Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

I have at times past said bad things about the ric-o-sound ... I even removed it from my 4003 bass and installed 2 mono outputs ...

Well I just did a 4-2-5 conversion for a new ric owner and he was asking about the ric-o-sound ... so I dug out an old stereo adapter and hooked up the ric-o-sound into 2 different amps ... the treble pickup into the bass pod and the neck pickup clean into another amp ...

the verdict is it is an interesting effect and you can get sounds that you don't get mono ... I don't think I would want to use it a lot ... it could be cumbersome live and it adds additional complexity and increased chance of failure with more cords and adapters ...

The only reason I don't use it live is that I would have to lug another amp & cab, somehow fit these into an already full truck, & need another mic & mixer channel, then take the extra time to set up that extra channel & balance the two.
Our band's set up & tear down times are already long enough, & there is just no more room in the truck. Sound checks are sometimes very short, so there usually is no extra time to balance another channel for bass when one channel will do.

If I was playing without PA assistance it would be simpler, of course.
I'm still experimenting with ROS & different set ups using one amp & 2 channels.
Today, being rainy, is a perfect day to do just that.

I use it when I can - venue dependant. Small places - the actual area and just overpowering everything with bass prevents it sometimes. I do get good sound when I can use it thou. Bass coming out of two 15s and treble coming out of 4 10s, what is not to like. It is a bit more trouble but I have noticed that I have gotten a bit quicker as I get more experienced setting up the rig.

Well, so far: uncapped 4080 into SWR head-treble pup into effects & then in active input, bass into passive input= pretty much the vintage, capped sound. Tons of neck pup, weak bridge pup.

Even though the Ric-o-sound is interesting I think a better effect is using my bass pod and running to lines out from the pod ... one with modeling and effects and one dry di signal ... and then sending that into 2 different amps ... the sans amp has similar capabilities as well ...

Never though of that one, Jeff. Might be a good project to try tonight.... Man I love it when folks think outside the box! Thanks!

I didnt sell my old pod when I bought a new one. Experimenting at home with ROS through both pods is fun and gives a really good sound i.m.h.o.. Both pods are connected via midi which makes changing sounds more easy. But it indeed does add more complexity which makes me not always want to use this. Even when not using both pick ups, radically changing sounds just by the flick of your pickup switch can be convenient...

"the verdict is it is an interesting effect and you can get sounds that you don't get mono ..."

Next thing you know Jeff will be using the mute again!

"Well, so far: uncapped 4080 into SWR head-treble pup into effects & then in active input, bass into passive input= pretty much the vintage, capped sound. Tons of neck pup, weak bridge pup."

The bridge pickup may be lower in level than the neck pickup in this configuration because the active input has lower gain than the passive input. You really should be using two separate channels with independent input gain controls. Something like this would be perfect:

The active input is definitely lower gain, -6 db I believe. The amp has just the one channel.
I'm just playing around with settings to see if it's useable. I'll try the neck pup in the active input next.

If you have more than 1 bass the mute could be a very nice effect on one of your basses.

Quote "Next thing you know Jeff will be using the mute again!"

well no ... I never really used the mute in the first place ... and I don't have one that functions on any of my basses ... and I don't have a functioning ric-o-sound either ...

I was testing it out for a friend of mine on his bass and found it interesting ...

I haven't used ROS since the mid '70s, and I don't use my mutes either. The Hipshot bridge on my 4003FL makes palm muting very accessible when I do need that, however. It is useful on a fretless bass now and then.

I think ROS is good if you want to use effects or something like that, but they sound better mono through two amps, more powerful to me. I have three SVT's and have tried both ways, to me they sound better mono but then again I'm not in the habit of lugging two heads and cabs around so I haven't experimented very much with ROS.
The mute can make any Ric fretted or fretless sound a lot like an upright, they give just about the right amount of decay. Palm muting gives a different sound to me although I like the sound.

Three SVT's........sob, sniff, whine & moan.

When I see one of those monsters on a stage, I can feel fairly certain the bass player is not a guitarist multitasking.

Okay, thanks Bob, now I've got to go set my little combo amp on fire.