• TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
    Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
    Join free Log in
    Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.

Rickenbacker 4003 pickup cover

#22
Jeff Scott said:
How do you get these off without removing the pickup height adjustment screws that go through holes on either side of the cover? :eyebrow: Did you forget part of your instructions? :D
Click to expand...


Obviously the screws have to be loosened ( one has to come off). If memory serves me, one of the holes on the cover is actually a slot isn't it?

You do not have to take the entire housing off.
 
#23
Floyd Eye said:
Obviously the screws have to be loosened ( one has to come off). If memory serves me, one of the holes on the cover is actually a slot isn't it?

You do not have to take the entire housing off.
Click to expand...

Nope, both holes in the treble pup cover are holes, not slots. While you don't need to take the pup surround off, since you can squeeze the cover inward slightly to get it to come out of the well, there are two springs between the pup mounting base and the cover. Once the two height screws are removed, squeeze the legs of the cover in slightly, remember it is plastic so don't armstrong it, the springs will fall in to the well. Once the cover is out, remove the two springs and place them back between the pup base and insert the screws, making sure you get the screws to pass through the center of the spring. Adjust your pup and your good to go.

Now if you want to put on a Tube Ampology bezel cover, you'll need to remove the pup surround to do so.

It's not hard, the toughest thing is re adjusting your pup height, and even that is a piece of cake.

Sepp
 
#26
Coolhandjjl said:
Off Topic: Is that yellow 4004 the one from the Ric Outlet ebay listing? :eek:
How many offers do you get a day to buy it? ;)
Click to expand...

:) Yes the 4004 TV Yellow Cii BH is the same one that RIC auctioned off on ebay during the beginning of the year . I have gotten quite a few purchase requests for it! So far, I've declined them all and I'm happy to be it's caretaker.

I'd love to know where the other one, it's twin, went. Mr Hall said it went to the home of a well known bass player.

Sepp
 
#27
Kopfjaeger said:
Nope, both holes in the treble pup cover are holes, not slots. While you don't need to take the pup surround off, since you can squeeze the cover inward slightly to get it to come out of the well, there are two springs between the pup mounting base and the cover. Once the two height screws are removed, squeeze the legs of the cover in slightly, remember it is plastic so don't armstrong it, the springs will fall in to the well. Once the cover is out, remove the two springs and place them back between the pup base and insert the screws, making sure you get the screws to pass through the center of the spring. Adjust your pup and your good to go.

Now if you want to put on a Tube Ampology bezel cover, you'll need to remove the pup surround to do so.

It's not hard, the toughest thing is re adjusting your pup height, and even that is a piece of cake.

Sepp
Click to expand...
Don't forget to put the ground wire back on the adjustment screw! :cool:
 
  • Like
Reactions: bobyoung53 and TMARK
#30
I've left my cover on for years,it doesn't bother me at all,makes a great handrest for pick playing between the pickup and the neck,too. I have a fake Jazz bass that has both covers,which i have tried in various ways,ended up taking them both off.
Love that TVY CII,Kopfjaeger!
 
#31
Kopfjaeger said:
Nope, both holes in the treble pup cover are holes, not slots. While you don't need to take the pup surround off, since you can squeeze the cover inward slightly to get it to come out of the well, there are two springs between the pup mounting base and the cover. Once the two height screws are removed, squeeze the legs of the cover in slightly, remember it is plastic so don't armstrong it, the springs will fall in to the well. Once the cover is out, remove the two springs and place them back between the pup base and insert the screws, making sure you get the screws to pass through the center of the spring. Adjust your pup and your good to go.

Now if you want to put on a Tube Ampology bezel cover, you'll need to remove the pup surround to do so.

It's not hard, the toughest thing is re adjusting your pup height, and even that is a piece of cake.

Sepp
Click to expand...

I just went and dug mine out of the drawer and you are correct. It sure seems like the whole operation of taking it off took only a couple minutes and I definitely remember squeezing it together to get it out of the surround.
 
#32
So here is a question for you guys: Can the pickup cover be used for shielding? I have a non Ric with Lace pups and though I love the tone, the bridge pup is so hot that it feedbacks really easy. I was thinking of putting on a pickup cover and putting shielding tape on the underside as a barrier. Thank something like that would help?
 
#33
MesSihr said:
So here is a question for you guys: Can the pickup cover be used for shielding? I have a non Ric with Lace pups and though I love the tone, the bridge pup is so hot that it feedbacks really easy. I was thinking of putting on a pickup cover and putting shielding tape on the underside as a barrier. Thank something like that would help?
Click to expand...
Wrong kind of shielding. it won't help with a pickup that feedback (microphonic?).
 
