Boutique vs Beginner Bass Shootout | The Janek Gwizdala Podcast  

IMPORTANT CORRECTION: Unfortunately I didn't realize my mistake in the model number until after the video was uploaded. This is actually an RBX170, and NOT a TRBX174. They are very similar, but this one is an older version from 20 years ago. You can still get the TRBX174 (again, almost identical) for $219.99.

You just proved that it’s really about the person playing the bass. You made that Yamaha bass sound incredible.

Yamaha basses are so consistent in terms of quality. You never get a dud Yamaha. I've had many over the years, at both ends of their price range and every one has been excellent

Moral of the episode "and gues what, sounds like a fucking bass" 😁 Love it Janek, really good stuff!

I learned to play on a Yamaha just like that one. Same finish 😁 I still have it back home in Peru

Yamaha and Ibanez basses of that price point and era punch way above their weight class man, super surprising. Though, it helps when you’re the one playing it lol you could make shoe laces sound musical.

Yamaha guitars are super underrated. My current cheapest bass is a Yamaha BB424X and it’s a joy to play. It feels good and sounds great. There’s nothing to complain about at all, and it’s sort of acting as a backup to my main bass which is a Reverend Mercalli 4. My main isn’t a $10K handmade bass, but I’d have no issue switching back and forth between them.

The yamaha pbass pick up with the old strings was pure motown

The takeaway from this video: It doesn't matter what you've got as long as you're thumpin'. I started on a Rogue LX460 (6-string pro model) that I got FREE. It was surprisingly good after I did a setup (removed excessive backbow with truss rod, intoned, lowered the action and new strings). I recently upgraded to a LTD B-205, but not 'cause I needed to.

Thank you, Janke, for your time on this lesson. You just let me know that it is really not about the bass but the time you put into your instrument. The last few minutes you played were great, and to spend a little more time with it.

This is a cool coincidence! I’m back visiting my parents and my old Yamaha RBX270J is there and I picked it up yesterday and forgot how easy it was to play, I remember mine to be a great versatile instrument that really helped me to learn a lot of the fundamentals of playing. I did a lot of firsts and milestones with it too, first gig, first recording, my Grade 8 bass, my audition for music college. It was a great bass for the first 5 years of my bass playing life before I bought my Music Man StingRay 5.

This is interesting! I own a Yamaha trbx505, and honestly, it has a very nice sound and feel to it.

I have that Yamaha, it is my first bass too! The TRBX has a headstock matching the body, the RBXes don't. Basswood body, maple neck, rosewood fingerboard, V/V/T controls. It was sitting at my parents house for years and only recently have I re-discovered it, took it to a luthier, had it set up and put a set of flats on it and I can tell you it sounds amazing. Great episode Janek, curbed my GAS a bit.

Yamaha entry level series basses are really good, when parents asked me what they should invest for their kid to learn bass on, I always told them « if they like it, buy them a Yamaha RBX (now TRBX), if they’re more into the vintage vibe then a Squier, but Yamaha is always easy to setup and service. And it always sounds good. » Many music schools here in France have Yamaha basses for that reason.

I Started playing on the same Yamaha like 8 years and even though I now have two other basses, I often come back to it, I love the neck

I got entry level Yamaha, RBX374, bought it as fretless and apart from the sharp grub screw ends for the bridge the hardware and the electronics are superb and smooth, the build quality of them made me reconsider my main bass and then I made an upgrade which I am very happy with. I also covered the fretboard with super glue for brighter mwah and longer sustain, it was a fun mod.

I’ve just got back the 1st bass I ever bought - I heard it was being scrapped and being taken to the dump. A 1991 fretless Bass Collection, made in Japan. I’ve replaced the tuners, rewired the electrics, new flatwounds, adjusted the neck relief and the string and pickup height. It’s sounding sooo good. It makes me feel happy and excited and peaceful when I play it - never had that before with any instrument. I’ve completed fallen in love with it and am addicted to it - haven’t touched any other bass this week. Have managed to shoehorn it into a wedding ceremony gig this weekend, some classic hymns and 90’s songs, it just FITS!! I have some replacement electronics on the way as there’s two ‘DFA’ knobs (but at least it’s nominally working now!!). By the time it’s repaired and giggable it’ll have cost £300 - which for a ‘new’ bass is a snip! Long way to say - if it makes you wanna play it and it sounds good, then it’s a great bass!

I bought an Aria IGB30 PJ 22 years ago - similar price, spec and colour to your Yamaha. Very fast slim neck, been rewired, pickups upgraded, dents and chips all over, buckle rash on the back but I love playing it. Huge fun to play and I love the neck. I have a Fender Jazz now which I also love.

