My bass sounds like a totally different instrument.
You have my deepest condolences!
The only reason I'd be interested in a replacement would be more adjustability. But only if it sounds substantially the same as the original. I sure as hell don't want more sustain.
hi lars. yes the bass i play now is SAFE. i can flail away and never have to worry about running to quickcare for a stitch up. the bass also has hs ultralight tuners. its a dream to play, balances GREAT and with the new hs bridge, my cup runneth sideways. the focus should have always been on the playing, not trying to rebuild, re-rout,re-balance, burnish,sand,reset,drill etc. the manufacturer should have done all those things for you. thank god for hipshot and pickguardian to respond to the concerns and needs of many of the issues seen on this forum. another BIG guitar manufacturer is managing to keep their somewhat vintage theme while at the same time making their products state of the art. i think you know what i mean. what should the 21st century 4001-4003 bass really look like? with the aftermarket available, its getting close. rear bridge pickup cover? who keeps that on their bass!
David, what on earth are you talking about? Who else here has complained about needing to "rebuild, re-rout,re-balance, burnish,sand,reset,drill etc." things that "the manufacturer should have done"? According to whom? I have nothing against Hipshot and Pickguardian for responding to what they see as a market need, but you won't see any big migration to their products because most Ric owners don't have a problem with whatever you're griping about.
another BIG guitar manufacturer is managing to keep their somewhat vintage theme while at the same time making their products state of the art.
Fender? Guess you haven't hung around various Fender boards and read the endless complaints about every little thing that's not like it was in Leo's day.
i think you know what i mean. what should the 21st century 4001-4003 bass really look like? with the aftermarket available, its getting close.
The 4003 is selling as fast as RIC can make them. Why would they need to change to suit you and risk alienating their existing market? And the available aftermarket parts are infinitesimal compared to Fender. That should tell you a lot about the general level of satisfaction with the status quo.
rear bridge pickup cover? who keeps that on their bass!
I do. And if the poll at the Dudepit is any indication, about 50% do. What's it to you? If you like the Pickguardian cover, fine. Why do you presume that you represent anyone else?
And is Brian correct? You don't even own a Rickenbacker bass?
When I made a chassis to mount 4004 HB1's in two of my 3000's, I used the 4000 series bridge pickup surround and the cover. Since I usually play behind the cover or rest my hand on it when I play in front, I don't mind it's presence. I think it just plain looks cool too in a vintage sort of way.
In all fairness to David, his statement about the "big guitar manufacturer" was probably referring to hipshot and this bridge. Also, in reference to his statement about re-routing and such, I have had to modify ALL of the bridges on my 3000's to intonate better and actually move two of them on the instrument to align and intonate properly. I'm sure that's changed since the '70's with JH at the helm and more modern manufacturing techniques, but it was the FIRST thing I did with each of my basses. Don't get me wrong, I love the product and feel that even in the '70's when I first got into Ricks, they were far better than Fender. The adjustment screws on my P-bass used to vibrate out as I was playing and even fall out of the POS Fender bridge. There's almost always room for improvement, especially among those of us here who really get into the mechanics of our instrument and like to tinker.
yes there are lots POS out there, and in time maybe someone will deal each of them.. some of us like or need to change a few things to make our instruments playable for US. others have no complaints with things as presented.. it really is a shame that countless numbers of perfectly good ric basses have been butchered over the years to correct a PROBLEM THAT NEVER REALLY EXISTED.
the ric tailpiece bridge assembly is very pretty ... but it is the hardest to set up and it is the only bass that still comes with a mechanical mute ... everybody else dumped that feature 30 or 40 years ago ...
and my main complaint is it is virtually impossible to palm mute with the stock tailpiece installed ...
John Hall probably would discontinue some of the obsolete features on the 4003 bass except for the uproar of "You changed something" ...
notice the 4004 uses an ordinary bridge ... new models do not have mechanical mutes, ric-o-sound, and pickup covers ... those are not features of a modern bass ...
yes. thanks leo for finally dumping all those "ashtray" pickup and bridge covers that were thrown away for countless years. now we can use that metal for something really important, like shell casings..
While I don't use the mechanical mute and also find setup to be a little more time consuming than a more modern bridge....I would be upset if it was changed too much aesthetically. A modern bridge (like the "Badass") looks out of place on a Ric. Perhaps something like the Hipshot version with the string dividers like over the mute on stock would be a nice compromise.
The concept behind the Hipshot bridge is to allow palm muting without any obstuctions, and to allow easier adustment and a greater range of adjustment. Because of the routing for the mute on RIC bridges, it was neccesary to cover that area, hence the longer flat part of the bridge. I agree that it is somewhat aesthetically challenged, but Hipshot didn't have much choice there. As to the long butresses on the sides of the bridge, they are there for strenght to ensure that the tail does not bend up with time.
I was a little surprised that Hipshot didn't come up with something a little more up-to-date. The old screw and spring arrangement has always been a tone killer and so many better designs have evolved.
Also, mass and strength don't necessarily correlate. I don't know anything about their company but my instincts tell me a structural or mechanical engineer wasn't involved in the design process.
Finally, it was amusing to note that their NAMM sample was a RIC copy bass. Hopefully that's not what they used during the design phase.
Honestly, there's no sour grapes here and I wish them well in the competitive market. I also have to commend them for not infringing unlike some other folks.
