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The Yamaha BB mega-thread

Al Krow

By Al Krow,
in Bass Guitars

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JohnH89 Proficient

JohnH89

Posted
Posted
  On 11/04/2024 at 20:14, MrDinsdale said:

Interesting, the 1024x was darker?

 

Currently torn between the 424x/1024x as I love the metal control plate.

 

I love my 734A but the preamp is a waste of space. Perhaps I can try and swap bodies with a 434 😂

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The preamp is far from a waste of space IMO . And its not a lot of space to be fair . You can flick a switch and run it passive . Not sure what is to be gained by a body swap 🤔

AndyTravis Grand Master

AndyTravis

Posted
Posted
  On 11/04/2024 at 21:48, Al Krow said:

 

Yes, absolutely 🙂

 

The pups in the 424/5 are flatter vs sonically richer / sweeter in the 1024/5.

 

Plus more refined woodwork eg laminate neck (1024/5) vs single piece if I remember correctly.

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laminate neck on 424 also

AndyTravis Grand Master

AndyTravis

Posted
Posted (edited)
  On 11/04/2024 at 22:23, Al Krow said:

 

Ah yes thanks, that's right...it was the older 414/5 that didn't have the laminate necks.

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The 414 and 415/614/615 have shallower necks too…

 

hence my 414 stays 

Edited by AndyTravis
  • Like 1
MrDinsdale Veteran

MrDinsdale

Posted
Posted
  On 11/04/2024 at 21:48, Al Krow said:

 

Yes, absolutely 🙂

 

The pups in the 424/5 are flatter vs sonically richer / sweeter in the 1024/5.

 

Plus more refined woodwork eg laminate neck (1024/5) vs single piece if I remember correctly.

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Both laminate necks, the 1024x is calling out to me although it’s a tobacco sunburst which I can go either way on tbh.

MrDinsdale Veteran

MrDinsdale

Posted
Posted
  On 11/04/2024 at 21:57, JohnH89 said:

The preamp is far from a waste of space IMO . And its not a lot of space to be fair . You can flick a switch and run it passive . Not sure what is to be gained by a body swap 🤔

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I popped fresh batteries in to give it another go and I dunno what it is, maybe the choice of EQ points for the active preamp but it just doesn’t work for me.

 

Even in passive mode anything other than full tone goes from really bright to mud almost instantly.

 

Of all my basses it’s the one I really struggle to get a range of sounds I like from. I do love the one sound I can get out of it with everything on though. 

JohnH89 Proficient

JohnH89

Posted
Posted
  On 11/04/2024 at 23:04, MrDinsdale said:


I popped fresh batteries in to give it another go and I dunno what it is, maybe the choice of EQ points for the active preamp but it just doesn’t work for me.

 

Even in passive mode anything other than full tone goes from really bright to mud almost instantly.

 

Of all my basses it’s the one I really struggle to get a range of sounds I like from. I do love the one sound I can get out of it with everything on though. 

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TBF , I Iove a thick dubby sound . The 734a works for me for any songs I play . It really is the go to bass for me . It will do pretty anything that I want it to do . 

  • Like 2
MrDinsdale Veteran

MrDinsdale

Posted
Posted
  On 12/04/2024 at 00:04, JohnH89 said:

TBF , I Iove a thick dubby sound . The 734a works for me for any songs I play . It really is the go to bass for me . It will do pretty anything that I want it to do . 

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Yeah, it’s a beautiful bass, plays great too. I think other active preamps I’ve tried or passive options like the Stellartone work much better for me personally, for whatever reason it always feels like I have more control with them. My signal chain and stuff I’m playing will probably have a big impact on that though. 

Al Krow Grand Master

Al Krow

Posted
  • Author
Posted
  On 12/04/2024 at 05:20, MrDinsdale said:


Yeah, it’s a beautiful bass, plays great too. I think other active preamps I’ve tried or passive options like the Stellartone work much better for me personally, for whatever reason it always feels like I have more control with them. My signal chain and stuff I’m playing will probably have a big impact on that though. 

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It's maybe a personal thing - like you I could never quite bond with my 735A in the way I did with my 1025. There's just something about the passive BB's that Yamaha seems to have got so right.

  • Like 1
neepheid Grand Master

neepheid

Posted
Posted

Of course it's a personal thing.  It's also why sometimes people take it personally, but that's a conflation of two similar but very different things.

  • Like 1
Misdee Veteran

Misdee

Posted
Posted
  On 11/04/2024 at 18:13, MrDinsdale said:

Is the 1024x a worthy upgrade to the 424x for an extra £150-175ish?

