Yamaha BBG5A

I bought my Yamaha. It was amber burst coloured, bolt neck and 2xactive humbuckers. I think it was made in Korea.

I have played hard rock, basic rock and heavy metal several gigs with different setups, from tube Ampeg head with 8x10 cabinet to the other end of the line, a little Warwick combo. I never liked this "clanking" sound (Steve Harris style) that my Yamaha produced. At the studio it was a real problem. No good sound was found at all! Again we tried several setups for the recordings. No use. I gave up with the Yamaha and played my sessions with 5-string passive Hohner. No sound problems with that. I didn't bother to upgrade the electonics wich I think it was the main problem with the crappy sound. This is the reason why I sold Yamaha and bought Ibanez BTB 405 instead..

If we forget those terrible sound problems the bass itself looked very nice to me. The amber burst finish was absolutely great. Also the neck fit to my hand very nicely. Special bonus point comes from very handy battery cover. No screwing needed. Ibanez guys should steal this idea for their basses. But still it can't compete with the nicest hand made basses. Still it is a fine looking instrument for a factory made.

After basic setup after factory defaults the action and the intonation of the bass was good. At the studio and gigs it kept it's tune remarkably well. I had this bass for 2 years and I never had to adjust it again.

Never had to contact them.

Nice bass as Yamaha usually does in this price category. I have owned 3 Yamaha basses and yet this was the worst sounding ever. Something was terribly wrong with the electroncs or the body material of this particular one. The mistake I made was that I bought this bass without trying it first wich I don't recommend to anybody. Maybe it could be a solution to change the mics but instead I bought an Ibanez and I'm happy with that. No good review for good looks. Sorry.

a korean bass, translucent quilted maple effect on top, alder body, 5 string witch have a very relations of space between strings (19mm at the neck, just like a conventional 4 string bass) witch allows a good slapping and popping technique. active controls with bass boost and treble.
a good shape, nice and confortable, what else?

it doesnt sound like a musicman five string or ken smith, but in relation with the price its more than ok.
a good range of sounds and most at all: a very strong low B, that is hard to find on other basses at the same price, believe me a tried.
the bbg5 wins.

no problem, everything in the right place, a good heave piece of alder wood at the body, nice gold saddles, bridge and knobs.

no much to say, the bass isnt a japan or american product but is pretty much better than a fender mb 4 build in japan, however it seems to be strong piece with great finish.

never need it!

i ve playing for almost six years and at this time i enjoyed a different kind of basses, this is my first 5 strings, i ve owned a beatifull ibanez ATK 300 fretless, a SDGR 406 six strings,a fender MB4 whit dimarzio PU, an ibanez EDB 690, and a few more, i ve never had much money but always i tried to find good basses and this yamaha is a cool piece, i ve been thinking the next bass would be a very very great bass to make me do the exchange. the important thing is what you get for what you pay for, well, i paid 790u$s ( usa fender jazz bass is around 1500u$s) and i own a cool bass, i guess.

Mine is made in Taiwan, 2001. Green natural flame maple finish, 24 frets, 5 strings, 2 yamaha humbucker PUs, with onboard preamps. No option to bypass the preamp. Once the battery is dead, no sound. Unfortunately this series does not have the mid-cut control like in BB 60x series

I have been playing bass for more than 5 years and I play a wide range of music, from Rock, Alternative, pop, jazz, blues. This bass has a good oboard preamp that can cover wide range of music. The tone of this bass is well rounded, not too rock, not too jazz. You can get a decent bass punch for rock and a decent slap/pop tone for funk, as well as nice jazz tone. I always love Yamaha basses, as they are really value for money, not like the bloody Fender craps.

The only problem with this baby is that I don't really prefer Yamaha stock pickup. Somehow, I find that EMG can enhance the tone more so that's what I did, changing the PU to EMG 40DC (neck) and 40J (bridge). It leaves my bass with big gap in the PU place since Yamaha is quite nasty when it comes to PU size. After the PU change, even original Fender USA has no comparison to this!

My rating is 9 for this baby w/ orig PUs, and 10 w/ PU replacement

Got the bass second hand. When I bought it, it is still in a good condition, only slight rust at the higher register frets. The neck action is nice, not too curvy like Fender Jazz bass. Have no neck problem up until now.

Yamaha is always very reliable. If you open the control cavity and observe the wiring, you will get what I mean. Neat and Clean. Never encounter any problem with the electronic or body/neck/bridge/tuners. Dropped this baby once but the neck is still alright, no prob at all.

