YAMAHA BB234 BB-Series Bass Guitar, Yellow Stain

BB434 series: Was hesitant to write a review about this one because of shipping quality time and some craftsmanship. I do give it 4 stars for the product, but I’d say, I’ll never make a huge musical instrument purchase on Amazon again. Experience CONS: The package was practically destroyed. The Yamaha box wasn’t all that secure to begin with. There was a ding on the back of the bass upon opening. It needed a complete set and intonation fix. The string tree also moves while tuning. So you have to hold it in place when close to finishing up tuning. The bolts in the back were practically forced in there as you can see in the pic, it’s scraped away at the finish (bad QC on the production line). Product PROS: lightweight, balanced, good fret edges and fingerboard. Love the 2 string through options. I know the tuners are “lightweight” but they do seems fragile? Pots are sturdy and smooth. Pick ups and tone options are great. Other than the extremely long shipping and poor handling and some QC issues and set up from Yamaha, the user experience of the product itself is excellent. I recommend this bass, just buy it from an actual music store in person in case of QC issues or from somewhere with trusted shipping and handling and better packaging.

I started writing this review but realized I could be playing my BB734A Yamaha bass *instead* so I did. Lots more fun. But here is a short review. I got this instrument as my entry into playing electric bass (prior experience guitar) and I’m so happy I did. If you want to read one-star reviews about shipping damage this ain’t it. I received this bass in perfect shape in the advertised time window and with an excellent gig bag thrown in. It needed no setup, just tuned it and started playing.

In addition to sounding great I have positives on the look (coffee burst), weight, balance, tuning pegs, bridge, satin neck finish (no sanding needed), and tonal range across the two pickups. On the latter I can go to the mid detent and they cancel hum even.

Accessories: I have found super helpful the following: A wide padded comfortable shoulder strap, a stand, a fret wrap, a set of flat wound strings, some cheap Amazon 9V batteries, a clip-on tuner, couple good cables, solid music stand and a reverb pedal. And an amplifier, goes without saying. In order the reverb and shoulder strap are most important.

The active electronics work great — 3 knob EQ only when the toggle is on — but I keep forgetting to toggle it off when I finish playing so to avoid draining more 9V batteries I just play it with passive pickups and keep the battery out on the desk; it goes in in a matter of a seconds.

Finally a shout out to YouTubers who put great learning content up for bass. You haven’t lived until you’ve spent four hours running scale patterns with Adam Neely, seriously. It can be overwhelming so also NTS don’t get overwhelmed.

Mostly I should say this bass does a great job of getting out of way so the experience of playing it is about the music. It sounds *really* good.

comparing to bass guitars for over $2-3K ,this is a great bass! top notch design, subtle details to be found when looking it over, from the “through rear string holes”, to the tuning gears, and beautiful neck. the craftsmanship is very solid. Yamaha nailed it! a very nice case too! Compared with similar styles from G&L, Fender, MusicMan, Ibanez and for me this one came out on top! I never gave something a 5 star rating before.

This is my third MIJ Yamaha guitar/bass, and I have to say that I think the MIJ Yamahas are the best value for the money in guitars and basses, bar none. All three of mine have absolutely impeccable craftsmanship, the fit and finish is perfect, and the instruments play and sound amazing.

There’s no compromise here between this bass and a Fender P-Bass, a PJ, or anything else that’s in that vintage mold. This is above the Fender American Standard (Professional, whatever they are calling it lately) level of quality. It’s level with any top of the line production Fender easily. You won’t find any poorly cut nuts, tooling marks, or finish issues from the factory on these.

The best features of the BBP34 over competitors like high end Fenders is, IMO, the overall higher level of build quality, and the really full low and midrange tone. It sits really really well in a band mix. These differ from Fenders in that the body is Alder/Maple/Alder and traditionally that’s what gives them the power the BB series has always been known for. I think the pickups are great and are voiced exceptionally well for vintage type bass tones, but they are standard size and shape in case you want to drop in something else.

One last note – Amazon ships these in their factory shipping box, but I had no issues. The hardshell case the bass came packaged in was fine, unblemished and totally safe when it arrived at my door.

I would recommend this over any comparably priced bass, and to anyone who wants a passive, vintage-style bass that does the classic P-Bass thing exceedingly well but offers more than any other manufacturer can offer at the price. This is a lifetime type instrument for me, I believe. Like so many are still playing BB’s from decades ago because they are so functional and versatile, I think this is going to be an old friend for me one day too.

Extremely high-quality bass guitar, but you can’t go wrong with Yamaha. Beautiful tone, easy to play, very fast neck. Highly recommended!