flatwounds on my Bongo and I agree Rounds are a little to bright. The Cobalt Flats really do even things out. Oh and they last for ages too!
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I have tried Chromes on my Bongo and they sound great, but I found Cobalt Flats retain more of that Bongo tone which you can lose with some Flatwound strings.
My Bongo is in the shop (preamp issues) and now I miss it. I have decided I need a second one.
salutations y'all
probably getting a Bongo4 and it's got the older style tuners-
noticed they're huge and they've got 4 screws each holding the key in place from the back.
there are newer lightweight tuners available on more current basses, are they exchangeable with these older styles and do they need different holes drilled or are they direct replacements?
will they cover any possibly unused original holes?
have a set of hipshot ultralights I'd prefer but they have only a single screw mounting and will never cover all the older screw holes in the headstock.
anybody looked into this?
thanks very much!
probably getting a Bongo4 and it's got the older style tuners-
noticed they're huge and they've got 4 screws each holding the key in place from the back.
there are newer lightweight tuners available on more current basses, are they exchangeable with these older styles and do they need different holes drilled or are they direct replacements?
will they cover any possibly unused original holes?
have a set of hipshot ultralights I'd prefer but they have only a single screw mounting and will never cover all the older screw holes in the headstock.
anybody looked into this?
thanks very much!
No, the new, lightweight tuners will not cover the holes of the older tuners. They are not direct replacements. Here are the new ones:
There is zero neck dive on my Bongo with old tuners so I've never even thought about it. I have a Hipshot drop tuner also which even adds a bit of weight. That's on a 4 string. Can't speak for 5 or 6.
Let me add that I prefer the look of the older Bongos (and Big Als, too) with the clover tuners.
hey thanks that was really quick and definitive, and appreciated!
the newer ones were certainly a major rethink.
runnerman your point re neck dive is helpful and great to know. seems as we know some manufacturers are more able to build in this kind of balance without neck dive- or the need to modify from stock to make it work.
cheers EBMM
the newer ones were certainly a major rethink.
runnerman your point re neck dive is helpful and great to know. seems as we know some manufacturers are more able to build in this kind of balance without neck dive- or the need to modify from stock to make it work.
cheers EBMM
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I have two Bongos, one with the old tuners and one with the new. To me they both feel and balance the same.
Yeah my Bongo4 has older style tuners plus a matching Hipshot D-tuner and the bass is still one of my lightest out of 20+ that I currently have. No neck dive at all.
My Bongo is back from the shop. I still need a second one, I concluded my backup is more than fine but it's no Bongo. It's either going to be a 4HS or a 5H.
I just picked up a Fender Jazz Elite V and its pulling part time duty with my Bongo. There's a huge difference in volume between the two with the Jazz being the louder (both 18v preamp). It was never that big of an issue until I picked up a Markbass super synth that I had intended it to be used primarily with the Bongo, but the output of the bongo isn't strong enough to trigger the synth sounds without heavily digging in. Should I just switch to the Jazz for the synth sounds or is there another solution?
Interesting. My Bongo has the hottest signal of my 5 active basses, but the rest are 9v including one with EMGx pups & preamps. Had to turn down the DI signal to my PA as it was overcompensating.
Try equalizing batteries (all new or switch), reducing pickup clearances on the quiet one.
Try equalizing batteries (all new or switch), reducing pickup clearances on the quiet one.
I completely agree with this. Nothing I have is even close to my Bongo for output. One of my amps has this natural compression/break up as you push the front end. All my basses hit that zone around 8 or 9. The Bongo hits it below 5.
I would check string gauges, pickup height and if the preamp on either bass has a trim control.
No trim control on either bass. The bongo already has the lowest action and the strings are different purposefully. The batteries are all the same brand and equal voltage. I don't want to lower the output of the Jazz, I want to increase the output of the bongo.
just got this black/white/black pick guard from the good folks in san luis obispo for $30 plus ups to replace the blue-ish abalone model.
think I like it better-it make the "sapphire black" paint look black, actually. more so in person.
(the bridge picked up some reddish cast in the photo somehow-it's chrome).
Ok I’ve got another one. Unreal beast.