I loved my Yamaha TRBX wish i never sold it... have Yamaha BBs now and they are epic!

I use to have one of these in a 5 string version so long ago. They were great little basses. Fun video.

Well done on this vid. There are so many misconceptions about basses (eg. brands, pickups, strings, wood types, ...) that it can be difficult to weed out the BS especially for beginners (but not limited to).

I have the same Yamaha bass. Really bang for your buck! I swapped all the hardware to black (Kluson tuners and a higher mass bridge) and swapped the pups to EMG GZR's. It's growling nicely! Only downside it has is that it's quite heavy. Heavier than Ibanez SR305 that I also have. I'm going to carve the body little bit to make it little lighter.

The way the Mattisson "sings" is fascinating and I've just decided to finally buy a bass and get started. Great video!

Woah, the list of bass players for the next episodes is epic! 😱

I've still got my first RBX-170. It really is an outstanding bass and gets used for about 80% of my recording sessions. Never been in love with the modern look but it sounds killer and feels great!

I LOVE Yamaha entry level basses. My first half decent bass was a Yamaha RBX765a. The onboard preamp is a bit of a weakness but otherwise they were just amazing instruments for the money. And I reckon the body shape and headstocks look great. Very, very fond memories of them.

I've got an old Sterling Sub that punches way above its weight. I love that bass. Sometimes you get what you pay for, sometimes you get lucky.

Yessss Meshell, Plantations Lullabies is one of my favorite albums of all time. She got me interested in playing bass in the 90's. Don't know why it took me over 25 years to actually start learning. Better late than never 😁

The comparison is ludicrous, such a beautiful bass, the Matheson.

A few years ago I had a period of financial difficulties and had to buy a cheap bass. I found and bought a used Yamaha TRBX-174, it was surprisingly good! Felt great, sounded great, 24 frets, good balance (no neckdive).

i have the Yamaha TRBX304 so the double humbucker version and i love it, yea i have my home build jazz bass with EMG JAX pickups with a far better body and neck despite if I could get my hands on a Sandberg body I would change it (the "lap formed" one), it's still a constant battle which one to pick up the Yamaha even the cheaper ones really do outplay their price class by quite a margin

Hey Janek, i think there is a huge difference in this basses and i wanted to share with you that actually im working with a luthier to make my own custom bass and its like HEAVELY inspired in you and yours bass... not with intention to copy you, im not even a professional bassist but i really dig your work and im trying to get kind your sound, you are a huge inspiration for me, i could get a little nerdy talking about woods and electronics but i dont know if you would be interested, well... that's all, huge fan from dominican republic, keep up the great work

For me I usually aim for the 1k range sit and play with it stock for 2-3 years then upgrade. I have a discontinued Ibanez SRSC806 purchased in 2019 and last year I changed the pick ups and preamp as well as lighter tuning machines and she sings now.

Just discovered this channel, really enjoyed this 🙂

I have a lot of videos like these in my channel. In Portuguese, of course. It is important to mention that for the Brazilian social and economic reality, it is important to emphasize that the music is more important then the "instrument"it self. :-)

I had that bass in blue in like 2003. Wasn't my first though. First was a Regal from the sears wishbook when I was 12 in 97. 2nd was a Jay turser Jazz copy in 2000, and then the blue yamaha.

I bought TRBX305 as my first bass. I'm an old retired tuba player trying to teach myself to play bass. Not very good but loving every minute I have the bass strapped on.

I got started on a very similar bass (RBX 270J) 16 years ago. I still have that bass and play it regularly, even for gigs. The neck just feels like home...

As much as I would love a high end/custom made bass, I am absolutely content with my Sire V7 which I bought in 2015 for about $600 I think?. I have modded it a little bit over the years and I now consider it one of the best basses I've ever had. It is absolutely possible to buy a budget instrument these days and make it sound like it's high end.

Great video! I love my expensive handmade basses but a well setup cheap bass can be a beautiful instrument too (as you’ve just proved).

This video confirms that I need to upgrade my skills before my bass. 🫠

Very cool comparison! You know it's possible to take out a ding with a soldering iron and a wet rag, kinda steams the wood back out 😊

I selected a TRBX505 as my first bass because as a pianist, the build quality and consistency I've experienced with Yamaha instruments is high. When I walk in and see a Yamaha C1 grand, I know exactly what I'm getting (assuming its been maintained). Recently recorded some tracks with my TRBX505 and was extremely pleased with the sound I was able to dial in.

get some super light half rounds on that thing and set it up. TBX tone pot and smiles. i'm still a beginner with a bass but I can play guitar and ukulele pretty well.. really liked the ESP eclipse ec-54 with just the humbucker and ATB1. didn't have a familiar tone but it sounded good and played nice enough. had an old Vantage 24 fret pj that was great with 45-95 rounds. similar ways as this.

