Ric 330, Vox AC30, and TS808

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Tommy
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Re: Ric 330, Vox AC30, and TS808

Post by Tommy »

kennyhowes wrote:Defending Tommy a bit, I think his point is that such sounds are often the color of the pedal rather than the guitar, and the priority should be the opposite.

When I do have crunch, which isn’t often, I prefer the amp to do the work, rather than a pedal or other box(es).
Bingo.

Yes, it is the pedal (not the guitar) you are playing when you stomp on one. And, yes, if I want some bite, I'll turn up the volume on the guitar and get the amp to give it to me rather than some DOD Grunge pedal.
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scott_s
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Re: Ric 330, Vox AC30, and TS808

Post by scott_s »

Tommy wrote:
ch willie wrote: Yesterday, I bought an Ibanez Tube Screamer TS808. I should have bought one decades ago.

I plugged the Ric into it and into the Vox AC30, and I wasn't prepared for the balls out rock and roll sound the Ric was making. Seriously showed me just how versatile the Ric is.
I never understand this at all.

You say when you plugged your Ric intoo your TS808 you enjoyed "the balls out rock and roll sound the Ric was making." But it wasn't the Ric...it was the Tube Screamer you plugged into.

Guitars make guitar sounds. Pedals make pedal sounds. A Ric sound is bright and sparkly. Why would I want to alter that sound to make my Ric sound like a Les Paul through a cranked Marshall?

I just don't get pedals at all. I like guitar sounds, not pedal sounds.
When I bought my 330, I was thrown off a bit since I expected it to be really thin and jangly-sounding out of the box. Instead, it sounded warm and round (dare I even say, "dark"?) through the tweed-style amps I had at the time, and couldn't wait to do AC/DC as soon as I turned those amps up. Must be the High Gains. :)

It wasn't until I started playing it through amps with more of a blackface Fender tonality that the "Rickenbacker" sound started to really happen. So a lot depends on the amp, too!
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ch willie
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Re: Ric 330, Vox AC30, and TS808

Post by ch willie »

It depends on the pedal as to how transparent the pedals sound is. It absolutely colors the sound, but the TS808 does not take away the tonal character of my guitars. It drives the sound, but it doesn't create the sound. I'm not technical, so I'm not sure if I'm describing it right. I'm not just hearing the pedal; a lot of what I'm hearing is the typical sound of my guitars.
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bluewhale
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Re: Ric 330, Vox AC30, and TS808

Post by bluewhale »

Tommy wrote:I agree with you folks that Rics are pigeon-holed as a guitar offering nothing but certain tone for a certain style of music. But I will counter with a "so what?" There is nothing wrong with Rics being labelled what they are...
In my opinion, there are a few things wrong with it. For one, as a Ric owner and enthusiast, I would like for the Ric community to grow, partly based on awareness of what a 330 can do with an Ibanez TS808 and a Vox AC30. I think the labelling inhibits that.
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Tommy
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Re: Ric 330, Vox AC30, and TS808

Post by Tommy »

bluewhale wrote:For one, as a Ric owner and enthusiast, I would like for the Ric community to grow,
How can it possibly grow when Ric releases the same models since 1965!

Ric is what it is. A relic from the past....but so are the treasures of King Tut's tomb. Glorious, wonderful. That's what Tut's ancient treasures are, and that's what Rickenbacker guitars are. Ric shouldn't be making pointy, all black guitars with active EMG pickups. Ric's shouldn't be played with DOD Grunge pedals. Rickenbacker guitars and basses are glorious relics from a long gone day. We buy them because we love the music of those long gone days. If I want modern death metal music....I ain't buying a Ric. If I want great rock and roll...I buy Rickenbacker. And I don't use a Tube Screamer with it.
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chronictown
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Re: Ric 330, Vox AC30, and TS808

Post by chronictown »

My opinion: this isn't a false-dichotomy choice between twee jingle-jangle 60s music and crush-yer-skull death metal, as there are obviously myriad flavors in between for which Rickenbackers are more than capable of holding their own, with or without pedals. Have Ricks been pigeon-holed? Absolutely. Has the company been focused on the rear-view mirror? Largely yes, IMHO, but who can blame them with the incredible history that is rightfully theirs, and with the nostalgic consumer-base that Hoovers it all up? In the meantime, it seems to me that some of the more recent updates (in basses at least) indicate that RIC is certainly not a "relic of the past". I'm very curious what the next 5-10 years will hold for RIC.

OK, time to go play 60s-influenced 80s indie on my '64 fitted with 80s hi-gains and played through a solid-state Fender amp and yes, with the assistance of a Tube Screamer :wink:
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Re: Ric 330, Vox AC30, and TS808

Post by jdogric12 »

Show of hands if you've given a 650 a fair chance, meaning with the pot values changed. That has opened up a whole world for me. My Robot SG (don't laugh) is no longer my go-to "GSD" studio guitar, it's now my 650A.
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Tommy
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Re: Ric 330, Vox AC30, and TS808

Post by Tommy »

chronictown wrote:...Has the company been focused on the rear-view mirror? Largely yes, IMHO, but who can blame them with the incredible history that is rightfully theirs, and with the nostalgic consumer-base that Hoovers it all up?
The thing is that "nostalgic consumer-base" is dwindling. No need to get morbid, but we all can see why that consumer-base will be lost.

