Yamaha RBX-775

I have played this bass for about a year now, purchased used. I believe it was made in Taiwan. So far it has served me well. It has active electronics, 2 humbucking pickups, with an alder body, 24 frets with no inlays. It has one volume, one tone setup,and a 3-way toggle pick-up switch it also includes a boost switch but doesn't seem to add much. It has a 35" scale which works well and the neck is the perfect width for a 5 string. Not sure when it was made, but has since been discontinued. Love the flat blue finish and body style. I searched for a long time to find a 5 string that felt just right, this one is it.

I use this with a SWR workingman head, a 4X10 cab & a JBL single 18 cab.. This axe has a great dark tone & killer sustain. Not very much variety in the sound shaping, but thats what I have my Yamaha MB II for. It is very consistant all accross the neck, and stays is tune well. Love the bridge. And great harmonics. Appears similar to the 6 string model that John Myung uses.

Finish is flat blue and looks good. Pickups are average active and provide nice dark tones. Needed to be re-wired though.

I always add after market straplocks (why take chances) so no issue there. Controls are well placed and work well, very smooth, and pots have a nice range. The Alder body provides nice sustain but the wood at the electronics site is much too thin. I bumped up against my amp cab and the wood split open. The wiring also needed to be beefed up as well. The toggle switches could have been installed beter, and the body dings easily. My other Yamaha's have held up much better over much longer periods of time.

Have not needed, but the Yamaha website had almost zero with the exception of an archived pdf schematic.

I have been playing for around 30 years, I use this bass primarily for dark metal and newer style material. It has great sustain nice dark tones and an awesome neck & bridge. I will play this bass for a long time if the body holds together. It plays so well, I just wish it were constructed better. I have bought and sold lots of basses, this is the only 5 string that I currently play out with. I also play a Yamaha MB II, which I absolutely love. And a Yamaha UMB series which has a nice solid upper end tone. And a couple of Ibanez 5 & 4 string basses, as back-ups.

I believe its made in Korea, Its got 24 frets, 2 humbuckers, separate saddles at the bridge, nice looking dull/grey chrome style hardware, pick up selector switch (bit unusual but more convenient) and of course volume and tone controls.

It hasn't got a warm sound, but is a nice tone. the active pickups and longer scale give the B string lots of power, the g string sound a bit weak, but im going to get new thicker strings soon which will hopefully even out the difference between it and the rest of the strings. Its sound is perfect for progressive metal, but can be used for almost anything as long as you don't mind having a 'loud' sound. i have an ashdown mag 300 and is sounds terrific with a lot of bass and the subharmonics on, it really makes everything rattle, especially when playing on the B.

Overall the bass seems to be very well made. the action is low, the B is a bit floppy, and can give fret buzz if you like a low action and pick it hard; but im going to get thicker strings than the Yamaha stock ones, which should help i hope. the tuners are solid and the bridge looks good quality. unfortunately the pickup selector has stopped working when in the bridge position, so im going to take it into my music store so they can take a look at it. the bass was only out of tune when i got it.

naturally ive got strap locks, and all the hardware looks up to a beating. im not very advanced (or old!) so i dont have a backup, but i would take it to a gig without worrying. i am a bit worried about the pickup selector though.

I havn't had to deal with them.

I think this bass is very good value for money, it costs twice as much as my first bass, an ibanez gsr 200, but is definitely twice as good. i bought it around Christmas so i didn't get the best price i could have done, in england it is normally around ??410 on the internet. my couple of worries (loose B and dodgy pickup switch) will hopefully be sorted out with a trip to www.stringbusters.com and my local music store.

Details as in all the other reviews, but here's a quick summary (with subjective commentary):

'Flat' (metallic) blue finish - I always wanted a metallic blue bass so this is perfect.
Active electronics, 2 humbucking pickups, alder body - combine to give a full and punchy sound, but more on that later...
24 frets with no inlays at all (except for dots on the top of the neck) which I actually like a lot - gives it a certain class.
I also like the basic one volume, one tone setup, as well as having the pickup selector (3-way like my tele which is nice). There is a mid-boost switch that adds a lot to the roundness of the sound and gives what feels like a slight volume lift.
Oh yeah, and 5 strings in 35" scale so it feels good on the B.

Rated 10 for having minimalist features - exactly what I wanted (on-board EQ not desired in this case).

