Yamaha

[songwriter21]

I used to own a Yamaha acoustic guitar, and my wife plays a Yamaha digital piano. Both are/were fine instruments.

As far as bass players go, Nathan East has made most of his career with Yamaha.

Michael Anthony was playing a Yamaha bass, I'm not sure if he still is. For a couple of years I played a circuit of clubs that were a little rough. I didn't want to take my Fender to these places so I got a BB model Yamaha. It was a great bass. I currently own a Yamaha Attitude Bass (not the Billy Sheehan model, but the one more like a regular P bass). It's a great bass as well. For a short while I played a BB3000 Yamaha that was so easy to play it was sick. I think there is a general perception about Asian instruments that has been held over from a long time ago. My Crafted in Japan Geddy Lee basses are some of the best basses I've ever played.

NortyFiner, many pianists regard Yamaha's as the best sounding pianos out there, surpassing the big names, like Steinway, Bosendorfer, and others. Their grands sound ENORMOUS.

REV, check this out...indeed his sig Yamaha.

 

[fingerguy]

So, first thing's first to the OP: congratulations on your promotion to bass.

Now, a couple of things:

1) You equated Fender and Warwick. I do not. Warwicks, I find, are superior instruments to the average Fender. I'm talking German made vs USA equivalent. However, I'm no fan of Warwick aesthetics (can't call basses ugly here) and people think Fenders are what a bass guitar should look like cuz, well, you know.... I realize that this is because they are brands you've heard of, so it is not a critique but a data point.

2) Can't get there with the "meh" rating of the Yamaha guitars. I (still) have a FG-512 acoustic that has consistently performed on tour and studio gigs for over 25 years. Sure, it's not my Guild Jumbo, but I don't have to put a bag over the headstock when I bust it out at a gig. For a working musician, a workhorse instrument is miles beyond "meh."

3) Yamaha basses: the BB series is a pedigreed rock bass. The Nathan East model belongs in anyone's "high end" catalogue.

I would recommend that you try lots of different brands, as you'll find that the spectrum in the bass world is different from the guitar world. For example, Alembic is in the sine qua non category of basses, but guitar players seem to think a Fender or Gibson is better in the guitar category. Alembic makes killer guitars, but gets no love. Here, they get mucho lovey dovey. See what I'm saying?

Good luck!

Well first it would be nice if you guys tagged me for it's pure chance I saw your thread for it's not like me to read every post but the word/name Warwick caught my eye.

My response, everyone has a right to their opinion, and a lot of the times it's not so much the brand but rather the guitar that dictates ones experiences. Two guys can hold the same brand and model guitar and they can sound and feel differently. As someone in the guitar world as long as I have, I see this time and time again and I highly doubt it's much different than in the world of bass's.

I don't have a view point of what a Bass should look like? BUT I do find Fender body's EXTREMELY appealing, and as such when the day I have 3k to spend, I will be focusing 90% of the time on the Fender's. As I said in other posts if they don't blow me away then I will go elsewhere. But again I would never say that is how a bass should look but I am saying their visual form appeals to me.

Plus Flea, Pastorius, Dunaway (Frankenstein), and many more use it. Oh and did I mention Rush?

The fact is Yamaha's have left a bad taste in my mouth. I am not saying it's not possible that their bass can change my view point but I been wanting a specific thing for awhile now and that is from a Fender. That's the way it is.

I really regret starting this thread for a lot of the times people are not seeing the big picture of where I am coming from and a few posts really were trying to put words in my mouth which was not appreciated.

 

[rtslinger]

I had played them but never owned one, I had decided it would be my choice for bass #14 and had one that was very nice in my hot little hands in GC, not sure why I didn't pull the trigger that day I waited and it was gone when I went back I haven't seen one like it again yet, but I am hunting. Great price point new or used and a quality instrument win, win, win

 

[Pumpkin]

Well first it would be nice if you guys tagged me for it's pure chance I saw your thread for it's not like me to read every post but the word/name Warwick caught my eye.

My response, everyone has a right to their opinion, and a lot of the times it's not so much the brand but rather the guitar that dictates ones experiences. Two guys can hold the same brand and model guitar and they can sound and feel differently. As someone in the guitar world as long as I have, I see this time and time again and I highly doubt it's much different than in the world of bass's.

