Low gain / output?

hellfart · Post by **hellfart** » Sun Apr 03, 2005 8:59 am

Hello...

I'm the proud owner of a 4001 from '76, have her for almost a year now. But I started suffering from a problem... When I play my bass through my Trace-Elliot 250watt GMX head, it keeps asking for 'mor gain'. When I connect my bass with my Behringer V-amp at home, there's also a remarkable difference in loudness compared to my back-up Epiphone Thunderbird...

Does anybody know what the problem might be? A friend advised to change the potential meters to heavier ones... but I'm not that kind of a technician :-/

Cheerz!

atomic_punk · Post by **atomic_punk** » Sun Apr 03, 2005 9:08 am

Noco, I also have a Thunderbird, I think the pickups on it are hotter than the older Ric pickups and therefore louder. The Ric doesn't have as high of an output, and needs to be turned up a little bit for maximum effect! Welcome to the Forum, please post a picture of the '76 if you can, we love seeing them.

rickfan60 · Post by **rickfan60** » Sun Apr 03, 2005 9:29 am

I am not sure if you are talking about the tendancy for 70's Rick basses to be a little weak in the volume and low end departments or if your bass has an electrical problem. If the problem is the former, you have a few options. You can simply live with it and turn up the gain. This is not the best option but the easiest. The real culprits are the .0047mFd bass cut capacitor and the pickups themselves. First try bypassing the capacitor (easy to do). This will noticably increase the low end. If you want even more gain, you can have your pickups rewound to be hotter or you can replace them with new Rickenbacker pickups (late 80's or newer). If you have access to thin NIB or other rare earth magnets you can use one to increase the field of the neck pickup. This is a completely reversible mod that, if done correctly will greatly increase the low end and volume of the neck pickup without hurting the sustain. Make sure your treble pickup is adjusted properly. It should be as close as possible without being hit by the strings. This distance varies by player and style. Find what works for you.

If the problem is electrical it could be anything from a corroded jack to cold solder joints, improper wiring, and damaged potentiometers (pots). Carefully inspect your wiring. Sloppy solder joints are usually very obvious. Look for globs of solder that might be shorting wires that should not be touching. The RIC website has a complete set of wiring digrams that you can use for troubleshooting.

rickfan60 · Post by **rickfan60** » Sun Apr 03, 2005 10:00 am

If you decide that the pickups are the issue, our man in Portugal can certainly help you. Sergio?

jwr2 · Post by **jwr2** » Sun Apr 03, 2005 10:05 am

Get a new Ric they have better pickups ... I sold all of my old Rics ... I got tired of weak necks and weak pickups ...

hellfart · Post by **hellfart** » Sun Apr 03, 2005 11:37 am

Thnx!

Well... I'll probably have the electronics checked withing a few weeks. Right now the gain at my Trace-Elliot is at its highest... I can live with that, but I prefer everything to work fine

I must mention that tip for increasing the low-end!

Also was thinking bout installing a seymour duncan rick bass element... not thàt expensive either.

Thinkin' bout selling mine and bying a new Ric is out of the question... I just simply adore my '76 model! And Rickenbacker isn't that cheap over here in Belgium.

incubus2432 · Post by **incubus2432** » Sun Apr 03, 2005 12:12 pm

Getting the stock Ric pickups and having them rewound by Sergio is a great option to consider. If you are looking at the aftermarket for replacements the Seymour Duncan p/u's are pretty sterile sounding and the bridge version kinda kills the traditional look. At least look at the Bartolini replacements before making a final decision....they maintain much of the stock tone characteristics (IMO) but strengthen the lowend output. They also are a direct swap and maintain the stock appearance better than the SD p/u's.

rickfan60 · Post by **rickfan60** » Sun Apr 03, 2005 12:23 pm

Don't despair Noco, 75's are fine basses. You just have to understand them a bit to coax good sound out of them. Jeff is the most practical player you will ever meet. There is little romance in his soul for instruments, I'm afraid. But that is why we love ya Jeff!

Jeff balances out the guys like me who see instruments as sacred.

Shunting the bass cut cap is really very easy and makes a huge difference. You can do it yourself if you have a soldering iron. We can help guide you through it. Modern pickups are the ultimate solution though. Buy some new ones and sell your old ones on Ebay. The often sell for far more than they are worth.

rickcrazy · Post by **rickcrazy** » Sun Apr 03, 2005 2:07 pm

Here I am, gentlemen. Can I offer some assistance pickup-wise?

jwr2 · Post by **jwr2** » Sun Apr 03, 2005 2:16 pm

naa ... I have a romantic side ... I just don't show it ... I quite often take extreem positions and express strong opinions to get you guys thinking ... I do appreciate fine old classic vintage instruments ... the problem is I am middle class ... I work for a living ... I have a limited budget ...

A 70's Ric is a good gigging bass ... remove the bass cut capaciter, and check the pickups ... sometimes old pickups get really weak or go dead ... the Seymour Duncan pickup will give you volume and bass but the tone on those pickups is lame ... if you need to replace a pickup then try a pair of new 4003 pickups ... that will give the old bass balls of steel ... I restored 2 different Ric basses that had a dead neck pickup ... I sometimes put in all new pots and replace one or both pickups ... if you like the t-bird bass then you will love the new 4003 pickups ...

rickfan60 · Post by **rickfan60** » Sun Apr 03, 2005 2:21 pm

Yes, newer Rickenbacker pickups are very loud and deep. You would like them very much Noco.

rickfan60 · Post by **rickfan60** » Sun Apr 03, 2005 2:30 pm

Noco: Is your username to be read in english or dutch/flemish? Just wondering....

rictified · Post by **rictified** » Sun Apr 03, 2005 6:59 pm

I agree don't get SD's whatever you do they sound terrible, and either Sérgio or buying new 4003 pickups would wake your bass right up. I wouldn't change from Ric PU's if I were you.
I also agree with Jeff (amazing huh? haha! [just a joke Jeff]) in that the new 4003's blow away the old 4001's in sound and playability and I own three 4001's.

rickenbrother · Post by **rickenbrother** » Sun Apr 03, 2005 7:18 pm

I've tried the Seymour Duncan replacement pickups for Rick basses. I did not them at all. Jeff Rath said it right, the sound of those pickups IS LAME!! I've had Bartolini replacement pickups in Rick basses. They were much better than the SD's. My humble opinion is that you get new Rick pickups, or let Sergio do his magic on your old Rick pickups to get the best sound out of your 4001.

hellfart · Post by **hellfart** » Sun Apr 03, 2005 11:18 pm

Hey Ted... Flemish/Dutch it is

Normally it's 'Nico' but friends call me 'Noco', so... hence! Borokov is some kind of cheap vodka over here, I used to drink it years ago. No further questions

So I might consider getting a 4003 bridge element, but are they available over here in Europe? Or do you have to order them in the US? Only thing I saw here, were the SD pickups.