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The Yamaha BB mega-thread


Al Krow

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Well, at least there is still a BB range. But I will never understand why no company does REAL reissues of their cult models. Even the BP34 comes in boring blues band colours....

The Hook bass is a first and only try and without Peter Hook even this would not have been realized. 

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I've had my BB424 a couple of weeks now and I'm still extremely pleased with it. I've carried on listening to as many youtube demos of the various models as I can bear, and feel that, for the sound I was wanting this was exactly the right model for me, not just against the 414 and 434, but even against the more expensive Series 2 models. So thank you to everyone who shared their thoughts and gave me advice back in December.

I'm very shy of dipping my toe into the debate about what a bass's neck contributes to the tone, but I'm sure I can sense the combination of the thick neck + the strings coming through the body contributing something to the ringing tone. So I'm glad I went 424 rather than 414 for that.

I can see why Yahama changed the style of the pickups from 424 to 434, can understand why the market would prefer the new ones, but for what I want the character has been diluted.

Played side by side with the skinny TRBX, the 424's neck is more challenging, but since I can (rightly or wrongly) sense what it's contributing to the glorious sound, that extra effort feels exciting, not difficult.

 

Edited by Ricky Rioli
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16 minutes ago, Cuzzie said:

Don’t be afraid - neck makes a difference definitely 

I said somewhere else recently but those early Fender 51-54’s with the ‘baseball bat’ necks sounds great because of the chunky necks not in spite of them. 

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I bought two cheap Telecaster basses as a diy project in spring and I do now have two absolute genius rockets. New tuners here, a new pick up there, even a new finish.. they look great but the best about these basses are the thick chunky necks! Not for Dream Theatre stuff...but they do Rock n Roll very (!!!) good ! 

Edited by gobasserk
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7 minutes ago, discotim said:

Afternoon all. Excuse the rather basic question but Taiwanese v Japanese BB1100s: is there a big difference in the quality?

 

Thanks in advance 

Nope, not a bit - if you find a transition one about 1986/7 with the square pickup surround on the P they’re identical apart from country of origin. The Taiwanese ones can be a fair bit lighter.

I preferred that one to the 1988 one I had with the more straightforward p/j pickups sound wise - but the physical quality was identical again.

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35 minutes ago, AndyTravis said:

Nope, not a bit - if you find a transition one about 1986/7 with the square pickup surround on the P they’re identical apart from country of origin. The Taiwanese ones can be a fair bit lighter.

I preferred that one to the 1988 one I had with the more straightforward p/j pickups sound wise - but the physical quality was identical again.

Ditto the comments above.  I have played both and the difference in weight was quite noticeable.  I could not discern any difference in sound along with other bass players

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I'm going to stick my head up over the parapet now...

Now I love the necks, the electronics and the tonal package but TBH I'm not a big fan of the body shape. IMO the body is too big and I don't like the top horn.

If they made a smaller, more modern design (Spector/Warwick/ Ibanez) I'd be more inclined to buy and keep one. I have been tempted to buy one and send it off to @Andyjr1515 to transplant everything into something along the lines of my suggestion - not too dissimilar to the BE2 (wish they would make them at a more Yamaha price range - i.e great VFM).

I wonder if the parts fit any of those cheap "build yourself" basses on eBay??

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3 minutes ago, Reggaebass said:

Cheers Andy 👍

1024x also available in vintage white so used about £500, and bb424x available in white so about £250/300 for very similar look.

god bless Yamaha post 2005 and their hilarious decision to make 3 price tiers in all the same boring colours

Edited by AndyTravis
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28 minutes ago, AndyTravis said:

1024x also available in vintage white so used about £500, and bb424x available in white so about £250/300 for very similar look.

god bless Yamaha post 2005 and their hilarious decision to make 3 price tiers in all the same boring colours

Some guy did a comparison video of the 424 1024 2024....all white

 

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The 1024 and 2024 (x => scratch plate and a bit more chrome) are very close indeed in terms of spec (I guess think Mex vs USA Fender as the analogy); the 424 is a little "flatter" and the 1024 / 2024 more harmonically rich in terms of pups.

If you really like the 2024 then I'd have no hesitation in recommending a used 1024 for less than half the price of a used 2024.

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1 hour ago, TheGreek said:

I'm going to stick my head up over the parapet now...

Now I love the necks, the electronics and the tonal package but TBH I'm not a big fan of the body shape. IMO the body is too big and I don't like the top horn.

If they made a smaller, more modern design (Spector/Warwick/ Ibanez) I'd be more inclined to buy and keep one. I have been tempted to buy one and send it off to @Andyjr1515 to transplant everything into something along the lines of my suggestion - not too dissimilar to the BE2 (wish they would make them at a more Yamaha price range - i.e great VFM).

I wonder if the parts fit any of those cheap "build yourself" basses on eBay??

They did this about 15-20 years ago with the BB604/404 and the BB2004 series basses

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