Yamaha BB434 Review

A severely underrated bass

This is what I have been looking for for the past year or so. If I could describe this bass in one word, it would be balanced. The yamaha bb434 is a middle ground between the classicality of Fender and the modernity of Ibanez, maybe with a slight leaning towards classicality. It is probably the most comfortable bass I have ever played. Out of the box, the action was, for me, perfect,… read more at a medium/low height. Really comfortable to play. The neck is not as thick as a Fender, nor as thin as an Ibanez. It is a nice middle ground where you can lay down a groove, but are not held back from quicker runs. The body is not as small as an Ibanez, but has substance without seeming impeding. As for tone, it's versatile, having a P/J pickup configuration. I personally was looking for like more classic, Fender tones, and the Yamaha does exactly that. I have put flats on it and could not be happier. The hardware is it's weak point, but is really been nothing to complain about. If you're looking for a bass under $1,000, the bb434 should be a serious contender for your consideration. I could not recommend it enough. Particularly if you're looking for comfort, versatility, and Fender-like tone.

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Great Quality

This bass was out of stock everywhere, and mysteriously showed up for sale on Sweetwater's website a few weeks ago. I had been looking for a passive bass, and was interested in Yamaha because of their reputation for providing great build quality for the price. I was not disappointed. The guitar was delivered well package, and only needed to be slightly tuned before playing. … read more The neck is great on this bass, very fast and smooth. All frets were smooth with no rough or sharp edges. I did have an issue with one of the pickups not being at the right height, but I believe this was due to shipping and I was able to sort out myself by removing and reinstalling the pickup. The BB434 is extremely easy to play and sounds great, I would not hesitate to purchase again.

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Outstanding buy NO matter the price.

I thought I would try a Yamaha after buying a few Fenders. WOW! The sound is incredible the tone is awesome, the finish is perfect. The sound and tone are better than any of my other basses. I own ten in total. Can't have too many guitars or guns! This has been a quality instrument for me. I am buying another one with the Maple neck, just for fun! Ryan at Sweetwater has treated… read more me great, what a great company to do business with. Thank you.

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Great value

The 434 is superb quality for the money. I have enjoyed my greatly. I own several bass guitars and this one is at least on par with MIM Fenders imo.

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Don’t fall for the price

Was excited about the product due to having very nice Yamaha guitars. However the body is paper thin and it neck dives more than anything I've ever played in my life. The pickups are weak on the D&G strings. Find something better for the price. The guitar came with a dig near the tone control and after removing plastic from pickguard it had MAJOR scratches underneath

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Well-Balanced Axe

Punchy & driving tone, nicely contoured neck joint feels way solid, smooth fret work/nice action, and well-balanced. Body is kind of thin like the neck. Nice feel on the pots, weighty and precise. Hardware is so-so. I would have used something more solid for the bridge. Tuning keys are attached via fork-and-prong design. One of the forks was bent back on the G-string tuner, leaving… read more the key loose and wobbling. Oddly, there is a review on YouTube showing the same issue on the bass they received. Went through Yamaha Support Chat for a replacement tuner and had resolution in ten painless minutes. Kudos there. Sweetwater followed up on this as well. Either there was stress during shipping, or this somehow floated past Yamaha Q/C and two Sweetwater inspections. Tough call where that falls, but the bass should perform real fine.

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Yamaha BB Love

There is a reason the BB series have been called Fender killers since the late 70's into the 80's. I own a couple 80's Japan BB's that were cream of the crop back then and still kill now. These newly designed series are just as good and still out do Fender I've owned, even the USA models. The body on the BB434 feels great , the YGD desinged Alnico 5 pickups are phat and warm but… read more can sound aggressive, and the 45 degree string through bridge gives amazing sustain. Save some cash on those pricier "Higher End" basses and get one of these.The price is about a third of what an American Pro series Fender is now and yes......it slays it!

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