John Myung 4 | Basses | Ernie Ball Music Man

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The John Myung Artist Series Bongo is crafted to John's exacting specifications to be sleek, ultra-modern, and perfectly designed. In a collaboration spanning more than a decade, John and the Ernie Ball Music Man engineering team have refined and enhanced the bass's comfort, playability, and performance to meet the needs of the most demanding players. This includes key features such as a simplified control layout with efficiently pre-specified EQ and a new kill switch to enhance functionality and creative control. A compact and balanced basswood body is paired with a roasted maple neck and a rosewood-and-roasted-maple fretboard in an elegant golden-ratio aesthetic.

John Myung 4 – JM Purple

Options

Your Custom Options:

Model:: Myung Bongo 4 HH
Color:: JM Purple
Neck:: Rosewood/Roasted Maple Divided Wood Fretboard
Pickguard:: Black
Hardware:: Chrome

Build Code

146-GJP-30-01-MB-CR

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John Myung 4 Highlights

Custom Neck

Roasted maple neck with Divided Wood Fretboard
Kill Switch Volume Knob

Volume knob acts as an on/off switch
Stealth Pickup Covers

Neodymium humbucking pickups with black sealed covers

John Myung 4 – Inspired Design

Inspired Design

"While the 6-string is my comfort zone, I missed the physical freedom and generous string spacing of the Music Man 4-string bass. Each song needs to be played on what it was written for to capture its original soul. Returning to a 4-string during our 40th Anniversary Tour for the Images & Words tracks completely restored the musical conviction of those songs live."

— John Myung

Golden Ratio Fretboard

Roasted Maple Neck combines a hybrid rosewood and roasted maple fingerboard for a distinct tonality and an elegant aesthetic.
5-Way Rotary Blend Control

Blends both bridge and neck pickups for a variety of tonal options

John Myung 4 – Original String Spacing

Original String Spacing

The Bongo 4 features a return to the normal string spacing of the original design. For John Myung, the 4- and 6-string bongos are not interchangeable and equally preserve the musical conviction of the original recordings, translating the music as intended for live performance.

John Myung 4 – Finest Materials

Finest Materials

Meticulously chosen tonewoods are sourced solely from top-tier sustainable suppliers globally. The bodies and necks are crafted from basswood, rosewood, and maple, which are carefully selected and matched for their superior tonal characteristics

John Myung 4 – Customized Neck Plate

Customized Neck Plate

5-bolt attachment with custom John Myung artist series neck plate

Specifications, Schematics & More

Specifications

John Myung 4
Size	12-3/4" wide, 1-5/8" thick, 46" long (32.4 cm wide, 4.1 cm thick, 116.9 cm long)
Body Wood	Basswood
Body Finish	High Gloss Polyester
Bridge	Music Man® chrome plated, steel bridge plate with stainless steel saddles
Pickguard	Black
Scale Length	34" (86.4 cm)
Neck Radius	11" (27.9 cm)
Frets	24 - High Profile, Wide
Neck Width	1-5/8" (41.3 mm) at nut 2-9/16" (65.1 mm) at last fret
Neck Wood	Roasted Maple Neck
Fingerboard	Rosewood/Roasted Maple Golden Ratio
Fret Markers	White Half moon inlay
Neck Finish	Hand-Rubbed Oil and Wax Finish
Neck Colors	Natural
Tuning Machines	Custom Music Man, lightweight with tapered string posts and ergonomic design
Truss Rod	Adjustable - no component or string removal
Neck Attachment	5-Bolt, Sculpted Neck Joint
Electronic Shielding	Graphite acrylic resin coated body cavity and aluminum control cover
Controls	Volume on/off switch; 5 way rotary knob for pickup blend
Switching	On/off volume switch knob and 5-way pickup blend knob
Pickups	Dual Humbucking with Neodymium magnets
Left Handed	No
Strings	45w-65w-80w-100w

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Specifications	John Myung 4	—
Size	12-3/4" wide, 1-5/8" thick, 46" long (32.4 cm wide, 4.1 cm thick, 116.9 cm long)
Body Wood	Basswood
Body Finish	High Gloss Polyester
Body Colors
Body Bindings
Bridge	Music Man® chrome plated, steel bridge plate with stainless steel saddles
Pickguard	Black
Scale Length	34" (86.4 cm)
Neck Radius	11" (27.9 cm)
Headstock Size
Frets	24 - High Profile, Wide
Neck Width	1-5/8" (41.3 mm) at nut 2-9/16" (65.1 mm) at last fret
Neck Wood	Roasted Maple Neck
Fingerboard	Rosewood/Roasted Maple Golden Ratio
Fret Markers	White Half moon inlay
Neck Finish	Hand-Rubbed Oil and Wax Finish
Neck Colors	Natural
Neck Binding
Tuning Machines	Custom Music Man, lightweight with tapered string posts and ergonomic design
Truss Rod	Adjustable - no component or string removal
Neck Attachment	5-Bolt, Sculpted Neck Joint
Electronic Shielding	Graphite acrylic resin coated body cavity and aluminum control cover
Controls	Volume on/off switch; 5 way rotary knob for pickup blend
Switching	On/off volume switch knob and 5-way pickup blend knob
Pickups	Dual Humbucking with Neodymium magnets
Left Handed	No
Strings	45w-65w-80w-100w

Control Function Diagrams

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California Proposition 65 WARNING: Cancer and Reproductive Harm www.P65Warnings.ca.gov (opens in a new tab)

John Myung

The Factory Tour

Since 1984, Ernie Ball Music Man has been crafting instruments in San Luis Obispo, California. Watch the factory tour and see how the difference is in the details.

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