I’ve got a green one of these the same age. It was my first bass and as a lefty I didn’t have a lot of choice. I’ve had plenty of others over the last 20 years but the Yamaha is never going anywhere. Still sounds great for a £200 (in the UK) bass. Love the video. And I can only dream of adding a Mattisson to the collection 😂

I remember in the late 80' / early 90's cheap gear was not usually very good. There were gems but most was just rough. That's not true at all anymore. I have a couple Squier basses that sound great. The trade off is in things like weight (both are tanks) and fit and finish (both needed fret ends taken down). I modded one with new pickups, wiring harness, tuners, etc and it's fantastic, just heavy.

That’s an RBX170. I had an identical one. In fact I had a couple back in the day. Absolutely great basses, regardless of the price, so much so I bought my daughter one for £100 recently. Nicely set up, they really nice basses.

I acquired the identical bass in January just black just because I wanted a 4 string bass and not break the bank, and I CANNOT complain about the tone and it's playability. Very uncomplicated no battery issues, I'm no note worthy Bassist but I endorse this bass. Yamaha is quality without the bells and whistles, if they made underwear I'd wear it because Yamaha is quality. I have a Marcus Miller M7 5 string and KSD 5 string to compare the Yamaha too and i also owned in the past a Yamaha TRB 5 string so i have some quality/tones to compare it too, again i have no issues with this bass, Reuel Daniel from Trinidad and Tobago 🇹🇹

You can do so much with an inexpensive instrument. Most of my favorite basses are these dang "Frankensteins" that I keep coming back to.

I have the p-version of that bass and I never thought I would see a real bass player review it. My first bass I got at 14, 20 something years ago, still play it.

Great players always sound like great players. I’m not surprised you sound good on that Yamaha. You are a great player and even cheap Yamahas are really solid instruments.

My 1st bass was a Yamaha RBX260 p bass for 200 bucks. I will always regret selling it 20 years ago. I wasn’t happy with the sound at the time, but I eventually realized that it was my technique and ear which needed improvement.

I already knew :D Yamaha's basses are just absolutely fantastic, regardless of the model or price. While there are a bunch of cheap basses that are just absolute stinkers, in more recent years, affordable instruments quality has just skyrocketed! All of my instruments are of the affordable variety - a mid-90's made-in-Mexico P-Bass (which has rivaled or beat most american Fender P's I've tried, bought used for $180), an Ibanez TMB35 (quirky little short scale 5-string P/J bass that I bought new for $250; only downside is the selection of 5-string short scale sets of strings is rather limited), a Sterling by Music Man Ray35 (which I modified to move the neck humbucker back next to the classic bridge pickup position, like your Mattisson! I'm in the process of rewiring it to be passive, with switches for series/single/parallel for each pickup), and a Squier Classic Vibe P-Bass with a DiMarzio 60s P pickup (I refinished the neck with a much thinner finish than the plastic-y stock finish). I'm also on Team Chelsea when it comes to frequency of replacing strings... 😅 BUT. I'd be lying if I said I didn't ever consider having a custom bass made. My main (and ever-present) hang-up is option paralysis.

Watched this video yesterday and then today saw a picture of the late great Allen Woody playing one of those Yamahas.

I've got a custom bass from McIntyre Guitars that's absolutely perfect for my main gig; it ticks all the boxes for me. For the rock gigs I occasionally play, I use a G&L I picked up for £400-it's Indonesian, not quite on par with the McIntyre, but still fantastic. My fretless needs are adequately met by a Warwick Rock Bass; it fits its role flawlessly and its not the waekest link in my fretless playing. While the custom McIntyre is my go-to for function gigs due to its light weight, versatility, and superb sound, each of my basses shines in its own right for specific gigs.

It did sound good especially on the bridge pickup which isn't what I would have expected

i have an yamaha rbx 170 an i love it. It 's so simple, but very comfortable.

That bass is the Rbx170, the following model is The Trbx174 that was my first bass , both basses are the same the only diference is the color of the headstock and both are amazing, you just need to give it a proper set up and it is good to gig and record. I still have it and i play it from time to time.

Yamaha's are criminally underated. They hands down have the highest quality per price. I bought a trbx305 thinking it would be cheap. It's better than most $2000 basses. Almost needed no setup. Amazing quality.

