How to Identify a Yamaha Bass by Its Serial Number
If you're looking for clues to the origins of your Yamaha bass guitar, the serial number of your instrument can reveal a number of interesting facts. There are several methods for deciphering the serial number, which consists of two letters followed by five digits on an electric bass, and eight numerical digits on an acoustic bass or acoustic/electric bass. Serial numbers can often be found on the instrument's headstock.
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Instructions
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Use the Yamaha Online Guitar and Bass Serial Number Wizard
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Locate the Serial Number Wizard on the Yamaha website. This is a free service that will interpret the serial number on some Yamaha guitars and bass guitars. See the Resources section for the website address.
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Type your bass guitar's serial number into the serial number wizard.
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Press "Go!" and then gasp in triumph as the date, year and unit number of your instrument are suddenly revealed on your computer screen.
Or ... not. Sometimes the result is a discouraging message that reads "Invalid serial number"; not all serial numbers have been added to the search engine. In the event that you receive an invalid serial number message, you can continue on to the next section for other strategies.
Decipher Your Electric Bass' Serial Number
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Note the first two letters of your serial number. These letters range alphabetically from H to Z and represent, in alphabetical order, the numbers 1 through 12.
The first letter indicates the last digit of the year the bass was made, and the second letter indicates the month. In other words, a serial number beginning "HZ" indicates a year that ends in 1 and the month of December.
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Interpret the first two numerical digits. These represent the day of the month that the bass was made.
For instance, a bass with the serial number HZ07072 was created on December 7, in a year that ends in 1.
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Read the last three digits. These indicate the order in which your bass came off the production line that day.
For instance, the serial number HZ07072 reveals that your bass was the 72nd bass built on that particular day.
Decipher Your Acoustic or Acoustic/Electric Bass' Serial Number
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Note the first digit of the eight-digit serial number on your acoustic or acoustic/electric Yamaha bass. The first digit indicates the last digit of the year the bass was made. In other words, if the number is a 2, the bass could have been made in 1982, 1992, or 2002.
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Interpret the day and month your bass was made. The month is indicated by the second and third digits of the serial number, while the fourth and fifth digits denote the day of the month. The serial number 20416072 tells you that your bass was made on April 16, in a year that ends in 2.
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Read the last three digits to discover the order in which your bass came off the production line that day. For instance, in the serial number 20416072, the numbers 072 indicate that your bass was the 72nd bass built on that particular day.
Unfortunately, this method does not reveal the decade when the guitar was built. For that information, phone Yamaha customer support at 714-522-9000 or contact them via the email addresses on their website.
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References
Resources
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