Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

Anyone try flatwounds on a 4000? I have a '74 model and have always used roundwounds on it, but lately have been really enjoying flats on some of my other basses. Flats sound great on my 4003.

My only concern is how treble-y the 4000 is, will flats work well on it?

Thanks!

hi rob! yes! i had pyramid flats on my 74 4000 for about 1 and half years. i absolutely loved them,it nailed the "silly love songs" sound,but the gauge/tension proved to be too much. (bridge lift). i have a lower gauge set of ghs flats on a denelectro bass,and i would bet they would be similar sounding and work well for the 4000. i currently have dr sunbeams on there,and they are VERY aggro bright sounding. i have purchased a nos maxima flatwound string set to put on one of my basses,but have not got round to doing it-i was thinking of putting them on my v63,but i have sold it instead.... ,so those might yet end up on the 4000.

woodyng wrote:hi rob! yes! i had pyramid flats on my 74 4000 for about 1 and half years. i absolutely loved them,it nailed the "silly love songs" sound,but the gauge/tension proved to be too much. (bridge lift). i have a lower gauge set of ghs flats on a denelectro bass,and i would bet they would be similar sounding and work well for the 4000. i currently have dr sunbeams on there,and they are VERY aggro bright sounding. i have purchased a nos maxima flatwound string set to put on one of my basses,but have not got round to doing it-i was thinking of putting them on my v63,but i have sold it instead.... ,so those might yet end up on the 4000.

Thanks for the response, I have a set of Thomastik flats (.043 - .100) I may put on, but I have the same concerns, re bridge lift, which my 4000 bass already has. The guy who works on my basses and gutiars says he has yet to find a Rick bass that does NOT have that bridge lift.

I may opt for Ernie Ball lighter gauge flats, I have them already on my 4003 and really like them.

RobRick wrote:

woodyng wrote:hi rob! yes! i had pyramid flats on my 74 4000 for about 1 and half years. i absolutely loved them,it nailed the "silly love songs" sound,but the gauge/tension proved to be too much. (bridge lift). i have a lower gauge set of ghs flats on a denelectro bass,and i would bet they would be similar sounding and work well for the 4000. i currently have dr sunbeams on there,and they are VERY aggro bright sounding. i have purchased a nos maxima flatwound string set to put on one of my basses,but have not got round to doing it-i was thinking of putting them on my v63,but i have sold it instead.... ,so those might yet end up on the 4000.

Thanks for the response, I have a set of Thomastik flats (.043 - .100) I may put on, but I have the same concerns, re bridge lift, which my 4000 bass already has. The guy who works on my basses and gutiars says he has yet to find a Rick bass that does NOT have that bridge lift.

I may opt for Ernie Ball lighter gauge flats, I have them already on my 4003 and really like them.

You shouldn't have any fear of tail lift with those strings, they are very low tension for flats.

RobRick wrote:

The guy who works on my basses and gutiars says he has yet to find a Rick bass that does NOT have that bridge lift.[/quote]

I guess he hasn't worked on very many Rics.

dog wrote:

RobRick wrote:

The guy who works on my basses and gutiars says he has yet to find a Rick bass that does NOT have that bridge lift.

I guess he hasn't worked on very many Rics. [/quote]

If you say so. From what I've read on this forum and elsewhere, it seems to be the norm. If not, why all the Hip Shot bridge replacements?

I have two Ricks and both have that "bridge lift."

Not complaining, mind you, I LOVE my Ricks!

My 4000 currently has flats. Its very good for some sixties sounds but it just is not my sound. I miss a neck pickup and roundwounds......

RobRick wrote:From what I've read on this forum and elsewhere, it seems to be the norm. If not, why all the Hip Shot bridge replacements?

The primary reason for the Hipshot bridge is the ease of palm muting and ease of adjustability.

jps wrote:

RobRick wrote:From what I've read on this forum and elsewhere, it seems to be the norm. If not, why all the Hip Shot bridge replacements?

The primary reason for the Hipshot bridge is the ease of palm muting and ease of adjustability.

Fair enough. So the bridge lift is not that common?

It was mentioned above and I have read about it elsewhere, I just assumed it was fairly common. I guess not.

rob-echoing what jeffrey said,if you try the ti flats,you are going to essentially a "no tension" situation (or at least VERY low) . the key is having the bass properly set up,at the bridge and truss rods,and unless you live near one of these guys,it is sometimes hard to find someone that knows what to do with your beast. i have also found most guitar techs get upset with the bridge because they just don't know them. i had even worse problems figuring out a 67 epiphone embassy bass,but that's a story for another column. the ghs flats i am using are 40-100 gauge,and did not change the tension on my dano when i switched from dr nickle lowriders 45-105. just don't get a standard gauge in flatwounds for your bass,it would more than likely be too much for the old bridge,as well as it being a set-neck bass....the headstock setback angle on these is not as pronounced,so i think that affects it too...one last thing,i did mention i loved the sound of the pyramids,but i REAALLY love the sound of my 4000 with the sunbeams now......

i am feeling my caffeine right now .....i forgot to mention,that i went the aluminum hipshot route when i changed the strings on that bass. i won't say it made a tremendous difference in the overall sound,(which was not why i did it-intonation issues for me) ,but the bass sounds bloody fantastic,it is more even string-to-string,and i am not experiencing any playability issues with it,so i guess u could say i endorse it. (i endorse functionality).

woodyng wrote:rob-echoing what jeffrey said,if you try the ti flats,you are going to essentially a "no tension" situation (or at least VERY low) . the key is having the bass properly set up,at the bridge and truss rods,and unless you live near one of these guys,it is sometimes hard to find someone that knows what to do with your beast. i have also found most guitar techs get upset with the bridge because they just don't know them. i had even worse problems figuring out a 67 epiphone embassy bass,but that's a story for another column. the ghs flats i am using are 40-100 gauge,and did not change the tension on my dano when i switched from dr nickle lowriders 45-105. just don't get a standard gauge in flatwounds for your bass,it would more than likely be too much for the old bridge,as well as it being a set-neck bass....the headstock setback angle on these is not as pronounced,so i think that affects it too...one last thing,i did mention i loved the sound of the pyramids,but i REAALLY love the sound of my 4000 with the sunbeams now......

Sounds good, I will try the TI flats on the 4000. Can't wait!

An ignorant question on my part, but what constitutes light gauge vs standard gauge for bass strings?

standard is usually 45-105, but ricks do have a different standard gauge,though i am not sure what it is....i have not used rick strings since they came in the red boxes..... someone else may chime in on this,but a lighter set like the ti's(which only come in one gauge) should work.

My former '68 4000 came from the factory with flats. My current 4000, which is rarely played, has a set of GHS Stainless flatwounds (0.105") but since it dosen't have a RIC pickup any comments about tone or sound are moot.