Yamaha Bass TRBX174-EW Mod: GOTOH 201B Bridge Installing

A step-by-step DIY video on installing a new high mass Gotoh 201B bass bridge for your Yamaha bass. There are a few tips in here will help you save big time on getting the intonation right with any guitar new bridge install. If you want to see more guitar stuff, hit the like button and please comment.

[@jamesreynolds4487]

Gotoh makes the best stuff

[@thisoldmanchannel]

Agreed! High quality and a great design.

[@allkindsofoutdooractivities]

Very cool video. I don’t play but I enjoyed it!

[@thisoldmanchannel]

This is an awesome bass guitar irrespective of price and I couldn't find any how to videos. I guess if people like the video I'll be doing more upgrades on it. Thank you for your watching!

[@allkindsofoutdooractivities]

@@thisoldmanchannel awesome! Enjoy it!

[@thisoldmanchannel]

You can get a plastic caliper at Hobby Lobby for just a few bucks and do the job. A feeler gauge is pretty cheap too.

[@shawnhuff3920]

Ksm music makes a better bridge i have a Ksm bridge and quarter pounder pickups in my Yamaha trbx 174ne bass guitar

[@thisoldmanchannel]

That's some pricey upgrades, I'm sure it sounds as good as it looks. The Gotoh is a decent bridge for around $35 bucks I paid; well made, great plating, no problem at all getting the intonation spot on. The Hipshot on my bb234 bass needed longer fillister head screws for the D & G strings among other tweaks. Recently though, been looking hard at the Indonesian Squires too. Thanks for watching!

[@joseeduardojunior5534]

Hi, thanks for the video. I would like to do the same upgrade on my bass, but I like the action of the strings very low. In your opinion, would there be a problem with this as fret noise?

[@thisoldmanchannel]

Hello and thanks for watching. How low you can go depends on your style. Me I love to bang on those strings. The other thing is that the thickness of the this model Gotoh Bridge and the saddles really limits how low you can go. The TRBX174 has a really solid and stable neck...If you want to go really low, see a professional and get it setup exactly the way you want it and that may require some fret leveling etc.

[@mrowlbert]

Thank you so much for putting up this video! I have the same bass on the way and since I got it on sale, I want to do some upgrades as well. The Gotoh looks great! Are you going to perform any other modifications?

[@thisoldmanchannel]

Hello Albert, thank you so much for your comments! You know, I'm pretty happy with the guitar as is... If Hipshot made a direct replacement for the tuners, I suppose I'd get those. Otherwise they're fine.. Pickups sound great.. Probably make a copper or aluminum electronics cover to replace the plastic one. I will make a video on a simple $7 upgrade soon. BTW, Check your fretboard for straightness before you put the new strings on it.. Take your time with the saddles, you'll be fine tuning those for a couple weeks until everything feels right. Then if your still getting some fret buzz you can easily release pressure on the truss rod going counter clockwise a quarter turn, then keep playing it.. Wait before you make another adjustment... Get some nice new strings... Plenty of great products out there.. If you haven't subscribed subscribe as I've got some more guitar videos out there under my channel umbrella.

[@henrybonruiz]

Can a Gotoh bass bridge like this be installed in an EPIPHONE EB 3 Bass? I hope somebody can help me. Thank you very much.

[@thisoldmanchannel]

Maybe measure the holes and compare to a drawing. Look at Hipshot bridges too.. They got a great website, lots of products and great customer service.

[@dannbass]

Looks great!

[@thisoldmanchannel]

Daniel, thank you! Put the exact same bridge on a BB-234...The bridges Hipshot makes are really beautiful and very high quality. Thought the Gotoh was the best option given the base price of the 174-EW.

[@thisoldmanchannel]

Just bought a Hipshot Bridge for another project and it's a massive bridge compared to the Gotoh...Aesthetically, the Gotoh is perfectly fine for the TRB body style... I'm thinking the Hipshot would look better on a bass with a little more wood on the tail.. I'll be making another video soon.

[@Wobbz9413]

Americans..."a tenth of a centimeter." The rest of the world "a millimeter." 😂😂😂

[@rodolfoboimarinho6504]

Thanks for the video. Noobie here so...what did you got with this change? more sustain? whas it worth?

[@thisoldmanchannel]

I didn't consider sustain. To me, the new bridge seems to provide greater definition, resolution; that is, cleaner tones and more punch so it sounds more like a guitar than the traditional idea of what a bass sounds like. I'm a newbie player but a life long audiophile and I like the greater clarity in tones a bridge like this provides. Hope that helps! Thank you for watching! BTW you can get a plastic caliper cheap at Hobby Lobby and that'll help with the install.

[@humanbass]

Dude, a tenth of q centimeter is called a milimeter

[@thisoldmanchannel]

Yeah I know, all the lights cameras and production people and I lost my cookies.

[@jaysrandomnesschannel]

Was the bridge change just for esthetics?

[@thisoldmanchannel]

Bridge like this you'll see on higher priced models... To me guitar sounds brighter than with the original... Have a BB234 and love the sound of it with nickel strings and original bridge. So yeah I wanted a cleaner sound with more punch.. You play Jay?

[@jaysrandomnesschannel]

@@thisoldmanchannel I don't but I've always wanted to. I think at 47 I should try before it's too late!

[@thisoldmanchannel]

Yeah for sure.. I'm almost 60, but it spoke to me... If you like that jazz funk sound, check out the Yamaha BB234. Amazing quality and sound for the money. 25 years ago you could not buy a bass or any 6 string guitar this good for the money... Absolutely love it!

[@2000SkyView]

measurements totally unnecessary.

[@thisoldmanchannel]

How do you figure?

[@humanbass]

They are necessary, they affect how low the strings can go