• 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.

What makes a Rickenbacker sound like a Rickenbacker?

Mongo Slade

Mongo Slade

Dec 1, 2005
626
186
Northern New Jersey
#1
After years of longing for a Rickenbacker 4003, I finally got one. A great deal on a used 2007. I went right from the GC to my favorite repair shop where Jay set it up perfectly while I waited. I took it home and spent the weekend with it, never putting it down for more than an hour at a time, really putting it through it's paces. I love the sound of this instrument, both through my Epifani rig(which is STILL for sale) and my MesaD180/NV215 rig.

And after three days it went back to the store.

I just couldn't play like me on it. No matter how I adjusted it, I could never dig in and pump out a groove on it. It played more like a guitar than a bass. And I couldn't get rid of the hum no matter what I did. It seems to require a lighter touch than I play with, and really responded to pick playing, which I rarely do.
I was devastated! How could a bass who's tone spoke to me like this rebel so completely in my hands? So this long-winded intro leads me to these questions;
1. What makes the Rick sound like the Rick?
2. Does anyone make something that sounds like that, but plays more like a Fender?
3. Could I modify a bass to get closer to that sound?
4. Will anyone at Talkbass care enough to read through this long-ass post and make a suggestion that isn't dripping with sarcasm?

Any and all replies will be considered, cherished and appreciated.

Peace

P.S. Don't reply just to tell me to do a search. The search engine on this site is so unwieldy and hard to configure that I couldn't find anything. Thanks.

Peace
 
  • Like
Reactions: Vebjorn, BK bassist and kit714
#4
When I was a kid I owned and played a Rick. Huge Squire/Rick fan! And things were a lot different then. It is tough to compare a Rick to todays basses with Bartolini pick ups etc. I will tell you, if I owned one today it would be loaded with Noise gate, Compressor, on, on, on......Ricks make a great fit with effects and picks.:hmm: Plug it into one of guitard friends Marshall amp and see the difference. That is what Squire used for years. Marshall guitar head through ampeg 8 x10 laid on it's side with a ton of effects. Big difference from just plugging it into a modern bass amp. Just my two cents!
 
  • Like
Reactions: rickwebb, zon6c-f and Big Shrek
#5
My first bass was a Rickenbacker 4000 with one PU and a set neck. I still have it and it is wonderful.

A few years back, I thought of replacing the PU with something more "modern" but my guitar tech friend said NO, that the PU had much to do with the sound I got and that it was in great condition.

I read the PUs in the 4000 models are wound a certain way to get that RIC sound, but I am not sure.
 
#6
I think the key elements are:

Neck-Thru
All Maple (neck & body)
Pickup Placement
Thin Body

The brightness of the maple neck/body with the fundamental of the neck-thru is most of it. The pickup placement is a bit different from a Fender when you look at it, and I think that's pretty significant. Lastly, the thin body probably contributes the least, but I suspect it is enough to warrant listing it.

Add them up and you get the punch, unique midrange, and fundamental.

For those 70s Squire/Geddy tones, I think the .0047 cap that rolls off some bass on the bridge (treble) pickup is definitely a big part of the equation. (4001 models, or the new 4003 models with push/pull "vintage tone" selector... do a search)

To go further down the Squire/Geddy road, running the two pickups to two separate amps and putting some distortion on the trebly amp is key.

That's my .02!!

To ramble a little further, I have a 2002 4003 that does NOT have the .0047 cap in it. I plan to install the vintage tone push/pull knob and cap just as soon as it is offered again.

For now, I find that my 4003 is definitely not a "trebly" or "clanky" or "zingy" bass at all when run flat. In fact, with both pickups it's pretty thick and really gets a little muddy.

I run the bridge pickup full on, and the neck pickup rolled back about a bit. Both tone controls dimed. Then, on my SVT-VR, I crank the mids (220hz) like crazy, roll OFF the bass, and add a hint of treble. With the volume around 10:00 it starts sounding pretty Rush-ish! There's a LOT of different crunch Ric tones on early Rush albums so take your pick, but my recipe gets me close enough to be happy.

I'm eagerly awaiting the .0047 kit...

-M
 
  • Like
Reactions: Big Shrek
#9
Give the Ric some time ... get it set up correctly ... and if you still don't like it you can sell it on ebay or craigslist and get your money back easily ...