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I've never played a 1024x, but if it's anything like the 2024x then yes it's a big upgrade on the 424x. 

 

The 424 was, from memory, a decent bass don't get me wrong. But the 20 and more affordable 10 range version made in Indonesia were a pretty epic design with a  unique tone. I never played the 1024 version but I've got a 2024x that I bought fourteen years ago when they first came out and it's a superb bass. The 1024x is supposed to be very similar, so I would recommend it on that basis.

 

 The 2024X certainly doesn't sound muddy or dark to me, not do the 1024 basses I've seen on YouTube, but tone is a very subjective thing in terms of description. I would charactarise the 2024 tone as being like a cross between a Fender, a Spector NS2 and a Wal. Seriously, it's that good. There's a consistent punch in the midrange that makes it stand out like a foghorn. It's got the depth of an active bass whilst having all the positive attributes of a passive instrument.

 

The 1024 is supposed to be the same bass built in Indonesia, although if you want to get specific, the pickups and hardware are replicas made for that version, not the exact same one as was fitted on the Japanese-made basses. Also, the Indonesian basses didn't have I.R.A or A.R.E treatment. If that makes any difference.

  • Like 1
M@23 Experienced

M@23

Posted
Posted
  On 12/04/2024 at 08:31, Al Krow said:

 

It's maybe a personal thing - like you I could never quite bond with my 735A in the way I did with my 1025. There's just something about the passive BB's that Yamaha seems to have got so right.

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Same for me with the 735 vs P35. The 7 was cool, looked and felt great, but I just didn’t love it, unlike the passive P35. 
I’m now on the hunt for an older 415/425/1025 too! I’d bite your hand off for that vintage white 1025 now 😂

Misdee Veteran

Misdee

Posted
Posted
  On 11/04/2024 at 22:24, AndyTravis said:

The 414 and 415/614/615 have shallower necks too…

 

hence my 414 stays 

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The 20/10 series definitely do have a very different neck profile to previous Yamaha basses. It's a bit bigger overall but that's a result of the design brief at the time, which was to design the ultimate BB bass for modern rock bassists. I've got little hands (I wear small size underpants too) but I find the neck on my 2024x perfectly playable.

 

The  more traditional classic Yamaha shallow oval neck profile with a 40mm nut width is supremely comfortable though, it has to be said.

Al Krow Grand Master

Al Krow

Posted
  • Author
Posted
  On 12/04/2024 at 13:11, M@23 said:

Same for me with the 735 vs P35. The 7 was cool, looked and felt great, but I just didn’t love it, unlike the passive P35. 
I’m now on the hunt for an older 415/425/1025 too! I’d bite your hand off for that vintage white 1025 now 😂

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I'd probably bite my hand off for that vintage white 1025 now, too 😅

@Happypants - what do ya reckon? 😉

  • Haha 1
  • 3 weeks later...
Reggaebass Grand Master

Reggaebass

Posted
Posted
  On 03/05/2024 at 21:01, EJWW said:

Was a bit of an ebay bargain too if I remember rightly? 

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It was, i set it up back then and fitted labella LTF’s and haven’t had to touch it since, they are really well built , early fenders are my thing but it’s nice to play the Yamaha now and again 

  • Like 1
EJWW Mentor

EJWW

Posted
Posted
  On 04/05/2024 at 15:59, jonno1981 said:

That eBay bass looks incredible. I wonder what the story is with that? I’d suspect it’s an artist ordered bass for someone famous that didn’t get on with it. 

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I remember another 'one off' 2024 appeared in PMT Brum a few years ago in white I think. Very tasty. 

  • Like 1
jonno1981 Experienced

jonno1981

Posted
Posted

Just thinking that. Bit weird there isn’t a hard case with it. Still counts as a bit of a bargain, all the others I’ve seen have been around double this. Plus silver burst is very much back in fashion again. 

Maude Grand Master

Maude

Posted
Posted

That ebay 2024 is the bass that was owned by James Lomenzo prior to his custom built silverburst BB with the P, reverse P and mudbucker pickups. Very much his "gateway drug" in Yamaha BBs. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I may have made that up, I can't say 🤫... but who knows. 

  • Like 1
blockthief Rookie

blockthief

Posted
Posted

Haven't posted this since I completed the project back in August, but here it is!

I converted a BB424X into a lookalike BB2000 over the course of a few months. Have a watch: https://youtu.be/7FuJalEa8UM

Currently working on converting a BBN4i to fretless, project video should be up within the next month. If anyone has details regarding the possible cease-and-desist from EBMM to Yamaha regarding the tuner configuration (or about the model in general), let me know!

  • Like 6

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