Ric's Losing Tune?

[Bass_masta16]

Someone told me recently that Ric's (not sure which model), have a tendency to go out of tune.
The person that told me this said they couldn't play a whole show with theirs without it going out of tune.

Is this effective with all Ric's, or maybe just with his?

 

[vinxbass]

I don't know about your buddy who told you about Ric's not staying in tune, but every bass I've ever played, including Ric's, have always stayed or stays in tune. BTW, that includes Ric, Steinberger, Music Man, Fender, Yamaha, Carvin and Squier.

 

[JustRob]

I've been playing my 4001 more than 22 years, it's solid as a rock. I can put it in its case, travel to the next gig, and seems I only have to tune it if I bump a tuner or have drastic temp changes.

 

[Matt Dean]

My ric never went out of tune...

 

[SoLongJake]

My 4003 always keeps tune. I did however used to play with a guitarist whose rick guitar constantly fell out of tune.

 

[vinxbass]

My 4003 always keeps tune. I did however used to play with a guitarist whose rick guitar constantly fell out of tune.

I will say that I played in a band with a guitarist who had a 12 string Ric and it always was out of tune - maybe it was the guitarist.

 

[lawsonman]

He would be wrong.

 

[Phalex]

I haven't taken my Ric out of it's case since probably September. I'm quite confident that it's still in tune, or only a cent or so out.

I've never had another bass that had the tuning stability of my 4003. Rock freaking solid.

 

[Webtroll]

He could have played a Rick with a bad machine head, poor intonation setup or a binding nut.

 

[pringlw]

My Ric stays in tune much better than my Fender. That's not a knock on Fender its just a fact. The Ric is a rock.

 

[Fly Guitars]

I've never experienced this with my 4003, although I have heard several guitarists complain about this, and yes, one of my friends 360 was always out - like after every song, one string in particular.

Correct stringing may also be to do with it. It is surprising how many people put their strings on wrong, then blame the guitar.

 

[lawsonman]

Correct stringing may also be to do with it. It is surprising how many people put their strings on wrong, then blame the guitar.

+1,000,000

 

[Sean S]

What would be the "proper" way to string a bass, then?

 

[Eric Morgan]

My Ric's never gone out of tune at a gig. Shyte...it hasn't gone out of tune sitting in it's case for months, either.

Could be that he heard it from someone who hadn't checked/tightened his tuning gears at all. THAT'S a possibility.

 

[hover]

What would be the "proper" way to string a bass, then?

r u serious?

Ok then, pass new string through bridge and all the way up to the tuner. Cut the string at a length past the tuner that will accomodate 3-4 good revolutions around the string post. IF possible, place end of string into tuning peg hole (usually on slotted peg style tuners like large schallers) and then bend string to create an anchor point and start winding the string onto the peg, holding the slack in your other hand and holding the string against the peghead to keep tension so the windings will lay flat and "rise" as the new winding wraps UNDER that last one. the string should lay under the successive windings and the successive windings should wind up and lock firmly to the post and each other with no slop or slack. tune gradually, never all at once up to pitch, and occasionally pull up slightly at the center of the string to help start the stretchout of the string and to take up and final slack anywhere in the assembly. when finally up to pitch, checkyour intonation, make any smalladjustments, and then retune, then press down on the string behind the bridge saddle and nut to create a "witness" point or "break angle" over the saddle and nut. Don't hammer down on it, just enough.

 

[hargmalone]

I find that my 4004 doesn't hold tune like the 4003 did. I blame it on the compact keys. It's not real bad, but I miss being able to pull it out of the case after a week and it be dead on. Oh well, I hope the jerk that stole my 4003 is enjoying it!

 

[bggeezer]

my 4003 never goes out of tune.

 

[hentor]

My Ric 4003 never went out of tune, and in the time that I had it, including dealing with the temperature changes of the Canadian climate, I only had to tweak the neck once.

My problem was that the third fret on the beast seemed to have been placed incorrectly and all notes on it (particularly the C on the A-string) were sharp. Given that I had it looked at by my local luthier and <gasp!> tried different strings on it, I apparently nullified the warranty on it and they would not look at it free of charge, despite the fact that it was off.

The cost of getting the fret issue resolved including refinishing the fretboard was too cost prohibitive so I traded it for a Fender P and future considerations.

Aside from that one factor, it was rock solid tuning-wise and held a setup really well.

 

[ausf]

Mine only went out if it got tossed into the case head first and then only if the tuner was rotated towards the back.

Or if I needed to pull a Moe on a guitard's head to get his attention.

 

[Relic]

Rics generally hold their tune just fine. A bad or loose machine head is more likely the cause.