Yamaha RBX-170

just bought it brand new, never even picked up a bass before. was looking at packages from ibanez and squire for around $300 that included bass, amp and accessories. Instead i got this Yamama RBX170, a bigger amp, a longer cable, and instead of a gig bag and video i got a folding stand, for $320. I am way pleased with my purchase. I thought this bass had a quality feel to it, and it looked better than the entry level squire or ibanez. This was about the cheapeast setup I found, even at pawn shops, and I feel like I got a decent instrument, even if it is Yamamas basic model.

sounds like a bass to me!

quickyl tuned and adjusted at the store. Seems good to me, but what do i know ?

yamahas web site kinda sux, they have almost no information on this instrument. i was trying to figure out which knob was which... still don't know.

P-J pickup configuration, passive. Standard volune / volume / tone controls. Fender style bridge. 24-frets, long scale.

Your basic, no-nonsense bass. (The best kind, IMHO)

(I helped a friend pick this out for her teenage daughter who decided to play bass. Mom didn't want to spend a lot of $$$$)

Nice open tone. Bright. Could be warmer to my taste, but for the $$$ is fine. The J pickup soloed does hum a bit, but that's normal. Nice variety of tones from the two pickups.

Setup was OK, but I had to redo it for my friend. (Action and intonation. Most basses come the same way this one did.

Frets were great, fit was great, finish was flawless.

Looks like a solid, Yamaha product. The tuners look a bit "iffy" but, they could be OK. (I don't like closed back tuners on basses)

I would play with this live.

RBX 170 "entry level" or "beginners" bass. Basic 4 string. Maple neck, rosewood fingerboard. Agathis body (what's that?). Passive electronics. PJ Pickups.

Using it with a) Behringer BX600 (also entry level), a Trace Elliot Commando 15 and a Hartke 3000 head on a 4.5XL cabinet. I'm amazed at the versatility of this bass! Play it any way you like it and it can handle it. I've gotten to expect low end basses to suck when slapped, but this little guy stands up and takes it like my Ibanez and better than my Dean!

It grooves. It rocks. It jams. It kicks butt!

Took very little setup; the store set it up for me, but it took almost nothing. Fit & finish are not flashy, but flawless. Intonation is perfect. Action is light but no buzz. Pickups are dead silent. Tuning is tight.

Only gripe: black pickups, black knobs, black fingerboard, but a light colored (maple) head. Huh? Sure doesn't affect play though.

Seems to be built solid. Survives my junior high school son.

Use it live with confidence (unless you do the Pete Townsend thing). I play 4- and 5-string; I'd not hesistate to use this as my 4-string in a smaller gig without a 4-string backup.

"Limited lifetime warrantee." I don't expect to need it.

In the low price world, it's easy to find cheap gear that looks pretty but sounds awful. Occasionally you can find something low priced that's pretty decent. But finding something like this Yamaha is rare. It's inexpensive, but it's NOT cheap! This isn't a toy, regardless of the price.

This little "under $200" ax will put anything under $400 to shame.

I am following up on a review i did when i first got the bass,now i am here to crucify it. I think its senseless to repeat the features so if you will scroll down and you will get the picture.

Sound... hmm. what sound? The bass is very basslike, but with the precision pup on it is very very blunt sounding which makes me never use it at all. The bass with the jazz pup on is very bright, almost too bright. The mid is the basses weakpoint. It is blunt no matter how much tweaking you do to it. I dont use any pedals because i think they cover up how bad the person plays, not the bass. Anyways, the stock strings are absoluted donkey shit. I replaced them with Dean Markely blue steel and the sound was improved greatly, but it still is very dissapointing. Save up children, buy a better sounding bass. Highs are very good on this bass i have to admit, but we dont want a cross dresser here, a bass should sound deep not like a de-tuned guitar. You can get some decent variety. Anything (genre) that requires a deep bass sound does not suit this bass well at all. This thing is for the genres that require a trebly bass like jazz.

Tuners- Dont get me started, this is probably the most disappointing part of the bass, they are shit. If you play for more than two hours straight, not even beating the shit out of it like i do (im a slap god and i play slap most of the time i play)it gets out of tune and it is very very inaccurate when it comes to tuning. I have broken two strings with those pos's, And are they chrome? i think not. If you look to the side of the tuner you can see a line....mmm plastic
Fingerboard- I dont even think its rosewood. Seriously i have pampered this bass and what happens? The black grain of the rosewood turns into this plastic colored white. WTF, is this bass made of plastic or what? The knobs are plastic and look ugly, and they dont even match the god damn bass. And one of my knobs was missing a washer and wiggles like crazy. There's quality for you my friend

So far i have a broke knob and after four months the damn thing dies on me. The washer which hold the pot in place disappears because the shitheads at Yamaha decided to put it there where it can easily be loosened, which it has loosened on me several times. So the pot dies on me. Great. The finish looks excellent, but the stupid pple who made it scratched it up pretty bad. This bass would be very reliable if it were made in a better country and of better material. I would not even think about using this bass during a gig nor would it be a backup. Im so upset because i actually wasted 150 dollars, but my parents didnt think i was serious about playing bass. WHAM! they were wrong. And now im stuck with a pos bass that doesnt WORK!

