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$340.50 Rickenfaker? (Made in China content)

#101
sanchorb said:
Ha, haa..you think so? Sorry it sounded that way. I knew a guy, casual acquaintance, who had one of these logs, a fake Stingray, and was trying to sell it on a classified ad site, as you might expect at a high price. Since I knew this was a chinese copy, I sent him a message posing as a buyer, and asking him something about the odd way the tuners were attached to the headstock. Result? He retired the offer and has been nowhere on sight on the market. So maybe I feel uneasy about these logs maybe expecting people to behave like this, really bothers me these are using the image of respected manufacturers. Wouldn´t like to be cheated by dishonest people with one of these...best regards :cool:
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Ah ha...I knew there had to be a story in there somewhere...keep rockin.
 
#102
tabdog said:
If you buy it, you cannot return it for a refund.

If you read the return policy, you will see that
it is slipperier than a banana peal. Besides, how
are you going to deal with an eMail address in
China?

But, it may be alright for the price. Who know's.

Who's gonna be our first genie pig?

Tabdog
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In the interest of scientific research, I will give it a shot. I live in China, so it is not as great a risk. But I am NOT going to buy from this guy. It is a scam as I laid it out a few pages back. I will find a knock off and post some sound clips, do a review etc. Worst case scenario I take it across the street to the animation studio, pay an intern to paint some Beatles stuff on it, and sell it to the club where we gig to hang on the wall. There is a national holiday coming up, so give me 2 weeks or so.

I have never seen a Ric on stage or in a store that I can remember, real or fake. I do know that there is a shop in Shanghai, (I live close to Hong Kong) that has a 4003 for sale for $2,500 USD.
 
#103
What would ROCK would be if Rick decided to make some decent quality basses that weren't necessarily a small fortune to buy one.

I think they have a "neat" sound to them and its very unique, but I think it's a sound that is achievable with a decent set of pickups and some resourcefulness as well. Like Fender did with the Classic Vibe/VM series and Warwick has done with the NEW Rockbass line, its putting the character of the higher-end instruments in something more affordable. As far as Ricks go, I'll be honest and say I'm totally in it for the looks, I think they are gorgeous looking basses with a good tone to them, I wouldn't say I'm buying it on tone solely though.

A decent price instrument that you can swap the crap stock pickups out for real Rick pickups and set up yourself to get a decent, playable instrument would be right up my alley =/
 
#105
VanillaThundah said:
What would ROCK would be if Rick decided to make some decent quality basses that weren't necessarily a small fortune to buy one.

I think they have a "neat" sound to them and its very unique, but I think it's a sound that is achievable with a decent set of pickups and some resourcefulness as well. Like Fender did with the Classic Vibe/VM series and Warwick has done with the NEW Rockbass line, its putting the character of the higher-end instruments in something more affordable. As far as Ricks go, I'll be honest and say I'm totally in it for the looks, I think they are gorgeous looking basses with a good tone to them, I wouldn't say I'm buying it on tone solely though.

A decent price instrument that you can swap the crap stock pickups out for real Rick pickups and set up yourself to get a decent, playable instrument would be right up my alley =/
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Yes could be nice if Rick had something like Squier is for Fender or Sterling for EBMM
 
#107
guitarfans said:
Link Removed was ordered several months ago from madeinchina.com, shipped quickly, and with minimal setup and intonation tweaks was ready to roll. The quality was actually quite surprising, considering the price - the neck was actually very nice (although I did have to replace the nut as the one on the guitar was filed a little low for my liking) and the pickups, while passive, still had plenty of punch (most likely wound around 10k, although I haven't put a meter to them yet).

The finish is a standard poly, nothing t:bassist:oo fancy but very good and only minimal flaws (about on a par with the US counterparts I have owned). The tuners are nice and tight so far, and while I'm not positive how the gold finish on the hardware will wear, a complete swap for all new hardware is well under $100 so when the time comes, so be it. The binding is a bit "whiter" than the OEM model, however this will soon age I'm sure and not be noticeable (all binding is excellent on this guitar).

The electronics definitely need to go, I popped for new pots and a switch almost immediately as the switch had a little noise to it and the pots were questionable - you're looking at maybe $75 front to back, and the mod is well worth it.

All in all, even with a few neccesary tweaks and about $100 into it, this is a guitar that is a better player than the $700 Epi version hands down, and while it definitely isn't an exact match to the $3k version, it falls somewhere firmly in-between, and at a great price point. If I were to make any changes out of the box, I would say the inlays on the neck could be a slightly better color (although they look great and are flawless) and for accuracy, the correct "ZW" serial number would be a nice touch (but that's pushing it, I realize).

For just over $400 out of pocket with the mods, this is a great player, solidly built with more attention to detail than I expected (actually amazed me a bit) - and whenever I grab it onstage it gets the "Oohs and Aahs" - find THAT in a US guitar for under $1k, you'll be hard-pressed!
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Cool! Would LOVE to see a photo of you with the bass.
 
