You can pick up a 4003 for way cheaper than that. Musician's Friend sells 'em for $1399 and you can get one from Pick of the Ricks for around $1300 shipped.
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Anyone else not like Ricks?
- Thread starter GearHeadBassMan
- Start date
is this an place to talk, debate, and share or to power trip???? if people use this to power trip then that's pretty pathetic.......anyway, i'd like to try a Ric out even though i'm not really sold on the looks
Dude, try one out and see what you think. Ric just changed back to a thinner neck profile, which I love. I'm running mine through a Mesa BB750. The 4004's look cool, but I've never been able to find one to try out. 
the looks are unique...I can't fault that...
I don't like the sound, can be way too "clanky"...hard to tame...
I probably don't really know how to get the sound out of one...but, I'm not going to try...they just don't speak to me.
I don't like the sound, can be way too "clanky"...hard to tame...
I probably don't really know how to get the sound out of one...but, I'm not going to try...they just don't speak to me.
Ok All
Time to do some homework before you take this too far-
Chris Squire-early Yes-incredible tone
Geddy Lee-early Rush-very Chris Squire-ish
Paul McCartney-Magical Mystery Tour and forward-very McCartney-ish
ok....here's the silver bullet
Chris Brubeck-son of Dave-very upright-ish sound on a Ricky Fretless-they made a killer fretless with a very growling sound-he's a great player that a lot of folks don't know about
Lemy-well....this is not a great example
you get it-these are great, quirky instruments that really sound great and unique in the hands of good players-just can't treat 'em like a Jazz
In a world of cookie cutter products, Rick has something great to hold on to-
PS-I don;t own or play one-'90 Fender Jazz Plus Deluxe is my usual squeeze
Time to do some homework before you take this too far-
Chris Squire-early Yes-incredible tone
Geddy Lee-early Rush-very Chris Squire-ish
Paul McCartney-Magical Mystery Tour and forward-very McCartney-ish
ok....here's the silver bullet
Chris Brubeck-son of Dave-very upright-ish sound on a Ricky Fretless-they made a killer fretless with a very growling sound-he's a great player that a lot of folks don't know about
Lemy-well....this is not a great example
you get it-these are great, quirky instruments that really sound great and unique in the hands of good players-just can't treat 'em like a Jazz
In a world of cookie cutter products, Rick has something great to hold on to-
PS-I don;t own or play one-'90 Fender Jazz Plus Deluxe is my usual squeeze
You can not like them, but saying they're flimsy is ****ing stupid. The build quality is top notch and mine has taken quite a bit of abuse like a champ. Personally I think they look badass.
I had one for about 3 months in the early 80's sold it.. the neck was way too thick for me.. I had a blonde 4001
I got in a trade for a kramer duke... then sold it for like $350
( I paid $170 for the duke) not a bad deal
They sound cool just my little hands coulnd't play them well
I got in a trade for a kramer duke... then sold it for like $350
( I paid $170 for the duke) not a bad deal
They sound cool just my little hands coulnd't play them well
I loved the look of my 81 Fire-Glo and although the maple body and neck gave it a rather brite tone I could always tame it. The bass was a bit on the heavy side but that really didn't bother me. But that binding digging into my right forarm all night was enough to make me sell it. It was just to uncomfortable to play all night. If your a big fat guy(like me) you have to have that forarm contour, that binding drove me nuts.
lonotes
A place for everything, & everything out of place
My first bass was a 4001. A red one, whatever "glo" that is, with the checkered binding. At the time, I had never played bass before, and didn't really know anything about basses. I didn't even really "buy" it. I took it as security against a loan of $200 that I gave to a guy that I knew (vaguely) in the Navy Reserves. He said he would pay me at the next meeting, in a month. Well, long story short, after about three months he asked me if I wanted to just keep the bass, and I agreed. At the time, I was playing guitar (badly) in an acoustic quartet with my wife, and two other guitar players. Since both of the other guitar players were so much better than me, I decided to get this bass out of the closet, and see if I could do anything with it. I never really took to that bass, and after about six months or so, I traded it for a Precision. That was nearly thirty years ago. It's a quality instrument that just doesn't speak to me, but it got me started on a lifetime of enjoyment. For that, I am happy.
wow. this escalated quickly... at this rate we'll be closed by tommorow!
Of course, both sides bring forth the obvious arguments... but lets go a little deeper.
Naming artists who use the same bass you do has never seemed appealing to me. If you want to play exactly what they play, then be my guest and get the exact same stuff. The real reason that I hold hate for ricks are not because of thier looks, sound, or feel, it is that, to me, they represent a time capsule of bygone days in music. To me, the point of being a musician is to expand and create beyond the bounds of what is the current standard. That, as I understand, is the momentum beyond all great musicians. Did Beethoven use the same piano as Bach? Using basses modeled after the days of yore seems to say that those who use them are resistant to change, that they crave the same things from music that their elders did.