This bass is used for everything for me - all contemporary styles (full spectrum of modern rock) to mellower (sometimes) church playing as well. As a trombonist first-and-foremost I would like to explore the jazz side of things on bass at some point when I have free time, but I'm not holding my breath on that occurring in the near future. So can't comment on its suitability in that setting - except that it really doesn't sound like a J-bass :P
For rock, this bass well... rocks. Just a very fat sound.
Played through the old solid state 30W practise amp its a very bright and punchy sound. The natural brightness of the electronics seems to be encouraged by the whole 10" speaker thing, but then again my amp did come with an acoustic guitar speaker (no idea how/why)...
When played through a 60's Bassman into 15" cab it sounds so full its fantastic. Still on the bright side but not overly so with the tone up, but with the tone turned down a bit its beautiful and smooth.

Essentially its a fat sound that can then be manipulated however you want. Great foundation - even works well with with powerchord distortion parts.

Rated 9 purely cos I know its not perfect - but its good for everything I can throw at it.

Straight out of the box there was no buzz and it played well with none of the common hardware/setup flaws.
Pickups set nicely though I'm still tossing up lowering the B string end to take a little of the boominess out of it. Also thinking I'll just lower my string gauge to cut the seeming jump in volume when playing those low Ds, Cs, and Bs.

The pickup selector started crackling from dust after a couple of months but a warranty cleanout fixed that up easily...

I baby this bass, but its definitely built to last.
Finish and build seem good and solid - its completely stock including strap buttons.
Gig without backup - never a good idea but I'd trust it completely.

Warranty fix for the pickup switch going crackly - very straight forward but Yamaha weren't actually involved as far as I know...
5 Year warranty as with all yamaha guitars - so good.

Been playing for 4 years and have lots of gear - just not a lot in the guitar/bass department.
If it were lost or stolen I'd claim the insurance and probably go Yamaha again. Not sure which model but maybe one of the signatures.
I love a lot about it, but i said it all with the features so I'll leave it at that.

Its a great bass... thats all I've got to say :)

Rated 9 cos I don't think any instrument is perfect.

Bought at Guitar Center in 2003
You know their pricing scheme: Retail price $1,000.00, Our price $699.00, ON SALE FOR $450.00!!! Made me feel as if I was getting a super deal on a high end bass. I like it and all but I was bummed when I saw the same bass on Musician's Friend for $299 about a year later. :(

Made in Taiwan.
24 fret, 5-string, 35" scale
Alder body, maple neck, Rosewood fingerboard
Vol, Tone, Pickup Select, Boost Switch
High gloss black body, satin black neck
Body style is REALLY KEWL!!!
Active humbucker pickups

Works really well for what I play. I play CCM with my Church Worship team ranging from mellow, rock, funk, calypso, Etc. (CCM is such a hard genre to define!) I also play blues stuff as well.

I play it through a Carvin R600 "Cyclops" that does the job fairly well. I just bought a Behringer BX4500 to go with two old Gallien Krueger 4X10 cabinets that do the job EVEN BETTER! Bass Players use effects? BAH!

It is very quiet with the humbucker pickups and active electronics.

Sounded really "Ratty" until I got the neck problem solved. Now I can get just about any sound I want out of it. Deep and rich to bright and "Snappy." You can "Slap" it, go "John Entwistle" on it or grab your pick and get that Chris Squire "Growl" as well!

Works great in the studio as well as for gigging.

Not a Warwick but then again I didn't pay $1,500 for it either!

To be honest, it was a real piece of junk when I first got it! Should've taken it back immediately but I struggled with it for over a year or so trying to "Tweak" everything to make it right. The root problem was that it had a bad neck with a chronic "back bow" causing irritating buzzing all over the neck. Had to compensate by making the action unreasonably high. The frets were poorly dressed as well!

I finally got smart and took it in for warranty work. Yamaha gave me a new neck and this cured all of the ills it suffered from! This is a real solid bass!

Still haven't figured out what the "Boost" switch is for. Don't hear too much difference. I'd rather have more EQ control personally!

Before the warranty work, I'd give it a 2. Now it rates much better!

As a sidenote, I tried out a RBX-375 when I took my bass in for warranty work. It is a miserable piece of crap compared to my RBX-775 (after repairs) IMO!

If I had to replace this bass, I would probably go with a Warwick or one of Yamaha's TRB models

Great for gigging! Cool design has great stage presence!
Finish is nice. From what I hear, the satin finish on the neck is embedded with some sort of substance that keeps the neck "Slick" unlike some necks with high gloss finishes that get "Sticky."

Have not had to do any truss adjustments with the new neck. The black finish on the tuners looks like it may be starting to wear thin. Kind of a nice "Patina" though. Love the clean fretboard (no markers). DR "Black Beauties" really make it cool!

The strap buttons are OK but I've had enough "Close Calls" that I will probably go to a Schaller locking system in the near future!

