Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

I was wondering if there's much difference in sound between to 330 and 360.
I tried out a 330 in my local shop. The guy there said the only difference to the 360 is the visual and the stereo jack. Is this right?

I like the idea of the extra pickup on the 370, but You don't see many of these around to try out. Is the 370 the same in tone to the 360, apart from this feature?

I think the third pickup adds a softness, or contour, to the sound. 330/360's have more of a raw edge without the middle pickup. But as always, I would not be surprised if my experience was unique.

Oh, and the 330 is a little louder unplugged than a 360.

Well the guy in the shop isn't exactly wrong, but he misses other details that matter to some people. In addition to the visual difference, there's the corresponding difference in feel. The rounded contours and and bound fretboard of the 360 make it more comfortable and appealing to some people. The 330, having sharper corners outside, also has sharper corners inside, which yields more acoustic space. You could generalize that 330 models have a little more acoustic resonance as a result. However, it's not a tremendous difference in sound or tone, more noticable to people with ears accustomed to Ricks than to the general public.

I just got my first three-pickup Rick and I like it a lot. It's a 1996 with toasters. The three pickups are wired with a three-way selector: Bridge, all three, and Middle + Neck. I prefer the sound. I think Jason described it well. The Middle + Neck sounds glassy, a bit like an out of phase strat.

IMO, the 340 is the greatest gtr that Ric make.....OK, one of them. The third pickup in a 330 shape really adds to the overall tone & offers that little bit extra that you just can't get with two pickups....I thoroughly recomend it! I have had 370's & 340's, but the 340 is King IMO.

I have a 370/6 and a 370/12, both with toasters,
and a 360/12 with high-gains. All three have that distinctive Ric "chime," but the 370's do sound a little warmer in tone, and the 360 is definitely louder with the high-gains. I have not had the chance to play a 330 or a 360 with toasters, but I would guess the tone would be similar to the 370's with toasters; the third pickup wouldn't make a substantial difference.

All great info, guys, but I think I phrased my question badly.
I'm a big fan of some rick players (peter buck, jonny marr etc...) and, though i know you shouldn't buy a guitar just because someone cool has one, I was just wondering if the 370 would do what a 360/330 would do AND MORE.
I basically want to get those same tones, and a few of my own.

Short answer, no. If you like the 2-pu sound, stick with that. 3-pu is a noticeable difference.

I think you can get the 2-PU sound if you wire it so that the 5th knob is a volume control for the middle PU. To me, a 3rd PU on a modern 24-fret 340 or 370 looks a little crowded, and I worry about it interfering with my playing, especially with the hi-gains, which stick up more than the toasters. I'm sure that could be gotten used to, though.

I didn't realise the neck and middle were wired together. I had a 325 copy once and the fifth knob worked as volume for the middle pu, and I presumed this was faithful to the original, and was across all models. That was pretty cool because you could get a lot of tones out of it.

I had a look at the 370 schematic but I'm a bit confused as to what the fifth knob does. Can anyone explain?
And, Steve, you reckon that if I used the knob as a volume for the middle then I can get the 360 tone?

I have a 340 and recently got a 360 75th annie. That of course got me thinking do I really need two guitars that similar in the pups department. I am trying to define the difference by playing each side by side. And while I am not ready to put in so many words yet I do find a subtle difference there.

The 5th knob is like a reverse-volume pot for the neck (or neck + middle) pickup setting. So it functions as a fine tuning mix knob when you've got all pickups on. With Ric-O-Sound in effect, it is useful for settting your neck volume to match your bridge volume.

I would hate to lose the 5th knob, it's so RIC. Maybe add a mini switch to add/cut the mid pu?

I've found the mid pu to get in the way, but not because of its pole pieces, but the edge of the pu casing above the low E string. Whacking the pick against it softens the physical 'hit' of the string attack.