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Rickenbacker sound
- Thread starter chris h
- Start date
... and this is the 1968 RIC catalog. Sorry for the rotation of the image, but it is too wide, and resizing it would have damaged readability.
Check what's stated below the yellow point
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Check what's stated below the yellow point
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Indeed, Jeff. The first Rickenbacker basses, in the late 50's, already had the double truss rod.
There's a huge confusion (I did it myself in the past) between double truss rod and improved truss rod.
Chris Squire has been stringing his 1960's vintage 4001 with Rotosound roundwounds for more than 30 years, so I think this is a myth.
Another myth: Rics don't D.I. well. Yes they do. While I agree that it benefits from a tube amp/preamp, I find my Ric gets a better recorded tone with less effort than any of my other basses. Alot depends on the tone you seek. If you want that McCartney Sgt.Pepper era tone, maybe you do need to use an omni-directional mic, a tube amp, and flatwound strings. But I've had tremendous success getting the Chris Squire and Geddy Lee type tones direct using either only a tube direct box or using the the stereo out to run the bass p.u. through a tube box or my amp head and the treble through a guitar POD or other effects box.
Also, after a couple of years I decided to take off the fake horseshoe and have never gone back. Why lose so much of your playing surface if you don't have to?
Agreed on all points. People who doubt about D.I.ed RIC's can go to the homepage of my website. There's an MP3 you can listen to by clicking on my photo... It was recorded with my 4003, D.I.ed.
All the best,
Go to any record shop and buy a re-issue of YES FRADGILE. Chris Squire plays one using a pick on mose YES albums. This is the classic sound of a Ric. Nothing else can match it.
jmho
jmho
Nope. That's *a* classic sound, not *the* classic sound. Macca on "Come Together" (and many others) is another classic Rick sound, one that predates Squire. Or Lemmy on "Ace of Spades". Just several examples, completely different tone...a Rickenbacker is not a one trick pony.
The Bridge pickup cover was *never* metal, it has always been chromed plastic. It's there to cover that big cavity, and the cavity is still there because having it allows you to install a horseshoe pickup if you wish.
And yes, all the 4000 series basses always had dual truss rods.
I would never buy a 4001 without closely examining the neck and truss rods because they were not designed for conventional (Gibson or Fender style) adjustment and many screwed up necks resulted from people not adjusting them according to instructions.
Jaylan B.'s experience with his 4003 neck is definitely way out of the ordinary, and it's no more typical of Ricks than it is of Fenders. I have had no problems with either of my 4003s. The necks are thicker and stronger than a 4001 and I like it that way.
"Come Together," that has such fat bottom. Anybody know what he was playing through or how it was recorded?
Well, I know several 4003 users who experienced the same problems as I did. I also know a well-known American luthier who confirms problems of neck stability through the first two years of a 4003.
But in another hand, I know hundreds Rickenbacker bass players, so maybe the several ones who had problems are out of the ordinary, among so many others.
I just know two things for sure :
- I will probably never get a Rick again,
- In case I did, it would not be a 4003.
Didn't McCartney record D.I.? Or was that just during Pepper/MMT?
His Wings stuff has a different tone to it than his Beatles stuff and overall I think he didn't use the "trebly" aspect of the Rick as much as some others (Squire or Lee for example).
I've also started playing with a pick some lately and find my 4001 is very uncomfortable to play for any length of time because there are no contours. Maybe I'm not using good pick technique...Next Rick I get will be an "S" model
His Wings stuff has a different tone to it than his Beatles stuff and overall I think he didn't use the "trebly" aspect of the Rick as much as some others (Squire or Lee for example).
I've also started playing with a pick some lately and find my 4001 is very uncomfortable to play for any length of time because there are no contours. Maybe I'm not using good pick technique...Next Rick I get will be an "S" model
Well, you got me, there. I don't portend to be an authority on this- neither will the ones who told me the truss rod story after I tell 'em! Thanks for the light. I'm not sorry I now play a Fender, but I do miss my Blackstar, after all this talk about Rickenbackers. But there are more Rics out there! Peace,
Stewbone.
Stewbone.
For what I remember :
The 4001 truss rod has ONE head, with only ONE point of contact (in the headstock) for a standard Allen wrench. However, what is hidden is indeed a double truss rod, and turning the wrench adjusts both rods equally and simultaneously.
The 4003 truss rod has TWO heads, with TWO points of contact at the headstock. They allow to adjust each rod independently. BUT each of this rods has a second point of contact, located around the 5th or 7th fret. So this requires a special wrench (available from the RIC catalogue as a spare part), that takes contact up to this second point of contact.
This means you cannot setup a 4003 properly with a standard Allen wrench.
Hope this helps,
The 4001 truss rod has ONE head, with only ONE point of contact (in the headstock) for a standard Allen wrench. However, what is hidden is indeed a double truss rod, and turning the wrench adjusts both rods equally and simultaneously.
The 4003 truss rod has TWO heads, with TWO points of contact at the headstock. They allow to adjust each rod independently. BUT each of this rods has a second point of contact, located around the 5th or 7th fret. So this requires a special wrench (available from the RIC catalogue as a spare part), that takes contact up to this second point of contact.
This means you cannot setup a 4003 properly with a standard Allen wrench.
Hope this helps,
I had 4 4001's and they all had 2 nuts to adjust 2 truss rods. When the 4003 first came out the truss rods were adjusted at the body, not the headstock. That was the reason for the split pickguard.
