New Ric Day!

[Lemmyknow]

A week ago actually.... I always wanted a Rickenbacker 4003 and finally had the chance to pick one up on Reverb for a great price. Being a big Motorhead and Rsuh fan as can be seen in my username, I saw the Ric for sale and contemplated selling some gear to fund it and I'm glad I did. It was built in July of 2015 and I got it brand new. I plan on having it setup by my local tech and using some DR Hi Beams and having the pickup cover removed. So far, it sounds great through my Ampegs. I have really been obsessed with the tones I get when I play through my '66 Ampeg B15.

The finish and craftsmanship is spot on and I especially like fuzz and dirty tones from the bridge pickup. I find it one of the best basses to use with effects and tube overdrive. The neck pickup may need to be raised so the volume can be at unity, but it's a great bass and I have no regrets. the last picture is from the other night when I took a size comparison picture of the 4003 and my custom bass for another forum. I'm a fan of natural wood grain basses as can be seen in the pics. I'll post a thread about my other custom bass when I can rescue some better pics off my old pc.

Here is the new 4003:

[paulo]

It's a beauty!
Congrats!

[jayceofbass]

Very nice! I saw this at CME when I was there in the fall. I think I even played it. Enjoy!

And thank you - sincerely, whole heartedly - for removing the sticker from the pickguard. The world doesn't need another umpteen year old Ric with the packaging still intact.

[superheavydeathmetal]

OH, yeah! Ricks rule!

Be careful when trying to raise the neck pickup; it doesn't go very high, and it is common for people to turn the screws too tight and crack the pickguard. So, don't turn the screws too hard. If that doesn't get you enough volume out of the neck pickup, then your best bet is to just turn down the volume on the bridge pickup to balance it.

Also, you mentioned how good they are for effects. Yes, and the stereo output makes them even better for effects, yet.

I don't use any effects really, just a pinch of chorus on the bridge pickup, but I use the stereo output exclusively, and I love the sound I get:
https://soundcloud.com/conley-flake/you ... o-disgrace
https://soundcloud.com/conley-flake/bulls-on-parade

I have since tweaked the tone a bit, but that is the idea.

If you are going to have the pickup cover removed, you may want to look into a treble bezel to fill the empty space. They also have some models with a built-in thumb rest:
http://www.tubeampology.com/

Apparently, they now have chrome-finished bezels! That is news to me.

If you are interested in learning more about Rick basses, the gold standard is this book:
http://www.hpbmarketplace.com/booksearc ... rt=&page=1

[andrew]

Nice bass, always wanted a mapleglo with white binding.

Good tips SHDM.