And it's not just The Beatles /Byrds base I am talking about. The next wave of Ric players that influenced guitarists and sold Ric guitars - Tom Petty, The Jam, REM, The Smiths, The Church even - well, their fan base is dwindling, too. What Ric player in recent years has made consumers want a Rickenbacker?
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scott_s
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Re: Ric 330, Vox AC30, and TS808

Post by scott_s »

Tommy wrote:
chronictown wrote:...Has the company been focused on the rear-view mirror? Largely yes, IMHO, but who can blame them with the incredible history that is rightfully theirs, and with the nostalgic consumer-base that Hoovers it all up?
The thing is that "nostalgic consumer-base" is dwindling. No need to get morbid, but we all can see why that consumer-base will be lost.

And it's not just The Beatles /Byrds base I am talking about. The next wave of Ric players that influenced guitarists and sold Ric guitars - Tom Petty, The Jam, REM, The Smiths, The Church even - well, their fan base is dwindling, too. What Ric player in recent years has made consumers want a Rickenbacker?
Kevin Parker, for one.

The fact that you have to ask means you may be spending too much time in the past... ;)
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Re: Ric 330, Vox AC30, and TS808

Post by jdogric12 »

scott_s wrote:The fact that you have to ask means you may be spending too much time in the past... ;)
Exactly, there are a lot out there. and the "kids" do like Ricks as much as the proverbial old farts.
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Tommy
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Re: Ric 330, Vox AC30, and TS808

Post by Tommy »

scott_s wrote:
Tommy wrote: What Ric player in recent years has made consumers want a Rickenbacker?
Kevin Parker, for one.
Look, I admit I have never heard of Mr. Parker or his music. But here's the thing. EVERYBODY on Earth, whether you were a rock and roll fan or not, heard of The Beatles. Saw The Beatles somehwre on the TV or newspaper. Heard their songs somewhere in their lives. How many people have heard, let alone seen, this Kevin Parker?

To suggest that Kevin Parker has the ability to move sales in the way that John Lennon, George Harrison, Paul McCartney, Tom Petty, Pete Townshend, Peter Buck did is just plain ludicrous.
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jdogric12
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Re: Ric 330, Vox AC30, and TS808

Post by jdogric12 »

Tommy wrote:EVERYBODY on Earth, whether you were a rock and roll fan or not, heard of The Beatles.
Absolutely not true. The important distinction is not that Kevin isn't the Beatles, but rather that MUSIC as a whole is a fraction of what it once was as a part of our society.
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Re: Ric 330, Vox AC30, and TS808

Post by sloop_john_b »

I had several reasons for buying my 1968 330, one of which was indeed Kevin Parker. Seeing him - one of the most visible Rickenbacker players of the last ten years - relentlessly tour the world playing his 60's 330 gave me the comfort I needed that it'd be a fine workhorse for when I ramp up gigs again.

For what it's worth, Tame Impala has 13.5 million Spotify listeners per month, more than Tom Petty (7.9m), REM (10.7m), and The Who (7.9m).

This song has over 614 million streams, and the video has over 5m views - not bad for a guy playing his original music on a Rickenbacker in 2020.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TDeKxDNMfww[/youtube]

I will also add Laura Jane Grace to the list of highly visible Rickenbacker players of the last ten years, who, like Kevin Parker, gave me the comfort of knowing that these can be played hard (though she does play more modern ones).
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scott_s
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Re: Ric 330, Vox AC30, and TS808

Post by scott_s »

Tommy wrote:Look, I admit I have never heard of Mr. Parker or his music. But here's the thing. EVERYBODY on Earth, whether you were a rock and roll fan or not, heard of The Beatles. Saw The Beatles somehwre on the TV or newspaper. Heard their songs somewhere in their lives. How many people have heard, let alone seen, this Kevin Parker?

To suggest that Kevin Parker has the ability to move sales in the way that John Lennon, George Harrison, Paul McCartney, Tom Petty, Pete Townshend, Peter Buck did is just plain ludicrous.
Dude, the question you asked (and I answered) was "What Ric player in recent years has made consumers want a Rickenbacker?"

-- NOT --

"What current bands are as pervasive as the Beatles?"

I think someone needs to get out more, for a couple reasons... :lol:
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Re: Ric 330, Vox AC30, and TS808

Post by jps »

jdogric12 wrote:Exactly, there are a lot out there. and the "kids" do like Ricks as much as the proverbial old farts.
Which of those two categories do you place yourself in? :mrgreen:
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