The input jack might be very simple, if it's not a wiring issue, it may just be there is a bit of corrosion on the contact points. Wrap some sandpaper (180-220) around a small dowel that can fit inside and just give the contact points some sanding!

My old Yamaha RBX wasn’t “on the roster” either so I gave it away in 2005, which I later regretted. They’re great instruments 😊

I bought an old aria pro ii with active pickups for around 30 bucks. Sounds killer

Love the Peter Erskine shirt and the synth tones!

Janek one of my all time life long hero’s is Mike Watt ( Minutemen, Iggy & the stooges, MSSV, porno for pyros, il sogno del Marino) the most original bass player and writer from the early 80s punk scene. He totally has his own sound and approach. His hero is John Coltrane . He’s been playing recently in MSSV with Guitar player Mike Bagatta . Beautiful Improv based punk jazz. He’s a lovely guy to . Known him for years and the world needs to know more about him . He’s in Cali too. San Pedro

Literally that Yamaha is the same model as my first bass was... mine was just transparent laquier and looked more like a piece of wood :) It was actaully playable and I liked it overall but I had a chance to get a much much better bass for cheap, so I didn't have it for too long...

I think it’s a combination of the player and the bass. Janek is going to sound good playing just about anything. But Yamaha makes gear that’s a great value also. In fact I believe the John Patitucci signature bass is as good as a lot of basses that cost twice as much. I also love my Yamaha MX keyboard. Motif sounds for a super affordable price

Imho your Mattisson is the most beautiful Bass I´ve ever seen and it´s so right that it´s is in your skillful hands! That grain structure... and concerning the Yamaha - the tone is in the fingers (according to the last Dirty Loops song "Run Away" ;-) Maybe trying new flats on the Yamaha? The biggest difference in the price point is wether the instruments are made in large numbers in low wages countries or in small numbers by manufacturers in "developed countries", right?

I picked up a used Yamaha 4-string at a local shop for $85. The electronics weren't great, but the thing played really well.

Bought a custom bass it's amazing and great for the studio and when you have a sound engineer. but it seems most people I dep with want a really low end that comes off the sire bass so that gets asked for live at weddings and pubs

I bought a yamaha bb1000 in 1982 for £250 in favour of a fender jazz because it had a hard case, i still have it (sadly the case rotted) and play it sometimes on gigs, never played a bad sounding Yamaha bass

Great video! Too many stories A&Bing great equipment and budget equipment. Jaco not using my SJE instructor’s bass on a gig because it was awful (instructor is a drummer), a band leader giving everyone extra cash from the band budget because violin player and I took our B team instruments to a festival gig while our main axes were in the shop he wanted to make sure we could pay to get our instruments back), a show where a teenage band’s songwriting was amazing but their tone sounded awful because they were using crate amps and wal mart guitars, I can go on. But this video shows the player > the instrument build. You can’t replace a custom shop bass with a $200 Yamaha, but you can get calls for gigs.

That is an RBX170, TRBX174 is a newer model :) Also I think that is - Tone, Balance, Volume knobs. My first base is a RBX270 in exact the same colour! Got it about 18 years ago and It was lovely to play :) The neck is slim and fast, loved 24 frets range :) I left it at my parent's house which I no longer have access. But some day may get it back :) And yes, I remember it was much brighter, so a new string would be lovely :)

Hello Janek, cheap Yamaha Basses have this habit of sounding good /do the job, whatever the model !

My favorite bass right now and probably my favorite bass I have ever played only cost me 1000 bucks. I even have more expensive basses, and they just are not the same and don't feel as good to me. It's a charvel pro mod san Dimas 5 string.

I have a Yamaha RBX 204j the jack are a weakness on these I have had to replace it twice in the last 10 years so I try to keep it plugged in

The problems with cheap instruments are that the wood selection isn't as stringent, and usually cheaper species and grades with poor grain orientation, the fretwork is often poor (which can be fixed), the hardware quality is marginal, especially the tuners (which can be replaced). But, if you get a good one, they will still sound good, and if the setup is good, you'll be able to play it without any problems. A few minutes with a soldering iron will repair that crackling output jack. and actually it wouldn't take much to wholesale replace the entire set of pots and the output jack with better quality parts and work to make it more reliable. I have a Squier mini guitar that I picked up at a yard sale for $35, and apart from the fact that the tuners just don't stay in tune, it plays fine and sounds fine, and if I replaced the tuners, I'd happily play a gig with it, especially because the whole reason I got it is that it has a 22.72" scale and is a great platform for experimenting with alternate tunings-in this case, I took off the outer strings, so it has four strings tuned to octave mandolin tuning, GDAE, in fifths.

