1990s Yamaha RBX650 Electric Bass Guitar

I bought this as part of a lot from a local guy offloading gear. It was kinda gross, had paint marks all over the top, a bad wiring harness, and it played like garbage -- at the time. After cleaning, a "glorified setup," and a new wiring harness, this thing is righteous. It's completely not my style but I admire it as a bass. It's lightweight, plays fast as heck, is comfortable to play, and sounds like a more "acoustic" P-bass, if you will. It's got more "breath" to it or something. Maybe because it's light and probably totes brighter ceramic pickups?

Either way, it now belongs to a friend of mine. More power to him! I heard him trying it out and blasting-out tunes like he'd just powdered his nose with confectioner's and put on sparkly pants. I mean -- dang!

So -- if you see one of these out there, don't deny it. Yamaha sure knows how to build fun toys.

Repairs included: fret level dress, new wiring harness (500k pots, 010 cap, Switchcraft jack), lots of cleaning, restring, and setup.


Body wood: several-piece ash

Bridge: upgraded to a cast aluminum one at some point

Fretboard: rosewood

Neck wood: maple

Pickups: 1x P-Bass-style


Action height at 12th fret: 3/32” bass 1/16” treble (fast, spot-on)
String gauges: real light, "clear nylon" tapewound of some sort, feels like 85w-35w equivalent

Neck shape: slim C

Board radius: ~14"

Truss rod: adjustable

Neck relief: straight

Fret style: medium-big


Scale length: 34"

Nut width: 1 5/8"


Condition notes: it's got 20+ years of wear on it -- light scuffs and scrapes and scratches here and there and some heavy pickwear just north of the pickup.












Comments

McComber said…
My very own rhino! (that Yamaha horn....) Love, love, love, love, love ....