Yamaha BB NE2 Nathan East - a good choice ?

[Gröt]

Hi !

I wonder if anyone own a Yamaha BB NE2 and can give me some thoughts about playability and quality.
I also wonder about stringspacing, i prefer 19 mm on a fivestring.
Are Yamahabasses a good choice these days...have heard things that say they were better before ?


Peace,

Gröt
Gothenburg
Sweden

 

[TylerlovesAva]

I don't own one, but I've tried a few, and they're really great basses with top notch quality. I love the ebony fingerboard with the MOP blocks. These basses sound really articulate while still being punchy, and are really versatile. The pickups are humbuckers but look like jazz PU's, and I love how they're voiced. A couple of little complaints from me would probably be the neck-through construction, but that's just me being a bolt-on kinda guy (these things slap like it's nobody's business despite the neck, so no problem there), and the screws on the bridge, which are long, sharp and tend to damage your gig bag if you're not careful. I had a TRB 5PII, and they have the same bridge. It felt about the same as my old TRB as well, which probably means it also has 19mm string spacing.

I think Yamaha basses have always been solid, and I like their newer versions of their models. I especially like the JPII, much more than the JPI, which is already a great bass. I think a lot of people knock on them because the company obviously does more than just instruments; once I showed my old yammie to a friend, who then quipped, 'So did it come with a helmet?' . No one can deny that a good number of all-time greats played and still play these basses though, and that they are a leading player in the industry because they build basses for every price level that have top-notch build quality and rich sounds. There's ever a cheaper, bolt-on version of the NE2 which is also a great bass. A friend of mine gigs with it almost everyday, and it sounds great.

Lastly, as this is already the longest post EVER, there's a band here in Germany called The Heavytones who play for TV Total, which is pretty much a late night talk show. The bass player (Markus something, I forget, monster player) gets an amazing tone from his NE2, it's not even funny. I couldn't find a better clip, but here it is: http://de.youtube.com/watch?v=aAolStYSUvM&feature=related

Hope I helped!

 

[Munjibunga]

The quality will be top-notch. If it's good enough for Nate, it's good enough for me. The tone, playability, and construction of my TRB5P-II is as good as any of the high-end basses I own.

 

[sandman]

+1 munji, the Ne2 is a liller bass, modern to vintage, and comfortable to all heck!

 

[Humblerumble]

I love mine. It has become my favorite bass for all occasions. I bought it new from MF and have not been disappointed at all and would definitely buy it again. Someone on TB is selling a used one that has some body damage for $1500. It is extremely versatile. and it sounds killer thru my Aguilar DB750

 

[sandman]

walkabout through a GS410, what an awesome combo humble. will give that a shot at the store tomorrow!

 

[Gröt]

Thx guys !! Very informative, positive thoughts
and one excellent Youtube video What a sound
and what skills

 

[Humblerumble]

Thanks Sandman. It sounds almost as good as the DB750 and weighs a lot less!

 

[Virgil]

I own the Nathan East BB NE 2, and I traded a custom Roscoe SKB 3005 for it. It is on par with other high end basses I own; it could easily be the only bass I would need. It is punchy, articulate, tonally versatile, stays in tune, just an all around great bass. It is not 19mm, more like 18mm, but I adjusted to the spacing easily. I own two American Made MTD's and a Skjold. They have 19mm spacing, and you can adjust to the 9mm spacing. You may also want to chek out the Skjold's, they too are very versatile basses. But, if you buy the Yamaha, you will be happy.