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Am I crazy?

#22
I have a Yamaha TRB5P with similar PUs, and I have to say that these are very sensible to strings. It will sound very hi-fi with new SS strings, but with slightly dead nickel-plated strings (my favorites are GHS boomers) and some EQ you can get a great Fender-on-steroids tone. These PUs are indeed great and personally would not replace them. However, the preamp in my bass is a bit noisy, the bass control is too boomy for my taste and I miss a passive setting, if you want to make some changes on the bass, I would start here.
 
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#23
i've had ebony of varying shades ... from really dark blackish to more brown with lighter redish streaks ...

i'd go Passive ..!! then you don't have to worry about wiring up any preamps ..!! i like Nordstrands , Bartolini pups ..
but i'm an old guy .! ha ... with 4 knobs , i wired my Passive J style bass with 2 Vol / 2 Tone ..

i'd put a split coil in the bridge position , then it will be nice and quite with split coils ..!

it's not real hard stuff to do ... there's lots of advice to be had here , and lots of pics of wiring on line ... all i'd advise is to take your time ..!

tuners ... i'd get 3 more Hipshot Ultra Lites to make the current odd ball .! make sure to measure the hole for the tuner so you order the proper size ..

nice looking bass .! looks like a fun project ... enjoy modding , it's not a super rare example ... i always keep those original parts .. nice to have if/when you might sell it .!
 
#25
mhartman29 said:
One question I had, if any of you are BB experts out there, is the spec sheets on the BB3000a indicate it has an ebony fingerboard. But, this one sure looks like rosewood to me. It's really nice way, but it doesn't appear to be ebony.
Click to expand...
Looks dark for rosewood. Most ebony isn't really all black.
 
#29
Is that bass plugged into the mains?

Only kidding, but some kids actually think that's how electric guitars work.
IMG_4087.JPG
 
#30
I wouldn't mod the pups on a BB3000. Not worth the routing, hassle and hit to resale. Though not super-sought-after, it's a nice vintage bass whose value will only chug slowly upward.

A pre is a fine mod and can always be reversed if done correctly. If you can find a hipshot D-tuner that either matches the same holes or has holes that would be hidden under an original dthen I'd go for it. Otherwise, I'd try and hunt down an original or replace them all with something that looks appropriate and covers the original holes. Shouldn't be too hard to find the later.
 
#31
Any idea on how to approach ordering an Aguilar OBP-3 for this bass? There are 4 control knobs on this bass. I'm guessing it's Volume, Blend (P/J), Treble and Bass.

Also, what kind of change in sound do you think adding this pre would make? I've never changed out the pre in a bass, so I don't have any idea how much it affects the sound or whether it's worth the investment.

Thanks!
 
#32
As others have stated; change the strings first; and most definitely experiment with amp settings - and the bass' controls. Also-
If you're unhappy with the sound, open up the control cavity. There should be screw adjusters on the EQ circuit board inside there; try tweeking those a bit and see if you like the results. It's your bass, and of course you can do whatever you want (including putting Alembic electronics in there, if you've got the scratch); but, IMO you might want to try the cheap n' easy stuff first...:)

And, some gold Scaller BM-3s would look really nice on that bass...;)
 
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#33
I am familiar with active basses so that isn't the issue. I did change the string out already and that made an improvement but I still feel like it's missing some oomph. I'll try adjusting the screws on the eq circuit board. Hadn't thought of that!
 
#36
So there's another thread on "mids" and how they are necessary to cut through the mix. Part of that thread discusses a scooped tone being a largely "bedroom" tone: sounds good in your bedroom but bad live and recorded.

So why do I bring this up? The BB3000a sounds great when I play it by itself. Has a really beautiful tone. Maybe not quite as aggressive as I'd like but it's very nice. But when I play along with songs (I'm not in a band) I don't like the sound that much. Seems to get lost in the song.

So could hear problems be related? Maybe my problem with the sound is only in the bedroom with bass acoustics or trying to play along with bad computer speakers? Maybe it would sound great recorded or in a live situation?

Anyone have any opinion on this?
 
#37
Yes, basses do sound very different in the bedroom" and "in the mix", as a general rule. There are exceptions to the rule, of course, but... yes, if your intention is to play it in a band, or record with it; experimenting with it is definitely a must (and, really.. computer speakers?? Eww..);)
 
#38
The bass will sound fine in a band setting as is, I have heard many players using mid to high-range Yamaha basses and most of the times sounded great. However you may need a decent amp to tweak the eq. a bit if you want to get close to a vintage-like tone.

About your bedroom, try to set the preamp flat and play with the amp eq, this bass should not sound muddy at all, but you may need some practice to get a sound you really like.
 

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