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Played my first Rick yesterday

#21
I bought a Rick 4001 in 1981 for $700 w/case and it was my first "real" bass. I switched to fivers around 2000 and the Rick sat in its case for 10 years until I sold it to a guy in Slovakia in 2010 for twice what I paid for it. That money was used to fund my MM Bongo.

The Rick is a fantastic playing bass but tonally "narrow", in my opinion; that's not a problem at all if that's the tone you're after. As others have stated, $2,000 sounds like a lot.
 
#22
If you want a heavy bass go for a T-40. You can get an approximation of the Ric tone (not ideal if you want a Ric for looks, I guess) plus many other tones. Truly as versatile as it gets. You can get a really nice one for $500. I've seen near perfect examples for $700.
 
#23
I've never played a Rik bass-- although I have played their guitars and thought they were wonderful.

Always hear stories about the Ricks being a bare to work on and problems with truss rods... though I've long been skeptical of such reports. Personally, once I have a bass set the way I like, I leave it be. No experimenting with strings, or pickups, etc. Anyone with experience verify if the instruments actually are a PIA to maintain?

To the OP I'd say if you played the instrument and liked it-- go for it! :D
 
#25
All I can say is play it, be comfortable while playing it then buy one.

I had one, totally in love with it in every aspect but while playing it so I let her go.

Sometimes I regret it but you know what? I ended up only playing it with my metallica tribute band because I was not comfortable with it.

Make sure you are comfortable and not making up for it
 
#28
Do NOT get one of these basses! They will bring you nothing but misery! Mine has been nothing but trouble since day one. I find myself spending much more time practicing, and if you look at the photo below, you will see the constant horror and pain on my face when I play it.

rixmas.jpg
 
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#31
mellowinman said:
Do NOT get one of these basses! They will bring you nothing but misery! Mine has been nothing but trouble since day one. I find myself spending much more time practicing, and if you look at the photo below, you will see the constant horror and pain on my face when I play it.

View attachment 630348
Click to expand...
Aaaaand the added hassle of people coming up to you saying things like "geez that Ricky sounds nice..etc. etc."
 
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#32
I had one..then i sold it..i would not recommend it as general but it depends on your playing style

Personally i think it's a beatifull bass, well built. The neck it's a bit different from what you can normally get on other basses (starting from the custom scale lenght) but it's very comfortable...the problem for me is the sound...i always got lost in the mix
Basically it provide a huge sound with a lot of low and high freq but it miss the foundamental mid freq..and without that you cannot get out in the mix as you should. This is the reason (in my opinion) why the rick makes its best with pick and a bit of distorsion...so you can have the attack of the pick and you get some mids from the overdrive/distorsion..
 
#35
StrangeGroove said:
...the problem for me is the sound...i always got lost in the mix
Basically it provide a huge sound with a lot of low and high freq but it miss the foundamental mid freq..and without that you cannot get out in the mix as you should. This is the reason (in my opinion) why the rick makes its best with pick and a bit of distorsion...so you can have the attack of the pick and you get some mids from the overdrive/distorsion..
Click to expand...
This has not been my experience with my 1982 Rickenbacker 4001. Rather, it has a prominent midrange "bark" that I have found a little difficult to slot into some mixes as compared to something like a P-bass which tends to sit fairly well. But that is also why I like it, because it has character, and is not bland like a Fender. A few years ago I played several different basses at one gig and a local guitarist told me that the 4001 sounded the best from the stage as it was more "ballsy" than my other instruments.
 
#37
I have three Rics so I'm not a Ric hater, but for me, this is definitely a bass you need to try before you buy. I bought a 2012 and sold it within a few months. I hated that bass. Then I bought an '81 and loved it so much that I wound up buying a C63 and a V64. In my experience, the necks on Rics vary much more than on other basses. I have found that in general, the older Rics have thinner necks and the new Rics have fatter necks, YMMV.
 
#38
mellowinman said:
Do NOT get one of these basses! They will bring you nothing but misery! Mine has been nothing but trouble since day one. I find myself spending much more time practicing, and if you look at the photo below, you will see the constant horror and pain on my face when I play it.

View attachment 630348
Click to expand...
Hey mellow - thanks for the graphic display of pure misery!
I can tell from the picture that the bass must be a real neck diver, just look at how far you have to lean right to compensate for it! I can also plainly see from the way you have to hold your fretting hand completely open that there must be horrible fret sprout as well. And just look at that terrible red paint job, its already faded to a lighter shade in the middle of the bass. I guess you're stuck with it now, no sense offloading it to some poor unsuspecting soul. Just continue to be the professional you are and try to make the best of the crappy situation. ;)
 
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#39
It's not for everyone. I picked one up at Sam Ash years ago and have never desired one since. Didn't like the feel (hard edges without contours) or the noise (apparently the fact that the coils don't cancel like a J bass is a feature, but is not for everyone - I read somewhere that Ric's are purposely not RWRP). Nothing feels right in my hands except a Fender (or licensed clone).
 

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