Yamaha didn't give me any guff when I went to them for warranty work! It took a while but I got my new neck! Hey, it was a discontinued model by then so they probably had to make one from scratch! :)

Has a lifetime warranty and, as far as I am concerned, Yamaha's customer service is A+!

Been playing guitar/Bass for over 30 years now. I cannot even remember all the other stuff I own! Got a couple of "P-Bass" style basses laying around.

I really wish I would've taken a closer look at this thing! Playing it without an amp would've told me straight away that there were some problems with fret buzz and such!

If I had to replace this bass, I would probably go with a Warwick or one of Yamaha's TRB models

I love the aesthetics and the tone. Cannot really say I hate anything about this bass now!

I compared this bass to Spector and Ibanez models. Had a big wad of cash to blow at the time so I grabbed the most expensive one of the bunch. No regrets.

I wish it had a little bit more EQ control. The bass boost is a worthless feature IMO. Replace the pickup selector with a balance control and give it a couple of stacked pots for better tone control!

2004 model, Made in Taiwan. Five strings, 35" scale, 24 frets originally, defretted upon purchase (24 matching blue inlayed lines.) The active electronics consist of two Yamaha-branded soapbar-style pickups, one volume control, one tone control, pickup selector, and a midrage boost switch. Solid alder body, maple neck with rosewood fretboard. Satin "flat blue" body finish, satin finsh on black-painted neck. Hardware includes a monorail-style bridge, Gotoh GB-7 tuners. Cable and 9-volt battery included.

Bright, "modern" sound due to the active electronics and extended scale length. Tone control rolled back reduces some of the high-end, but not enough for dub territory. Mid-boost switch brings out a nice presence in band situations. A pickup selector is unusual for basses, and I'm considering replacing it with a pickup pan pot for additional sounds.

Extremely well set-up upon arrival (UPS Ground shipped). Only minor tweaking needed. No finish, electronic, or hardware flaws. Personally defretted upon purchase and professionally set up as a fretless after work was complete, so any current fingerboard flaws are the product of the owner's work.

This bass is very well constructed, and I can't imagine having any problems under normal playing conditions. The satin body finish might be less durable depending on your personal playing style. Solid strap buttons, but I replace the stock with Dunlop Strap-Loks as a general rule. I never gig without a backup, but this bass appears to be very dependable.

I contacted Yamaha via e-mail about converting the instrument to a fretless, whether that would invalidate the warranty on just the neck or the whole bass, and if they have any authorized service centers that could do so without invalidating the warranty. Received a response that it would do so, and they have no such system in place. While I can't blame them for covering work I did to the bass, it was a touch disappointing that they seemed to be unwilling to work at all with a customer (regarding the warranty covering parts of the bass not modified.)

16 years experience playing bass. Other gear includes a fretted "sister" Yamaha RBX-775, Fender Jazz Plus V, Ibanez SR-1206, Ibanez RKB-900, Ibanez SR-800 fretless, Digitech Bass Whammy, SWR Mini Mo' preamp with Mo' Control 2 pedalboard, QSC-PLX 1604 power amp, Avatar Speakers, and D'addario strings.

I would certainly search for a replacement if stolen/lost - an amazing vaule for the money. Positives include the hardware and monorail bridge, pickups and electronics, and extended scale length. A fine bass for the money to convert to a lined fretless.

Specifications as below. I opted for Flat Blue finish (yummy).

Almost spaceship in style - this bass is fairly unique. Has pickup selector which is uncommon in basses. Solid tuners that stay in place very well.

I play metal primarily - styles such as Opeth & Dream Theater.

Running through an Ashdown Five Fifteen 65w. The guitar is very quiet, the humbuckers being very effective.

The sound from this bass is very well.. bassy ! It has a dark tone to it which is however hard to escape from without lots of EQ tweaking.

Likes -
Active bass boost / pickup selector, making new tones easily accessible in a split second.
There is a definitive growl on the B string, which is what I want :D

Dislikes -
Hard to get a bright tone without lots of EQ tweaking.
Due to size of pickups and the truss rod cover in place, there is sometimes little room for slapping.

Setup was great - only needed tuning (was a little high)
Pickups at a nice height, with bridge being higher.
No flaws noticeable what so ever :)

A very solid sturdy but light bass - I can easily see this being gigged. Hardware is tough as well as the paint finish.

Strap buttons are fairly run-of-the mill - not properly tested yet.

I would take a backup bass, purely so I have an option to change tone (then again i'd do this with any other bass).

NA

I've been playing guitar 2 years and bass 18 months. I would have liked the opportunity to try out this bass prior to buying it, since I only had chance to play an RBX774 (so missing a string !)

