The Yamaha BB mega-thread

[Al Krow]

16 minutes ago, Cuzzie said:

What do you mean by ‘Basic’ Berg?

434 is not comparable with the California range, neither really the electra range, it is sitting below that

Isn't there a Berg 'Basic' range which is the entry level Berg or is that still the Electra?

[Cuzzie]

Basic is a name of the guitar model, but it is anything but, it’s not different to a Ken Taylor, California etc.

Electra is the ‘lesser’ level (it’s anything but)

parts manufactured in the Far East but full assembly and final QC and check is done in House in Germany.

Its why it’s slightly different to the other lines you mention.

[dmccombe7]

35 minutes ago, Al Krow said:

Dave - just pulling your Yammy query over onto this Yammy thread.

The latest '3' series Yammy BB basses come with set P/J pups (i.e. no choice of pups); the more expensive basses have slightly upgraded pups to the 'workhorse' end of the range. Unlike the older series, I understand that the '3' series pups are more industry standard in their fit to make swapping them out for alternatives easier, should anyone want to. Must admit I really like them the way the are - they work really well for me.

But not really a fair comparison with Bergs - not sure what a 'Basic' Berg costs, but a new BB 434, which seems to me to be a very good bass, can be bought new for around £450 - so if you want to upgrade pups and / or preamp you would still have plenty of change from £1k

 

Just looked at the BB range of Yamaha prices and they range from a couple hundred quid up to £2800 for the pro range. The P34 is similar price to the VM4 that i have altho i did pay a bit less than that. The one i was almost ordering from Thomann was circa £1400 so they have similar ranges depending on what you are looking for.

I have no idea what the main differences are but the P34 below is very nice and similar in price to my VM4. Like i said before and without getting caught up in this running debate between you and Cuzzie i like the sound of the Yamaha pick ups too but you could buy that particular bass and not like the pick ups just same as the Sandberg versions.

I think you'll find that no matter what bass you pick in that price range or similar from any manufacturer there will always be people who aren't happy with something and will want to change something. The problem with the Yamaha basses is that i've not seen any in shops up here so no way to try one before buying. 

For me both basses are excellent and i would be happy with either the VM4 or the P34 without having to change things. I've heard good things about both companies lower riced basses but again its horses for courses. A P34 could well be my next purchase as this is very nice or if i could get a hold of one of the older BB3000 basses i could be tempted maybe next year. 

[Al Krow]

@dmccombe7 not sure where you got your £2,800 figure from?! (Unless it's a discontinued bass?)

Knock £1,500 off figure that and you'll be nearer the mark  

I'm sure you would love a P34. I'm totally loving my P35.

 

Edited May 9, 2019 by Al Krow

[dmccombe7]

6 minutes ago, Al Krow said:

@dmccombe7 not sure where you got your £2,800 figure from?! Knock £1,500 off that and you'll be nearer the mark  

 

Just a quick google search came up with Yamaha London

https://www.yamahamusiclondon.com/Guitars/Bass-Guitars/BB-Series/

GAK prices aree pretty similar for the BB P34

Dave

Edited May 9, 2019 by dmccombe7

[Cuzzie]

https://usa.yamaha.com/products/musical_instruments/guitars_basses/el_basses/bbne2/index.html

BB range 

[Al Krow]

4 minutes ago, dmccombe7 said:

Just a quick google search came up with Yamaha London

https://www.yamahamusiclondon.com/Guitars/Bass-Guitars/BB-Series/

Ok fair do's

They are listing some old '2' series basses, which I thought had been discontinued, i.e. the 2024/X and of course the BB NE2

The top of the current '3' series BB range, which are all P/J configured, is the P34 which is obviously a lot less than nearly £3k.

Edited May 9, 2019 by Al Krow

[dmccombe7]

1 minute ago, Al Krow said:

Ok fair do's

They are listing some old '2' series basses, which I thought had been discontinued, i.e. the 2024/X and of course the BB NE2

The top of the current '3' series range is the P34 which is obviously a lot less than nearly £3k.

I picked the P34 as its priced around the £1400 range and i guessed aimed at a similar market. The BB2024 is my favoured one but that's silly money and the P34 is a very nice looking bass too and i'd be happy trying both out.

