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Is it sacrilege to put flats on my 4003 Rick ?

#22
SouthPawGary said:
So, im 62 years old & have a mint 86' Rick 4003 mapleburst that i ordered brand new back in "The Day". Back then it was perfect for me playing heavy rock/metal & a little prog stuff. when i returned to bass playing after a layoff during the young kids years, I discovered I really like 5-string basses & now mostly play a Carvin LB75 & a G&L L-2500 Fretless. Anyway, I've been playing in my sons "neo-soul / R&B" band for the last year & its been awesome. Obviously everyone is drawn to the Rick & my son (& others ) would like me to play it in this band. I know, it really isnt the bass for that genre, but if i play the neck pick-up, keep my fingers accordingly & roll off the highs, its not bad. All that to say, i bought the 4003 because it was designed for roundwounds (dbl. trussrods) & its had nothing but Rotosound RS-66LD's on it since day 1. I think I would consider playing it, but the flats would help soften the brighter edge Ricks have. What do you think ???? Also how much neck adjustment do you think it would need ?It's always been unbelievably stable & ive never had to touch the trussrods, ever . thanks
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Play it how you like! There are no rules.
 
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#25
I would check out the Dunlop flats. I just put these on my P bass and there are pretty versatile. They definitely take off the zing of a round but still retain an open sounding high end. The tension is probably about the same as the rotos you're using and I wouldn't think an adjustment is needed.

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STAINLESS STEEL FLATWOUND BASS STRINGS 45-105

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#26
SouthPawGary said:
i bought the 4003 because it was designed for roundwounds (dbl. trussrods)
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My first Ric was a 4001 in the mid 70's. Rickenbacker specifically stated that using strings other than Rickenbacker Electrosound (flats) would void the warranty. Perhaps part of the Chris Squire legacy? :roflmao: Anyway, that bass never wore anything else. I might still have it if it hadn't gotten stolen. 😡 My current (2020) 4003 is sporting rounds at the moment but I don't aspire to sound like Squire or Lemmy or Geddy, etc. Just like rounds more than flats for what I'm playing these days. Go for it! :thumbsup:

BBB
 
#27
Flats on a Ric are awesome, and sound classic! I'm a long time Labella user but have recently been really digging DR Legends on a Jazz--a little "softer" in feel but don't sound too modern --still can thump--and they settle in really quick- they'd be worth a try on that bass for that music.
 
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#31
My 78' 4001 came strung with flats, which I immediately took off, of course, regardless of the lecture received from the salesman (as he rung up my Rotosound Swing 66 Stainless Rounds) telling me rounds would void the warranty. But ... Chris Squire! They were pretty obviously worried about rounds eating the soft fretwire they were using at the time, which is exactly what they did to mine. These days Ric uses standard hardness fretwire, so flats or rounds wouldn't matter much as far as fret wear. I would think a set of "bright flats" would sound great on a Ric. I'm about to find out, i have a 4005-ish build in progress, and I'm putting flats on it. Everyone raves about TI Flats, but i'm unconvinced they are worth the $100 pricetag. Anybody got a video link demonstrating flats on a Ric 4003? I have to say though, flats sound more or less the same on any bass, the diiference between Rics and most other basses is that "piano" like brilliance on tap with rounds. You want less treble? Turn the tone knob.
 
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#33
I put Jazz Flats on my Ric bass for the first time about 20 years ago and was very pleased with the sound and the feel of them. I’ve never tried (nor would I ever try) RotoSound flats because I wasted too much time and money over the years buying Roto wound strings only to have them die a couple of weeks later. Jazz Flats on a Ric are perfect!
 
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#34
Barton Lee said:
I've used flats on my 4003S often and have 40-100 D'Addario Chromes on it now which work well with the Ric, I think. Fender 9050L flats sound really good on it too. I used TI flats and they're a good fit sonically too if you don't mind the low tension. Optima RB flats are supposedly the closest to the original flats that came with Rics back in the day. I was quite enthusiastic about these when new but after a few gigs, they became a little too dark for my taste.

I play mostly R&B and 70s-era rock and the Ric works well for that with flats (nickel rounds too). I wouldn't abandon the bridge pickup though, just roll it off some. Or, just let it sound like a Ric with the bridge full on and the neck rolled back a little. With flats, you won't sound out of place IMO.
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Thanks so much ! Ordering some D'Addario Chromes & will try adding some bridge pickup after they are installed.
 
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#36
dbsfgyd1 said:
My 4001 I bought in 1974 came with an owners Manuel that issued dire warnings about using strings other than Rickenbacker flat wound strings or your warranty would be voided. Your bass doesn’t care what kind of strings are on it. That said, like any time you switch strings on any bass, changes in the amount of string tension may result in the need of a truss rod adjustment. Whether they are flats, rounds, tapes or cat gut, that doesn’t matter.
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My 4001 bought new in '72 didn't have an owner's manual, much less a warranty. I guess something changed over those next two years at Rick? Perhaps that's when the problems began?

The Epiphone POS bass that I had before the Rick, also bought new but a year earlier, also didn't have an owner's manual. My Fender Jazz Plus and Bass Collection 310 basses bought in '91 also didn't have owner's manual, though my Ovation ABG bought same year did, plus a warranty. Neither of my Ibanez SRs have an owner's manual, both bought within last 2 years. Their warranties come from SW and GC, the retailer.
 
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#38
SouthPawGary said:
So, im 62 years old & have a mint 86' Rick 4003 mapleburst that i ordered brand new back in "The Day". Back then it was perfect for me playing heavy rock/metal & a little prog stuff. when i returned to bass playing after a layoff during the young kids years, I discovered I really like 5-string basses & now mostly play a Carvin LB75 & a G&L L-2500 Fretless. Anyway, I've been playing in my sons "neo-soul / R&B" band for the last year & its been awesome. Obviously everyone is drawn to the Rick & my son (& others ) would like me to play it in this band. I know, it really isnt the bass for that genre, but if i play the neck pick-up, keep my fingers accordingly & roll off the highs, its not bad. All that to say, i bought the 4003 because it was designed for roundwounds (dbl. trussrods) & its had nothing but Rotosound RS-66LD's on it since day 1. I think I would consider playing it, but the flats would help soften the brighter edge Ricks have. What do you think ???? Also how much neck adjustment do you think it would need ?It's always been unbelievably stable & ive never had to touch the trussrods, ever . thanks
Click to expand...
Absolutely not! I have one Ric with rounds (D'Addario NYXLs) and one with flats (D'Addario Chromes). They both sound incredible.
 
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