If stolen - i'd be inclined to look at a few other basses in the price range, but most probably get this again.

Favourite feature = Drop dead gorgeous looks.
Hated Feature = Nothing as yet..

I had compared this bass to: Ibanez EDA905 / Fender Jazz 5 String (Mex) / Warwick Rockbass Streamer (5 String) and an OLP MM3. I bassically chose this bass due to the looks (how vain !) and price.

Only extra thing I wish it had is probably fret markers (on fretboard itself) since I sometimes miss by a note - however I feel I will get used to this, plus it looks better as it is ;)

24 fret, bolt-on, active 5-string bass. No inlays on the fingerboard -- which looks quite cool. Very modern hardware and overall modern look. I wish they made a fretless version too!

Great sounding bass -- at any price. If you're a snobby, racist prick like Eddd Rowwwmann seems to be -- at least from the sputterings on his web-page, then you could pay $3000+ and still not get a better bass -- just one that someone made in their basement.

I am all for custom guitars, but I am even more for production guitars that play as good as the customs.

Oh -- by the way Ed... maybe you SHOULD hire comissioned sales people. I walked around in your store for 30 minutes, had money to spend, and not one person interacted with me... and the DO NOT TOUCH signs are quite insulting to any experienced musician.

Back to the Yamaha -- a great sounding bass that is easy to dial in a great tone on, regardless of what ER thinks!!!

Plays like a dream -- I'm sure there are some lemons out there, but all in all, these seem to be much more consistent than the 765 series. The neck on mine is utterly flawless and a breeze to play on.

I own so much Yamaha gear from PA systems, Studio, FX, Keyboards, a few guitars and basses. Never had an issue.

Yamaha's support has been great to me! I can't speak for everyone, but they've been responsive to any of my needs.

I have been playing a long, long time and was a guitar tech at a Midwest store -- my set-ups always played better than anyone else's and here's why: Setting up a guitar, to me, is such a simple thing -- like playing jazz, for example. You can think it's easy or you can think it's difficult and you are right either way. If you don't know what I mean, then you don't know what you don't know!

That being said, I can pick apart an instrument quite quickly and I find these Yamaha's to be on a level with anything in terms of the workmanship -- whether it is machined or hand-made doesn't really matter that much if it sucks, does it? I have seen some very expensive hand-made instruments with major flaws that are quite rare in a production model like the RBX-775...

All in all, the Yamaha is a bargain at twice the price.

I chose the satin blue finish. Other features are same as already listed - made in Taiwan; 5 string, 35" scale, 24 Frets;
Alder body with bolt-on maple neck (four offset bolts); active electronics with Volume, Tone, Pick-up selector, and boost switch; 2 Yamaha branded humbucking pick-ups (VERY QUIET!); individual bridge saddles (mono-rail type). Packaging includes cable and allen wrenches for adjustments. For the price I don' think you can expect much more.

I play R&B, blues, & rock and am using a Hartke 3500 head with Hartke 4.5 XL 4-10 and Hartke 1800 1-18 cabinets. This thing will literally shake the mirrors off the wall. You can get any sound you want out of this bass. The pickups are absolutely quiet - you have to pick a string to tell if the volume is turned up. I've only used it for live gigs but think it will be great in the studio. I have no dislikes about the sound.

The string action was a bit high for my style but this was easily adjusted. The pickup height was fine. The components were very well fitted.

Live gigs are no problem with the RBX775. The satin finish seems durable. The strap buttons are fine if used with a quality strap but I prefer Schaller strap locks. The neck hasn't required any adjustment. I would use this without a backup as long as I had a spare battery for the active electronics.

I've had no experience this this department.

I've been playing for 36 years and have owned more guitars and basses than I care to remember. I have been most impressed with this instrument ever since I first played it. At a closeout price of $299 this is an absolute steal. I have a friend with a 5-string Sadowsky which cost him $3000 used and he's pissed after playing my Yamaha for spending so much. I would definitely replace it if lost or stolen. BUY IT NOW WHILE YOU CAN!

2004 Yamaha RBX775 made in Taiwan. 5 string with 24 frets, one volume knob, one tone knob, a pickup selector with a boost switch. Active Yamaha humbucker pickups. The body is made of alder and the neck is made of hard maple. Mine has a glossy black finish that is absolutely flawless. It has a very nice nu-metal or hard rock type of body style if you know what I mean. The bride has 5 separete saddles. Which is great for down tuning. Kind of like whats on a Ibanez BTB. I think the tuners are a Yamaha brand that are sealed and very smooth. The neck is made of maple and has a 35inch scale with jumbo frets on a rosewood fretboard. The guitar came with a battery, users manual, allen wrenches for adjustments and a guitar cable.