It may well be the cheaper range is just as good but was trying to look at price comparisons for both Sandberg and Yamaha basses.

I've not tried the Sandberg VS4 basses either that are cheaper too.

As i said i'm not interested in getting into this running debate about which is best. I think both manufacturers have some excellent basses with similar prices depending on what you are looking for.

Not sure what the main differences are between the P34 and the cheaper range maybe the 700 series. ? Would be interested to know. You have mentioned that you like the 434 range so what's the difference between them. Pick up config is same ?

Please remember that you might be drawing me into Yamaha basses and i will haunt you forever if i end up spending more money on basses 

Dave

[Cuzzie]

There is no debate about which is better - they are both fine instrument makers, it’s more balancing the discussion out of a binary thought mode

Edited May 9, 2019 by Cuzzie

[dmccombe7]

5 minutes ago, Cuzzie said:

There is no debate about which is better - they are both fine instrument makers, it’s more balancing the discussion out of a binary thought mode

Agree both excellent bass manufacturers but its hard to change someone's point of view if they've had a bad experience with a bass for whatever reason.

I've had the same experience but usually i just decide its not for me and move it on. 

I've bought WAL's Ric's, Fenders, Shergolds, Aria SB1000 & 900's and after a while they just weren't doing it for me and it was time to buy something else. That's GAS for you and i reckon that will never stop for me. There will always be another bass out there that i quite fancy having.

It might well be a 2nd hand BB3000 next year. 

[P-T-P]

Never quite got the pricing on the bb2024/5x basses.

The P34 and P35 are their replacements in the current line-up, they just priced them at a more sensible (imho) price point, but there are still a few 2024/5x knocking about at £2k plus.

Obviously, arguable as to which is the better instrument due to the new dimensions and I for one would prefer a toggle switch than vvt controls on my P34, but I love the newer neck and body 

[Cuzzie]

7 minutes ago, dmccombe7 said:

Agree both excellent bass manufacturers but its hard to change someone's point of view if they've had a bad experience with a bass for whatever reason.

I've had the same experience but usually i just decide its not for me and move it on. 

I've bought WAL's Ric's, Fenders, Shergolds, Aria SB1000 & 900's and after a while they just weren't doing it for me and it was time to buy something else. That's GAS for you and i reckon that will never stop for me. There will always be another bass out there that i quite fancy having.

It might well be a 2nd hand BB3000 next year. 

Nope, completely agree with you, and I am not after changing anyone’s mind about something, from my point of view is more about someone who is thinking about something and stumbles across forums, researching a topic, bass, whatever - if for example they fancied a Sandberg but saw a stream of negative comments about Delano’s they may veer away from a Bass manufacturer which may be right for them without having all the facts - that’s my position

[dannybuoy]

The Yamaha shop will sell you a 2024/2025 for £1800 if you have the cojones to ask.

[AndyTravis]

3 minutes ago, dannybuoy said:

The Yamaha shop will sell you a 2024/2025 for £1800 if you have the cojones to ask.

Try and get them to sell you a pickguard for one for any price...

[dmccombe7]

48 minutes ago, Cuzzie said:

Nope, completely agree with you, and I am not after changing anyone’s mind about something, from my point of view is more about someone who is thinking about something and stumbles across forums, researching a topic, bass, whatever - if for example they fancied a Sandberg but saw a stream of negative comments about Delano’s they may veer away from a Bass manufacturer which may be right for them without having all the facts - that’s my position

To be honest it would have put me off the VM4 if i had been reading it yet i'm over the moon with it so i see your point Cuzzie.

Dave

[dmccombe7]

47 minutes ago, dannybuoy said:

The Yamaha shop will sell you a 2024/2025 for £1800 if you have the cojones to ask.

A wee bit out of my price range at that. There are a few 2nd hand BB3000 basses on sale at the moment for under £1k. Love the black one 

Dave

[dmccombe7]

Getting this thread back on track thought i would post my fav Yamaha.

Liking this a lot. My brother had the fretless version of it and sold it without telling me or i would have had it.

Edited May 9, 2019 by dmccombe7

[Horizontalste]

22 hours ago, gobasserk said:

Was thinkin on hydrodipping my BB1000ma - what did you pay for it?

