Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

Well ...........after installing toasters on my JEFF RATHED 4004Cii 4-2-5 then deciding to try the HB1s again...........I am convinced these are the pickups for a 4004 . Guess Rickenbacker knew what they were doing. It took me awhile but now I hear all the tones that are in high gains and toasters inside the HBs . This is the only RIC bass I own now and Im keeping it for a long time !

The HB1's are one of the main reasons that once I got my 1st 4004 I was, basically, done with 4003's. The last few years with my 4003's I installed Bartolini p/u's because the single coil Ric p/u's just weren't giving me the tone I was after.....it was close but something was still missing. As soon as I got my LK I was hooked on the tone and I started selling off my 4003's.

Now my Laredo has an ACG preamp installed and the HB1's shine through.....just with more subtle variations in tone available.

What is that ACG pre ?

It's an active filter based preamp......sort of Wal-like (which is what I was going for). Here's a good description from a vendor.......

http://www.bestbassgear.com/acg-eq-02-two-pu.htm

The HB's are great pickups. Have considered putting one into my v68 several times!

didn't john hall do something like that,iirc? an hb1 in a 4001-i WOULD like to hear one in the toaster position,with a horsey to accompany it.......i love the sound of the hb's in my bass.

I've toyed with the idea of going back to HB1s or even something else on my 4004 Cii 4-2-5. Just for grins and giggles. I switched to single coil guitar pickups just to get some growl back. But now that I have my 4003 PFB (pretty-freakin'-black), it might be fun to switch it up on the 4004.

Maybe even go back and look at Brian's preamp thread?

What really impressed me (been said on this forum before) was listening to a recording of my bass with our band and hearing that B string growl ! The bottom on the HBs is beautiful

Dane W. has an HB1 in the bridge position of his 4008CS bass - huge sound.

VRICKY63 wrote:What really impressed me (been said on this forum before) was listening to a recording of my bass with our band and hearing that B string growl ! The bottom on the HBs is beautiful

Hm, I had been told that 4004Cii/5's had a really wimpy B. But your is a 4-2-5 conversion? Maybe the narrow string spacing helps... but I'm really glad that worked out for you. I'd like a Ricky 5er, but I'd really want any 5er I owned to be 35'' scale.

How different are the HB1s from 4002 humbuckers? I have heard 4002s in person and on YouTube and daaaaaang, they sound good.

cassius987 wrote:Hm, I had been told that 4004Cii/5's had a really wimpy B.

Excuse me, no wimpy B string here:

Joshua, remember a lot of the 4002 sound is the pickup locations, more like a Jazz placement. Humbucker-wise, they are very similar in sound.

Joey. That is one BIG neck ! Must have huge tone .

I think the only guy qualified to speak on tonal differences between the 4002 pickups (not a true humbucker, but a dual filament pickup with one set of windings for the regular output and one for the low impedance jack, as I think JH wrote here once) and HB-1's is Dave Pascoe. He had a set of HB-1's in his 4002 before he found a pair of 4002 pickups from the RIC outlet and installed those. IIRC, he compared them in a thread here somewhere.

I agree with JA, a big part of the 4002's sound has to do with its pickup placement.

VRICKY63 wrote:Joey. That is one BIG neck ! Must have huge tone .

Yes, the tone is huge, as well is the output. I'm comfortable playing on that neck I have medium size hands. Though the neck appears wide, the profile is nice and slim.