#35
image.jpeg
where to purchase a "fake" high-gain pickup cover like this for a 2017 4003. no flames please, i simply like the way it looks. tnx much !
 
#36
Floyd Eye said:
John Hall claims they shield the pickups from hum because they are coated with something. Of course that's complete BS.

To remove them is easy. These covers can be gently squeezed together and taken out of the hole. Putting them back on is a bit harder, but why would you put them back on?
Click to expand...

actually, thats not bs. they are coated with something, it is metallic and it is conductive, so in theory it could offer some level of rfi shielding, please see below test:

image.jpeg


i experience some noise and hum, mostly hiss. the cover was removed before i ever played the bass for the first time so i dont have a noise level datapoint with the cover installed. the level is highly dependent of the orientation of the bass. if i rotate the position of the bass i can find a direction where the noise is completely zeroed out. going to reinstall the cover and see if there is any reduction in the noise level. unfortunately i have do not have the proper test equipment to measure the noise level accurately so this will be nothing more than a crude by ear test. will test both at home studio and at the church where i play.
 
  • Like
Reactions: bobyoung53 and Jeff Scott
#37
da old guy said:
...where to purchase a "fake" high-gain pickup cover like this for a 2017 4003. no flames please, i simply like the way it looks. tnx much !
Click to expand...

Neither of those pickups look like Hi-Gains. The neck pickup is a 'Toaster' and the bridge pickup has a Horseshoe cover, though it might be a dressed up Hi-Gain pickup (possibly an early one with green flatwork?). The 'shoes' of the Horseshoe pickup are an integral part of the design; the pickup needs them to function. I understand that Rickenbacker made some pseudo-Horseshoe (HS) pickups for the '60s reissue basses of the '90s, but that these only looked like HS pickups. Somebody might have removed one and replaced it with a true HS pickup, like the one Jason Lollar made for a while.
 
#38
da old guy said:
actually, thats not bs. they are coated with something, it is metallic and it is conductive, so in theory it could offer some level of rfi shielding, please see below test:

View attachment 2914671

i experience some noise and hum, mostly hiss. the cover was removed before i ever played the bass for the first time so i dont have a noise level datapoint with the cover installed. the level is highly dependent of the orientation of the bass. if i rotate the position of the bass i can find a direction where the noise is completely zeroed out. going to reinstall the cover and see if there is any reduction in the noise level. unfortunately i have do not have the proper test equipment to measure the noise level accurately so this will be nothing more than a crude by ear test. will test both at home studio and at the church where i play.
Click to expand...

Shouldn't your multimeter probes be on either lug, as opposed to practically next to each other (only the screw hole separating them)?
 
#39
Axstar said:
Neither of those pickups look like Hi-Gains. The neck pickup is a 'Toaster' and the bridge pickup has a Horseshoe cover, though it might be a dressed up Hi-Gain pickup (possibly an early one with green flatwork?). The 'shoes' of the Horseshoe pickup are an integral part of the design; the pickup needs them to function. I understand that Rickenbacker made some pseudo-Horseshoe (HS) pickups for the '60s reissue basses of the '90s, but that these only looked like HS pickups. Somebody might have removed one and replaced it with a true HS pickup, like the one Jason Lollar made for a while.
Click to expand...

da old guy said:
where to purchase a "fake" high-gain pickup cover like this for a 2017 4003. no flames please, i simply like the way it looks. tnx much !
Click to expand...

Da Old Guy is asking whether he can buy covers for his HiGain pickups that look like a Toaster & a Horseshoe.
 
#40
Axstar said:
Neither of those pickups look like Hi-Gains. The neck pickup is a 'Toaster' and the bridge pickup has a Horseshoe cover, though it might be a dressed up Hi-Gain pickup (possibly an early one with green flatwork?). The 'shoes' of the Horseshoe pickup are an integral part of the design; the pickup needs them to function. I understand that Rickenbacker made some pseudo-Horseshoe (HS) pickups for the '60s reissue basses of the '90s, but that these only looked like HS pickups. Somebody might have removed one and replaced it with a true HS pickup, like the one Jason Lollar made for a while.
Click to expand...

ok, cool, i may be totally misinformed on the exact type of pickup in the pic. my question is where can i get a pickup cover that looks like the one in that pic?
tnx!
 

Latest posts

Top Bottom
Back