Jump to content
Why become a member? ×

The Yamaha BB mega-thread


Al Krow

Recommended Posts

9 hours ago, Al Krow said:

If you spot another one going locally, which you are not going to buy for yourself, then please do post a link on this thread. As Andy said they're pretty rare over here in the UK and it's likely to be of interest to a number of BB lovers.

The reverse P on the ma is a desirable alternative set up, for sure! Interestingly the Peter Hook model about to be released is also a reverse P. 

What I love about the 1000MA is its kind of "dry" and direct sound. I think its very unique. Sometimes, depending on strings, I even think to hear some kind of Jaydee-esque sound. I know this is only in my head and it is just a nuance of it but the "normal" pu BBs don't do that because they do more boomy bass. The 1000MA ist very dry and (translated maybe wrong from German into Englisch) "bony" . You can dial in bass but it will and does always cut through. 
As I wrote many sides before I do own other more expensive basses but in the studio the sound guy always chooses the BB.  This bass -for me- is a one of a kind BB. Maybe like an old 60s something Fender for millions of bass players.  While I am definitely not a Fender guy. 

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

14 hours ago, gobasserk said:

Is there any information about the Hooky bass??? ...

Here you go:

On 29/05/2020 at 22:08, 2elliot said:

Peter Hook playing the new BB on YouTube now!  Search Salford Music Festival.

20200529_220236.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

In the meantime I got the toggle switch repaired and now the BB1000MA is ready. It is a fascinating thing to compare the basses optical conditions ..my old one has many litte ditches and looks like a working horse while the second one looks like if the seller was telling the truth when stating that it always was a spare bass in the case. It is like brand new the surface is flawless. When I look at it I notice to be surprised when I expect to see a ding or a ditch that I know and it is not there 😛 
I think I need to buy a Zoom recording device to get a better result than just my mobile phone recordings..

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

The spec of the Hooky bass effectively makes it a modern day BB1200S i.e. active and with a reverse P.

Except maybe it has a bolt on neck and not a neck through like the old 1200S was?

Edited by Al Krow
Link to comment
Share on other sites

And I guess that's not surprising, given that the BB1200S was his favourite bass!

“My Gibson EB-0 got stolen in America, but it was shite and kept going out of tune,” he admits. “So I went to Manny’s on 48th Street and the only thing that was any good was their Yamaha BB600. It felt perfect. I traded in for the 1000 and after that the 1200, which had a straight-through neck and two non-active pickups. Then someone from a shop called me up saying there was now a three-way active 1200S. I went straight there and never looked back. I’ve tried every other guitar in the world, but they just don’t do anything for me.”

MusicRadar August 30, 2019

Edited by Al Krow
  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

57 minutes ago, Al Krow said:

The spec of the Hooky bass effectively makes it a modern day BB1200S i.e. active and with a reverse P.

Except maybe it has a bolt on neck and not a neck through like the old 1200S was?

I think he mentioned in the Instagram video, when he signed the contract back in May, that it will have a bolt on neck.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, matbard said:

The Hooky bass will come in autumn. It was planned a big showdown during the Manchester Bass Day in march.

Street price would be around GBP 1.500

Let's hope it will be autumn and not later. The Covid-19 crisis may delay things. Maybe they will decide to launch it at Winter Namm in late Jan (in case there is a Winter Namm, let' s see)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

8 minutes ago, Eldon Tyrell said:

I think he mentioned in the Instagram video, when he signed the contract back in May, that it will have a bolt on neck.

Yeah - I think I had that at the back of my mind. Shame, as for me a neck through is such a great design looks-wise! 

Shouldn't make too much difference tonally other than NTs have a reputation for greater sustain, which I guess can be a desirable quality for rock, but probably less so for Motown! 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 minute ago, Al Krow said:

Yeah - I think I had that at the back of my mind. Shame, as for me a neck through is such a great design looks-wise! 

Shouldn't make too much difference tonally other than NTs have a reputation for greater sustain, which I guess can be a desirable quality for rock, but probably less so for Motown! 

Agree. At least a bolt-on will be a little bit more affordable than a NT. I have several basses on my to-buy list, so every little helps 😉

Link to comment
Share on other sites

True - but you can get a Spector EuroLX for the same price as the Hooky. It's also reverse P + "sculpted" back (which the BB NE2 has happily copied!) + neck through + bridge J pup. And it's a pedigree bass. 

So I'm sure Yamaha could have made the Hooky a neck through if they had put their mind to it, in the same way they did for the BB1200S.

The killer for me is that I suspect that it's only going to be released as a 4 string...

Edited by Al Krow
Link to comment
Share on other sites

10 minutes ago, Al Krow said:

True - but you can get a Spector EuroLX for the same price as the Hooky. It's also reverse P + "sculpted" back (which the BB NE2 has happily copied!) + neck through + bridge J pup. And it's a pedigree bass. 

So I'm sure Yamaha could have made the Hooky a neck through if they had put their mind to it, in the same way they did for the BB1200S.

The killer for me is that I suspect that it's only going to be released as a 4 string...

And a Korean made Spector Legend NT goes for around 1k. So, it could have been possible. No idea why they went for the bolt-on design.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

2 hours ago, matbard said:

The Hooky bass will come in autumn. It was planned a big showdown during the Manchester Bass Day in march.

Street price would be around GBP 1.500

I would hope it's made in Japan for that price. It's double a 734a... 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

11 minutes ago, 2elliot said:

I would hope it's made in Japan for that price. It's double a 734a... 

Tbf £1,500 is pretty much the price of the P34 when it first came out (and that's not a NT either). 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

11 minutes ago, Al Krow said:

Tbf £1,500 is pretty much the price of the P34 when it first came out (and that's not a NT either). 

True and made in Japan. I'm not interested in neck through though,  the current bolt on design Yamaha uses is excellent.  My 734a was one of the first in the country and the neck hasn't fallen off yet. Lol. 

  • Haha 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

4 minutes ago, 2elliot said:

I don't understand what all the fuss is about regarding neck through. As far as I'm aware this bass has always been a bolt on. It's no surprise. 

For me it's purely about the design / aesthetics. NTs just look great! 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Restore formatting

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...