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Posted: Fri Oct 08, 2004 5:53 am
by beatlefan
AHHHHH!!!
Now I see! Well then, I'm off to buy a new AMP!!
;^)
Posted: Fri Oct 08, 2004 5:54 am
by teeder
Yes, what they said

Posted: Fri Oct 08, 2004 5:58 am
by thx1955
Chris, Kevin
I've just checked the wiring layout for the 4001-V63 at the Rick website.
http://www.rickenbacker.com/us/19501.htm
According to the drawing there are indeed two 0.47 caps attached in circuit, one to each tone pot, so do we remove only the one at the treble pot, both, or none !!!
Now this drawing was done in 1993, so it may have been updated. My v63 is a 92, so I'm not sure if the same layout was used.
Posted: Fri Oct 08, 2004 6:18 am
by thx1955
Chris, what's the connection, find a Cap - buy a new amp, works for me. Just wondered !!!
Posted: Fri Oct 08, 2004 6:27 am
by ricosound
Jim, Everyone,
The two large orange/yellow caps marked .047uf stay put, they are for normal tone operation. On most(not all) Rick basses there is a third cap that is smaller, marked .0047uf, that runs from the selector switch to the treble volume pot. This cap dates back to the horseshoe pickup days and is used to block low frequency (bass) sounds from the treble pickup. All it really does is make the bass weak and clanky. The easiest remedy is to solder a piece of insulated wire across the cap to each end. This will short out the cap as if it wern't there. This way the mod is totally reversible. You will be amazed at the difference. Chris I did this to your old white '77 and added a toaster, she rocks.
Posted: Fri Oct 08, 2004 6:29 am
by thx1955
Whoo Hoo .... I just got off the phone with the guys at Hoboken Vintage Guitar, really nice to talk to.
They're going to ship my v63 two day UPS fully insured .. so she'll be here Monday, all I need do now is get through the weekend !!!
Posted: Fri Oct 08, 2004 6:31 am
by thx1955
Wes, thanks fot the clarification, greatly appreciated.
Posted: Fri Oct 08, 2004 6:54 am
by beatlefan
We understand Jim....lol
Ok, so....do you take BOTH caps off, or just the treble cap?....
Both v's I have sound "muddy" on the bass side when using flats, the other one sounds bright and crisp with rounds....
I'd leave rounds on all of 'em but I don't like all the noise associated with finger picking...
Will taking the caps off make my v's sound boomier and crisper?
Posted: Fri Oct 08, 2004 7:00 am
by iamthebassman
It never fails. I always seem to order a bass and have to wait thru the weekend, never seem to order on a Monday. And to make matters worse, I always have a couple of gigs on the weekend, at which I could be using my new bass, but NOOOOOO!!!
Posted: Fri Oct 08, 2004 7:02 am
by thx1955
Wes is right about the third cap, which is not present in the wiring diagrame.
I use Rounds on my 4003. And since I'm a 99.9% pick player the fret noise isn't so much a factor. I'm not sure what she's coming with.
Posted: Fri Oct 08, 2004 7:08 am
by beatlefan
...OOPS! Sorry, didn't see Wes' post .....
Thanks Wes...
Posted: Fri Oct 08, 2004 7:10 am
by thx1955
Ronn, in my case things are worse, I'm moving to Canada, leaving on Thursday morning next week, and I for sure want to have my new v63 here to travel with me and not leave for the shippers !!!
Posted: Fri Oct 08, 2004 7:25 am
by teeder
Chris,
I had the same problem with flats. My D and G strings sound good but A wasn't that great and E was horrible. I went back to my GHS Boomers. Anyone want a set of Pyramids?
Posted: Fri Oct 08, 2004 7:50 am
by iamthebassman
My experience with flats on Rics(I have them on 2 of my 3 Ric basses):
GHS Precision Flatwounds(not Brite Flats, they suck)-Good tone, smooth, good price.
TIs-Not very smooth, too mellow.
Rotos-Great tone, very smooth, kinda pricey.
Pyramids-Good tone,not very smooth, very pricey.
D'Addarrio Chromes-Great tone, very smooth, tension is pretty high.
I have also used Roto Solo Bass(?)the green package. They're compression wound. They sound good but have the sustain of roundwounds.
For reference, I play in a Beatles tribute band and have to get "Rain" tone and "...Help from My Friends" tone as well by just changing pickups. The strings have to be able to produce both sounds, IOW have a wide tonal spectrum.
Posted: Fri Oct 08, 2004 8:44 am
by lshaia
Congratulations, Jim, you're going to love your v63. My '99 has become my favorite; the lack of binding makes both neck and body feel a bit more comfortable to me. It also seems that the neck profile is more slim than that of my '02 4003. I find the vintage pickups to be more sensitive than the high gains (I've heard someone describe them as being more "hi-fi"), a little distortion goes much farther than with my other RICs. I really love the simplicity of the design, too.
