Rickenbacker pros/cons

[mr.mow]

Pros:
They look cool as hell
Sound different to everything else
(the couple I've had ) had amazing necks
Hold their value well
Instantly recognizable

Cons:
Rick fanbois at gigs (no I don't want to discuss gear)
People assume you're a beatles/yes fan
Rick fanbois are really nerdy, irritating and assume you are 'one of the club' (see above)
Rickenbacker still refuse to allow dealers to sell to Australia.. even though we don't have an importer
They hold on to some antiquated ideas that should be modernised
That stupid bridge pickup cutout.. if you're someone who hangs off the pickup.. you're screwed (unless you buy the aftermarket plastic thing)

 

[SGD Lutherie]

+1

I knew it when he started off with the smiley face as usual, followed by the stuff about how they are horribly balanced period, never mind that many of us don't have the same experience with them.

Hmmm. Well my experience is with two '73 4001s, but I can hold them by the strap and they balance perfectly. It's a thin bass, but it's made of rock maple.

I've heard about the bridge lifting, but it hasn't happened on my vintage basses. I also never had problems putting Rotosound strings on them. The necks are still nice and straight. The strings did eat the frets though, but I refretted them with jumbo frets.

The pickups are not the loudest, but loud does not always sound that great.

I do have to say that who ever the person was at Gibson who decided to put Jazz bass pickups on the RD reissue should be ashamed of themselves. I guess bass players don't even rate Gibson spending a little cash on having the correct pickups built for the bass. All their reissues are wrong in the worst ways. Gibson is now the Microsoft of the guitar world. They have no taste what-so-ever. One look at the Firebird X and it screams "tacky".

As far as craftsman ship....

here's the fingerboard on a $3,899 Les Paul Custom:

See the chatter marks? I don't know if they used a planer, shaper or CNC, but they must have felt it didn't need any sanding!

Fender ship their US made basses and guitars out with the worst fret leveling I have ever seen. Plus they still can't properly shield a bass. Look at all the noise issues people have with the Jaguar and Marcus Miller basses because of improper wiring and shielding.

Then you have the Geddy Lee signature bass. He had to complain to them for using the cheapest tuners they could find and insisted they use good quality tuners.

Plus Rics are made right in CA, while fender has a lot of stuff done in Mexico and then sent up for assembly.

Ricks are not my main bass anymore, but you won't ever catch me with a Jazz bass either. A little too pedestrian if you ask me.

 

[mr.mow]

I do have to say that who ever the person was at Gibson who decided to put Jazz bass pickups on the RD reissue should be ashamed of themselves. I guess bass players don't even rate Gibson spending a little cash on having the correct pickups built for the bass.

The new RD? Its not a REISSUE.. Its a sig model.. Krist has JB pups in his, its what he specified.. so it aint a reissue..

 

[SGD Lutherie]

Pros:
They look cool as hell
Sound different to everything else
(the couple I've had ) had amazing necks
Hold their value well
Instantly recognizable

Yep!

Cons:
Rick fanbois at gigs (no I don't want to discuss gear)
People assume you're a beatles/yes fan

I have to admit I bought mine because of Paul and Chris.

That stupid bridge pickup cutout.. if you're someone who hangs off the pickup.. you're screwed (unless you buy the aftermarket plastic thing)

Well it was done because it was originally part of the horseshoe pickup. That's a trademark of theirs, so they kept making a fake horseshoe pickup. You are suppose to leave the cover on, but that gets in the way.

When I played mine with my fingers I rested my thumb on the metal flange. The pickup is too small for that. But back then I mostly used a pick.

At one point I did replace the whole assembly with a black plastic pickup ring.

Other dumb things is having to remove the bridge from the tailpiece to adjust the intonation. If you raise the bridge, it tilts over. I drilled two holes in the tailpiece to keep it upright.

And the tiny frets are soft and get worn out too fast.