Never contact Yamaha. No need to do so, since it is so reliable

I have been playing bass for more than 5 years and have tried variety of mid-rang bass like Fender MIM and MIJ, TGM (total crap product), Peavy, Warwick, Epiphone, etc. Yamaha, in my opinion, is the best value for money. They are always very careful with the quality and keep improving on already great products.

This bass was made in 2002!I bought it 160.000 Hungarian forints!It was made in Taiwan.It has 24 frets!I think it's a bit heavy.The body looks very well!This is the most beautiful bass what i've ever seen!For other deatails visit the www.yamaha.de!

I think you can play any kind of music,because it has active eletronics.I play finger style,but it heard as i play with pick.It has also very good slap sound!I like it very much!it has bright sound!The trouble,the middle,and the bass are very good!

the finish is super.It is very precise.It hasn't got any flows.

I bought this bass two monts ago....but so far it hasn't got any problems!

I don't know but who is sold me this he was very friendly!

it is a very good bass!I offered this everybody!

fabricado na Koreia com excelente padr?o de acabamento e qualidade nas materias primas utilizadas.

Excelente sonoridade com grande variedade de timbres para se ter ideia eu era f? dos Ibanez e troquei meu Ibanez BTB405QM por este baixo justamente pela sua resposta a graves e agudos. Nunca me interessei por baixos yamaha mas depois que conheci este modelo simplesmente nao penso em outro fabricante.

Fiz um ajuste no baixo colocando as crodas o mais proximo possivel sem trastejar, apesar da escala ser um pouco larga comparado com modelos de outros fabricantes e muito confortavel ede uma ac?o muito boa de se tocar. Os captadores s?o excelentes para mim n?o precisa de mais nada.

Bem meu baixo e novo mas pelas viagens que ja fiz tocando com ele e pela robustez do instrumento acredito que seja muito duravel e resistente. Aprovado!

Bom quando a garantia outro fator que me convenceu a adquirir-lo foi a garantia de 1 ano enquanto a Ibanez no Brasil e de 90 dias apenas.

A new 5-string bass from Yamaha targeted for bassists on budget and as such, it cannot be made in Japan (too costly). Instead it is produced by their plant in Kao Shiung (Taiwan) which has been over the years, churning out good-value for money musical instruments for the international market. The BBG5A shares the honour to be in the BB class which has been favoured by artist like Nathan East. The bass spots an alder body with a translucant red sunburst finish, a maple neck with rosewood fingerboard, gold hardware and Yamaha's own soapbar pickups(pair) and a simple active circuitry. Controls include a master volume, a pickup blend and separate knobs for Bass and Treble boost/cut. No gig bag or hard case bundled at such a low price

Given a 34" scale length consruction, the B-string is tight and define. This bass is very versatile and can be use in all genre of music. Frankly this bass on the whole sounds presentable, no qualms about that but it lacks the oommph and kick. After being introduced by a friend to the Sans Amp Bass Driver DI and incorporating into the signal chain, WOW! I gurantee that your jaw will drop and you will almost couldn't believe that you are playing the same bass as it sounded like one that costs twice or even thrice. It gives so much richness and body to the sound(of course one must know the correct settings on the box)that it puts many middle to even high-end basses to shame. Slap tone is o.k but not killer, maybe due to the rosewood fingerboard and no mids control.

The action was a tat high when I try out the bass at the showroom as I am used to low action. The only down side in the construction would be the rosewood fingerboard at the side edge (just a small portion) where it is not properly cut and buffed and also same side edge upper register portion where the wood as if contracted some "skin disease" where you can feel and see small wooden bubbles on the rosewood. Other than that, the hardware is perfect and the neck join to the body is tight without any unsightly "gaps or air-way". Pickups are snuggly fitted and not shaky or flimsy

Well build, tough and steady. Even the input connector bites and graps your instrument cable 1/4" connector so tightly that you can be sure it won't come out when you accidentally steps on the cable when you walk around or jump. No strapp locks though so when you jump around on stage be careful. Go ahead and abuse it.

The bass is heavy!! and unless you workout in the gym, you will feel the weight and strain after an hour of standing. Good value for money bass to buy if you are just starting out on a 5 or on a tight budget constraint. One of the best B-stringer at this price. Moreover it's from Yamaha, you can be sure this guys did alot on research and improvement and their quality and standard is always there. Nah, I won't buy back one if lost or stolen since it's cheap. Nevertheless a good bass to bring for rehearsal and do all the abuse you want (trust me the bass can take it and you won't feel the pinch) and show your F bass or Lakland only on the actual show.