NBD! Left Handed Rickenbacker!

[Unfinely Tuned]

I actually received this bass last week and after wanting a 4003 for a long time, I finally own one. I bought it on Reverb and its brand new, the serial says June 2015. After reading what seems like endless threads here on TB and a few other sites, I've decided to order a treble bezel and have it set up with DR Hi Beams later next week.

As a lefty, I know how difficult it is to locate and find both new and used Rics, I sold two G&L basses which were great to two very happy new owners and so far, really like the tones I get from my main rig. I play through an Ampeg SVTII non pro and also own a Verellen Meatsmoke preamp and a lot of pedals and have come to the conclusion that the overdriven and fuzz tones are phenomenal and make the bridge pickup really sing. I'm also a big Geddy Lee and Lemmy fan, so owning a Rickenbacker was on my bucket list as was my B15n. I bought the bass from Chicago Music Exchange and big thanks to them for expertly packing the bass and setting it up.

I'm a fan of natural wood basses and settled on Mapleglo although Jetglo was a close second, I like the mapeglo alot and couldn't be happier with the build quality and the vintage tone selector, although the treble tone knob is a bit scratchy, but I will take care of that.

I also own a vintage Ampeg B15n portaflex and cannot wait to play the Rickenbacker through it next week, i always wanted a Ric and a B15, but the SVTII and a Ric is also huge sounding. Here are some pics of the bass I took with my phone, I'll try to take a few with the B15 when I get to it.

The 4003 and my custom side by side:

 

[Qlanq]

That's a cracker. Congrats, enjoy it.

 

[Unfinely Tuned]

a cracker lol, my girlfriend told me it looks like a Saltine and thought it would have more grain in the wood. She plays guitar and is into different wood grains and tops. It sounds great through the SVT and I'm still fiddling with the tone knobs and volume levels. Thanks.

 

[bhunt1]

I have an identical lefty 4003 and it's a great bass. I like the wider nut and chunkier neck of the 4003 compared to the 70s 4001 I used to own.

 

[lug]

My hate for you rivals the heat from a thousand suns...er....I meant to say, Nice Bass!

 

[rufus.K]

Awesome score

 

[GIBrat51]

Lovely bass -congratulations!! Nice to see that lefty Ricks still come in the silver "Vintage" case, too...

 

[Twangster101]

Great looking Bass! Rock on!!!

 

[Unfinely Tuned]

Thanks everyone. I look forward to experimenting with more tones this week. I like the case also although I would have preferred the hard Rickenbacker case but the deal I got was great.

 

[Unfinely Tuned]

I looked at a '78 4001 lefty locally, but didn't get a chance to get my hands on it as it sold in a few days, but I have a lefty buddy who has an 80's something 4001 and I found the 4003 neck to be better for me as i have an old wrist injury that makes me cramp up at times with some narrow necks.

 

[Basshappi]

Congrats big time!
I always wanted one in Burgundyglo, guess I always will.

 

[Unfinely Tuned]

Thanks. I dropped it off for a setup and new strings. My local tech has been working on Rics forever and told me the bridge pickup almost always needs to be raised for a more unity sound but I really like the neck pup with pedals. Anyway, I got my treble bezel over the weekend and cannot wait to hear this bass with my B15. I didn't get around to playing at all this weekend.

 

[Gilmourisgod]

Nice bass! Which Trebel bezel, the "cove" or the one with a raised ridge?

Ps: don't forget to send in the warranty card within 10 days of purchase, and do it certified mail!

 

[Unfinely Tuned]

Tell me about it with the warranty. I heard about that through my local shop and did it right away. I actually did it in 8 days or so due to my work schedule and I think it's pretty dumb actually to only allow 10 days.

I got the cove cover, I thought it would be best and more useful than the deluxe. I was between the bezel and the zero mod, which I still may get down the road. In really enjoying the amp through my SVT and think it's a perfect match for the bass. I also run a Verellen Meatsmoke preamp into it where the Ric really shines. So far, so good!

 

[Gilmourisgod]

Ya gotta fire up the Ric-O-Sound somehow, thats what crushes all comers. It's a pain lugging two rigs, but an SVT running low end and maybe a class D micro amp running highs through 10's would be killer. Awesome bass. Now the ultimate dilemma: sticker or no sticker?

 

[Unfinely Tuned]

Lol I wanted to see if I could run stereo into both channels of my SVTII. I have a normal and a Brite but it's a no go.

I have 2 custom Low Down Sound cabs from Don and was thinking of getting a 212 cab or even 4x8 cab with long throws and running another head eventually.

My 2 Ampegs would be killer too. In thing the neck into the SVT and bridge to the B15n.....hmmmm.

 

[Unfinely Tuned]

By the way, the sticker is gone, I put it on the owners manual and never looked back lol.

 

[Gilmourisgod]

The sticker issue was flogged to a humorous death on another thread, eventually got compared to Clear Plastic Slipcovers, a cheesy favorite memory of mine from growing up in Philly back in the 60'd and 70's. The consensus opinion on why to leave the sticker on was quite succinct: Murica.

 

[Unfinely Tuned]

Lol I saw that when I was first looking into Rics. I'm 40 and remember the slip covers also. Funny, I sold both my G&L's with the original plastic over the cavity covers, not the same drama as the sticker, but was actually discussed in the G&L threads haha.

I'm a big fan of Colossal Cable and will send an email inquiry about a stereo cable for the Ric. From what I see, it's one stereo plug that Splits into 2 TRS ends. I saw one where I got the bezel for around $60. It doesn't seem too difficult to make one.

 

[iamthebassman]

My lefty Rics.