Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

Hello all

I have been lurking here for several months and I'm amazed at the wealth of information available! Many thanks to Peter, and to Mark!!

Because of this board, I have been re-inspired to dust off the guitars and get busy. For too many years, my guitars came out of the case only at the end of *one of those days* when I needed stress relief. I doubt if I played a half dozen times during a year. Lately though, I've been trying to play at least once per week thanks to you guys.

I don't play out... suppose I'm what you might call a *recroom superstar* LOL Playing along with my CDs and having a few beers is just fine for me. Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers are my favorites. Any other TP fans?

My guitars and stuff:

350SH - (can't help but tell the story... forgive me;) Back in the early 90s I had finally reached a point where I could afford to spend a grand on an instrument. I had always been attracted to the look and sound of the Rics, but they are very scarce in my area. While guitar shopping for my son at a local dealer, the owner saw me staring at the Ric 350SH hanging there. He was on me in an instant! I don't know how long it had been hanging, but it was obvious that he wanted to blow it out of there.

(I'm thinking) Nobody wants a *girls* guitar... who the hell is Susanna Hoffs anyway?? I don't know, but that sure is sweet... kinda looks like John Lennon's! I agonize a few days then go back and hand him $850. At home I noticed the production run was limited to 250 pieces. The dealer never mentioned that fact and I'm sure that now he would just love to kick his own butt!
For those who haven't had the pleasure... the 350SH is a dream. Beautifully crafted and gorgeous. Just like Susanna ;P (I know who she is now) For rythm, its totally awesome! Almost plays itself and has a wide range of tones in addition to the jangle. I'm a strummer, but I would be interested to know what others think of its lead capabilities.

660/12TP - Got this one a year later from the same guy. I loved the 350 but had to have a 12 string. Being a huge TP fan, I bought this one on the spot! I had always wanted a hollow body slash model, but in comparison the 660 was more playable and (to my ears) had the same jangle. The 660 is one of the prettiest guitars in the Ric lineup in my opinion.

Unforunately, this Ric 12 didn't like the Pyramid flats I've read so much about on the forum. They sound great, but they are really tight!! Be careful with Pyramids guys... these strings caused a few *issues* with my setup and with the tendons in my fretting hand as well! Mark A. will straighten out the guitar soon, but I'm not sure if he can help with the hand.

Tech 21 NYC Trademark 60 - Just purchased this amp new a month ago. Only played it a few times before my hand gave out, so I can't provide much detail. The suggested settings for the various artists' tones are pretty good with a little tweaking. It seems to fit the needs of a recroom superstar quite well, but those who gig may have a different opinion.

Wow... now you guys know as much about me and my stuff as I do! LOL

Thanks for having me and I'll try to be more brief next time

RIC Rocks!

Rock And Roll!

David,
welcome to a really cool place. Nothing wrong with being a recroom superstar. I've been in and out of the loop a few times in the past 25 years or so. I even "retired" and sold every piece of musical equipment I owned back in 1977, Rick4001 and all. I went for about 2 years without even owning a stereo. I now own 6 basses (3 of them Ricks) and 2-6 bangers as well as 5 different amps, but that's nothing compared to what some of these folks around here have.
Playing music is just something that; if it's in you, you must answer the call. It doesn't leave your system,, there's no switch that you can turn off. So, get your hand healed, open up a beer and bang out some TP. It's all about therapy.
Rock on,
Randy.

David, welcome to the club! I too bought a SH350 back in '94 for $850. I sold it a few years later and then bought two more.....from Sweden! I still have one and am going to keep it. John

Welcome aboard! I was surfing the net one day, bored out of my mind, when I happened across this web site. It inspired me to take my Rick out of mothballs (10 years in the case) and start to play again. Now the gear acquisition has again begun! Thanks Peter!

I'd love to hear about your trademark setups that you are dialing in. I have the 10-w version. I've been trying to dial in some vox stuff, and I think that it is pretty close when you cut the drive and put the level at 9 o'clock and put the mid and high at about 3 o'clock (clean & british speaker as well).

David,

Don't apologize for the length of your posts!

We are all kin; unique, lucky ones who are so enthralled by Ric's!

Thanks for your stories!

It's inadequate to say there's something special about Ric's! There's something magical about them

John, I'd like to believe that there's something magical about us Rickenbacker owners, too!

David-Great post & welcome aboard!
John & Gary-I couldn't agree more!

David- Welcome aboard. As Ric players, we dare to be different!

Thanks for the warm welcome guys Its nice to hear that this forum has had the same influence on others. I don't know if RICs have mystical or magical powers... but they are for sure an obsession!

Randy: I too have basically come full circle. As a teenager, I learned on my Fenders... Mustang then Tele Deluxe then Strat. Jimi, Clapton, Deep Purple, Thin Lizzy, BTO, etc. were big back in the day. During my 20s I dumped all the electric stuff, bought a Yairi 12 and along with 2 other friends, played accoustic for maybe 10 years. CSNY, Beatles, America, Eagles... that sort of thing. I still have the Yairi, '77 I believe and its wonderful! You can fill a room with its sound! (oops... this is a RIC forum) hehe

John: Do you play your 350SH? Because of its value, I often wonder if I'm crazy to play it *lol* Its such a joy though that I doubt I would ever retire it.

I'm curious to know if the 350V63 would be close as a player. Anybody?

David: I'm not familiar with the 10W version, so I dunno if the controls are the same. I haven't been able to play for nearly a month, but I recall tweaking the *Fender Clean* setting to get a nice RIC sound for the TP tunes. There is a VOX setting, but I didn't mess with it much coz I liked the other setting (and was in a hurry to play *lol*). The amp itself can generate a wide range of tones, clean to SRV to metal, but I'm sure that the guitar/PUPs used is a major factor. You just gotta tweak the suggested settings till you hear what you like.

RIC Rocks!