New BASS from Yamaha

[DeeZee]

Ok, you are going to have to think outside the box with this question because this bass seems like it offers much more than what has previously been offered in this series. The question is......"Has anyone really, and I mean REALLY checked out or played the new Yamaha RBX375 5 string. And before giving the usual, "NOT EVEN COMPARABLE TO MY TRB series bass" listen to the specs on this one. Well, first here is where you can take a look at it:

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Here are some specs from the website:
Alder body, Maple neck, rosewood fretboard, 34" scale, 2 ceramic humbucking pickups, and 2 band ACTIVE EQ,... The 2 band eqs IMO are usually not a bad thing for me because it seems like I never am happy with the mid center frequencies anyway when basses have a mid knob. I would rather control the mids at my amp and on my ME-50b where they are sweepable.......Also I am really looking hard for a 34" scale 5 string. I just don't like how "stiff" a 35" scale fiver makes me play. Its not that the 35" is particularly stiff to play, it just seems to alter my phrasing and makes everything sound stiff. I played a 35" scale live for 6 months and they also give me a pain in the wrist and forearm. I know 34" 5 strings can sound good. IMO a stingray 5's B string sounds good, but anyway.....

Well, it just seems like it offers much more than the previous RBX basses, almost like it should be in its own new series in- between the RBX and TRB series,.....It's also only $396 at MF. Just wanted to get some thoughts on this one.......

Thanks

 

[Dan Molina]

35" would have been better very hot nonetheless

 

[Aaron Saunders]

Never even seen one in a shop. They're very attractive, IMO, and I'd love to check one out.

 

[Ducksual]

A friend of mine has the 374 but I've never seen a 375 first hand (or heard one for that matter).

 

[Ian Perge]

I love, and I mean love the Yamaha's I've played and recorded with, most recently my dual RBX 775's, but in a comparison I'll paraphrase what I said here:

Off the top of my head, the 775's have additional carving on the body along the "bottom" (when strapped on) which I'm sure were removed from the 375's to reduce CNC time and cost. IMO, the 375's look cheaper due to this. 775's have a monorail-type bridge vs. the more standard on the 375's, which I think again is to lower cost by sacrificing quality. I personally prefer the 35" scale, but that's my choice and playing style, and I can see your disagreement. The electronics are certainly different - I haven't had a chance to play a 375 so I can't comment on that other to say it looks to be more normal than the 775's odd "pickup selector/tone/mid-boost" configuration. The color selection did (and still does) have much to be desired on both series, but the flat silver is pretty sweet, and the flat blue looks much better in person than it was ever photographed. I will say that I envy the metallic red of the 375 (and was originally going to be offered on the 775 according to the original press releases - I wonder what happened on that regard?)

Well, it just seems like it offers much more than the previous RBX basses, almost like it should be in its own new series in- between the RBX and TRB series...

Based on the above and the fact that I bought two 775's within 2 weeks, I'd have to disagree. I think the 775 was a sleeper and a casualty of one of the tightest markets to sell in - the "$999 list" area. With it's street price about 1/2 of the 775 before the "discontinued blowout", the 375 appears to be a lower-tier version and while a good bass for the price, hardly "offers much more" and is deserving of it's own series.

Between the discontinuation of the 775's and the screw-up of the new RBXJM2, it seems that Yamaha simply doesn't know how to market their "rock line" as opposed to the BB/TRB's, which both sell a tremendous amount and generate positive word-of-mouth (which you can't buy) regardless of pricepoint, be it a BB404 or 2005.

 

[DeeZee]

Hey Scarred,...Thanks for the input,...I did want to say that I am comparing the new RBX375 to what Yamaha currently offers in their new lineup,...And compared to that, it seems a step above the rest,.....I am sure they have discontinued some really nice basses in the past,....I don't know either what their marketing direction is for their RBX lineup,.....

 

[basicallybass]

They've always built a bass with quality materials and they all have a workable/mixable tone shape. (Including the passive models). However, I've not been overly impressed with their styling. Playability has always been consistent (better than average.) I think their best model was the discontinued BB5000 - the Nathan East is pretty close, but the body on the East is considerable thicker and pickup config. is a little different from the P/J early model.