I eventually replaced the bridge with a Badass II on one bass, and a Schaller 3D on another.Now the Hipshot is a good option.

But I'm restoring my bass now since it's not my main bass, and I miss having a stock Rick for when I want that tone.

 

[Tarrbot]

Personally, I like the Hi-gains better. I swap them out occasionally, but usually prefer the Hi-gain.

I wasn't trying to imply that one couldn't prefer another pickup...

More just saying that it boggles me that someone is actually dogging them like they're just total crap.

Maybe his is since everything else he seems to touch with the name Rickenbacker just magically disintegrates.

 

[cassius987]

The fact that he complains about all of the extensive, unacceptable issues AND keeps the Ric baffle me.

Yeah, if it's so bad just burn it and move on. The rest of us are having a fine time, thanks.

But wait, then you can't troll any more with your sad stories! ohhh noes

 

[RobJ]

And thus, Gibenbackerbass appears again.

Ok I'm clueless who, or what, the hell is Gibenbackerbass?

 

[Tarrbot]

A notorious Rickenbacker hate whore who was so bad that he was banned from this site.

He's made an appearance recently and this looks like his latest incarnation.

Routinely ignores questions on his complaints and trolls just to complain more about Rickenbacker and their lousy customer service in his mind.

 

[RobJ]

Ahh.. thanks. There seems to be a few others as well with that MO.

 

[cassius987]

I wish RIC wasn't so polarizing (for whatever reason), because I genuinely think there are pluses and minuses to be discussed. But we have so much polarization in this topic that it's impossible to get to a place of common ground sometimes and really exchange ideas between sides, not just within.

Oh well, at least we're not as bad as Congress. Yet.

You know what though? I'm just going to keep loving and playing my Ric. And if some wackjob troll thinks I'm kidding myself, so be it... maybe he'll feel better when his mom comes down to the basement to bring him dinner.

 

[lunarpollen]

I think the perception of Ric necks being thin is actually because of the relatively small amount of taper of the width between nut and heel... The Rics I've ever tried out had this feature, as does my Hondo 4001 copy. For a while I just assumed it was a thin neck until I compared it with other bass necks and realized that it was just the very mild neck width taper that made me think it. I love the feel of Ric necks. And I love the sound of Ric basses with flatwound strings. The only downside for me is the lack of an arm contour...

I used to have a screwdriver that was like an allen key you use to build IKEA furniture with, except the tip was a phillips head. It was tricky but it made adjusting the intonation possible without having to entirely remove the bridge.

 

[sturoc]

Good reading here on the Rick idiosyncrasies. I have played a couple , cking them out for possible purchase. But alas I am a tried and true Jazz Bass player due to the narrow neck, contoured body, sound. Someday perhaps, when my $ are more, I will get a Rick, vintage of course. There is nothing like their tone.

Remember that just because a Bass has a particular aura about it doesn't mean it is right or wrong for you. You have only but to play it and then you'll know if it is your Bass. Simple as that.

 

[willsellout]

You know what though? I'm just going to keep loving and playing my Ric. And if some wackjob troll thinks I'm kidding myself, so be it... maybe he'll feel better when his mom comes down to the basement to bring him dinner.

I wonder why the topic of Ric's is so polarizing...

 

[Duke21]

I agree with you there.

I've had my 4001 for more than 10 years, and still, for me, it's still uncomfortable...

I absolutly adore my Rick's tone, look, and anything else, but the plucking hand ergonomy, for some reason, is still a little weird when I pick it up after it's been a while since my last play...

The erea I tend to love playing is right on top of the neck pickup, but the chrome metal housing around that pup is sharp and I tend to hurt myself while playing... So I have to be careful when I play it... :scowl:

The sharp edge of the body is a little anoying for me also, not as far as looks goes as it looks great, but the contour of a body like a P bass is more confortable for me on the foreharm...

Still, I absolutly adore my Rick, and never thought of selling it !!! Even with the things I just mentioned, I LOVE playing it...