This is, of course, one mans opinion and is not meant as an attack, I'm simply trying to take this civilized debate into a more philosophical region rather than a back and forth "you're dumb, ricks suck" "you're dumb, ricks rule" futile debate.
Also, saying that a bass feels like your D**K in your hands is an AWESOME analogy.
Of course, both sides bring forth the obvious arguments... but lets go a little deeper.
Naming artists who use the same bass you do has never seemed appealing to me. If you want to play exactly what they play, then be my guest and get the exact same stuff. The real reason that I hold hate for ricks are not because of thier looks, sound, or feel, it is that, to me, they represent a time capsule of bygone days in music. To me, the point of being a musician is to expand and create beyond the bounds of what is the current standard. That, as I understand, is the momentum beyond all great musicians. Did Beethoven use the same piano as Bach? Using basses modeled after the days of yore seems to say that those who use them are resistant to change, that they crave the same things from music that their elders did.
This is, of course, one mans opinion and is not meant as an attack, I'm simply trying to take this civilized debate into a more philosophical region rather than a back and forth "you're dumb, ricks suck" "you're dumb, ricks rule" futile debate.
Also, saying that a bass feels like your D**K in your hands is an AWESOME analogy.
I agree--there are some great players that have gotten great sounds out of Rics--Geddy Lee and Chris Squire are two that stick out to me, and yes, I realize that they have already been mentioned.
My whole point is not at all about bashing them--far from it. This thread could very well have been about Warwick Thumb basses, which is another bass that I just can't get along with, personally.
For me, it's simply stating my opinion about a body shape that doesn't quite work for me, a neck that just didn't feel quite right to me, and the fact that MY playing style, and the sounds I am after, just don't work with a Ric. I should have been more complete in posting before, when I made the "looks" comment--it isn't that the looks are a problem for me, it's that the way the body is shaped felt uncomfortable to me.
So, let's try to keep this discussion civil. No more talk about whether or not they are overpriced, ugly, etc.
My whole point is not at all about bashing them--far from it. This thread could very well have been about Warwick Thumb basses, which is another bass that I just can't get along with, personally.
For me, it's simply stating my opinion about a body shape that doesn't quite work for me, a neck that just didn't feel quite right to me, and the fact that MY playing style, and the sounds I am after, just don't work with a Ric. I should have been more complete in posting before, when I made the "looks" comment--it isn't that the looks are a problem for me, it's that the way the body is shaped felt uncomfortable to me.
So, let's try to keep this discussion civil. No more talk about whether or not they are overpriced, ugly, etc.
I've rounded my family of basses that sound drastically different from each other (Fender Jazz, Ric 4003, and a Status S1) so I don't have overlapping tones. Versatility is extremely overrated in the bass world, why get a "vanilla" sounding bass when you can get something for each occasion.
And Besides, if you can't get "your" tone out of a bass, you should spend less time on this forum and more time with your bass.
And Besides, if you can't get "your" tone out of a bass, you should spend less time on this forum and more time with your bass.
And Besides, if you can't get "your" tone out of a bass, you should spend less time on this forum and more time with your bass.
I gotta respectfully disagree with you on that one (well, maybe I spend a bit too much time here, but still...
).I've played a few different basses that just didn't have the sound I was after. But I've played many more that do. My point is that if I don't like the sound of a bass, I don't like it. If a certain bass doesn't get the sound I'm hearing in my head, then it obviously isn't for me. Especially when there are so many out there that do get the sounds I am after.
I gotta respectfully disagree with you on that one (well, maybe I spend a bit too much time here, but still...
I've played a few different basses that just didn't have the sound I was after. But I've played many more that do. My point is that if I don't like the sound of a bass, I don't like it. If a certain bass doesn't get the sound I'm hearing in my head, then it obviously isn't for me. Especially when there are so many out there that do get the sounds I am after.
+1...
too many basses to choose from to settle for something that's just "not doin' it for you"...
that's why you all can have my rics (IF I had any in the first place...
)
US internet prices seem to have risen from around $1300 to over $1500 for 2007 due to demand and the subsequent "nil stock" situation. UK prices are irrelevant as the "nil stock" situation is long term. Rics'r'us have a used '04 4003 JG for £1400 ($2800). I've seen them advertised in the UK for as low as £1000 ($2000) but that's pretty academic if there's no stock...
I'm split. I hate the tone while clean, but when distorted, rics get that great Death from Above 1979 sound.
- Mar 30, 2007
- 4,017
- 321
- Disclosures
- Endorsing Artist: Genzler Amplification/Spector Basses/Mojo Hand FX
I'm not a fan of ric's...but do think they look cool...To be fair, I need to say It's been years since I've played one though. I seem to remember they suffer a bit from neck dive...is this the case?
