Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

Hi,
I am new here and to Rickenbackers, and I have read many threads hoping to answer some of my questions, but still have a few. Help appreciated.
I recently bought a used 620/12, mapleglo with black pickguard,tuners and pups.
Serial number on the input jack says F56748. According to the Ric Web site that is a 92 model.
I believe the pups to be the high gain single coils that I've read about. They have black rounded circles for pole pieces. Is this correct?
If so, I like them and do not feel a need to change them for the toasters that I've heard about. What is wrong with these pickups?

There is lettering around the input jack, but it is mostly worn off. One jack says Ric o sound, but I can't make out the other. What is Ric o sound and how does it work? What is the other jack for?

There is a 5th knob. Was told this is a blender knob, but dont' know what it's supposed to blend or how it works.

Strings...
Have read many discussions about this. I really need to change them but don't know what to get.
Pyramid Flats?? are supposed to sound great but are hard to play?? Should I order them from Ric?
Will regular Daddarios work?

Sorry for all the questions, don't have an owners manual. The guitar plays great! Love to overdrive it and play lead like on a 6 string. Sounds great
Thanks again.

A few things . . . .

You've definitely got high-gains.

There's absolutely nothing wrong with high-gain pickups. They won;t quite get you that Byrdsy chime like you'll hear on '60s recordings, but they work wonderfully well otherwise. Many casual listeners won;t pick up the difference. I actually really like the hi-gains on rick 12's.

The 5th knob is like a second pickup selector switch. If you leave the real switch in second poisition, you can turn the knob to gradually favor one pickup over the other. Turning the knob clockwise favors the bridge pickup, counterclockwise favors the neck pickup.

The "other" jack is a standard mono-jack, which is the one you want to use unless you get the "rickosound" kit - all that is is a glorified splitter box that sends the signals from each pickup to two outputs. It's a fairly antiquated feature.

I can;t help you with strings, but there is plenty of info in the string forum;)

I like the tone of the hi-gains better than the toasters. There is absolutely nothing wrong with them.

You can view the Owners Manual online here: http://www.rickenbacker.com/us/ownman.htm

I think Pryamid strings are excellent strings, very flexible (bass and guitar). They're a little heavier than the ric factory strings (guitar that is, not bass). I have them on three of my basses and my 660/12. The action is high on the 660/12 (a new guitar) and I haven't corrected that, but the strings are nice. The ric strings it came with were nice but old (new guitar, but almost 8 months old when I bought it) so that's why I changed to pyramids. I want to try a set of rics when I do the re set. I'd like the ric-o-sound, but don't have it. S'pose one can get something like it using a stereo out effects box.
Welcome to the club and enjoy your new guitar!

I'm a Ric newbie, too. I spent several hours playing and listening to 300 series 12 string guitars with toasters and hi-gains last weekend. My impression is that the toasters have a bit more upper midrange presence which makes them sound a bit more raw. The hi-gains sounded a bit more refined and delicate. Both sounded very good. I'd say it's a matter of personal preference as to which you would like more.

Thanks for all the answers folks.
I appreciate it.

Hi - I love Pyramid flats on my 360/12. They sound right and they last for months, which is important given what a pain in the butt it is to change strings on a Ric 12. One thing I would suggest is that you tune down a half step. It makes the neck happy and it makes the guitar really easy to play. Roger McQuinn recommends it in his video and he should know.