Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

I got a new '05 MG 4003 and i could really use some advice on how to set it up.
All the local guitar stores in my area are more switched on to setting up Fender type basses and would rather have a go myself armed with knowledge from people that deal with Rics everyday rather than see one once in a blue moon!
Anyway, straight out the box everything seemed great and after a six months I realised the action was a bit high for me (slow to catch on sometimes!) so I lowered it a little. Now, the intonation seems fine on all strings except the G where over time it's gone sharp. I've tried to adjust the saddle position but it doesn't seem to be up for budging much.
I also noticed that the string height at the nut is a bit high (when compared to my P-bass which is MUCH lower) so it seems a bit daft for me to go about lowering the action at the bridge if the strings are still high over the lower end of the fret board. How do I go about this?
Is there anything else I should be doing with her about from the usual polishing?
Because of these wee snags my Precision has been taking the priority for live work and recording and while I love it to bits, the Ric is where it's at and, well...I just want to show her off too!

to get the action lower you may have to cut the nut a little lower ...

sometimes the saddles on the bridge get "stuck" ... you may have to remove the bridge and tweak the adjustment that way ...

To make the bridge work easier I remove the philips head screws and replace them with allen/socket head screws and I also make the holes for the screws slightly larger and I put a spring on the screw ...

Rickenbacker necks are meant to be setup flat - little relief. There is a nice set of instructions for adjusting the truss rods on the RIC site. In a nutshell, adjust the rods evenly. Action height and pickup height will follow your personal preferences and playing style. RIC cuts the nuts a little high leaving the player some room to adjust it. Start by flattening the neck then setting the bridge height. Adjust the nut only if it is still not right for you afterwards. Sometimes you will have to take the string out of the saddle to make the intonation adjustment. The string pressure can make the saddle stick a bit.

I suggest taking the time to understand your instrument so you can do routine adjustments yourself. Most techs just don't understand RICs. Besides, it is important to bond with your bass. You have come to the right place if you want setup and maintenance tips!

Someone with more knowledge than I can chime in, but I also recall that new Rics come with nuts cut a little high, so the end user has the option to lower it if desired.

I cut the nut so that I get about 10% more height at fret 1 than I do when making fret 2, if that makes any sense.

I never understood why any guitar should have the nut cut much higher than the difference between fret 1 & 2, it just make fret 1 the odd ball with the rest of the neck

Ok, I'll start with giving the rods a wee tweak. On the manual it says a half turn. Is that not abit drastic for a neck with two rods in it?

Hi Rory,
I'd go with a little less than a half turn, maybe 1/4 or less.

The main thing is to apply the same amount of adjustment to both rods and then leave enough time for the adjustment to take effect. I usually leave mine overnight.

I see you're in Glasgow, I got my first Ric there at McCormacks, and played it on stage the first time at Burn's Howff just down the road !!!

LOL I'm alway **** at explaining stuff!

With your finger pressing down at the first fret look at how much space there is between the string and the 2nd fret.

Add about 10% more height to this and that would be my ideal gap from string to top of the first fret with an open string.

This get quite close to fret/string buzz with an open string, but not quite. IMO the perfect height for the fastest set-up possible.

I did over cut a nut once and had to fill it and cut again, tread with a bit of care!

careful when cutting your nut.


no refunds if you take off too much

Jared, I think your nut is set a little high.

lofty ambition(s)

Don't fret!

All kidding aside...
I just got the frets on my 73 4001 leveled, polished and the nut tweaked.
I like low action so when fretting the second fret I have .005 to .004 clearance
between the strings and the first fret going from E to G.
Maybe start out with a bit more to see if you like it that way.
This is somewhat similar to what Bob was trying to explain I think.
Any way get a good feeler gage set before you do anything so you can check it as you go. YMMV

The nut on my '04 4003 was perfect when I got it. Just lucky I guess!!!

Cheers for everyone's thoughts so far.
I think the nut is definitely going to half to come down a bit, I'll need to measure and let you guys know but when I do the second fret thing, there is some size of gap!!