Which pickup to choose for a Rickenbacker is a big topic here, and I'm wondering, on a 12 string, what do you feel does a better job in sounding the way you want it and the way you think it should be.
I've never had the chance to play a Ric 12 string nor a Ric with toasters... Mainly since there's no dealer here for another 1000km. I have the only Ric I've ever seen!
So anyways, I'd be ready to guess the toasters do a better job at giving the 12 string the "right" sound.
I love my high-gains, but if I was to buy a 12 string Ric I'd probably consider the toasters before the high-gains... Just my uninformed opinion
I may be in the minority here, but I prefer the hi-gains on my 12 string. They are sparkly and chimey but also meaty and strong sounding. The toasters to my ears just sound tinny.
Of course on my 4003 I find the toaster in the neck position, with the half inch spacing ala the 'c' series to be essential.
I have to turn down the bass or roll back the neck pickup on my 660/12 most of the time, so I don't find the toasters tinny. If they were tinny I wouldn't have them on all three of my basses!
Being a bass player .. a Ric bass player .. I've spent the last 25 years addressing the "Tinny Issue" with other bassists. Recently I;ve just purchased my first Ric Guitar.. 340 12 VP ... I hear symphonics .. not tin.
On the other hand I know that the 12 string is a complicated instrument... which is why I still like the number 4.
I traded a 660-6 (debatable decision) for a JG '92 360-12 and switched with the trade for the VPs. It sounds nice, but, I think more and more that stock ric's are a very good option. Let's not forget that the hi-gains became stock in 69/70, so its pretty "vintage" in its own way.
Speaking of 12-strings, for fun last night, I played the lead to sleepwalk with it. It's chimy, but, the gretsch six give's a more typical sound for that song with the bigsby.
While continuning my waxings over rics, I had my gretsch 6122 country classic and my ric out at the same time, and on so many levels, I am floored at how much quality that rics give the consumer in relation to other brands. I sometimes want to get another 360-6 and put a bigsby b-5, but, I can't bring myself to put holes into the body of a rickenbacker.
