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Yamaha TRB 6 vs Yamaha TRB 6ii

Which one?

  • Total voters
    28
C

cenkbass

Dec 28, 2011
41
4
New York
#1
I originally wanted TRB6PII but I found it close to $3000 but for TRB6 and TRB6II both are priced at $2000 with shipping. All of them are Made in Japan

At the moment I have a Pre-Gibson Tobias Killer B6 Bubinga 34" which I'm thinking of converting to a fretless after I get another 6 string bass

here are the links what do you guys say
What are the differences?
At some point I thought of a JP1 also but not sure about it.
I wish I had the chance to try them all out and see it for myself.

TRB6 Yamaha TRB-6 6-strings Bass Cherry Burst | EV3 Gear Collection | Reverb

TRBii Yamaha TRB II Red Burst | Camden Guitars | Reverb

TRB6PII Yamaha TRB-6PII Made in Japan | Japanlots | Reverb
 
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#2
cenkbass said:
I originally wanted TRB6PII but I found it close to $3000 but for TRB6 and TRB6II both are priced at $2000 with shipping. All of them are Made in Japan

At the moment I have a Pre-Gibson Tobias Killer B6 Bubinga 34" which I'm thinking of converting to a fretless after I get another 6 string bass

here are the links what do you guys say
What are the differences?
At some point I thought of a JP1 also but not sure about it.
I wish I had the chance to try them all out and see it for myself.

TRB6 Yamaha TRB-6 6-strings Bass Cherry Burst | EV3 Gear Collection | Reverb

TRBii Yamaha TRB II Red Burst | Camden Guitars | Reverb

TRB6PII Yamaha TRB-6PII Made in Japan | Japanlots | Reverb
Click to expand...

Get the TRB6! I am a sucker for those skinny soapbars!
 
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#5
Wow I bought my orange TRB-6 for $550 on the used rack at a Sam Ash back in the day. A little scarred up, but plays fine.

For the record, it's a very stable bass, low action, plays great, great B string. I have some Bart pickups and no preamp in it now, but may swap the original electronics back in sometime soon. I can't really recall why I bothered to gut it. Whatever, I was like 20 years old.

The neck through P is fine too although for some reason I prefer the bolt on aesthetically. The II series, I believe, has ~18 mm bridge spacing and crucially, goes up to 35" scale I think, which I don't care for due to string feel / tone impact.
 
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#7
cenkbass said:
I originally wanted TRB6PII but I found it close to $3000 but for TRB6 and TRB6II both are priced at $2000 with shipping. All of them are Made in Japan

At the moment I have a Pre-Gibson Tobias Killer B6 Bubinga 34" which I'm thinking of converting to a fretless after I get another 6 string bass

here are the links what do you guys say
What are the differences?
At some point I thought of a JP1 also but not sure about it.
I wish I had the chance to try them all out and see it for myself.

TRB6 Yamaha TRB-6 6-strings Bass Cherry Burst | EV3 Gear Collection | Reverb

TRBii Yamaha TRB II Red Burst | Camden Guitars | Reverb

TRB6PII Yamaha TRB-6PII Made in Japan | Japanlots | Reverb
Click to expand...
I believe the TRB6PII (last one listed) has a piezo pickup installed in the bridge? Notice the 6th knob. The first one, TRB6 was one of the prototypes for the JP2 I believe. Notice the cut on the front of the body near the G string. Very cool! :)
Hope this helps,
Brent
 
#8
cenkbass said:
I originally wanted TRB6PII but I found it close to $3000 but for TRB6 and TRB6II both are priced at $2000 with shipping. All of them are Made in Japan

At the moment I have a Pre-Gibson Tobias Killer B6 Bubinga 34" which I'm thinking of converting to a fretless after I get another 6 string bass

here are the links what do you guys say
What are the differences?
At some point I thought of a JP1 also but not sure about it.
I wish I had the chance to try them all out and see it for myself.

TRB6 Yamaha TRB-6 6-strings Bass Cherry Burst | EV3 Gear Collection | Reverb

TRBii Yamaha TRB II Red Burst | Camden Guitars | Reverb

TRB6PII Yamaha TRB-6PII Made in Japan | Japanlots | Reverb
Click to expand...


