Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

Let me try to get all this in one post:

1. RIC HB coils are two coils side by side, not end to end or stacked, this should take you to the thread: http://www.brunnet.net/cgi-bin/rickresource/discus/discus.pl?pg=next&topic=7&page=4563 . Note John Hall's comments.

2. John Hall mentioned a big problem getting some chrome plated parts, perhaps that has to do with the toaster and trapeze shortage.

3. I don't know if there's another reason besides the toaster shortage, but sometimes a company needs to limit choices for reasons we might not fully appreciate. Can you imagine the chaos at Fender if you could order any one of their dozens of Strat models with any combination from their dozens of Strat pickups?

4. The two 650s I've heard (both HB equipped), an early Atlantis and a newer Colorado, both sounded much bassier than a LP, though clearer.

5. Philip's OLP bass: Philip, if you're happy with the bass, I'm happy for you. Really. I've heard that they are very good for the price. But let's not kid ourselves, the bass is definitely built to a very low price point. Hardware and electronics are built to look like the more expensive original but they are not the same (e.g. there have been several reports of Chinese "alnico" without cobalt). Basswood actually sounds very nice but it's also very soft and it's difficult to get a high quality finish. That's why you see it mostly on low-end instruments where cost is the primary factor and a lower-quality finish is acceptable. Again, not knocking your choice.

Wow, I must really have a rare 650D if most other 650 series guitars sound bassier than a Les Paul. That makes me want to hang on to it all the more. Could it be I got something besides humbuckers in the guitar? I only paid $675 delivered, so there is not much chance optional high gain single coils were installed. The guitar also seems too quiet for single coils. I have not heard any other 650 guitars besides my own.

Dave, the praise heaped on the OLP MM2 may seem undeserved because of the low price. Go to the Bass Gear Review Archive at www.bgra.net and read what owners who also have much more expensive basses have to say. It does not have an active pickup like a Stingray, but the passive pickup has a great sound of its own. The workmanship is superior to the '75 P-bass I once owned in just about every way. Basswood certainly does not take a natural finish well, but neither does alder which is another premium tonewood. You need to get it in a colored finish. I'll gladly put up with softer wood and more dings in exchange for excellent tone and a lighter weight. If it is difficult to get a high quality finish on basswood, the workers who finished this guitar must have worked really hard to get it looking as well as they did. The workers who built and finished my old P-bass maple body should have done as well. The maple wood used in the neck is high quality Canadian, and the finish is very smooth. The annular rings are fairly large, which means it came from a decent sized tree. I hate to use the term "good for the price", because it somehow diminishes how good this bass really is. If it had the shiny conversion varnish finish of a Rickenbacker, it would really knock your eyes out. Most people would not think twice about paying $300+ for a ****** old P-bass with case from the 70's like I did, but would balk at paying $300 delivered, with case, for this much nicer playing new bass.

What I don't like is the plastic nut, but it doesn't seem to hurt the tone and sustain to any significant extent. It even came with a decent set of Ernie Ball Slinky strings, which cost nearly as much as Rickenbacker strings. I'll bet there aren't many basses that sound better for under $1000 MSRP. It's usually rated higher than MIM Fenders and about equal to the American Standard series.

What I like is the fact that the neck and strings are fairly similar feeling to my '93 4004L bass. A person could order a 4004 bass and use one of these until their 4004 shows up and not have to go through a lot of changes as far as neck and string feel are concerned. Then it could serve as an excellent backup to the 4004. The sound also seems to complement my Marshall amp very well. It could be that the midrange is scooped where the Marshall tends to be midrange forward. An SVT owner might need to give some midrange boost to get a good sound.