The EB Bongo is underappreciated by many players due to its unique look. The true beauty of the Bongo (in my opinion) is the way it sounds and the very comfortable ergonomics.
I had a Bongo 6 a few years ago and had trouble adjusting to the fingerboard dimensions and sold it. Then a gloss black 6 came up on GC's list of used basses and I bought it and am now hooked on the Bongo design. This time I resolved to play that Bongo 6 a lot and in a short while it felt perfect to me and the tone is to die for. Fantastic electronics.
Then, cruising through GC's used offerings I found a Barolo 5 offered in "great" condition with the hard case for a reasonable price. The photos showed almost nothing useful. The bass looked black (Barolo purple is difficult to photograph in a way that shows the color) but I bought it anyway knowing that I could return it.
I was blown away by the Barolo 5 when I opened the case. As you can see, it has a terrific flame Maple neck and is very close to mint condition. It weighs 7 pounds, 15.5 ounces.
It came to me with the original EB Slinky strings. Frets show no wear at all. This bass has not been played. I plugged it in, tuned it up and it sounded nice but not great. It was kind of odd but playing it there were times when I was having trouble hearing the exact pitch of the notes. Most odd.
So I removed the strings, cleaned and oiled the fingerboard, polished the body and put a new set of D'Adarrio EXL-170-5's on the bass. Oh my goodness! There is the tone I was looking for!
I say all this to remind us all....me included....that we need to be careful to make a thoughtful consideration of the qualities of a bass we have just acquired. I could have returned this bass because of the tone and would have missed out on a superior bass. I am really thrilled with this bass.
I had a Bongo 6 a few years ago and had trouble adjusting to the fingerboard dimensions and sold it. Then a gloss black 6 came up on GC's list of used basses and I bought it and am now hooked on the Bongo design. This time I resolved to play that Bongo 6 a lot and in a short while it felt perfect to me and the tone is to die for. Fantastic electronics.
Then, cruising through GC's used offerings I found a Barolo 5 offered in "great" condition with the hard case for a reasonable price. The photos showed almost nothing useful. The bass looked black (Barolo purple is difficult to photograph in a way that shows the color) but I bought it anyway knowing that I could return it.
I was blown away by the Barolo 5 when I opened the case. As you can see, it has a terrific flame Maple neck and is very close to mint condition. It weighs 7 pounds, 15.5 ounces.
It came to me with the original EB Slinky strings. Frets show no wear at all. This bass has not been played. I plugged it in, tuned it up and it sounded nice but not great. It was kind of odd but playing it there were times when I was having trouble hearing the exact pitch of the notes. Most odd.
So I removed the strings, cleaned and oiled the fingerboard, polished the body and put a new set of D'Adarrio EXL-170-5's on the bass. Oh my goodness! There is the tone I was looking for!
I say all this to remind us all....me included....that we need to be careful to make a thoughtful consideration of the qualities of a bass we have just acquired. I could have returned this bass because of the tone and would have missed out on a superior bass. I am really thrilled with this bass.
and, I never got it back. I will own another 6 one of these days! As for the design haters that's OK. Congrats, that thing is stellar!