#108
guitarfans said:
For just over $400 out of pocket with the mods, this is a great player, solidly built with more attention to detail than I expected (actually amazed me a bit) - and whenever I grab it onstage it gets the "Oohs and Aahs"
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Rob Martinez said:
Cool! Would LOVE to see a photo of you with the bass.
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Shouldn't be too hard to do if he's consistently grabbing it onstage.
 
#109
Man, 6 pages about a POS fake? Maybe I'm just older than you guys, or maybe have higher ambitions, but I wouldn't go near a piece of crap like that. When you gig, you need professional gear. That has nothing to do with whether the decal has been ripped off a legitimate company -- it has everything to do with playability and feel and sound. I can't believe that a $300 Ric copy is going to offer any of those things. And if it doesn't, what the hell is the point of throwing your money away on it? :eyebrow:
 
#110
lpdeluxe said:
Man, 6 pages about a POS fake? Maybe I'm just older than you guys, or maybe have higher ambitions, but I wouldn't go near a piece of crap like that. When you gig, you need professional gear. That has nothing to do with whether the decal has been ripped off a legitimate company -- it has everything to do with playability and feel and sound. I can't believe that a $300 Ric copy is going to offer any of those things. And if it doesn't, what the hell is the point of throwing your money away on it? :eyebrow:
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It is not about what you "believe" per se, we are trying to find out
what is fact. Take all the names out of the equation. Throw the 23 pounds of lumber it takes to make a bass in the middle of the floor, then price the parts. You may be surprised as to the actual cost of a bass vs the price of one. This dance ain't for everybody. If you don't like the tune, sit this one out.
 
#113
lazerbrains said:
Kinda like buying those $300 Hofner knockoffs (Icon) instead of the real German ones? :D
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Actually nothing like it. I am not offended that someone buys a German Hofner. And the $300 Hofner Icons ARE Hofners, unless you are saying you know something Hofner in Germany doesn't. Which they do. Hence the name "HOFNER" on the headstock of the Asian made Icons basses that Hofner has built over there.

Or are you saying Rickenbacker USA has these knock offs made in China on purpose and means to sell them as Rickenbackers?
 
#114
If Rickenbacker were smart, they would do the same thing Hofner did with the Icon - license the Rick name to these cheap chinese clones and corner the market for those who don't want to pay for the real thing, but will feel better seeing a Rickenbacker logo on it.

Just like with the real Hofners, the market will not be hurt for those who can tell the difference and actually care - those people will still fork over for the real thing. But they will get added revenue for those who just want a cheap bass that looks like a Rick and has the logo - just like those who buy the chinese-made Hofner Icon.
 
#115
lazerbrains said:
If Rickenbacker were smart, they would do the same thing Hofner did with the Icon - license the Rick name to these cheap chinese clones and corner the market for those who don't want to pay for the real thing, but will feel better seeing a Rickenbacker logo on it.

Just like with the real Hofners, the market will not be hurt for those who can tell the difference and actually care - those people will still fork over for the real thing. But they will get added revenue for those who just want a cheap bass that looks like a Rick and has the logo - just like those who buy the chinese-made Hofner Icon.
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But that's not a factual statement you made. It's only your opinion. Rickenbacker is actually doing quite well NOT doing what you suggest. So your argument doesn't hold any water. And Hofner builds cheap versions of their basses to get some of the market created by Epiphone, Rogue, etc. who are the one's building "knock offs." Rickenbacker has no such problems, unless these Chinese "gems" catch on. Which they won't.

You are right about one thing about the Hofners. I don't care. :D

Nor do audiences who go to hear live music.
 
#116
lazerbrains said:
If Rickenbacker were smart, they would do the same thing Hofner did with the Icon - license the Rick name to these cheap chinese clones and corner the market for those who don't want to pay for the real thing, but will feel better seeing a Rickenbacker logo on it.

Just like with the real Hofners, the market will not be hurt for those who can tell the difference and actually care - those people will still fork over for the real thing. But they will get added revenue for those who just want a cheap bass that looks like a Rick and has the logo - just like those who buy the chinese-made Hofner Icon.
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If Rickenbacker were smart? They build a quality product, in the USA, & make a profit doing it, apparently enough profit that they don't need to license clones. Nor compromise their name, or their product. People wait months, sometimes years, for their products, & even the used instruments command high $$$.

"If" they were smart, indeed...

People just want a cheap copy, and feel entitled to it, since many other manufacturers have sold out their company name for short term profits. Some things just aren't available in a cheap generic version. If you can't afford a Ric, buy something else.
 
#118
lpdeluxe said:
Man, 6 pages about a POS fake? Maybe I'm just older than you guys, or maybe have higher ambitions, but I wouldn't go near a piece of crap like that. When you gig, you need professional gear. That has nothing to do with whether the decal has been ripped off a legitimate company -- it has everything to do with playability and feel and sound. I can't believe that a $300 Ric copy is going to offer any of those things. And if it doesn't, what the hell is the point of throwing your money away on it? :eyebrow:
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+1
 
#120
Rickenbacker will probably not reply. Not because they don't appreciate it -- they do. But...Rickenbacker goes about such business like the Navy Seals went after Bin Laden, quietly & efficiently, not to a large fanfare like the villians in a James Bond movie.
 

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