IMHO you owe it to yourself to try to find basses you can actually play. I have played a TRB6P since about 95. I have tried the TR6 II and the the version of the TRB JP that come out in the early 2000s. The newer basses had much more mids and a punchier sound. The older TRB6P is a great bass but the sound is very, very smooth IMHO. It takes some external manipulation to make it punch.

To be honest, when I started playing the 6P it was not my sound, but audiences seemed to low it. Since I have played the bass for so long, I am very comfortable on it now.

Prices have definitely risen as nice basses used to sell fairly often for about $1,300.

Scale varies a bit from model to model. My TRB6P is 34" with 19mm spacing at the bridge, but I believe some related models are 35" scale. I was used to playing a 4-string with narrower spacing. The 19mm has some benefits, but it's a lot of space to cover when you need to play fast notes that jump across strings. The finger board is flat.

My bass only has one truss rod. I have to reset it approximately 4 times a year due to seasonal humidity changes. My military TRB6P had two truss rods and they never moved. Aside from that I and the color, they were pretty much identical. My bass seemed slightly more punchy as it had less sustain. I suspect this difference related to one VS two truss rods.
 
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#10
I believe my Tobias is 34" scale, somewhere between 11-14 lbs, 17.5mm. I'm not 100% sure though. Yamaha TRB6 that will cost me about 2000$ is 34" scale, around 11lbs, 19mm. I have a 4 string USA Standard Jazz Bass which strings feel far apart from each other to me as I'm used to playing my Tobias. Will this be a good purchase for me? It is hard buying an instrument without trying out. I'm not really knowledgable about things like string spacing etc. I can only tell if I have the instrument in my hands to be honest :)
 
#11
cenkbass said:
I believe my Tobias is 34" scale, somewhere between 11-14 lbs, 17.5mm. I'm not 100% sure though. Yamaha TRB6 that will cost me about 2000$ is 34" scale, around 11lbs, 19mm. I have a 4 string USA Standard Jazz Bass which strings feel far apart from each other to me as I'm used to playing my Tobias. Will this be a good purchase for me? It is hard buying an instrument without trying out. I'm not really knowledgable about things like string spacing etc. I can only tell if I have the instrument in my hands to be honest :)
Click to expand...

What are you looking to get? It sounds like you need a fretless rather than a new fretted. I'd keep that Tobias intact and get a Kiesel 6 string fretless. Go easy on the options and finishes.... Jumping from that Tobias to an aircraft carrier necked TRB without playing or ability to return is major risk, and if the Tobias is worth keeping, it's worth keeping intact. Just my opinion.
 
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#14
I have own every TRB model out there. I like the ones with single coil better. They sound kind of like a Jazz bass. The ones with soapbar pickups have a very rich sound with a kind of hollow mid range,... to my ear anyway...
also the TRB6 have a mini control knob thingy on the back so you can adjust overall volume output and also choose the preset for the mid range. The midrange knob works as a cut/boost to the frequency you choose. So instead of just rolling like a normal knob, it clicks into 3 positions(neutral, boost, cut) , if that makes any sense...
I'm sorry to say though, they seem overpriced... Back in the day i got my TRB6 used for $600, and I got the TRB6II brand new at Guitar Center on sale for$800!!!! But they are sure good reliable basses with very nice string spacing. Whichever one you choose, have fun!!!!
 
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#15
I love my TRB-4 (Purchased new in '97), which matches the details of the TRB-6. It's a 34" scale. For what it's worth that whole series was made in Japan. The following 35" scale generation I believe was the last series made in Japan. After that only the 6 was Japanese and the others elsewhere. That's significant to me because the 6 becomes a special production in the lineup, which makes me think production overhaul. Different factory altogether?

I believe the ii is 35" scale… I don't know about the following P generation. Seems like a throwback to the original neck through TRBs with piezo.
 
Last edited:
#16
The neckthrougbody TRB6P was the King!

TRB6P.jpg


(yep Doc Cheese, those skinny soapbars sounds amaizing)
 
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#20
I have a TRB5PII and it's an amazing bass (paid around USD1000 for one about two years ago). So, 3000 for the TRB6PII seems a bit steep, but there are probably not many on the market...

And, yes, the PII has a piezo pickup in the bridge.

 

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