Need some help with my 620 (pickups, neck issue)

[fiveightandten]

Hi there. So, I bought a 620 a few months ago. The guitar is a 1990 model year, Jetglo. Great guitar, but I have some issues i'd like to sort out.

1) Pickups

The guitar is stocked with the high gains. They're unbelievably hot. The bridge is measuring 12.06k, and the neck is measuring 15.76k(!). I've installed 0.0047mfd bleed caps on BOTH pickups. This had made the bridge useable, and it sounds good. But the neck is backed down as far as I can get it, and it's a crazy high output muddy mess. It's completely unusable. Any advice on what to do with it?

2) Neck

When I bought the guitar, the neck was dead straight. I checked the truss rods to make sure they were ok, and everything checked out. Maybe it's the weather changing into winter, but the guitar has developed a back bow. Both truss rods are backed off all the way, and the string tension is not pulling the neck straight. It plays ok, but I don't want the problem to get worse, and i'd like to rectify it if possible. What do people do for backbow on a Ric neck?

Thanks in advance. Here are some pics of the guitar.

It didn't have the original case when I got it, but a forum member sold one to me (Thanks Ron!). The guitar did still have the warranty info card, and the Ric fold-out catalog/brochure from 1990 with. I've tried scanning the brochure and putting it together in one big image file for your viewing pleasure. It's going to take a little doing. It's HUGE!

[jps]

What kind of humidifier do you use in your house?

[fiveightandten]

What kind of humidifier do you use in your house?

Hey Jeffrey, I don't use a humidifier. Some might consider that reckless. But i've never had a need to, even with my 360, which i've had for over 10 years now. My other guitars are Les Pauls, an SG, and a few Fenders.

Here's the best view of the neck I could muster up with an iPhone. It's a very slight bow. Not bad. But just enough that i'd have to raise the action a bit to counteract it (which I haven't done yet). It's pretty a pretty even arch and high centers right around the 7th, 8th, 9th fret. My straightedge rocks on it right about there.

[Ontario_RIC_fan]

Thanks in advance. Here are some pics of the guitar.

It didn't have the original case when I got it, but a forum member sold one to me (Thanks Ron!). The guitar did still have the warranty info card, and the Ric fold-out catalog/brochure from 1990 with. I've tried scanning the brochure and putting it together in one big image file for your viewing pleasure. It's going to take a little doing. It's HUGE!

I love jetglo 620s - congrats on a cool guitar and thanks too for sharing pics.

All of the RIC brochures are archived on their website. Click the "History" tab at http://www.rickenbacker.com and then click "Literature archive".

[jdogric12]

Not properly maintaining humidity is indeed reckless.

Try heavier strings. Since the 620 is neck-through instead of a set neck, that has a good chance of fixing it.

[fiveightandten]

Thanks in advance. Here are some pics of the guitar.

It didn't have the original case when I got it, but a forum member sold one to me (Thanks Ron!). The guitar did still have the warranty info card, and the Ric fold-out catalog/brochure from 1990 with. I've tried scanning the brochure and putting it together in one big image file for your viewing pleasure. It's going to take a little doing. It's HUGE!

I love jetglo 620s - congrats on a cool guitar and thanks too for sharing pics.

All of the RIC brochures are archived on their website. Click the "History" tab at http://www.rickenbacker.com and then click "Literature archive".

Thanks! It's like a little brother to my Jetglo 360, which is from the same era. I couldn't say no.

Thanks for the heads up about the brochures. That's very cool. The one up there looks to be different from the one I have. At least the cover is different. I'll have a better look at it when I'm not on my phone.

Not properly maintaining humidity is indeed reckless.

Try heavier strings. Since the 620 is neck-through instead of a set neck, that has a good chance of fixing it.

Thanks for the reply. Do you think clamping it might be a bit better? That way I can do it slower to avoid any finish cracks and control where the force is. I haven't had to clamp a neck before, but I've seen it done with a level and some wooden cauls.

With respect to humidity, and this is an honest question, is it that reckless? I've been playing guitar for 20 years. I've owned roughly 15 guitars and have pretty much had no issues with setup. My 360 gets thrown out of whack as the seasons change, but no other guitar has ever given me a problem. I'll see maybe a 2-3 thousandths or so variation in relief, at the most, if I don't touch a guitar for a while. The 360 has gone out as much as 4 thousandths, which is a lot for that guitar. But being semi hollow, I've attributed the construction to that.

I've never met a guitarist that keeps a humidifier, dehumidifier, and humidity gauge at home with their solid body electric guitars, and constantly adjusts the environment to keep things optimal. Are all the people I've met over the past 20 years complacent? Also, what do you guys do about taking guitars out to use them? I live in New England. We see huge temperature and humidity extremes, and clubs/bars aren't climate controlled very well. Exposing the guitars to temperature and humidity shift is unavoidable, if I want to actually use them.

I'm not being sarcastic. I'm genuinely curious if I've been doing things wrong all this time, and everyone else I know is also doing things wrong.

[jdogric12]

Ok, not reckless, lucky.

[rickendelic]

About the neck being muddy, check out threads regarding putting a cap across the two outside lugs of the 5th or blend knob. If still wired stock that 5th knob, after adding a cap, should act as a bass roll off for the neck pickup. You should read up on it to double check my info, but it might help your issue.