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The Yamaha BB mega-thread


Al Krow

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10 hours ago, Maude said:

No problem. 

But isn't the 350 J pickup'd? 

Or is there a sneaky P conversion going on that we need to see? 

Or I'm an idiot who's got his models muddled, which is probably most likely. 😁

You are absolutely correct, it is a J pickup in the bridge position along with a reverse P.

My original plan was to source newer 414/424 pickups & replace them however, I think the lugs from the original J might still be visible behind the blade J of the newer models.

Hence, the bespoke pickup surrounds that I'm going to have made locally.

I know, I know, a lot of effort for a cheap bass so what's the point?!

I just really like the bass & I think the pickup surrounds are essential to the looks of a BB 😁

(I'm not saying the new ones look crap, but the new ones do look crap) 🤣

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Not a top spec BB but I got a BBN5 for a "cheapish" bass to use for college, as you can imagine it was beaten around and trashed, I think at one point we tried to "relic" it by dragging it behind a car! It then sat on a stand for about 8 years unused. Finally decided to do something with it so completely stripped it back to bare wood, resprayed in lake placid blue with satin top coat and defretted it! Still needs some adjustment and maybe even a PU swap but its actually being used on occasion now!

IMG_20211022_184327.jpg

IMG_20211022_184326.jpg

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22 minutes ago, Tim2291 said:

Not a top spec BB but I got a BBN5 for a "cheapish" bass to use for college, as you can imagine it was beaten around and trashed, I think at one point we tried to "relic" it by dragging it behind a car! It then sat on a stand for about 8 years unused. Finally decided to do something with it so completely stripped it back to bare wood, resprayed in lake placid blue with satin top coat and defretted it! Still needs some adjustment and maybe even a PU swap but its actually being used on occasion now!

IMG_20211022_184327.jpg

IMG_20211022_184326.jpg

That looks fantastic. 😎👍

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Forgive me father for I have sinned. 

I favoured the J pickup, and it sounded good. 

 

I've just been noodling along to Numans I Assassin album on the new 1100s fretless, and although I'm strictly a P guy, I found myself really liking just the J pickup, lovely a burbly. I don't know what Pino used on that album but I'm assuming his Stingray, and the bridge J is remarkably close to his tone.

This is a fantastic bass.

And yes, I did go full Partridge, 

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The BB424 that Bass Direct have just put up for sale used to be mine — they took it in part exchange, so it's no longer anything to do with me.

 

It's a lot more resonant than any other bass I've owned.....but are all BBs like that? Action is nice and low, 1.5–1.8mm, iirc. Again, are all BBs like that? 🤷

 

It's strung with new set of GHS Boomers, which I found suited it more than either Swing Bass or Roto Bass. It's clearly had a very gentle life.

 

I played it almost always with both pickups on – to me they sound designed to balance each other, and bass seemed much happier like that. (The bridge on its own with the tone down almost all the way is quite entertaining, in small doses!)

 

Only sold it because my injured shoulder can't take trad BB shape/weight any more, loved its neck, and its perky character.

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Last year I sold a bass through BD, commission sale. The price they / I eventually got for that bass was not what was being advertised on the website, which tells me that BD listen to offers, especially on something which hasn't shifted immediately. 

 

I haven't looked at 424 prices since I bought that one, so I don't have an opinion on what they're asking, but I do know that with the exception of a ding I spotted the day I received it and never noticed again, it's in excellent condition, is a joy to play, and, like all these Indonesian-made Yamahas, is still phenomenal value for money. 

 

I spent a lot of time chewing over the idea of having the body stripped down, reshaped, chambered and refinished — which tells you how much I liked that neck! 😅

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Speaking of their Indonesian basses, I recently tried a TRBX174, which is Chinese-made. The difference in quality between that and my BB424 + TRBX604 was quite stark. Not realising where it had come from, I was quite shocked by the idea of the Indonesian factory churning out such budget stuff.

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27 minutes ago, Ricky Rioli said:

Last year I sold a bass through BD, commission sale. The price they / I eventually got for that bass was not what was being advertised on the website, which tells me that BD listen to offers, especially on something which hasn't shifted immediately. 

 

I haven't looked at 424 prices since I bought that one, so I don't have an opinion on what they're asking, but I do know that with the exception of a ding I spotted the day I received it and never noticed again, it's in excellent condition, is a joy to play, and, like all these Indonesian-made Yamahas, is still phenomenal value for money. 

 

I spent a lot of time chewing over the idea of having the body stripped down, reshaped, chambered and refinished — which tells you how much I liked that neck! 😅

I hear ya, my comment was in no way a dig. BD have to make their coin & the prices of BB 42's are creeping up. I bought mine just as they were being discontinued & it was a steal to be honest.

Great basses regardless 😎

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