Strange RIC amp on ebay

landon · Post by **landon** » Sun Mar 30, 2003 3:14 pm

I never knew such a beast existed, anyone know the story on this thing??

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2519467089&category=14983

jzu · Post by **jzu** » Sun Mar 30, 2003 9:05 pm

Rickenbacker was already making (kind of) PA amplifiers in the 50's, like the Ninety-Eight:

http://www.rickenbacker.com/images/cf55-9.jpg

and a more recent example (a PA 120 seemingly featuring 4 stereo inputs) can be found on eBay:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2519223106&category=10171

The logo on the RA 300 indicates it was made in the last years RIC produced amplifiers, at the end of the eighties.

tracy · Post by **tracy** » Tue Apr 01, 2003 5:39 am

Yeah, these are cool. Pardon me while I go place my bid.......

bassman · Post by **bassman** » Tue Apr 01, 2003 9:11 am

Anyone wanting to know the specs on this amp, let me know. I have a original Rickenbacker 1980-81 catalog of their Solid State amps which were at the time called the "TR Series". It includes all the various amp/combo/cabinet combinations for guitar, bass and PA. I also have the original price list.
There are some very cool looking bass amps and cabinets included in this brochure. Especially the SB412, SB118, SB215 and the huge SB150FH Folded Horn bass cabinet.

jzu · Post by **jzu** » Tue Apr 01, 2003 9:18 pm

Jon, while I don't think your catalog features this RA 300 amp, which has been built a few years later, your help will be welcome when I update my Rick Amp page (Real Soon Now...)

bassman · Post by **bassman** » Wed Apr 02, 2003 4:12 am

You are correct Jean, The RA 300 was built a years later. My catalog includes the PA 120 and various column speaker configurations.
I'd be happy to share any specs with you for your Rickenbacker amp page, just let me know what you need.

johnhall · Post by **johnhall** » Wed Apr 02, 2003 5:09 am

This power amp series consisted of two models, the RA300 and RA600. The RA300 was rated at 150 watt RMS per side into 4 ohms or 300 mono at 8 ohms. The RA600 has 300 watts per side at 4 ohms or 600 mono at 8 ohms, and added an LED level indicator on the front panel. These were produced in Japan by Sony Sound Tech as part of a collaborative effort. There was to be a full line of sound reinforcement products (which were shown at the 1985 Musik Messe in Frankfurt) and I even sketched out for them a new design concept which was later developed by another division of Sony for a company called Zoom . . .

Unfortunately, the Sept. 1985 Plaza Accord which created "endaka", the doubling of the strength of the Yen and Sony's intransigence with regard to it, killed this cooperation in one single day.

I still have the RA600 prototypes installed in my studio; the stability and warmth of these never ceases to amaze me.

I have full catalogs on all of these products as well as many studio photos. Unfortunately, the recent trafficking in these and disregard for our copyrights has made us pull back in our efforts to make this kind of material available until a better way to protect it can be devised.