Yamaha BB-2000 Broad Bass Red Sunburst 1983
Yamaha BB-2000, red sunburst, made in Japan 1983. Yamaha were in fine form in the early 80s, producing some pretty innovative instruments and turning a lot of heads for their eye-watering quality standards. This is right up there with their finest bass offerings for the time: at ¥150000 brand new, this cost around double the price of Fender Japan's then-new JV serial Precision or Jazz Bass models that hit shelves around the same time. We've had other BB models through before, and they're always terrific basses, but this high end example is really something else. Look at that neck: holy crap. It's a full neck-thru style build, with a five-piece maple/mahogany core running all the way from the rear strap pin to the tip of the headstock. The neck feels amazing in the hands, it's in superb shape all these decades later. Add a high-mass bridge into the mix, and you get a mountain of natural sustain and resonance; the thing is alive and kicking. The pickups are cool too. The reversed P-style split single has heaps of growl and a lovely roundness to it, while the blade style bridge pickup adds some angular chop and snarl into the mix. You can get warm gooey friendly groove tones, or very nasty toothy sizzle, all just by messing with the basic volume/volume/tone controls. This shares a bit of DNA with the legendary SG-2000 guitar model made famous by Santana, and it's surely a worthy part of that legacy. Plus... go find another one in this kind of shape, I'll wait here. BB= bloody brilliant.
Model: Yamaha BB-2000
Made: Japan, 1983
Serial: 100259
Finish: red sunburst, gloss poly
Body: alder wings, maple/mahogany
Neck: maple/mahogany five piece, rosewood fretboard, neck-through construction, 34" scale, 12" radius, 42mm nut, mild D shape
Weight: 4.475kg
Mods: D-tuner attached
Pickups: BB2000 8-pole split single coil, BB blade single coil
Accessories: basic gig bag
Cosmetic condition notes: minor finish wear. The headstock has dimples on the end and bottom edge. The neck is clean and smooth in the hands, no major marks. The back has minor scuffs and rub wear around the whole body but no major marks. The sides have minor dimples on the horns and some light scuffs in the elbow area and near the jack. The front has minor dimples around the bridge and elbow area, minor scuffs near the controls and some play wear on the horns.
Overall: excellent condition (8.5/10)
Playing condition notes: Action is low, neck is straight, intonation is good, truss rod works. All electronics tested and working properly. Wearing fresh 45/105 strings.
Fret life: 8/10, minor wear only