I don't have a view point of what a Bass should look like? BUT I do find Fender body's EXTREMELY appealing, and as such when the day I have 3k to spend, I will be focusing 90% of the time on the Fender's. As I said in other posts if they don't blow me away then I will go elsewhere. But again I would never say that is how a bass should look but I am saying their visual form appeals to me.

Plus Flea, Pastorius, Dunaway (Frankenstein), and many more use it. Oh and did I mention Rush?

The fact is Yamaha's have left a bad taste in my mouth. I am not saying it's not possible that their bass can change my view point but I been wanting a specific thing for awhile now and that is from a Fender. That's the way it is.

I really regret starting this thread for a lot of the times people are not seeing the big picture of where I am coming from and a few posts really were trying to put words in my mouth which was not appreciated.

If you wanted people to talk about Fender, you should have asked about Fender's. You tried to flame a good manufacturer and it didn't work out. Go get the Fender and have fun with it!

 

[fingerguy]

If you wanted people to talk about Fender, you should have asked about Fender's. You tried to flame a good manufacturer and it didn't work out. Go get the Fender and have fun with it!

You know, this is going to be my last response to this thread for this really is getting out of hand. If you read what I first posted I clearly said I am not trying to offend anyone but based on my history with Yamaha's and blah blah blah...how do you feel about bass's? But I guess that is too much to ask huh?

 

[HubbardsFate]

You know, this is going to be my last response to this thread for this really is getting out of hand. If you read what I first posted I clearly said I am not trying to offend anyone but based on my history with Yamaha's and blah blah blah...how do you feel about bass's? But I guess that is too much to ask huh?

No offense OP, but I've read back through some of this thread, and a lot of your responses seem borderline (and needlessly) hostile. Maybe that is not what you intended, but that's the "tone" at times.

Also, I hate to be a grammar nazi, but you should learn the proper use of apostrophes. For example, when pluralizing words, it's not "Yamaha's", but rather "Yamahas." It's not "bass's", it's "basses"...etc.

 

[Max Blasto]

No offense OP, but I've read back through some of this thread, and a lot of your responses seem borderline (and needlessly) hostile. Maybe that is not what you intended, but that's the "tone" at times.

Also, I hate to be a grammar nazi, but you should learn the proper use of apostrophes. For example, when pluralizing words, it's not "Yamaha's", but rather "Yamahas." It's not "bass's", it's "basses"...etc.

I agree. That was another annoying aspect of this thread. Researching an English language program at the local community college might be more productive than slamming successful brands and getting chippy with people you don't know.

 

[KohanMike]

Convert it to what? How much did you pay for the guitar? How much is the conversion? I ask for if it's in the price range of over 1k in total, I can't recommend enough to just check out Taylors.

(Why am I not getting an alert from this thread, I'm set to watch?) It said converting to a sub-short scale bass. The APTX2 cost $199, the conversion should be inexpensive; drill string-through holes in the bridge, change the nut, remove the guitar tuning machines, close the holes, drill holes for bass tuners, which are about $10-20. Get a set of RotoSound RS77S short scale strings, 40-50-75-90 gauge, about $30. Total cost; about $250.

 

[Wadge]

If you can get your hands on some of the older Yamaha basses from the 1990's... it's like getting a boutique bass at half price. Highly recommend.

Yamaha TRB 6P (front)

• Nick Thorpe
• May 2, 2016
• yamaha

Oooh, I had one of those quite a few years ago. Bought one because I was a Patitucci fan, fell in love with it and then out of love with it.

Excellent sounding bass though and top notch quality.

 

[bassplayer2014]

A few years ago I bought my first five string bass, it's a 199X Yamaha BBN5. It's a 34 inch scale passive jazz styled bass. I still have this Bass. With a beat up hard shell case I spent $225.00.

I put new pressure wound 1/2 round strings with a .130 "B" string and gave it it a very thorough and complete setup.

This Bass plays, feels and sounds great. It easily compares to my Fender AS Precision V.

 

[Boot Soul]

I have not read this whole thread but I want to say that I am a life long fan of Yamaha, and there is no worldwide brand that I respect more. They make every sort of musical instrument, and their top end models of almost everything they make competes with the best from other makers. When I started piano lessons as a kid, my teacher had a Yamaha studio grand when other local teachers all had Steinways, and this was actually a bit risque' of her within the piano teacher world (in New England 1967), and it was really a top tier piano, the best I ever played. In grade school band, my school had many Yamaha brass and percussion instruments that I thought were great. Yamaha is the only company I can think of that could near completely outfit a recording studio from instruments to mixing to monitoring.