Flatwound strings actually have more tension than roundwounds.
On my 4003 you can clearly see the split pickguard.
Sorry, I forgot about McCartney's work with the Ric. I really never took notice of its unique sound until I heard "YES" with Chris Squire on Round About. Be that as it may, the "Rick with a Pick" has one of the most identifible tones of any bass. 
Allen wrench? Every Rick I've seen (bass or guitar) adjusts with a 1/4" hex nut driver. The "special wrench" in the Rick catalog is a 1/4" hex nut driver with a long straight shaft so you can adjust the rods without having to move the strings out of the nut slots. It has nothing to do with anything about the 5th or 7th fret, there's no additional point of contact there. And I believe they have all had two visible truss rods since the late '50s, maybe earlier.
Bass-mid range growling like thunder. A frequency that never overlaps with the guitar or the kick. It cuts through... If you want that tone, you should play a Ric.chris h said:
The Ric tone is in a completely different league than the Fender. Never substitutes for each other.
Many people say that it's not suitable to slap. I don't think so. The neck PU is located right where the fingerboard ends, making it hard to slap, but there are ways to slap the Ric. When you manage to do it, wow... Turn the bass PU volume down to half, the treble volume and both tones are full. Add a little compression to handle the signal. Then you get a very punchy slap and a uniquely exploding pop. Its tone is characteristic, so is its slap technique and sound...
It is very versatile within its own tone boundaries. Separate tone and volume controls for each PU, and a 3-way PU select switch offers hell a lot of combinations. But no way of getting a Fender J tone out of a Ric! Can get very close to the vintage Fender P tone if you combine the PU's correctly. You get very deep bass tones with the switch at the Bass position (neck PU only). Like putting your head into a subwoofer
When the switch is in Treble position, a very tough, slightly overdriven mid growl comes out, reminding me of a V8 engine. Plus any combination of the two extremes. Moreover, using the mechanical mute at the tailpiece with the neck PU, transforms it into an upright bass. Versatile? I think so...
They are quite hi-output single coils, almost no humming - good work. The neck PU is literally a "neck PU", zero distance in between. The bridge PU is closer to the tailpiece, than a Fender J. So Ric sounds bassier with the neck PU and more treble with the bridge PU...
Final remarks: Try to go for a 4003 that's older than 3 years, so that you can make sure the neck is settled. Once it's settled, it is sturdy like hell.
Conclusion: It's no substitute for Fender. Have one of each (Fender & Ric) in your collection. Fender is a classic, but Ric is UNIQUE.
Some of the comments above seem a bit contradictory. Nothing wrong with that, basses are all different and so are people's perceptions of them. So I thought I'd add my two cents worth.
Rics are fine for clean sounds, but I probably agree that even so, they are still best as a pop/rock bass. Not as versatile as some, but great at what they do. That doesn't mean you can't get a wide range of tones, just that however you set it you will still get a sound that's identifiably Ric. That's a plus or minus depending on your point of view. As you may expect, the classic Ric tone depends on what you call classic in particular, whether you prefer rounds or flats. Plenty of examples mentioned already.
The tone is different to a Fender bass, sure, but really dig into a Jazz with the mids brought out and its close! Sort of like the difference between a Rottweiler and a Doberman.
You CAN slap a Ric - might take a bit of getting used to because of the geometry of the instrument, but when you get into it they are, believe it or not, awesome for slap. People who say you can't slap Rics maybe should try again - it's worth it! Theyre fine for recording as long as you can work in an electrically quiet environment (SC pups). A good engineer will be able to get your sound down.
Truss rods yeah, Ive had to adjust mine on occasions, no big deal though. The comment that surprised me most was about the loud E and weak DG. Definitely NOT the case with mine. I agree with the later post about ADG balance being fine and the E being on the weak side if anything. This is true of mine and its the main reason why I dont use it in some situations. Just the opposite of my SR4! Sigh
Rics are fine for clean sounds, but I probably agree that even so, they are still best as a pop/rock bass. Not as versatile as some, but great at what they do. That doesn't mean you can't get a wide range of tones, just that however you set it you will still get a sound that's identifiably Ric. That's a plus or minus depending on your point of view. As you may expect, the classic Ric tone depends on what you call classic in particular, whether you prefer rounds or flats. Plenty of examples mentioned already.
The tone is different to a Fender bass, sure, but really dig into a Jazz with the mids brought out and its close! Sort of like the difference between a Rottweiler and a Doberman.
You CAN slap a Ric - might take a bit of getting used to because of the geometry of the instrument, but when you get into it they are, believe it or not, awesome for slap. People who say you can't slap Rics maybe should try again - it's worth it! Theyre fine for recording as long as you can work in an electrically quiet environment (SC pups). A good engineer will be able to get your sound down.
Truss rods yeah, Ive had to adjust mine on occasions, no big deal though. The comment that surprised me most was about the loud E and weak DG. Definitely NOT the case with mine. I agree with the later post about ADG balance being fine and the E being on the weak side if anything. This is true of mine and its the main reason why I dont use it in some situations. Just the opposite of my SR4! Sigh
PICKUPS?? besides the thru neck body, and other physical qualities of the rickenbacker. could i possibly get a replacement pickup that would give me the sound of a rickenbacker? does anyone make those?
