Product: Yamaha BB1600
Price Paid: USD 400 USED
Submitted
11/10/2007
at
03:33am
by
Jeff Addicott
Features
:
10
Standard 4-string passive fretted, made in Japan during the Japanese heyday - the '80s. Standard J-bass controls vol-vol-tone. Quasi-P neck pickup, bar magnet bridge pickup. I say 10 because this is the setup I like. Any more "features" would detract.
Sound
:
9
The bass is very lively and cuts through the mix well. It doesn't sound like a Fender Precision - it has a more versatile, agressive character. The neck pickup provides body, as you would expect. The bridge pickup adds a lot of punch. Makes it sound like an active bass! I'd be tempted to try a different capacitor for the tone knob - higher value for a duller "thud". Like my other Yamaha, this bass is very dynamic.
Action, Fit, & Finish
:
7
The bass plays well - all the registers speak clearly. The wood work seems pretty tight and the finish is sharp. Doesn't look like a beginner bass.
The tone knobs seem slightly cheap and the tuners are crazy loose. They usually hold tune for the gig, but sometimes not, and whenever I take it out of the case, the tuning is WAY off. The other Yamaha is the same way. I might upgrade to Schaller gears, which are much better.
Reliability/Durability
:
7
Japanese instruments from the '80s seem a lot like the cars: they appear to be light and fragile, but they work really really well and last forever. I'm used to beefier hardware. I'd want a backup for any kind of major gig or tour, but I trust this rig as much as any.
Customer Support
:
No Opinion
Overall Rating
:
No Opinion
Playing almost 20 years. This is a nice, versatile, passive bass with good thump and growl. These basses are still vastly underpriced on the used market (UNLIKE the Fenders!!!). If it got stolen, I'd be bummed but I probably wouldn't try to replace it with another BB 1600. I'd try something different, something with classier hardware. I'd probably miss the sound.
Product: Yamaha BB1600
Price Paid: US $380 used
Submitted
03/31/2006
at
06:31pm
by
Stan Ganila
Features
:
8
pretty straight forward bolt-on passive bass -- comfortable weight and contour-- p pup at the neck and j pup at the bridge -- volume for each and overall tone knob.
Sound
:
10
awesome -- sort of a cross between a snappy active bass and a warm passive tone. This bass is great with effects i can see why so many of the eighties players used this series of basses (kanal, east, peter hook, michael anthony) -- they are great with effects i.e. chorus and distortion
Action, Fit, & Finish
:
10
no complaints
Reliability/Durability
:
10
Customer Support
:
No Opinion
Overall Rating
:
10
