Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

Do Ric humbuckers growl?

I've been trying to find a 4004 to play and would also like to know the answer to this question!

If you mean the overdriven treble bite, yes the HB1 can do that, you'll just have to work at it to find the right attack.
When soloed, the treble position HB1 has an almost J-bass-like growl.

Plenty of growl is available. Initially I was somewhat disappointed with the tone of the HB-1s until I altered my setup and playing technique. I have the pickups as close to the strings as I can.......just so the strings don't impact 'em when played aggressively. To get the the angriest tone I strike the strings as opposed to plucking. Voila!

Growl comes from wood. The ability of a pickup to faithfully reproduce this growl may vary.

I only have humbuckers on my 650-D, and they do overdrive nicely, but that's different from growl.

I get plenty of growl from my 4004L8... no complaints!

My 4004C will growl.

incubus2432 wrote:To get the the angriest tone I strike the strings as opposed to plucking. Voila!

+1

I picked up that technique after seeing the Kids are Alright when I was a teen. Those clips from Shepperton Studios blew me away. Entwistle's right hand attack was unlike anything I'd ever seen.

I had HB-1s on my 4003S for a while. You can get a nice growl out of them when you dig in, or "strike" the strings. Really versatile pickup. Quiet, powerful, and ranging from clean to mean! I did decide to go back to single coils though. Partly because I have a Les Paul with Thunderbird pickups that I like a lot, so that kind of covers the humbucker thing for me.

gearhed289 wrote:

incubus2432 wrote:To get the the angriest tone I strike the strings as opposed to plucking. Voila!

+1

+2

My 4003 with HB-1s sounds like my 4003 with Hi-Gains did... except there is more girth, the tone is fuller, and it's pretty much impossible to "overdrive" these pickups the way you can with Hi-Gains (which is good because "striking" the strings doesn't cause a huge clip to come through, it actually gives you the dynamic boost you were aiming for). I really like them... a lot less fussy than Hi-Gains and I believe I prefer the tone as well.

I agree with Joey that specifically on a 4004 the bridge HB-1 can get a Jazz Bass thing going. Also true on a 4003 but I've noticed it more on 4004s. Do 4004s have different bridge pickup spacing?

FretlessOnly wrote:Growl comes from wood. The ability of a pickup to faithfully reproduce this growl may vary.
I only have humbuckers on my 650-D, and they do overdrive nicely, but that's different from growl.

Yep- fretboard and body wood species, body thickness, pup position, it's a complex synergy.

rickenbrother wrote:If you mean the overdriven treble bite, yes the HB1 can do that, you'll just have to work at it to find the right attack.
When soloed, the treble position HB1 has an almost J-bass-like growl.

cassius987 wrote:I agree with Joey that specifically on a 4004 the bridge HB-1 can get a Jazz Bass thing going. Also true on a 4003 but I've noticed it more on 4004s. Do 4004s have different bridge pickup spacing?

Exactly what I needed to hear! I did contact Jason Lollar, and he could create a custom fabricated J bass pup with the pole pairs set up to match the Ric string spacing for my bridge pup.

For now, I'll order the two Ric Humbuckers. I'll try the 330kohm pots already in my 4003 first, and if not satisfied, I'll switch 'em out to some 500kohm pots.

Ordered some CircleK strings also.

If my insanity still hasn't been arrested, then I'll get back to Jason.

I'll report back with my findings.

cassius987 wrote:Do 4004s have different bridge pickup spacing?

Mine does!

incubus2432 wrote:

cassius987 wrote:Do 4004s have different bridge pickup spacing?

Mine does!

I want that Bass!!

My stomach's growling.

How is the pickup selector on the LK set up?