• TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
    Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
    Join free Log in
    Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.

YAMAHA confusion

#21
are any of you guys familiar with Dave Carpenter?...he's an awesome bass player!

i also noticed that he plays Yamaha basses, I think RBX's. Do the Yamaha RBX basses growl very well? Cuz, Dave Carpenter's tone is very growly and well defined. Do they sell the RBX line with a 3 band EQ, bass/mids/treble? I know the John Myung RBX has a 3 band EQ, but I want to know if they sell the regular RBX basses with a 3 band EQ.

Yamaha's are definitely high end basses with midrange prices.
 
#22
Originally posted by funkycarnivore
I bought a Yamaha RBX250 for my church for $55 from eBay. It ain't the best looking thing on earth, but it sounds pretty good, and it plays just fine. Hard to complain for that kind of money.
Click to expand...
How did you do that? Was the auction listing horribly misspelled or listed under Auto Parts or what? (I need to know how to get deals like that!!!)
 
#25
ok...so from what i've heard and read from your posts, you guys have said that the TRB-5II is noisy when the treble is maxxed. If you guys know what I'm talking about, I really like a growly tone. Just like on a jazz bass, if you solo the bridge pickup and roll off the tone knob, you get a Jaco growl.

That's the tone I like, but with the Yamaha, it could get a more defined and fuller growl.

Will this setting/tone still give me a loud hiss?
 
#26
ok...so from what i've heard and read from your posts, you guys have said that the TRB-5II is noisy when the treble is maxxed. If you guys know what I'm talking about, I really like a growly tone. Just like on a jazz bass, if you solo the bridge pickup and roll off the tone knob, you get a Jaco growl.

That's the tone I like, but with the Yamaha, it could get a more defined and fuller growl. And to get that growl, you need very little treble.

Will this setting/tone still give me a loud hiss?
 
#27
Well I have an RBX765A and here's the scoop. 2 band eq. Somewhat wide string spacing or at least IMO. Tuners are ok but if you have the money replace them. Otherwise they'll do the job. They won't for those really nit picky kinda guys who must have absolutely everything perfect. Well balancing. Lots of tones. PM me if you have any questions.
 
#28
Originally posted by jb63

One bad thing about the BBN5 is that, if you don't want any dip in the neck, you're out of luck. The truss rod in this series bass isn't strong enough to pull the neck flat. So, if you want a bass that can be set up up with super low action don't buy this one.

Good luck in your quest!
Click to expand...

I have to disagree. Mine has very little relief, almost flat. When pressing down at the first fret and 24th fret, you can't slide a medium guage pick under the string at any fret. The action is very low, lower than any of my other 7 basses. And the truss rod isn't maxed out, I could still adjust it flatter. And my second one (yes, I have two) is just as good. Maybe it is just your bass?
 
#29
Originally posted by Showdown


I have to disagree. Mine has very little relief, almost flat. When pressing down at the first fret and 24th fret, you can't slide a medium guage pick under the string at any fret. The action is very low, lower than any of my other 7 basses. And the truss rod isn't maxed out, I could still adjust it flatter. And my second one (yes, I have two) is just as good. Maybe it is just your bass?
Click to expand...


You must have a couple of good ones. The truss rod issue is based on my own experience and from bass player magazine's 5-string shootout (1998, I think). At any rate you can't beat 'em for the price (I paid $360 new for mine).
 
#30
Originally posted by jb63



You must have a couple of good ones. The truss rod issue is based on my own experience and from bass player magazine's 5-string shootout (1998, I think). At any rate you can't beat 'em for the price (I paid $360 new for mine).
Click to expand...

I guess I got lucky twice. I bought one at a music store here in Honolulu, and the other two years later in Japan. At any rate, they are very good basses for the price, with a great sound.
 
#31
I have a TRB5II and have used it for a little over a year. I can't find anything wrong with it. It sounds great live, really punchy and full. I dial in the Jaco tone (on 2 songs) by going solo on the bridge pickup, cutting the highs and boosting the mids. You can set the high and low mid frequencies with an internal control. I've only used this bass on a few recordings that needed a more aggressive sound (I prefer passive electronics in the studio) and it did a good job. I didn't have any problem with excessive noise or fret buzz and I set the action pretty low. When I first purchased it there were some tone issues but after a set up and a new set of DR Highbeams it was a different bass.