And every other thing they make is great: motorcycles, ATVs, sailboats, marine engines (their outboards are excellent), electronic instruments/synths, mixing boards, studio monitors, PA everything, etc.! But their quality, across everything they make, is consistent. The company has been around since 1887 and they have made stuff with motors since 1955.

My current Yamaha collection is just one bass, but I would love to get one of their sloops someday!

1YAMAHAsailboats.org
List of Yamaha products - Wikipedia

 

[ubernator]

I have not read this whole thread but I want to say that I am a life long fan of Yamaha, and there is no worldwide brand that I respect more. They make every sort of musical instrument, and their top end models of almost everything they make competes with the best from other makers. When I started piano lessons as a kid, my teacher had a Yamaha studio grand when other local teachers all had Steinways, and this was actually a bit risque' of her within the piano teacher world (in New England 1967), and it was really a top tier piano, the best I ever played. In grade school band, my school had many Yamaha brass and percussion instruments that I thought were great. Yamaha is the only company I can think of that could near completely outfit a recording studio from instruments to mixing to monitoring.

And every other thing they make is great: motorcycles, ATVs, sailboats, marine engines (their outboards are excellent), electronic instruments/synths, mixing boards, studio monitors, PA everything, etc.! But their quality, across everything they make, is consistent. The company has been around since 1887 and they have made stuff with motors since 1955.

My current Yamaha collection is just one bass, but I would love to get one of their sloops someday!

1YAMAHAsailboats.org
List of Yamaha products - Wikipedia

Don't see many if any Yamaha boats around here, but see the outboards quite a bit. I hear they make furniture, appliances and even prefab houses in Japan. Like one company could outfit everything for day to day life in Japan.

 

[HubbardsFate]

If I had a boat, my choice for an outboard would either be Yamaha or Honda. They both make stellar stuff. I would also be torn between these two makes if I were to shop for a motorcycle, an ATV, or a generator.

I regularly peruse Sound & Vision magazine at the public library, and it seems like at least every second or third issue, they are reviewing something made by Yamaha, and the Yamaha stuff pretty much always gets glowing reviews, even awards. That magazine is generally reviewing mid to high-end stuff, and Yamaha seems to hold its own against companies like Marantz, Cambridge Audio, etc. When and if I ever get around to finally investing in a really decent home theater/stereo setup, I think I am going to be looking at Yamaha before anything else.

 

[ubernator]

A Yamaha fanboy could have a Yamaha stereo, a Yamaha PA, Yamaha studio monitors, basses, guitars, keyboards, wind instruments, piano, jet ski, dirt bike, quad, outboard for his Boston whaler etc. And that's just in the US.

I'm not a Yamaha fanboy, but I have a pair of Yamaha 12" wedges, a Yamaha FG400A acoustic, sbg2000 electric and used to own a bb5000 5 string. The first instrument I ever had to annoy people with as a single digit age child was a Yamaha recorder, probably still have it in a box somewhere in storage.

 

[songwriter21]

I'm not sure what model it is but I like the fretless 6 string Yamaha that Robertino Pagliari uses when he plays with Ohm. Have seen them live a few times and Robertino creates a quite lively wall of bass sound with that thing in a Percy Jones-esque sort of way. Looks like you could land an airplane on the fretboard!
Invalid Link Removed
Robertino Pagliari | Yamaha Artists
Also back in the mid 80's when I had the privilege of being in the presence of Jeff Berlin for awhile ( as a student ) he was then using Yamaha basses. Jeff even gave one his most frequently played Yamama basses to another student who had been victim of a home invasion robbery.

Not sure if anyone's answered your curiosity, but that's the first-edition John Myung signature RBXJM6. This one got defretted, because they're fretted stock.

 

[woodyng2]

My current Yamaha collection is just one bass

Well,it certainly is a good one! Beautiful.

 

[Whippet]

Don't see many if any Yamaha boats around here, but see the outboards quite a bit. I hear they make furniture, appliances and even prefab houses in Japan. Like one company could outfit everything for day to day life in Japan.

They are a part of Toyota group. They make everything. Cradle to the grave, buddy.