Rickenbacker basses are different and so is the company that makes them ...

Geddy got great tone out of the Ric playing finger style ...

I think Rics really do respond well to distortion and effects ...

You can get a Ric - like sound out of a p-bass or a jazz bass ... on moving pictures the jazz and Ric sound a lot alike ...

For me I run my Ric into several parallel effects which include a marshall pedal, Line 6 bass pod, and a Tech 21 VT bass pedal.
 
  • Like
Reactions: byoung93888
#11
Ric5 said:
Give the Ric some time ... get it set up correctly ... and if you still don't like it you can sell it on ebay or craigslist and get your money back easily ...Geddy got great tone out of the Ric playing finger style ... on moving pictures the jazz and Ric sound a lot alike ...
Click to expand...


I agree.

I'm a fingerstyle player, and IIRC finding a good spot to rest my thumb was a challenge at first. Once I removed the bridge pickup cover it became a little easier, but it did take me some time to adjust.

IMO what gives a Ric it's sound are mainly it's big single coil pickups. Mine now has direct replacement Barts, which are humbuckers. I no longer have the hum, but it also doesn't have the same sound that it used to have.

As far as other basses that can get a Ric-type of sound, I agree with Ric5, a Fender Jazz can get a sound very close to a Ric's. Both Geddy Lee and Chris Squire alternated between Ric's and their early 70's Jazz basses. I personally have a hard time telling which songs that they used their Ric's and Jazz basses on.
 
  • Like
Reactions: s van order
#12
I think it's kind of like Strat versus Les Paul. If you've only played one of these all your life, sure, the other is going to feel foreign as hell! But after a while, you can switch back and forth effortlessly, and enjoy each for its own unique strengths.

If you try to get that Fender twang out of a Les Paul, you will be disappointed. If you try to get that Gibson humbucker crunch out of a Fender, you will be disappointed. They are two different beasts. Same goes for Fender and Ric basses.

Both Fenders and Rics are great and worth having, and I'm very glad to have both in my possession.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Big Shrek and BlueTalon
#16
Man ...full marks for exploring this experience and getting different perspectives. I think others have already put their finger on what makes the Ric so distinctive in tone.

For my bit, I got my first Ric 30 years ago, played them for years but when my style and gig changed I went to Fenders, and I've only recently got another Ric. I find I really have to think of the Ric as a distinctly different instrument and can't expect just to substitute it for the Fender. Most of the time on gigs I only pull it out for specific songs where I've thought about the tone and the playing style, and the Ric fits the bill. It tends to be on pieces where I can use a busier, melody oriented approach, and make the most of the characteristic woody tone and clank. At home, though, I play the Ric almost exclusively ... it's my old friend! If you can retrieve the Ric, try to perservere, but maybe use it as an opportunity to explore some different styles and playing approaches and widen your chops. Good luck! :bassist:
 
  • Like
Reactions: Giffro
#17
Mongo Slade said:
And I couldn't get rid of the hum no matter what I did. ...
2. Does anyone make something that sounds like that, but plays more like a Fender?
3. Could I modify a bass to get closer to that sound?
Click to expand...

That was the answer for me to your questions when I had them too (but due to different reason, as I need a back up for my Rick 4001 for a while). Its a Squier Precision Special with an EMG active P/J pickup set. Growl and bite like a Ric but total differnt playing feel!
 
#19
I think the OP gave up too soon. It takes a while to develope a technique that works on a Ric bass. It's feel. Personally, I wouldn't be without one, but I've been playing Rics for nearly 30 yrs. If you give it more time, you'd probably get the feel down, and develop a good relationship.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Giffro
#20
GreyBeard said:
You can play a Fender with a Ric touch, but you can't really do the opposite. To me a Ric is to bass what a Tele is to guitar. You just can't beat on it. Develope the touch, it's a technique every bass player needs.
Click to expand...

I played it with a "feather touch", but then I just didn't sound like me. I sounded like those guys who wear their bass just under their chin.:smug:

I have a really old Zon Legacy made with a thin 1 piece maple body. Does anyone think I could mod that to get close to the sound I want?

Peace
 

Latest posts

Top Bottom
Back