It was on sale at GC during a blowout sale for $785 new, I took the chance and for the money it’s been one of my better basses. I think MF sells them for around $1100 but you can do a little negotiating with those guys. I would recommend these basses to anyone.

hmjuice

GROOVE IS THE ANSWER
 
#32
Originally posted by hmjuice
I have a TRB5II and have used it for a little over a year. I can't find anything wrong with it. It sounds great live, really punchy and full. I dial in the Jaco tone (on 2 songs) by going solo on the bridge pickup, cutting the highs and boosting the mids. You can set the high and low mid frequencies with an internal control. I've only used this bass on a few recordings that needed a more aggressive sound (I prefer passive electronics in the studio) and it did a good job. I didn't have any problem with excessive noise or fret buzz and I set the action pretty low. When I first purchased it there were some tone issues but after a set up and a new set of DR Highbeams it was a different bass.

It was on sale at GC during a blowout sale for $785 new, I took the chance and for the money it’s been one of my better basses. I think MF sells them for around $1100 but you can do a little negotiating with those guys. I would recommend these basses to anyone.

hmjuice

GROOVE IS THE ANSWER
Click to expand...

about the GROWL...is it a really full bodied growl or is it more nasal sounding?
 
#33
Here's some stuff on Yamaha basses, for all those lost in the model number/letter jungle.

First of all, TRB series. Yamaha's high end series, directed at sort of sophisticated yet progressive jazz(ish) player. John Patitucci is a perfect example of this kind of a player, he has his signature TRB6JP. The TRB II's are improved version(improvement mainly on electronics), although some claim that the first series has better tone.
There have been exotic wood and piezo equipped TRBs around, these costing well over 1000 bucks.

Then there's BB series. For players seeking (semi-)traditional axes, BB's look great in blues/rock band. They have P-ish appearance both in looks and in tone. Nathan East is their mannequin for these basses. There are quite many types of BB's around, from old BB300 etc to more recent BBG5S. Interesting tho, they are now going back to numbering the new BB's, first of these being the new BB1500A.

Short description of letter-marked basses: BBN4 - the basic BB, with all passive stuff. Very inexpensive. BBG4 is similar to BBN4, but has a foto-flame top.

BBG4S - BBN4 upgraded with active 2-band EQ. BBG4A is similar but with foto-flame top.

BBN5A - now this is getting somewhere. This is a bit of a downgrade from Nathan East Signature, but still houses 3-band EQ, similar contours to BBNEAST(the signature model), real top, etc etc. Price of BBN5A would be somewhere around 700-1000 bucks IIRC.

All new lettered BBs sold now are pretty much the second or third (II or III) versions, the main difference being that earlier versions have jazz-style pups, whereas later BBs have large humbuckers.

The RBX series seems to be pretty similar to BB series, the difference being Yamaha's going for young players this time. So the RBX's are shaped more radically and their electronics, I would assume, are designed for rock/metal, but the parts remain pretty similar. For example both BBs and RBXs have 2-band EQ on their better models, similar humbuckers, etc. However, there's no 'semi-highend' model as BBN5A below signature(which belongs to Dream Theater's John Myung), but to accomodate this the RBX6JM is priced pretty low.

I'm not connected to Yamaha in any ways but if you have something to ask about different models, I know pretty much about them.
 
#34
Good description Tsal. Yamaha can be confusing in their number system, though. I have a BBG5 (no A or S on the end) with a "foto-flame" top (kind of an orange sunburst) that is passive with J-style pickups (although I added a EMG preamp to make it active), and I have a BBG5A that I bought in Japan with soapbar pickups and 2 band EQ, in kind of a burgundy sunburst over a foto-flame top. I guess the "A" in the model number stands for active, but I'm not sure what the "S" in some models stands for, since my "A" has a foto-flame top.
 
#35
about the GROWL...is it a really full bodied growl or is it more nasal sounding?
Click to expand...

I normally like the bigger sound so I don't have to play as hard; I boost the mids and add a little more bass as well. But, if you like a more nasal sound you would have to cut out all of the bass and treble and just boost the mids. I used it last night for a club gig and she was singing though my new Aguilar D112's.

hmjuice

GROOVE IS THE ANSWER
 
#37
Originally posted by hmjuice


I normally like the bigger sound so I don't have to play as hard; I boost the mids and add a little more bass as well. But, if you like a more nasal sound you would have to cut out all of the bass and treble and just boost the mids. I used it last night for a club gig and she was singing though my new Aguilar D112's.

hmjuice

GROOVE IS THE ANSWER
Click to expand...

Sounds like the bass that i'm looking for!!!

I've received an offer from a guy who is selling his TRB-5II for $450.

Here's a pic that he sent me...what do you think?

[/IMG]
 
#38
Originally posted by Showdown
I guess the "A" in the model number stands for active, but I'm not sure what the "S" in some models stands for, since my "A" has a foto-flame top.
Click to expand...

Sorry, my bad. As I thought, I was mixing these two up. So BBG4A has foto-flame, 'S' doesen't. I should know, I owned BBG5S myself :rolleyes:

I have edited my previous post, so these two should be correct now.
 

Latest posts

Top Bottom
Back