I havent called yamaha, and i dont want too, this experience drives me away from them. You would think the Japanese make awesome basses (which they do, except that this one was made in malaysia)

Beginners- dont buy it
Intermediate- Laught it
Advanced- Use it as firewood

SAVE YOUR MONEY AND BUY A BETTER BASS! I am probably gonna save my money and buy a pedulla, a lakland, or a spector, and maybe a fender jazz. Well Christmas is coming so i guess i know what i wanna get. Anyways, this bass isnt happening for me.

I think you know the details. I'ts an allround bass without
any senseless stuff.
And I think you don't need more features to be a great and happy
bassman.

It's great for nearly every kinda music.
I play blues and rock, but it should also be good playing jazz.
You always get the sound you want (with the right amp, of course!)
and playing gigs on it is pure fun.

Knowing the price of this bass, you will be surprised how
perfect it is built. The finish is great, especially the red metallic one :))).

Reliable like every other instrument by Yamaha

Never dealt with them...

It's the first bass I own, but I played some others and I think it's the best one you can get at that price range.

Think this is the rbx 170 - 150 quid.
Basic features, 2 stock pickups P/J.
I play this thru a marhshall valvestate 40w guitar combo cause i'm stupid and don't have a bass amp.
I think the body was made of some light wood, possibly agathis, but it could be that new luthite stuff.

The pickups are great. I like to play hard with a 3mm stubby. Bass - 10 - treble - 10 - mid - 1 yet no However no matter how much i fiddle with the EQ i can't seem to get a bassy feel. Its loud tho. lol lol

The set up was great. It buzzes a lot but i think its the way i play lol lol.
Why bother adjusting stuff. It should be left how it was. I like my basses 'au naturelle

I've gigged with it numerous times, including once when i begged the music shop to let me borrow it, coz i didn;t have a bass at the time. lol lol

I haven't had to contact them yet cause my bass is so good

i've been playing bass about 6 months now and i think i'm fully qualified to give my opinion on this fine guitar.
buy it
be like me

2002 Yamaha RBX170 Made in Indonesia 24 frets 4 srting maple neck ( i beleive one piece) rosewood fretboard one volume two tone controls i beleive that the pickups are stock yamaha, one precision and one jazz, im not quite sure what the body is made of, but it is pretty light, im guessing alder. It has a very attractive finish, dark metallic blue, it has a precision body with jass neck, and it is very fast to play on 34" scale very attractive color

I love metal(metallica iron maiden ozzy megadeth) and funk/punk (red hot chili peppers) and this guitar has a great variety of sounds. IT has a very very dark sound with the precision and a very very warm and smooth sound with the jazz pickup on. Slapping is extremely excellent with this guitar. The guitar resonants very much every time you play low notes. I love the fast neck and feel, it is very light and you could play forever with it, just make sure your strap is comfortable.I love the sound period. I really love the way flea plays and this guitar can mimic it with no problem whatsoever

My bass was set up PERFECT. It was in tone the action was perfect. My only complaints were the following: 1. The stupid people at the factory had scratched my guitar 2. The stupid people at the factor missed painting some spots by my pickups 3. The stupid people at Yamaha decided to put black plastic controls with a metallic blue... this personally looks like shit. However those complaints are very minor details, im quite anal about my hobbies. Anyway.. the metallic blue color is extremely extremely awesome. I also have seen the candy apple red and black and i must applaud Yamaha for such fine jobs on the paint. I have no fret buzz whatsoever.

Ive played several gigs and it has withstood everyone of them, basically you could kiss a back up good bye because you wouldnt need one. The strap buttons are extremely solid. The finish has withstood much abuse from my younger brother who just recently "hit" my guitar with his acoustic. However it did not leave a scratch whatsoever. This guitar is built like a tank and its not going anywhere soon

I have never dealt with them, but i do have a warranty... i beleive its a year

THis guitar is GREAT!!! It has a beutiful finish, awesome sound, incredible slapping ability, and is a joy to own and play. I have been playing for 36 years and this is a very very good quality guitar for its price range. Ive played Fenders, Gibsons, Richenbackers, Ernie Balls, Squier, Ibanez, Washburns, Warwicks, and ESP's and this guitar is exceptional. I chose this guitar because i was very interested in adding a Yamaha to my collection and am overall surprised to see that Yamaha makes excellent guitars at excellent prices. YOU MUST BUY THIS GUITAR!!!!!