Hi Everyone, I've been reading and taking in all the great info on these boards for a while but this is my first post.
I've just won a reissue 1997 SPC VB on ebay, which hopefully will arrive shortly. It is a year 2000 Fireglo and it will be the third Ric I've owned, after 2 360's (I still have one).
While I'm waiting patiently for my new baby, I was hoping there would be some people here willing to share their experiences with the Rose-Morris reissues.
Good, bad, whatever, I'd be interested in hearing other opinions. It will be my first experience with Toasters and also with the notorious Accent vibrato.
Cheers,
Barney
Reissue 1997 SPC VB
Moderators: rickenbrother, ajish4
Barney, my 1997SPC/VB is my favorite guitar ever. I own three Rics and I've had as many as five; the 1997 is the king of them all. For a long time my 360V64 got as much play as it but no longer. The Accent vibrato is fine. It's better than a Bigsby for my playing style and worlds better than most modern vib/trem systems. Tuning remains stable so long as your strings aren't too new (or unstretched). The only Rics I've gotten rid of have been HiGain equipped models. Toasters are THE Rickenbacker sound.
Cheers, Noel
Cheers, Noel
Shaking the floor of Heaven
Welcome to The Rickenbacker Forum Ben.
The model 1997 is a terrific instrument. The rhythm player in our group has a Model 1997 Jetglo and he seldom puts it down. The f-hole is a favourite Rickenbacker option of mine.
I know you will be thrilled with the tonality and the playability of this fine Rickenbacker guitar.
Please let us know what you think when it arrives.
The model 1997 is a terrific instrument. The rhythm player in our group has a Model 1997 Jetglo and he seldom puts it down. The f-hole is a favourite Rickenbacker option of mine.
I know you will be thrilled with the tonality and the playability of this fine Rickenbacker guitar.
Please let us know what you think when it arrives.
Life, as with music, often requires one to let go of the melody and listen to the rhythm
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Please join the Official RickResource Forum Facebook Page https://www.facebook.com/groups/379271585440277
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barney_dog
Thanks guys. This is a fantastic forum and a great source of useful information. I had a look through the archives and found some really interesting stuff. I haven't run into too many Rickenbacker fans over the years living in Melbourne and Hobart (Australia) so this is the only place to discuss all this stuff for me.
I became interested in Rickenbackers firstly through the Beatles, but the real catalyst for me actually buying one was seeing Marty Willson-Piper and The Church. Marty is a massively underrated guitarist and a huge influence on my playing.
What strings are you using Noel? I have been using 11-52 Thomastik Infeld flatwounds on the 360 and quite like them. I've heard great things about they Pyramids but haven't got around to ordering any and nobody stocks them locally. I'm not going to be too heavy-handed with the vibrato anyway, which was why I decided to take a punt on this guitar (although from my limited experience Rics are remarkably consistent in terms of quality so it isn't much of a gamble).
I became interested in Rickenbackers firstly through the Beatles, but the real catalyst for me actually buying one was seeing Marty Willson-Piper and The Church. Marty is a massively underrated guitarist and a huge influence on my playing.
What strings are you using Noel? I have been using 11-52 Thomastik Infeld flatwounds on the 360 and quite like them. I've heard great things about they Pyramids but haven't got around to ordering any and nobody stocks them locally. I'm not going to be too heavy-handed with the vibrato anyway, which was why I decided to take a punt on this guitar (although from my limited experience Rics are remarkably consistent in terms of quality so it isn't much of a gamble).
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skeeterbuck
- Junior Member
- Posts: 165
- Joined: Tue Jun 01, 2004 5:00 am
Hey Ben, welcome!
I have a MG 1779 and it's a keeper. I like all of the Ric 21 fret models alot better that the newer 24 fret necks. IMHO this was a step backwards for Ric when they started using them. Mine is just the two pickup model with a trapeze tailpiece. I am currently using the Pyramid 10-46.5 set and has worked out fine for me. I may at a later date try their 11-48 set to see how they do.
Congrats!
I have a MG 1779 and it's a keeper. I like all of the Ric 21 fret models alot better that the newer 24 fret necks. IMHO this was a step backwards for Ric when they started using them. Mine is just the two pickup model with a trapeze tailpiece. I am currently using the Pyramid 10-46.5 set and has worked out fine for me. I may at a later date try their 11-48 set to see how they do.
Congrats!
Barney, I typically use Ernie Ball Slinky strings, though I'll occasionally order the Ric compressed round wounds. I use 10s now instead of 11s. I do play quite a bit and Pyramids are too pricey for my frequent string changes.
As for Marty Willson-Piper, he was a profound influence on me before I ever picked up a guitar. A masterful player (as is his bandmate in the Church: Peter Koppes). It was at an MWP gig that I met my bandmate/songwriting partner.
This month I'm using my 1997 SPC/VB on a different sort of gig - a show put on at my workplace. I'll be playing *ack! covers. Think Black Eyed Peas and Lenny Kravitz ...and don't tell anyone I did it. In my defense, my parts are tasteful.
