Hey Josh, congrats on the purchase...that Ric has to sound as great as it looks!


Sean ;)

Sean,
It does sound just as great as it look. It has surprised me on both its beauty and its tonal range.

i'm green with envy. congrats.

Todd,
Envy is a deadly sin. The solution: Get a ric!

Oh yeah, your wait is over, congrats Josh. It's beautiful. I love the black and white color scheme, I wish I could have found a 4001 in black.

Hope you enjoy it for many many years.

Paul,
I actually contemplated between fireglo and jeglo for a long time. Ultimately I thought that jetglo looked more menacing, and that's what I want do, scare people off with this growling beast!

I keep forgetting they call it Jetglo. hahaha That could be the only finish Rickenbacker ever used and that would be fine with me.

Have you taken the pup cover off already? It looks like it in the pic. Have you tried the mute? Have you even put it down yet? LOL

I actually really enjoy the fireglo myself. Perhaps it will be a future bass of mine, maybe a fretless...

I took off the pickup cover within 20 minutes of getting it! It was in the way, and I generally like playing over the bridge pickup. Now that its off I have a great place to rest my thumb and the sound is great.

I've tried the mute, but It appears that the strings are so high that the mute can't reach the strings. I plan on putting some rotosounds on it soon, so perhaps I'll try to adjust it if possible. Maybe I'm missing something here. Any suggestions?

If you notice I haven't commented on here since I got it yesterday. I've been playing this thing every chance I get! The only reason I'm not playing now is my fingers are in pain!

I kinda guessed you were near blistered fingers by now LOL

I've tried the mute, but It appears that the strings are so high that the mute can't reach the strings

Did you try turning the knobs a lot, it takes many turns on mine before the mute starts to touch the strings. I'm guessing I turn them 20 or 30 half turns before they touch and 3 to 5 more for a full mute.

I'm assuming the action is Ok and the bridge is properly seated in its cavity. The rotos are a good idea, I use the swing bass 66 stainless rounds on mine and they sound great. When you change them it's worth checking the bridge and take a look at the mute. Maybe they don't ship with the foam pad any more. It's available as an accessory.

Hey Paul, it did come with the foam mute. When I turn the knobs it raises it, but eventually the knobs get so tight its impossible to do by hand. Even with the knobs turned as far as possible, they are still a good quarter inch from the strings.

Here's a pic, hopefully its clear enough:


I turn the knobs clockwise to raise the mute. Is that the same for you, or am I not doing something right?

Also I was wondering if you put straplocks on yours. When I play standing up, the strap comes undone every five minutes! Can't have that happening when I'm playing with the band. I really have no experience at all with straplocks. Are they something that attach to the existing strap knobs, or do they replace the strap knobs completely?

Thanks for your help!

Josh, my strings are way down in the channels where your foam pad is. It looks like your bridge is set really high. Maybe not even in its recess properly. Is the action also high? If so you may want a setup later.

I don't have straplocks yet. They replace the strap buttons completely.

Paul, at first the action felt a little high, but after playing a little while it didn't seem to bad. In fact when I'm playing on around the third fret of the E string, the string slaps against the fretboard as if the action is low. I was afraid my action might be too high because of the height above the foam mute though. I really don't know how it should look. Here's a pic. Can you see anything wrong, or is it just set up high?

Josh, I don't see anything obviously wrong. The bridge does look a little high based on my Ric but I see the bridge has been re-designed somewhat so I'm not absolutely certain. It does seem strange that the mute doesn't reach the strings though.

Maybe we can get Roger to look since he has a 4003. Also it may be worth an e-mail to RIC customer support. I'll pm Roger and ask him to take a look at the pic.

Paul...I got your PM...just had a busy day with school work and band practice.

Josh, I just checked the Rickenbacker web site and adjusting the bridge height should be easy. There are two adjustment screws one on each side of the bridge assembly.

I would consider lowering the bridge slightly and re-tune. Check that it plays well (ie: no additional buzz) and if everything's Ok repeat until the strings are low enough to contact the mute. You can always raise the bridge again if it starts to buzz in which case you probably need a set up.

I'll try to get a pic of mine tonight so you can compare with yours. Hope this helps. BTW, most new basses need a set up so don't worry, there isn't anything wrong with your new beauty. :-)

Hey Paul, thanks a lot for your help. I'll see what Roger has to say before adjusting it. When I was removing my pickup cover, I had to remove the strings. When I did that, I discovered that the saddle part of the bridge is held only by the tension of the strings. It seems I have a lot yet to learn.

I discovered that the saddle part of the bridge is held only by the tension of the strings

Yep, that's the same on mine. This is why I mentioned that it needs to sit in its cavity properly. I have heard of the bridge sitting crooked and causing all kinds of problems.

Good idea to wait for Rogers comments. I did pm him and asked if he'd look at the pic.

Yeah...it's a strange saddle setup isn't it?
I may have to shoot for the less complicated 4004 series with a regular bridge next time...lol

I think the 4004 looks really awesome. I especially like the red one with the gold hardware. I wonder if they have the same sound as the 4003? It appears that the pickups are the same. Not so sure about the electronics (there are only two knobs).

I'm not sure...I think it might sound more bassy.
Last night on the internet I saw a strange thing. A 70's Rickenbacker 3001 series with a bolt-on neck!!!

it's a strange saddle setup isn't it?

It is a little different that's for sure. Steve Fox actually put an aftermarket replacement bridge on his 4003. My thoughts are you don't need to adjust it more than once so it doesn't really matter. It gets the job done.

Yeah you are right. If you keep using the same guage of strings, and don't abuse it, use shoot rarely have to adjust them. My action came set up nice.

Josh...I'm not at my Ric right now but I'll check the mute tomorrow. Don't change the strap pins....just go buy a set a schaller strap locks and just hook the portion up to the strap. The pins on the Ric were made to work with the schaller strap lock system. I think I paid $14 for mine. Are you use to that sound yet. when you get on it it has just a nasty tone...very raw and rock n roll tone. When I play heavy songs like Metallica type stuff I flip the switch down to activate just the treble p/u and damn does it growl.

Ok thats cool. Theres no rush, I'm actually quite pleased with my action, I was just wondering if something was wrong. Thanks for the info on the strap locks. My ESP has very large strap pins, so my strap has very large holes. Using this strap on the ric is bad news.

I just used the ric for the first time at practice yesterday and boy did it really come alive! I typically play at very low volumes by myself--I try to be respectful of my housemates. But when I got to practice I cranked it, and boy did it get mean! I had a sinister grin on my face the entire time.

I'm glad to hear you are enjoying it Josh. None of the previous discussion matters if you are happy with the action. The mute isn't that important, you probably wouldn't use it that much anyway.

Your experience at practice confirms what many people have told me about Rics, they need to be cranked up. :-)

Mine has so much output...more then my active Dean bass, or any other active bass I've ever had.

It has such a growl to the sound, especially with both volumes cranked and the treble all the way.

I may put half round (1/2 flats-1/2 round wound) strings on it to see if I could conjure a little more thump.

Hey are these the ones you are talking about?

Yes...those are the ones.

When I got my "Rick" finished I played seven hours straight then ate and played five hours more.
My fingers were devastated after that.

-V

When I got my Ric I played for 4 hours straight, pausing only to re-fill my beer a dozen times. My brain was devastated after that. LOL

haha...I lucked out and mine arrived 2 hours before I was to head out for practice. I just went by the local guitar center...bought some strap locks, and she got a 2 hour break in.

lol. And you woke up in next morning and couldnt remember where you left the bass :D

-V

lol....mine was sleeping next to me!!

haha. I can imagine you pushing your lady further

-V