Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

Hi, Everyone

My name is Warren Woodzell and I'm from Hot Springs, Virginia. I bought a new Rick (a 620, 6-String made in 2008 in MINT condition), and have a few technical questions. Please bear in mind I don't know *a LOT* about guitars, I am not what you'd call technically savvy... I just want some answers in English, please (lol).

OK, first and foremost, all I have to work with amp-wise is a Vox AD30VT, which as I'm sure most of you know is just a small tube amp which "emulates" the sound of several other Vox amps. I know, I know, but I don't have the money for an AC30 right this minute. HAVING SAID THAT, here are my questions:

The goal, of course, is to get the jangly Rickenbacker sound. Without having a 12-string, and taking into account the small amp that I have (albeit a fairly decent one), how can this be achieved?

Can anyone give me any tips on knob position combinations? Lot of knobs to choose from on a Rick, what comination works well for you all?

I want a heavier string (I assume the strings on the guitar are the factory strings) but they are TOO LIGHT of a gauge. Please offer a suggestion as to which heavier gauge string might work best.

Any other tips for a newbie are welcome. Thanks so much!
Warren

OK, first and foremost, all I have to work with amp-wise is a Vox AD30VT, which as I'm sure most of you know is just a small tube amp which "emulates" the sound of several other Vox amps. I know, I know, but I don't have the money for an AC30 right this minute. HAVING SAID THAT, here are my questions:

Hi Warren,Welcome to RRF and congratulations on your 620.
Ok nothing wrong with a Vox ad30vt and there are plenty of vox ad players on the RRF.You dont need a big ac30 to achieve the sound you are looking for.
Ok set the amp to the Why explain when you can click http://www.valvetronix.net/valvetronix/ ... s_780.html turn the bass down more
then plug in and turn all knobs to full i normally pull back the blender knob the smallest a tad and enjoy.Remember though that a 6 is gonna shine best played bright and the 12 will naturally jangle more.There are also effect boxes that can compress and give you more jangle but i will let others explain that as im not an effects expert in that field.String gauge on the 620 you can go to 11s or 12s and intonation will be required.The Ric strings are 10s round wounds compressed.

Vox makes for a delicious pairing with any Ric, Warren -but for JANGLE I think you'll want to dial in a Fender or Roland type sound on your Vox.

Most effects pedal compressors help put you in the Byrds / '66 Beatles jangle zone too.

Best place to start with the knobs is center position, everything full-on. A slight roll of the blender knob toward the treble side and Bob's yer uncle.

Welcome to the RRF Warren, and congratulations on getting your first Ric. The Boutique Cl amp setting with the effect of Comp/Chorus might be useful.... also try the Fender amp (Tweed) setting or AC30 and toy around with the Gain to minimize overdrive for as Clean as you want to go and tweak the Comperessor or Chorus effects....

You will probably hear lots of people on this Forum mention "the sound" but it really depends on which band or tunes you yourself identify with the Rickenbacker sound... is it chime or jingle-jangle or exactly what ? Is it more "modern" Ric identified bands like The Smithereens, The Jam, the Plimsouls or R.E.M. or is it Beatles, Searchers and Byrds from the 60s ? Is it Tom Petty from the 70s and 80s ? If you want help in identifying Rickenbacker artists, in your search for "the sound", check out: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Ri ... er_players

The Valvetronix site mentioned also has dozens and dozens of particular sound setting suggestions that other Vox amp owners have posted for numerous bands or songs to emulate... whether it be Kinks for You Really Got Me or Beatles for Day Tripper or whatever. There's a lot to dig into on that Valvetronix site.... as well as some very interesting topics that will wet your appetite here on this Forum.
Regards

longhouse wrote: A slight roll of the blender knob toward the treble side and Bob's yer uncle.

Hey! He's my uncle, too! Small world! Do you suppose we're related, Noel?

Given our penchants for Rickenbackers and Xymol it's possible.

Har!

Thanks for your help everyone! Yes, I'm definetly going to need help with the strings... there's something funny going on here big time... It's one of those deals where the guitar sounds in tune while playing, say, a straight G chord for example, whereas an E Minor sounds horribly out of tune. That ALARMS me because I've always seen that as the mark of a cheap guitar, and I know better with a Ric... I assume different strings would help in this matter?!

The Ric sound I'm going for is definetly more Byrds / Beatles than Tom Petty or R.E.M... I want the "Ticket To Ride" jangle I guess you could say.

I neglected to mention that I also own a 4003... (I'm actually a bass player and just recently decided to get a guitar)... my wife got the 4003 for me back in 2002 and it has been the BEST instrument I could ever hope for, albiet a heavy one (lol). Last year I had a technician adjust the truss rods, fix the intonation, change the strings, ect. I'm sure it will continue to be my A #1 for years and years to come.

But yeah, if anyone could PLEASE tell me what to do about these strings I'd appreciate it. I saw the post above, but exactly what gauge would you get if you wanted a (much) heavier string? What brand? Why is it doing the "I sound good in one chord but horrible in another" thing?!

Congrats and welcome, Warren.

I usually use the standard RIC string sets.

The RIC website has their instruction manual, with a good description of the 5th knob's best uses. Myself, I set the 5th knob right in the middle, so I can adjust either way if needed. I rarely need to.

For years I played with all four V/T knobs all the way up. Recently I've taken to the practice of turning the neck V & T down to about 9 for a little more jangle when both pickups are on. I also use a JangleBox which nails the classic compressed jangle sound.

But yeah, if anyone could PLEASE tell me what to do about these strings I'd appreciate it. I saw the post above, but exactly what gauge would you get if you wanted a (much) heavier string? What brand? Why is it doing the "I sound good in one chord but horrible in another" thing?!

Your "out of tuneness" could be one (or a combination of) a few things. If the strings are original and the guitar is a year old it could just be old strings that aren't intonating correctly and changing them will solve the problem.

It could also just need a slight bridge saddle adjustment to intonate a couple of strings. You'll want to wait until you change to the new gauge before doing this or you'll have to change the intonation again with the heavier gauge strings.

The third issue that comes to mind is that these strings are lighter than you want (and you're a bass player) so you may be playing with a heavy left hand and are simply bending them out of tune by pushing down too hard when you play the open cowboy chords. A nut that isn't slotted deep enough can also cause this.

If you are going to change your string gauge, do that before making any adjustments or you will just have to redo them to handle the new strings. I can't help you with the gauge as I've used everything from .009s to .011s. I had to widen the nut slots on the low E and A to fit the .011s properly. I don't know if that is normal these days or not as mine are older guitars.

NIGHT OF THE LIVING THREAD!!!

jingle_jangle wrote:

longhouse wrote: A slight roll of the blender knob toward the treble side and Bob's yer uncle.

Hey! He's my uncle, too! Small world! Do you suppose we're related, Noel?

hmmm, is Robert your mother's brother too?




Welcome, Warren!