Cheers, Noel
As for Marty Willson-Piper, he was a profound influence on me before I ever picked up a guitar. A masterful player (as is his bandmate in the Church: Peter Koppes). It was at an MWP gig that I met my bandmate/songwriting partner.
This month I'm using my 1997 SPC/VB on a different sort of gig - a show put on at my workplace. I'll be playing *ack! covers. Think Black Eyed Peas and Lenny Kravitz ...and don't tell anyone I did it. In my defense, my parts are tasteful.
Cheers, Noel
Shaking the floor of Heaven
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8mileshigh
- Senior Member
- Posts: 3532
- Joined: Thu Nov 20, 2003 6:00 am
Ben: If you don't like to the Ac'cent vibrato, I would be interested in buying it from you or swapping for an 'R' tailpiece. I'm from Brunswick, and have been looking for one for a little while, and would prefer not to have to ship one from the US.
Two wrongs don't make a right, but three rights do make a left.
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barney_dog
Well I've had the guitar for 24 hours now and my initial impressions are good.
It's a Ric, so it goes without saying that cosmetically it is fantastic, with a beautiful finish. It is a lighter shade of Fireglo than my early 90's 360, and not as glossy but looks better thanks to the chrome on the toasters and the vibrato. Interestingly (to me anyway) the neck is quite a bit chunkier than my 360 - is this a feature of the 1997, or did I just get lucky? If anything, I was expecting a thinner neck like the vintage Ric's I've played.
I put flatwound Thomastik Infelds (11-47) and I will need to get it set up properly because it came with lighter gauge roundwounds, but so far the tuning doesn't seem to bad. That vibrato is a interesting piece of work though, I hope there is a knack to restringing that someone here can pass on to me because I fiddled around for ages and needed at least one extra hand.
Thanks for the offer Mark, but I will give the Accent a go for a little while and see if it grows on me.
As for the sound - I only had a few moments playing through a Vox AC30 before it was bedtime for my 4 year old daughter, so I had to use my Pod to compare with the 360. I can say that without doubt, the toaster top bridge pickup on the 1997 is far superior to my ears to the Hi-gain on my 360. I could (and did) jangle for hours.
The other pickup selections are more difficult to assess at this early stage and don't compare exactly with the 360, so I will reserve my judgement, but I can see I'm going to love this guitar for the bridge pickup alone.
It's a Ric, so it goes without saying that cosmetically it is fantastic, with a beautiful finish. It is a lighter shade of Fireglo than my early 90's 360, and not as glossy but looks better thanks to the chrome on the toasters and the vibrato. Interestingly (to me anyway) the neck is quite a bit chunkier than my 360 - is this a feature of the 1997, or did I just get lucky? If anything, I was expecting a thinner neck like the vintage Ric's I've played.
I put flatwound Thomastik Infelds (11-47) and I will need to get it set up properly because it came with lighter gauge roundwounds, but so far the tuning doesn't seem to bad. That vibrato is a interesting piece of work though, I hope there is a knack to restringing that someone here can pass on to me because I fiddled around for ages and needed at least one extra hand.
Thanks for the offer Mark, but I will give the Accent a go for a little while and see if it grows on me.
As for the sound - I only had a few moments playing through a Vox AC30 before it was bedtime for my 4 year old daughter, so I had to use my Pod to compare with the 360. I can say that without doubt, the toaster top bridge pickup on the 1997 is far superior to my ears to the Hi-gain on my 360. I could (and did) jangle for hours.
The other pickup selections are more difficult to assess at this early stage and don't compare exactly with the 360, so I will reserve my judgement, but I can see I'm going to love this guitar for the bridge pickup alone.
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adam_swapp
- Member
- Posts: 389
- Joined: Sun Feb 15, 2004 7:49 pm
- Contact:
The first step in stringing the vibrato is to brush up on your salty language. It will come in handy. You might also try this:
- Put a kink in the string right by the ball end. It seems to help the ball fit beneath the slot.
- Use a capo to hold the string in the tailpiece while you tighten the tuner.
- When the string is snug (but not up to pitch), make sure the ball ends are firmly seated in the comb. If they aren't, shove them into position with a suitably small and appropriately hard object. I use a pointed hardwood dowel, myself, as something metal might scratch if it slips.
- You might also find that the occasional string vibrates against the comb where there's insufficient clearance for the windings because the string tension is too low to raise the comb. Ignoring the energy-sapping ramifications, you can slip a short piece of something hollow over the string and run it to the end before you go through the tuner.
- Put a kink in the string right by the ball end. It seems to help the ball fit beneath the slot.
- Use a capo to hold the string in the tailpiece while you tighten the tuner.
- When the string is snug (but not up to pitch), make sure the ball ends are firmly seated in the comb. If they aren't, shove them into position with a suitably small and appropriately hard object. I use a pointed hardwood dowel, myself, as something metal might scratch if it slips.
- You might also find that the occasional string vibrates against the comb where there's insufficient clearance for the windings because the string tension is too low to raise the comb. Ignoring the energy-sapping ramifications, you can slip a short piece of something hollow over the string and run it to the end before you go through the tuner.
You want to put that where?