1981 Yamaha Neck Thru SuperBass 1200S/Beautiful Rare Gem

[Halegroove]

BACK ON THE MARKET. Thought it was gone but not so.
These were only offered in Japan. At least one of them made here to the US and I seem to have it. I did a google/yahoo search and the only other one I found was in South America and had been modded. This one has not been modded. It's in original condition. For an instrument that's 30 years old, it's in good shape.

This is a sister bass to the BB neck thru series as you can tell by the bridge, tuners, neck thru design, headstock.
These pickups are normal size J's inside of a large plastic cover. It gives the illusion of humbuckers but they are not.

Ever seen a late 70's/early 80's Yamaha with:
Binding
Neck Thru- 7 pc body/5 pc neck
Maple fretboard with oval inlays
Ivory nut
Maple top/Asian Mahogany middle/Maple back
See thru red stain

There are the usual swirls, a couple light dings, and it seems the finish in a couple spots is cloudy. I'm not a luthier so I won't make an assessment as to whether it's the weather.

$900 shipped conus

[wacko hatrack]

I personally have one myself....awesome bass...nasty jazz snarl

[swpyne]

Wow, I've never actually seen that model before. Bump for a beautiful vintage Yammie!

[Halegroove]

more pics

[Sleepwalker42]

Truly a gem! I wonder how does it sound compared a BB2000.....with that maple fretboard.

[Halegroove]

It's similar but a little harder attack. Easier to get the J sounds but still has that BB2000 punch.

[Halegroove]

more pics without flash. Check out the binding and the PRice DRop

[Halegroove]

Any Yamaha collectors out there?

[JWH]

Another nice Yamaha you have there.. Great bass and a great guy to deal with..

ttt

[Halegroove]

Thank you sir. I hope you found the right bass for you. THat's a nice one on your avatar.
I'm motivated to sell this one but I just need the right offer.

[Dr. Cheese]

This is new to me! I love the way it looks.

[Halegroove]

It was to me also until I saw all of the similarities in these and the BB models. Word on the street is Fender somehow kept these out of the US/Jazz Bass market here in the states. That's why they went heavy into the PJ models. These pickups are normal size J's inside of a large plastic cover. It gives the illusion of humbucker but they are not.

[Dr. Cheese]

Originally Posted by Halegroove

It was to me also until I saw all of the similarities in these and the BB models. Word on the street is Fender somehow kept these out of the US/Jazz Bass market here in the states. That's why they went heavy into the PJ models. These pickups are normal size J's inside of a large plastic cover. It gives the illusion of humbucker but they are not.

I'm not expert, but I can't imagine how Fender could have kept that bass out of the country. I suspect that the US market was just much better for P/J models.

[Halegroove]

You have to remember what Fender was putting out at the time too. It kinda opened the door for the Japaneses market.

[Halegroove]

A true hard to find instrument. New Price $995

[mazareth]

You have some really sick Yamahas from the golden age. I don't foresee this hanging around long!

[Halegroove]

Thanks bud. It's a bitter sweet thing with this one. So few out there but I don't play it hardly at all. It sure is nice to look at though.

[Halegroove]

TTT

[Jester's Fury]

Wow, just wow..... I am speechless. Never seen one of these, but I have heard the rumors. I bet it sounds as good as it looks.

[raal]

no need to give names ... this bass has all the attributes of top of the line boutique stuff, maple neck through with binding, custom electronics and all that 30 years ago! an interesting feature is the 5 pc neck in conjunction with the fender-style headstock, as those multi lams more often come with tiltback headstocks. one can tell this bass was designed in a spirit of excellence and some across the pond were definitely intent on taking on mighty F. it'd be great to hear if it sounds as good as it looks.