....

Hundred quid or so! Worth shopping around!

[Al Krow]

12 hours ago, dmccombe7 said:

Not sure what the main differences are between the P34 and the cheaper range maybe the 700 series? Would be interested to know.

Dave - I got asked something similar a week back, so I'm going to take a short cut and pull up my earlier post!

On 02/05/2019 at 09:44, Al Krow said:

Differences between the 735A and P35

Unlike the 735A, the P35 has a couple of the key ingredients of the former 'flagship' passive BB the BB2025 thrown in:

·        it has one of the two wood treatment that the 2025 benefited from: the Initial Response Acceleration ('I.R.A') to give it a day one 'played in' feel;

·        it is a MIJ crafted bass, which I suspect accounts for a chunk of its premium pricing.

EQ

The key difference between the two is undoubtedly the EQ with the BB 735A having Yamaha's 3 band EQ and active / passive selector switch, whereas the P35 is purely passive.

The EQ on the 735A follows a lot of 3 band EQs layout with volume dial, pup selector / blend dial, and then 3 band EQ in active mode and treble / tone roll-off only in passive mode.

The new BB "3 series" passive basses have a VVT set of dials i.e. is a separate volume control for each pup and you blend accordingly.

Weights and balance

The P35 actually 'hangs' a little more comfortably off my frame than my other Yammys including the 735A. So when I put them all on the scales I was a little surprised to find:

P35 (and NE2) - 10.2 lbs

735A (and 1025) - 9.6 lbs

The combination of a slightly heavier body and lightweight tuners on the P35 gives it more of a balance between neck and body and, in consequence, there is a touch less neck dive on the P35.

The 434 is a more basic version of the P34. They are both configured pretty much the same in terms of P/J and VVT EQ. The pups, body construction, some of the materials and finish have all been upgraded in the P34 in comparison to the 434 and this is reflected in the price differential.

However another entirely fair view is that the 'workhorse' end of the range often benefits from a lot of the design and features of their higher end siblings and end up being very good value. That was certainly felt with the series '2' when a lot of folk couldn't really understand the pricing difference between an £800 1024 and a £2,000+ 2024. I ended up with, and still have, the 1025 (rather than the 2025) for that very reason.

But having recently been able to purchase a pretty mint used P35, I'll have to admit that of my 5 Yammys and 10 basses, it's the one I'm currently finding I want to pick up and play - I'm loving it! Not sure how long the honeymoon is going to last, but I'm enjoying it whilst it does!  

Edited May 10, 2019 by Al Krow

[dannybuoy]

4 hours ago, AndyTravis said:

Try and get them to sell you a pickguard for one for any price...

Have you tried emailing Yamaha HQ? They have me a quote for a pair of 2025X pickups that I was considering fitting to my 415. Came to about the same price as my 415 was worth used though!

But BB pickguards are like rocking horse poo, better off going custom!

[AndyTravis]

3 minutes ago, dannybuoy said:

Have you tried emailing Yamaha HQ? They have me a quote for a pair of 2025X pickups that I was considering fitting to my 415. Came to about the same price as my 415 was worth used though!

But BB pickguards are like rocking horse poo, better off going custom!

I have one being made - they only ever did black. And I want a white pearl.

I’ve e-mailed them though and after 2 days replied I needed to e-mail another company who holds their spares...who’ve not replied yet.

Always handy to have a spare...especially if there’s another BB up the road which might become available soon 😉

[dannybuoy]

3 hours ago, dmccombe7 said:

A wee bit out of my price range at that. There are a few 2nd hand BB3000 basses on sale at the moment for under £1k. Love the black one 

Dave

Out of most of our price ranges for sure! But they were around £1500 new when first released, it's only in recent years prices seem to have skyrocketed to pie in the sky RRP levels. Their stock is pretty old by now so if they acquired them at the older prices and they are desperate to move them on, there are certainly deals to be had!

[gobasserk]

Quote" :

Hundred quid or so! Worth shopping around!

 

Can you give detals on the company? 

[AndyTravis]

[Horizontalste]

15 hours ago, gobasserk said:

Quote" :

Hundred quid or so! Worth shopping around!

 

Can you give detals on the company? 

http://hydrodip-designs.co.uk