This is the bass version of the RGX A2 guitar released earlier this summer by Yamaha that uses their innovative new AIR system to make the instrument substantially lighter than normal and yet still retain the resonance and sustain associated with heavier and denser woods.
Yamaha has achieved this goal by sandwiching light softwoods between two harder and denser tone woods which significantly reduces the weight mass of the instrument body. To enhance the tone and transient response a series of aluminium sound tubes fitted to the bridge block run from the front surface to the rear of the instrument, passing acoustic vibrations through the wood and enhancing the resonant qualities of the RBX A2 to create a rich, natural tone.
The neck of the bass is traditionally crafted from Maple with a 24 fret Rosewood fret board and uses two single coil pick-ups designed by the Yamaha Custom Shop which are managed by a single rotary pick-up selector knob and two rotary volume controls. The interesting thing about this is that the volume control knobs are illuminated by a green and blue LED light which increases in intensity with the amount of volume attenuated.
Notably there is no tone control on the front face of the instrument and I would therefore assume that internally the tone pots have been set to maximum to allow further adjustment on the amplifier. The front (neck) pick-up when activated emits a green light around the volume control whilst the rear (bridge) pick-up's volume pot shines blue. This also acts as an immediate visual indication of which pick-ups are in use and the relevant volume attenuation of either one.
There's also a radically new bridge design, created to utilise the sound tubes that run through the body, the new bridge has considerably enhanced tone and sustain by linking with the internal resonance tubes. The RBX A2 has a striking contemporary design with the unique addition of the blue and green LED's that stand out against the white of the instrument body. This model is also available in Jet Black ...