Hello everyone ! 4004 questions......

woodyng · Post by **woodyng** » Thu Feb 01, 2007 5:43 am

longtime lurker here-finally decided to join in the fun...i have a long-standing love affair with the 4000 series,having had several over the years,including a neck through 4000,early 70's 4001,a mid 70's 4005,an 83 4002,and most recently a set-neck 4000. i have enjoyed reading your postings here and am currently interested in checking out a 4004 model. there appears to be a lot of variation in both of the models,the laredo and the 4004cii.having had the 4002,i am interested in the model/year/option? of having the pickup configuration where they are both closer to the bridge than the neck...has anybody had the opportunity (perhaps at one of your confluences) to tell if the pickup placement difference yields a difference in the tone? i love my 4000,but the 4002's bridge pickup gave a very different sound. oh and the inevitable question-why did i sell the 4002? although unique and rare-for me,unbound body and neck are more desirable....i am not a collector,and i was playing and enjoying the 4000 more...anyway back to the 4004-i am more interested in the cii model..some postings here indicate the necks are not similar to other rick models-to me,most 80's models including the 4002 had pretty thick-feeling necks-i should mention i play mostly pop/rock/blues,90% fingerstyle,have a small collection of VERY different basses,including 68 tele,67 epiphone embassy,ibanez artcore,danelectro hodad,aria sinsunido,70's geddy copy aspen,and the 74 4000. this is a all a bit off-topic,basically just trying to introduce myself!

kcole4001 · Post by **kcole4001** » Thu Feb 01, 2007 6:12 am

Welcome!
You'll be given lots of info from our resident 4004 fans soon.

robert_warren · Post by **robert_warren** » Thu Feb 01, 2007 6:47 am

I picked up a 4004L about a year ago after about a long search, it had to be black...
The first thing I noticed was that the bass was really light, which is nice. The neck is a bit wide, more so than my 4003 Blackshadow; kind of like a P-bass next to a J-bass (both of which I also own). It has a nice 'zing' to it and it's really quiet. Very sleek modern look. I like it a lot and would certainly recommend it.

incubus2432 · Post by **incubus2432** » Thu Feb 01, 2007 7:06 am

I have been playing 4004's exclusively for a while now. All of mine have the p/u's closer to the neck. I've also played the other configuration in the past....there is a slight treble boost with the the p/u's closer to the bridge (obviously) but there is no tone reason why I would pick one over the other. I happen to prefer the p/u's closer to the neck for aesthetic reasons.

The 4004's sound like a Ric with a kick to the low end response.....and no hum (IMO). Along with being light the contoured body is very comfortable to play. I am not that sensitive to neck shape issues so I'll leave that to those that are more picky.

I have heard the 4004 necks referred to as "chunky".

My Laredo has a more aggressive bite to it than my Cii which I would describe as somewhat mellow. I prefer the "angry" tone of the Laredo but, again, the tone difference isn't that drastic. On transparent finishes the Cii is the way to go since the maple generally has very nice figuring and the walnut sandwich is a nice touch. The only downside of the Cii models (again IMO) is the gold hardware which ages quickly.

incubus2432 · Post by **incubus2432** » Thu Feb 01, 2007 7:08 am

I forgot to use this thread as a lame excuse to be a pic whore....

jnbass · Post by **jnbass** » Thu Feb 01, 2007 7:25 am

tramp

markbass99 · Post by **markbass99** » Thu Feb 01, 2007 7:39 am

I'll second what everyone has said above and also add that the Laredo's may have a slightly thinner neck(front to back) than the Cheyennes, at least in my experience. I recommend the pup against the neck models as they give you trussrod removal access, the other type doesn't.
I also like the light weight and prefer mine with an extra string added....

woodyng · Post by **woodyng** » Thu Feb 01, 2007 8:02 am

thanks everyone,one doesn't see a 4004 of any kind to check out personally,so your wealth of info is most welcome...brian...nice collection!i could see where the laredo might be a bit more "agressive" with a maple fretboard-are the fretboards on the other 3 basses lacquered? my only experience with a nonfinished board was the 4002-it was a more mellow sounding bass..

incubus2432 · Post by **incubus2432** » Thu Feb 01, 2007 8:17 am

Actually the maple board bass in the pic is a 4004Ci....the predecessor to the Cii. The Laredo is the all black specimen. It has a standard bubinga board but I had it refinished as a faux 4004 Blackstar tribute. The all maple body, I think, contributes most to the bright tone but the painted fret board may also help. The LK, Ci and Cii have unfinished boards.

blueflamerick · Post by **blueflamerick** » Thu Feb 01, 2007 8:33 am

My 4004cii has a lacquered fretboard.

woodyng · Post by **woodyng** » Thu Feb 01, 2007 8:34 am

mark-are you saying that the models with the rearward positioned pickups...the truss rods cannot be removed/replaced? and how often does that even come up as a something that would need to be done? i have only ever had instruments with the old-style 'rods,and never had to deal with that issue....

eddied · Post by **eddied** » Thu Feb 01, 2007 8:39 am

I've actually owned 4 total. I had one of the very first 4004 Cheyenne basses. I sold it. Bought a 4004L midnight blue, sold it., bought another 4004 Cheyenne, sold it and after buying a (GREEN) blue boy 4004II and selling it, never again. They just do not feel, sound, and play like the 4001, 4003 basses. They sure do look beautiful, but if you are in love with the 4003, usually the 4004's never measure up. Just my opinion.

markbass99 · Post by **markbass99** » Thu Feb 01, 2007 8:52 am

Actually a guy on the forum named Greg Shadoan was having trouble with his rods and did not have access due to his pup being off the neck. My Cii was giving me problems recently but I was able to pull the rods since the previous owner had the body routed by RIC for access to the body side nuts.(pic below)

incubus2432 · Post by **incubus2432** » Thu Feb 01, 2007 8:55 am

I don't think the truss rod issue is anything to be concerned about. It happens but is pretty rare. It has crossed my mind but since I happen to like the looks of the more "truss rod replacement friendly" version I worry even less.

I agree that the 4004s sound different than the 4003s but they aren't meant to sound the same. Similar character but certainly different. They are a modern, next evolution of the 4000 series. An issue is that the amp settings that bring out the best in a 4003 do not allow a 4004 to shine. Raise the 4004 p/u's as high as possible with out them actually hitting the strings during aggressive play, throw on some flats, tweak your eq and all should be bliss. I do agree that if you only like the sound of the 4001/4003 series then you may not be happy. That's why there are different models.

woodyng · Post by **woodyng** » Thu Feb 01, 2007 8:55 am

mark-those are 2 nice basses-esp like the maple one-toasters,too! that probably brightens up the top end sound considerably...it is amazing to me that you can convert a 4 stringer to a 5-the string spacing looks like it was made for it! i am not a 5 string guy,i used to have a peavey dyna bass dedicated as a bead,and liked that better-i used the lower end of the b more than the upper end of the g....love the boom....