The reward is the tone !!!!

Nitram

A Rick should be played with a pick.
For the ones who say the 4001/ 4003 are perfect, that is a bit too hardcore....
No bass is really perfect. The 4003 and 4001 are not that friendly with the forearm. The 4004 (never seen one in real life) seems to fix that issue, including that bridge tail lifting and again comfort aspects, but the 4004 lack the vintage vibe and some of the identity of Rickenbacker.
Regarding price, I'll say that the 4003 is worth the price tag, but on the same time it for sure not better than my Geddy regarding build quality and finish.
The Geddy for instance is comfortable as silk gloves, slim and fast neck, very nice tone which OD very well. The Geddy is I must say one of the best basses one can buy for the money. The only bass that I've ever played that I liked better then the Geddy is the..... Rickenbacker. It is something with the tone, the look and the neck which is thick but, due to little taper, shorter scale and tighter string spacing, is fast and easy.

 

[cassius987]

I wonder why the topic of Ric's is so polarizing...

Pardon me. I'm tired of the people I perceive as trolls in all this.

 

[Korladis]

fanbois

What is this weird talkbass thing of spelling fanboy like that?

 

[Korladis]

I think the perception of Ric necks being thin is actually because of the relatively small amount of taper of the width between nut and heel... The Rics I've ever tried out had this feature, as does my Hondo 4001 copy. For a while I just assumed it was a thin neck until I compared it with other bass necks and realized that it was just the very mild neck width taper that made me think it. I love the feel of Ric necks. And I love the sound of Ric basses with flatwound strings. The only downside for me is the lack of an arm contour...

I used to have a screwdriver that was like an allen key you use to build IKEA furniture with, except the tip was a phillips head. It was tricky but it made adjusting the intonation possible without having to entirely remove the bridge.

The lack of taper is one of my favorite things about Rickenbacker basses. I can't stand the taper on many other basses.

 

[Korladis]

A Rick should be played with a pick.
For the ones who say the 4001/ 4003 are perfect, that is a bit too hardcore....
No bass is really perfect. The 4003 and 4001 are not that friendly with the forearm. The 4004 (never seen one in real life) seems to fix that issue, including that bridge tail lifting and again comfort aspects, but the 4004 lack the vintage vibe and some of the identity of Rickenbacker.
Regarding price, I'll say that the 4003 is worth the price tag, but on the same time it for sure not better than my Geddy regarding build quality and finish.
The Geddy for instance is comfortable as silk gloves, slim and fast neck, very nice tone which OD very well. The Geddy is I must say one of the best basses one can buy for the money. The only bass that I've ever played that I liked better then the Geddy is the..... Rickenbacker. It is something with the tone, the look and the neck which is thick but, due to little taper, shorter scale and tighter string spacing, is fast and easy.

I play my Ric with fingers quite often...

I've never gotten the complaint about it being rough on the forearm. Do people really dig their arms into the sides of their basses that firmly? It seems weird to be bothered by such a thing, as it's never been an issue for me. Two of my basses are bound, one isn't. I don't really notice the difference.

In all honesty, I'm not a huge fan of the stock bridges. The foam mute is really cool, but adjusting the intonation is a pain for me.

 

[Korladis]

Personally, I like the Hi-gains better. I swap them out occasionally, but usually prefer the Hi-gain.

I really like a hi-gain at bridge, with a toaster at neck.

 

[lfmn16]

I wonder why the topic of Ric's is so polarizing...

I think that any time you have something outside the mainstream there will be a camp that embraces it and a camp that hates it. The haters just aren't happy unless they can p-ss all over somebody's parade.

I ride a Harley and it's the same thing - you got a crowd that thinks their exhaust doesn't stink because it's a Harley and you got a crowd that would rather push a Honda than ride a Harley.

My view is that if you don't like a Ric, that's your right, but don't get in my face because I do like one.