tom.android

38 minutes ago, mikeycrikey said:

I had the BB734A. It ticked a lot of boxes as a great all rounder. My problem was I couldn't stop fiddling with the active electronics. Every time I got a good sound I messed it up again by over fiddling.

My BB 414 is just plug and play. Always sounds great. Hard to get a bad sound out of it.

My other gripe with the 734A was the fingerprints on the matt Black finish. Suppose that's down to me in fairness. Should of picked the sunburst model when I was buying it.

 

I quite regularly play someone else’s 734a and think i prefer the 414 as 4 string. 234 left me a little cold. Confusingly I absolutely love (and own) both the 735a and 235. No idea why the 5 stringers in the 3 series do it for me but not the 4s? 
 

I’ve never tried a 415 or 1025 but they’re on the list!

Press the button marked ‘inst’ next to whichever input you’re using to switch between line or instrument level. Turn the gain knob right down. Should be more than possible to get a clean signal.

On 14/12/2022 at 09:48, BreadBin said:

Yamaha BB are narrow, somewhat ironically. 

Except the BBN5 or BBG5, which I do believe are 19mm.

Most BB 5s are 18mm. Not narrow, exactly. The only really narrow one was the 5000 which is so rare it’s barely worth mentioning. 

3 hours ago, LukeFRC said:

Imagine laying in your Moses basket reading this https://brochures.yokochou.com/guitar-and-amp/yamaha/1985/en_index.html

 

BB3000 was their most expensive 

I think it’s got to be the 1200, though.

I’ve never owned anything pre-90s vintage. As I slowly inch my way towards being 40 I’ve toyed with the idea of buying a bass from my birth year. What’s the best bass Yamaha made in 1985?

1 minute ago, BigJHW said:

Indeed a 1025 (not the 1025X - tho until recently i didn't know there was a difference)
i almost bought the 735a in black cause it's "newer" and has the active preamp - but honestly i don't need it
Maybe next time

Just a pickguard and a metal plate is the only difference. Cosmetics only. A matter of taste. I prefer without.

I prefer using active basses for function gigs because generally there’s no sound engineer and I want to have control of my low end, mostly. Without having to crouch down and fiddle with pedals. Otherwise I much prefer passive basses, in general.

15 minutes ago, BigJHW said:

gah.. bass has been delivered - why do i have to be at work?!?!?!?!

ah well something to look forward too when i get home - then i'm officially part of the BB club

1025, right? I sometimes wish my 735a sounded like my 1024. 1025 should be absolutely storming. 
 

To be fair to the 735a it sounds exactly like what I wanted it to at the time: like a good P with a 5th string. Recorded it was indistinguishable from my old Japanese 62RI.

There’s a BBG5a on gumtree at the moment, too

6 minutes ago, Maude said:

Is the BBG5S from facebook marketplace? 

Yep. Shhhhh

39 minutes ago, javi_bassist said:

I own a 735, 605 and a 414. But I really want a G5s...

I’ve been after a 605 for a while but stars are yet to align on the right price, location and finish. 
 

Assuming BBG5s deal comes good will report back.

3 minutes ago, hookys6stringbass said:

That's what I like to see ...incidentally,  what colour 735a did you go for...I had a black 734a....

Black, obviously

My BB obsession is approaching some kind of monomania. This thread is partly responsible.

Currently own:

404

414

735a

1024

2004

Used to own:

424

Incoming:

G5s

2 minutes ago, hookys6stringbass said:

To be honest... it did say 424 originally as I missed the 1 and hit the 2 😀

I’m always missing the 1 myself. Land on 2 if the band’s lucky

35 minutes ago, hookys6stringbass said:

I've had the 414... t'was a good bass to be fair. I thought I'd go for the 1024 ... I played one ( and the 2024) when they came out and thought they were damn good basses .. but it was the extra pick up and the non reversed pick pups that put me off at the time... however... times change.

Sorry missed this where you said you’d already had a 414.

A 1024 P pickup in a 414 would really be something. Such a perfect sound and one of the nicest places I’ve ever put my thumb. 

Got my lovely, immaculate, caramel 1024 from Bassbros for £600 and that included a hard case and a fresh set of cobalt flats.

Don’t disregard the 414. Easy to find and the biggest bargain in the second hand bass world. I used to own a 424 but I’d pick a 414 every time, having tried both. Perfectly balanced, slimmer neck, lighter, same pickups. 

Your 424 already is a P, better than most out there and with a number of notable improvements over the original design. Get a ‘real’ P for the look but you’ll have to spend an awful lot to get a Fender/whatever that sounds better than your 424. ‘Indistinct’ compared to your jazz? Well, jazzes have a more articulate sound in general. You might need to EQ them differently. You might want to try different strings. Want something more civilised? Try a 1024. 

Also, is that a Yamaha GX-1 over in the right corner? Crikey. Only about 5 of them in the world.

10 hours ago, Woody1957 said:

Stonking bass for a newby!

Cracking bass full stop. For anyone. I’ve got the passive version and it can hold its own against most other basses out there. 

Thanks for the tip. I’d prefer to have the switch rather than push pull given the choice. Is there anything out there?

Oh! Also an ideal feature would be for the treble control to function as a tone when in passive. Basically I want the same as in a 735a.

Hi all,

Considering trying a different pre in my BB2004 for 2 reasons:

a) I want an active/passive switch

b) the mid cut switch & knob on the stock pre is pretty useless for me

So I’m looking for a 9v pre with the following controls: volume, blend, bass, mid, treble, active/passive switch. Functionally the same as found on the BB734/735a. Any recommendations?

Thanks,

Tom

Hi,

It is possible to get VBT with series / parallel push pull pot? Can’t see it listed.

cheers,

Tom

Bass still available. Postage possible at buyer’s expense and risk.

I’ve PM’d you, Paulo.

Arg, it’s back!