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rickenbacker


hhill

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Hey, forceman, how about scaling that pic down a bit? I think hhill was asking a legit question, and it's going to be hard to read the responses if we have to keep scrolling to the right.

 

Also, if you're not personally hosting that pic, that a lot of bandwidth to steal.

 

My apologies to forceman for coming on a bit strong in the text above.

"For instance" is not proof.

 

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i have a Ric 4001 and although it is a very well made instrument its a bit of a one trick pony soundwise.

 

also the lack of contours make it a bit uncomfortable to play and...it is very very heavy !

 

if you really want one make sure you try it 1st.

 

Where in Portugal are you ?

 

I'm in Gibraltar not that far away !

 

Ernie

If in doubt leave it Out !
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hhill, we have a few people here that like them (dcr and banta should be here soon).

 

I've played them and thought they were OK, but I never liked them enough to buy one. I do have a RIC-style pickup (a copy made by another company) on one of my basses.

 

I disagree with the idea that they only have one sound.

 

69tele and hhill can have the first Iberian LowDown meeting!!

 

Welcome to our forum!

 

Tom

www.stoneflyrocks.com

Acoustic Color

 

Be practical as well as generous in your ideals. Keep your eyes on the stars and keep your feet on the ground. - Theodore Roosevelt

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One trick pony? Lemmy, Chris Squire, Sir Paul, Amy (she has 3 ricks, BTW). I can't think of a group of bassists that sound more different. I have many basses and the Ric has always been in the top three. Plus their quality control is legendary. It's almost impossible to find a dud (unless someone screwed it up). The only caveat is that the string spacing is somewhat narrower at the bridge than a fender but as wide as a P bass at the nut. This gives the strings a more "parallel" feel and an extreamly fast playing surface mid neck and higher.

You can stop now -jeremyc

STOP QUOTING EVERY THING I SAY!!! -Bass_god_offspring

lug, you should add that statement to you signature.-Tenstrum

I'm not sure any argument can top lug's. - Sweet Willie

 

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Originally posted by 69tele:

dunno I just find them cumbersome compared to Fenders.

My sentiments on the 4003, but not on the 4001.

 

I definitely don't view them as a one trick pony. I've always thought of them as being very versatile. It's all in the way you work the pick-up selector and volume/tone controls.

Mudcat's music on Soundclick

 

"Work hard. Rock hard. Eat hard. Sleep hard. Grow big. Wear glasses if you need 'em."-The Webb Wilder Credo-

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Rickenbacker instruments are excellent. Their basses are wonderful.

 

I have an '83 Rickenbacker 4003, and it is a great bass. I'll never sell it. It can get a very wide range of sounds, depending primarily on playing style, but also depending on EQ choices and string type. (With steel roundwounds, it gets a very edgy, biting sound. With nickel roundwounds, it gets a mellower, bread-&-butter kind of sound. With flatwounds, it gets that old-school 60's thing; great for playing Motown. The "one trick pony" myth is a scam.)

 

They have a feel of their own. A Ric bass will not feel like a Fender. In particular, the width of the fretboard is fairly even along its length, and flares only minimally. The thickness of the neck is also very even along its length, unlike many basses who feel thicker the closer to the bass' body you play. And the shape of the neck is unlike a Fender neck; the back of the neck has a somewhat flatter profile than the average Fender, which feels a bit more rounded.

 

As for being cumbersome...well, my Ric is dwarfed by my Fender Jazz bass.

 

They are extremely well made instruments and they are great to play. But nothing is ever to everyone's liking. Since they are a breed of their own, it would be best if you could somehow try before buying, or make sure that you get a good return option on the one you buy, if you end up buying one.

 

PS Do not worry about getting a 4001 vs. a 4003. The difference is all in the internal workings of the neck. (Of course, vintage 4001 is another story.)

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I got a new Ric 4003 about a month ago and love it (everyone in my band does too, heh heh.) I don't find it to be especially heavy, and it balances very well. I also disagree with the "one trick pony" characterization- vary your bass and treble volume and tone knobs, switch between pickups, and vary where you play, and you can get a number of tones out of a Ric. Of course, it's got the quintessential Ric sound as well. Check out Clatter , mentioned above too. Amy gets a killer Ric-clank out of hers. It's too cool :D Paul D'Amour (Tool's old bassist) also used a Ric and had a great tone.

 

One more thing- Rics just look cool. If you get one and gig with it, you will be complimented ;)

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I have a Jetglow Ric 4003.

 

I love the tone. It has that distinctive middly twang with lots of umph. Due to the neck-through design, this bass has more clarity than any other passive bass I've ever played and it sustains wonderfuly.

 

In fact, because it is so clear and well-defined, I find I can dial in very generous lows without ending up without it turning to mush.

 

The drawback for me is that I could never get completely comfortable with the contours of the body shape and, more importantly, could not anchor my thumb on the pickup as I'm used to doing with my Fenders. For some players this would be inconsequential, but it makes a noticeable difference for me as far as right hand technique. Ultimately it comes down to personal preference like almost everything else in music.

 

Bottom line, RIC's are classic basses and there's a reason for that.

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thanks guys for the precious help on this item.

One more question, you guys play with the covers on over the bridge & pick-up?

I think that we have here the same problem with a 57 or 62 Precision Bass right?

sorry for my questions, but i´m very confused about buy a 4003 rickenbacker or a 57 or 62 Precision Bass... In Portugal, the price is almost the same ($ 1.800,00).

69tele: i´m from Porto.

thank again :)

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riks are DEFINITELY one trick ponies as far as tone is concerned even fans of the rik don't deny that, they just like that tone. and of the bass players mentioned as examples of players that sound different on riks, the only one who really does was macca, and he's anything but a strictly rik player. he's most famous for playing a hoffner and most recently i saw him playing a fender. lemmy and chris squire certainly have that rik tone.

 

they are fine, well built instruments. they're great and i can't really say anything bada about them. but if you don't like that rik tone then you should probably look elsewhere.

Eeeeeehhhhhhhhh.
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front pup:

 

http://users3.ev1.net/~woodd/ricmoney.mp3

 

back pup:

 

http://users3.ev1.net/~woodd/ricwank3short.wav

 

same exact setup post-bass (pandora's box). Don't sound the same to me and that's just switching pups and nothing else.

You can stop now -jeremyc

STOP QUOTING EVERY THING I SAY!!! -Bass_god_offspring

lug, you should add that statement to you signature.-Tenstrum

I'm not sure any argument can top lug's. - Sweet Willie

 

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