Biggest Competitor

jps · Post by **jps** » Mon Jan 05, 2004 3:06 am

Geddy didn't switch, he's had that JB all along.

jwr2 · Post by **jwr2** » Mon Jan 05, 2004 4:09 am

pretty much every serious Rush fan prefers Geddy playing the Ric ...

atomic_punk · Post by **atomic_punk** » Mon Jan 05, 2004 4:39 am

I have to admit, I got a Jazz Bass brand new because I was so enamoured with Geddy's sound in concert. Although it is not a Geddy Lee model, I thought it was tonally close to the sound I like and I got it at a price that was more affordable than a new Rick. And it is my #2 behind my '73 4001. So there is some influence of people playing certain basses.

shamustwin · Post by **shamustwin** » Mon Jan 05, 2004 1:53 pm

Geddy's why I got rid of my 4001JG (well, partially).

philco · Post by **philco** » Mon Jan 05, 2004 2:44 pm

The Geddy Lee Jazz Bass is made in Japan, and so is the new Aerodyne Jazz Bass. Players rate them among the best Fenders they have ever used. I wanted a USA Spector, but let's face it, not many of us can REALLY afford one. You almost never see used ones for sale. That's why Spector has very similar quality models made in the Czech Republic. You basically get a $2500 USA bolt-on with exact same curved body style for $1299 in a ReBop, then the cost is reduced to $900 actual street price, minus a case. You get them used for a lot less than that. Aerodynes and Geddy Lees go for $600-$700 new, minus a case. Rickenbacker has successfully prevented anybody from copying their body style, but any decent tonesmith can concoct a bass that SOUNDS like a Rickenbacker, and have it made in Asia or eastern Europe for a lot less. If people will accept a "sounds like" design without requiring a "looks like" design, then an import Rickenliker is a sure event waiting to happen. I noticed that an MTD Kingston is an obvious attemp by Mike Tobias to sell an import bass at a bargain price that sounds like the old Tobias Growler, but the looks were somewhat changed to prevent legal battles with Gibson. There are at least a dozen skilled luthiers that can analyze why Rickenbackers sound the way they do, construct a copy to sound like it, and keep the body style different enough to prevent lawsuits. Asian production would mean you get it for half of what RIC charges. The mistake that was repeated over and over by Rickenbacker cloners was replicating the body style when they should have been concentrating on replicating the sound. A lawsuit claiming that somebody "stole my tone" would be laughed out of court, and it's impossible to prove anyway, because you merely have to have enough additional tonal range to produce a tone that the original you cloned can't reproduce. If it were possible, then Fender could sue Stuart Spector for putting P-bass Bop in a ReBop (Hmmm.....I guess I found another reason for the name!). All you have to do is kick in the bridge pickup, add 18 dB of preamp treble, and tell Fender "If they're the same sounding, then get that tone, sucker!". Can't do it. CASE DISMISSED!

Something that sounded very similar to a Rickenbacker at half the price would certainly stand out at the music store. It would have no competition from anything else.......for a while.

leftybass · Post by **leftybass** » Mon Jan 05, 2004 3:33 pm

LOL...believe it or not, my own Spector has a 4001-Geddy-like tone when blended more to the neck pickup....

Geddy Lee is why I bought my 4001 in 1979.

I also have a Jazz Bass and I can see why you can really dig one. They have a different feel than a 4001, and I tend to think that it's a bit unfair to try to compare them, just like you can't really compare a 4001(or Jazz Bass) to a Wal, or Spector, etc....you have to have them ALL. LOL

rickenbrother · Post by **rickenbrother** » Mon Jan 05, 2004 6:26 pm

I agree with Jeff Rath about serious Rush fans preferring Geddy Lee using his Ricks.

philco · Post by **philco** » Mon Jan 05, 2004 6:29 pm

Yeah, John, but I bet you gave a LOT more for the Spector than a 4001 would have set you back. You must play with a pick, I almost always fingerpick. Usually use my thumbnail for a pick. My Spector REALLY changes character according to how you play it.

Actually, what I like about my Spector is the WIDE range of tones it has. I can pull out a 4004, 4001, J-bass, P-bass, and even a StingRay tone. Not an exact tone, but close enough that it passes. It's like having a bass arsenal in your hands. It's a chameleon like nothing else I ever played. Wish it had the Aguilar OBP-3 preamp instead, for even more versatility.

jwr2 · Post by **jwr2** » Tue Jan 06, 2004 9:01 am

The bass Geddy Lee plays is not the same as the knock off signature models ... every single Geddy Lee signature model that I have played comes up short when compared to an american jazz bass ...

scottpro1969 · Post by **scottpro1969** » Tue Jan 06, 2004 9:50 am

I agree Jeff. But for the price, the signature model is a sweet bass. Nice touch with the BadAss bridge.

scottpro1969 · Post by **scottpro1969** » Tue Jan 06, 2004 11:35 pm

Then again, I can get a multitude of tones out of my old '78 Peavey T-40. Probably the ugliest bass ever made but really solid and well made.

brianb · Post by **brianb** » Tue Jan 06, 2004 11:52 pm

I like Geddy Lee. I like the American J- Bass. But the Geddy Lee signature model is just a shod. I could only be more disapointed if Fender put out an equally lame John Paul Jones model.

philco · Post by **philco** » Wed Jan 07, 2004 5:28 am

Peavey was still winning top honors in the latest Bargain Bass Blitz in last month's Bass Player Magazine, and it was still somewhat lacking in fashionable style compared to its competitors.

Rickenbacker had nothing they could put forth in the $500 to $800 category. This is where a lot of beginners buy their first really good bass, and an excellent place to develop brand loyalty. In effect, RIC is its own biggest competitor, because players have to be won over from another brand now that RIC has dropped the lower cost bolt-ons. A lower cost bolt-on would add versatility to the lineup and allow something in the $500 to $1000 range that is a huge slice of the bass market. Having nothing but neck-thru basses is limiting in scope. Higher production capability is also a side benefit of the bolt-on bass, giving more brand exposure. Having owned both, I now know that neck-thru basses are not automatically better, but just different.

jwr2 · Post by **jwr2** » Wed Jan 07, 2004 5:44 am

Ric had some entry level type basses 3000, 3001, 2030, 2080, they din't sell that well ...

I have a 2030 ... it has a nice feel and sound ... it is closer to a 4003 sound than a 4004 is ... but it is not as pretty as a 4003 ...

jeff_ulmer · Post by **jeff_ulmer** » Wed Jan 07, 2004 8:23 am

I own both the Fender GL and Steve Harris basses, and for the money, they are fine instruments, but, like most lower end guitars, you do have to hand pick them. The only issue I had with my first GL was that the neck was prone to warping (like many one piece maple necks, especially that slim). Its repacement has been pretty stable, though I wish they had not been quite so period correct and put the truss rod adjustment at the nut, rather than the body.

If Ric were to go mass market, a 4003 shaped bolt on bass would be the way to do it. The 3000 and 2000 series guitars don't have the same curb appeal as the 4000s. Fender addressed this with the Squiers, which look pretty much the same as their higher end models, but with inferior materials and QC. I prefer the Mexi models over the Americans anyway.

The question is whether they should, and at this point, I don't think that they need to. In fact, I would almost prefer they move the other way and open a custom shop, since they are pretty much build to order as is. I could order my spalted maple 4002 with custom inlays, and use an online gallery of bodies and woods available to create an instrument to my tastes and my own specific needs.

My $.02.