We're in an era where almost all production basses are made using CNC technology with very tight tolerances. It's rare to get a real trash instrument, in any price range. Even with a cheap instrument, you take it to a luthier to do some fret work, set it up properly and it's usually good to go.

Great video! Would be interested in hearing the Yamaha with new strings and a repaired output jack, perhaps.used on a gg as you suggested. Or would changing the strings take away the vibe that you are enjoying?

I bought my daughter a Squier Jazz Bass$299 and I was pleasantly surprised how well it played and sounded. I play 2 or 3 more bases from the Sims Music and I think someone must have mixed up something because my daughters bass was as good if not better than any of the Mexican made $800 plus basses.

My first bass was an unknown Fender copy which costed definitly more then the Yamaha. I am talking about the early 80s. A selfrespecting fire wouldn't have burned this piece of ****. Luckily I got a used Ibanez Musician a while later and so it was very heavy and neckdived it was a revelation.

I am at the 13 minute mark so far and I think the 200 bas sounds great!

It sounds great...but I think it is mostly because you are such a great player that you would get the sound out of everything :)

Yamaha have a way to make inexpensive instruments that are quite nice to play, and sound good. Their middle end (like the TRBX 605) models are quite good, and can make a run for the money on some american classics.

Stephan will be an amazing conversation

This actually looks like a Yamaha RBX170, considering it was made somewhere in 00's. My very first bass at 12 years old was a Yamaha just like this one, but in blue! Agathis body, maple neck and rosewood board.

I think Harley Benton is the new cheap Yamaha of 2024, would love to get a modern day "cheap bass" comparison in a follow up video, but I must admit sounds like that ol' Yamaha is still punchin' well above its weight 😎

Those old Yamahas are absolutely worth their price. I bought a 5-strkng some 25 years ago, and it's still my go-to bass. I've taken better care of it though.

I had this bass. With a good technique like Janek's you could make it sound great. But over time you will get tired of it - the finish, the components, its inability to make a sound a better quality bass can make. Expensive basses give back over time, not immediately. You have to pay a lot of money for subtle differences. You can play tennis with a wooden Maxply Fort tennis racket, and it might be fun in the short term but you'll want to go back to a more modern racket before long.

Would be really interesting to hear how much closer the Yamaha got to the Mattison if you slapped some Aguilar pickups in it. But then again, the pickups prob cost more than the bass 😁

Just proves it's all about the player (electronics permitting)

we in germany had a thing where the goverment gave every 18 year old 200€ which could be used for cultureral events or buy instruments and i bought a 170€ bass and new strings. It sounds realy great but the neck is impossible to adjust for a good string action. You need some extra bucks to level the frets or something but then it is absolutly a great bass.

I own one of those cheap Yamahas and I was also surprised by the sound quality.

I've had a like $350 5-string squier p-bass and it sounds great, holds tune, and has played awesome for going on 8 years. I played it hard, even through my teenage years where I didn't take care of it. But now, I'm starting to have similar electrical issues. I think the lower price starts to show in longevity. But for normal bass playing in a mix, it's really hard to sound bad as long as you hit right notes, are in tune, and have a decent sound guy. I think your hand made basses are definitely art work but I think the law of diminishing return as far as pure functionality and longevity is around that $1000 mark. A LOT to be said for "cheap" basses. Especially these days

Looking forward to the Brian Beller interview, awesome guy & I tell you what,Lee Sklar would give you all the time in the world, he's the nicest guy you could ever want to meet.❤

i had my Yamaha trbx305 for about 3 years, imo its a great bass, waiting for a miller p8 4 string to be delivered thou :P but yea, yamaha

I always prefer passive for triggering synth and octave sounds.

I have this bass !! Yamaha is awesome

Well , exceptional playing , and Yamaha has been one of the best bass companies to produce basses since the 80's. They are exceptional for what they can do. Your string height is a bit high on that Yamaha , maybe just a truss rod adjustment. However it sounded very good , for 220 bucks , you would be hard pressed to find something better in that range. One day I'll own a Yamaha and late 80's Peavy. Good vibes man. That is some stellar playing. Nothing against ya Master built bass , its extremely nice , but I think once ya get past about 4 grand , from then on , its more about exotic woods , and extreme customizing. A nice Warwick , or a cheaper Fodera , or Wahl , or F bass , even Spectre , even a very nice ibanez , can do everything that Master built does , but as I said , its about extremely exotic woods and multi layered necks at that point.

By the way, I think the Yamaha is an old RBX 170, the TRBX is a newer version, and the body is slightly different.

Such cool gear ❤❤❤❤