Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

Is there any Ric 4003s5 owners or anyone that has played a stock 5 string with no Mods done to it ,then to one that has had the string spacing mod done to it???? If so is there a difference noticeably??? I have a spacing 2 1/16" I can go 2 1/4 maybe 2 3/8..I want to space them apart farther if there is a difference..I play finger style.
Thanks DeWayne

Hi DeWayne, I do the s5 with the factory spacing - I play with a pick. It does take a little getting used to. While I haven't modified the string spacing I did have another 5 stringer with a slightly wider spacing - can't recall what the spacing was and my nephew has the bass right now. Anyhow it wasn't a big difference but enough to make a difference. If I played finger style I think I would space them apart a little more. You might want to search the archives, as there have been a few threads concerning this. Mr Wilder might chime in here - he has a good head when it comes to these kinds of mods. I believe he has done this at least once or twice.

The distance between the B and G strings on my S/5 is 2 1/8" You can probably get all new saddles and cut/shape them to fit and have slighter wider string spacing, but not much wider. I am a fingerstyle player. My love for the sound of this S/5 has made me get used to playing it fingerstyle. It did take a while, but it was worth the effort. I do also play it with a pick sometimes.
Guitarists such as John Mayer, Jeff Beck and Lindsay Buckingham play guitar fingerstyle, so it's not impossible to play the S/5 without a pick.

Thanks Fellas.

I do have to say one thing about the factory string pitch on the s5's. I never did like the 4003 thick neck profile - I'm more of a thin neck profile kind of guy. Anyhew - somehow with the five string setup the neck/string spacing really works! once I got used to the whole string pitch (mostly the right hand) I found it to be a really fast player. I can run scales as fast or faster than on the 4 string - a very quick neck. That is why I haven't looked into modifying mine.

My S5 is my main player.
I'm so used to it's stock narrow spacing now, it's difficult playing my 4 string.
I play fingerstyle and sometimes with a pick.

petersland wrote:My S5 is my main player.
I'm so used to it's stock narrow spacing now, it's difficult playing my 4 string.
I play fingerstyle and sometimes with a pick.

This has been my experience too.

I go into a guitar store and pick up a 4 stringer and feel like I've taken a leap off a great building with no safety net sometimes.

I exaggerate to the brink of absurdity to make a point but the point is there. I've gotten used to fingerstyle on the S/5 and now have difficulty adjusting to a 4 when the opportunity arises.

I played a Stargazer 5-string yesterday and they're supposed to have the "good" wide string spacing people are supposed to want, but I hated it for that reason. Going from string to string took a lot more effort than I was used to, even compared to other 5ers I've tried.

It's been years since I tried a Rick 5 string and the narrow spacing killed it for me so I bought a Modulus Q5. Despite this, these 5 string Rick discussions and pictures makes me want to start hunting for one (I'm thinking maybe I can buck up and adapt?). The Modulus is a great bass but it's not a Rick, my primary bass these days is my '98 Cheyenne and in a perfect world I'd have a 5 string 4004 (I'm not trying to stir up that particular hornet's nest by the way). So I guess I'll start looking....

Yes took me a while to adapt to the s5 and I'm glad I stuck with it.
ALL other 5ers felt like tree trunks to my small hands.
The S5 felt perfect.
Next problem was a backup Bass and taking my 4 string 4003 was awkward.
As I couldn't find another s5, (and probably couldn't afford it) I had to have something and remembered by Jazz Bass days.
Those slim necks were nice and dare I say, I modded an SX Vintage Jazz.
Added a 5er bridge and some 5er Barts, new nut and extra machine head and hey presto.
8mm nut spacing and 16mm bridge spacing.
$350 all up and it's a sweet backup.

I played mine exclusively for a couple of weeks. I got used to it and now it's fine. I also have a 4004 so I'm switching spacings a lot.