I like to play all different kinds of music like Korn, Rage against the machine and basically anything that has a slap bass line. I am using a peavey basic 112 amplifier which actually sounds really good for being kind of old. The pickups are very quiet. I was very impressed with the fact that you had to hit a string to even know it was plugged in. It has a very rich full sound. Great for slap bass or finger picking. It may only have a tone and volume knob but this bass is very versitile. You basically can use this bass for any style of music. You can tell that it is active. This bass would be great for the stage or studio. I have no dislikes about the sound.

From the factory the action was a little low so I adjusted that. The pickups were a little to high but I will change that soon. The frets were perfect but I do have one complain about the neck. I took it to my guitar tech and he said the neck is warped. Now naturally I was mad, so I called musicians friend and they said that they would send me a new one free of charge. Other than that it was ok.

This bass is very well made and will be able to withstand live playing with no problem. The hardware seems very durable and will last a lifetime if taken care of properly. The finish seem very good so I will say that it will last a long time. The strap buttons seem very solid with no problems there. I can depend on it once I get a new one. Like i said earlier the neck was warped so I will make a decision on the truss rod after I get one that was not defective. I would use it on a gig with no backup. very solid.

Dont know Ive never had to deal with them.

I have been playing a long time now and have owned 11 other guitars in my life and this one is just as good if not better than anything I have owned. Very quality. If it were stolen I would buy another one before they all sold out on the closeout sale. I love the feel, the quality and the sound of this bass. There is no dislikes. For the money you cant buy a better bass. If I were you I would pick one up before they are long gone.

2003 Made in Taiwan. 5 string, 35" scale, 24 Frets
Alder body with maple neck (four offset bolts)
Active Electronics with Volume, Tone, Pick-up selector, and boost switch.
Two Yamaha branded humbucking pick-ups (DEAD QUIET!)
Black satin Finish
Individual bridge saddles (mono-rail type)
Included cable and allen wrenches for adjustments
Awesome features for the price

Very Generic Punchy tone. Allows you to dial in whatever tone you like. It is a more modern sound, but you can get a "P-Bass" sound by using just the neck pick-up and bringing the tone down. Currently used with a Sans Amp Bass Driver, Boss GT-6B, SWR Wrkman 15. There is no noise from this bass. With the tone up and pickups at 50-50 it is almost a scooped mid sound. Rolling back the tone and using the bridge pickup gets a nice jazzy mid sound. Neck pickup similar to a P-bass. Huge variety of sound. Using a San Amp Bass Driver you can mix the modern tone of the bass with a tube sound to get any tone for any situation. This bass is light compared to my Hohner Bbass VI, which is a big win since I typically play 3 hour sets. My shoulder is very appreciative: ) No dislikes on sound, however, there is a more modern coloration. Also, the 35 inch scale give great sustain, especially on the B (my Hohner is 34").

Action was a little high, but the neck was in perfect relief. Dropped the action and made some intonation adjustments. The neck pick-up was too close to the G, so a few turns of the screws fixed that. Perfect volume across all strings and between the pick-ups. No flaws. Some other reviews claim the volume and tone nobs create noise when tweaking. I have not had this issue. Again, dead quiet!

This is a solid instrument, and has withstood several long gigs. I don't jump around a lot, so I'm fine with the stock strap locks. Tuners are tight and the bridge is solid. Hardware is all black, so you won't have the annoying fade associated with thin plated gold hardware. Finish is fine, but I'm nerdy about wiping it down and putting it in the case between sets. Have not had to adjust the neck, and I live in Texas (it's spring if you know what I mean: 70 degrees one day 100 the next). I have not bothered to take a back up, and feel complete comfortable doing so. However, I've only had it a month, so only time will tell. I've had a Yamaha BB300 since '88 and it's still kicking, so hopefully its new brother will have the same longevity.

Have not dealt with them. Comes standard with a 1 year warranty.

I've been playing bass for 15 years. I have an old Yamaha bb300, a Dean Edge 4, a Hohner BBase VI, and a '82 Music Man. This will replace the Hohner as my main bass due to the easier slapping with wider sring spacing and the advantage of the 35" scale (great sustain on the B). If stolen I would sell the theif's internal organs to buy another. I can't believe I got this for basically peanuts. I really bought this on a whim because of my past history with Yamaha and the desire for a low B with the ability to slap. I don't regret this impulse buy one bit! This is a closeout model, so get your hands on one while they last. It's worth the $$$$$$$!