Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

I auditioned for a band Saturday night and took my trusty 4003 with me. We went through some of the set list and it took maybe an hour to get an offer to join. Then the guitarist made the above quote. I guess he wasn't familiar with their sound and said he thought they looked strange, but he liked what he heard. And that was through his bass amp, a Behringer head and Gallien-Krueger 4x10 cabinet. Wait until he hears it through my SVT-3 Pro and dual Aguilar GS112 cabinets.

Congrats on the new gig.....

Cool, Ron!!!

You've carried the RIC torch very well!!

I go to a few open jams ... one I go to has a good house bass player who was schooled under the famous Motown session players ... he loves the sound my Ric basses make ... he says I get a good raw sound like Chris Squire ...

There is no substitute for a Rickenbacker bass ...

Ron - congratulations on the new gig!

I've experienced the same thing a few times. I've only had a few auditions, but I have passed every one of them and been asked to join... and the Rickenbacker sound has always helped (or at least not hurt).

I got a compliment about my Seagreen's sound from another bass player today at a jam, he also has a 72 4001 he bought new and no it is not for sale, haha!

I've never NOT got asked to join the band after an audition, and I've ALWAYS only taken a Ric bass. Rock On.

My band likes the sound my Ric V63 and 4003 basses make. The drummer especially likes them over my others. I think he will also like my new C64FG when I get it.

Fender must be afraid of "Hard Rock Maple"!

I've never seen a P or J bass body like that, usually alder or ash, right?

I think the wood really defines Ricks' tone.
Rock solid.

Fender must be afraid of "Hard Rock Maple"!

Yeah, right. Fender has been using hard rock maple necks since the Esquire was introduced in 1950. Yet the earliest Rick basses were not maple.

I love Ricks but I can't stand brand snobbery. Ricks are great, but so are Fenders and many others.

The wood is only a part of the Rick tone. Play a Gibson RD Artist sometime, all maple and sounds nothing like a Rick.

Brand snobbery happens in any field, but I have to agree with Dave...there are MANY great instruments, and to say only one is a great brand is wrong.

What you can say is that the percentage of Ricks that are great instruments is probably greater than Fender's percentage, since Fender has several levels of instrument quality, some not that good. Rick basically does it's thing and puts out one level of quality.

As for the opposite "negative snobbery", I've usually ran into that at music stores, when a sales geek recognizes that I like Ricks a lot and they'll say something like "I had one once-it's a pretty specialized guitar and I didn't like the sound."

Yeah, right.

Tells me that player had no idea what to do with the volume and tone controls on the guitar (easily can get 6- 10 clearly different tones), and must have been trying to play with a 15 piece drum kit with a heavy hitting drummer with his 100 watt Peavey TNT. With that amp, NO bass is going to cut through Grog swinging his drum sticks around like nunchucks and stepping on the pedals like he's trying to squash a cockaroach. But the next week he brings his P bass and Ampeg SVT with 8 10's, and the Rick "doesn't cut through". Brilliant.

I've never had a player say my bass sounded "bad" or anything less than adequate. I did have a band mate not really like the tone pot all the open...but that was my current singer and we all know my opinion of his musical discretion!

I think Christopher was refering to what the bodies are made out of.
There is a huge difference between maple and alder or ash for tone.
It's easy to tell the difference between maple and rosewood fret boards alone.
The Gibson won't sound like a Rick based on the wood alone, but maple does have a distinct tone quality.
I don't think Fender would use maple for the cost and weight. Though some of the ash bodied guitars are real pigs!

And no, I'm not putting Fender down. I love them too.

I also own a Fender, Ed. I meant to be in jest about Fender being afraid of hard rock maple, and meant no harm. BTW, I really like p basses,they're kinda raw like a Rick, albeit with less of that aggressive attack when pushed hard due to the softer wood absorbing some of that bite that I so crave...
No snobbery here, just overly excited about my Rick and it's ability to clank AND thump!

Billy Gould of Faith No More Played a Gibson Ripper on their really early stuff (We Care A Lot @ Introduce Yourself) which was very under-produced, and his picktone sounded just as aggressive as a Rick due to his maple bodied bass IMO.

In defense of my Fender-Bashing, I love Adam Clayton's stuff, esp. their older material.
Peeked at everyone profiles and noticed I'm the baby(youngest) of the bunch on this thread, haha!

Now ducking for cover. . . ...