Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

Do I need a blacksmith to install it. Just kidding?

I have two questions about the horseshoe pickup.

First, does the pickup get in the way of your playing style in a manner somewhat similar to the pickup cover?

Second, how would you describe the difference in tonality between the horseshoe and the high gain at the bridge?

1 - playing mostly with pick I use the horseshoe cover or a high gain pu cover as a handrest
2 - the horseshoe sounds warmer in my opinion

my V63

Peter;

I rest my wrist against the top of the horseshoe, and play with my fingers in front of the pick up.


The sound, to me, is a much fuller sound, with a tighter high end (than the high gains). I have one in my 4001CS, V63, C64 and a 4003. Each one sounds a little different. If I could find them, I would install a horseshoe in all of my 4003s.

the cover gets in the way for me as does the mute assembly ...

So the horseshoe sound might be characterized as warmer and fuller that the high gain? It sounds as if this pickup will get in the way of my playing style as the cover certainly does.

Me too, Peter. But the shoes are removeable. I took mine off my v63 and my c64s.

the horseshoe from the 60's was thinner and weaker ... the horseshoe from the v63 is fatter and hotter ... the c64 horseshoe is not quite as fat and hat as the v63 ... the reissue horseshoe pickups sound pretty similar to the modern high gain ...

Peter,
The horseshoe (on the v63) tends to ride a little lower than the cover on a 4003, and the ends are a little tighter radius than the covers. So they may not be as obtrusive.

I'm with Dave, if I could find them, I'd fit horseshoe pickups to both my 4003, and 4001.

For those of you who didn't catch this...I was pokin' around over in the C series section and found a post from John Hall regarding removal of the horseshoes. I have removed mine from my C64S and my V63 and didn't notice any substantial difference in tone. I thought any difference I noticed in tone might be due to the fact that I changed strings at the same time, I now was able to play directly over the pickup, or because of a possible change in pickup height.

Well...I might just have spent too much time playing too close to loud drummers, because the man himself disagrees with me:

http://www.rickresource.com/cgi-bin/discus/show.cgi?tpc=675&post=113170#POST113170

I learnt to play on my 64 resting against the horseshoe. It's led to a style that's more melodic and "flowery" as someone once described. Nearly all the guys in the 60's play in front of the shoes...
To play behind the shoe and dig in is more difficult to me, and if you play a Ric without the shoes or the cover, chances are you'll have a more direct style.
The sweet spot is subjective, but I think most find it above or just slightly behing the treble p/u which is why so many can't get on with a cover of any sort.

Andrew: How would you characterize the sound of the horseshoe?

Sweet spot for me is just in front of the Shoe.

Peter, on the v63 the shoe delivers a more full tone over a wider range. Seems to be clearer with potentially more aggression and percusivness.

Well Peter, it's an original and it still has the cap in place, so it's obviously a very different tone to the reissues.
It's a thin almost nasally sound, without the bite and full tone of the hotter wound pick ups on the later basses.
The toaster on the other hand is huge with a very large bass sound that can completely overwhelm the treble output. You can see how the 60's predominant Rickenbacker bass tone was acheived with flats and playing right over the bass p/up.
The key of course (for me) is finding a sound that is a comprimise between the two...

when I play with a pick I usually dig in behind the treble pickup ... sort of Chris Squire style ... I like the attack that I get that way ...