Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

Hey all got a question for ya. Anybody else here ever have issues with their 4003's bridge pickup start to crackle and cut out on the standard output?
It's a 2003 4003VP. The Ric-o-sound jack works fine, so I know it's not the pickup and in Ric-o-sound the toggle is fine as well. Pretty sure it's the Standard jack. I've opened it up and it looks fine and dandy, no noticeable corrosion or anything. Those RIC jacks are a ***** huh! I've sprayed De-Oxit and nothing.
The problem started off as an occasional thing, but now it just doesn't work for more than a second here or there.
Now it's starting to make the neck pickup come in crackled too.

Any ideas to try myself at home?
Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

I know it may be a stupid suggestion, but have you ruled out that it's not your guitar cable?

Have you checked the toggle switch?

I had to replace the jack on my 4001, but that was after a very long time. But it had the same progression - intermittent, then totally done. For a long time people said to try and tweak it physically, and that helped for a while (things like use a little sand paper on the contacts and try and bend the contact poles inwards).

Best $25 I put into the instrument, as it's now usable.

De-Oxit.

kennyhowes wrote:De-Oxit.

De-oxing jacks has been working pretty well for me. If it doesn't work, just get a new jack.

The jack may be binding in the body channel and shorting out a lead. This happened on my RM3261. The way to check for this is to loosen the jack on the plate, plug in a cable, remove the screws attaching the jackplate to the body, then move the jack a bit while playing on the bridge pickup. If the sound comes back, it's the position of the jack, not the jack itself, that is the issue.

doctorwho wrote:The jack may be binding in the body channel and shorting out a lead. This happened on my RM3261.

Hmm, I think you need to send that to me right away so I can make sure it's working properly and will continue to do so for a few decades more.

Baker69 wrote:I know it may be a stupid suggestion, but have you ruled out that it's not your guitar cable?

Have you checked the toggle switch?

Hah, yes, this has been happening for about 5 years now. I've replaced/returned about 6 Monster cables in that time, and it's been plugged into a various assortment of other cables as well.

kennyhowes wrote:De-Oxit.

De-oxit and then a treatment of De-Oxit Gold did nothing. I've tried.

doctorwho wrote:The jack may be binding in the body channel and shorting out a lead. This happened on my RM3261. The way to check for this is to loosen the jack on the plate, plug in a cable, remove the screws attaching the jackplate to the body, then move the jack a bit while playing on the bridge pickup. If the sound comes back, it's the position of the jack, not the jack itself, that is the issue.

This actually sounds like a possibility.
I've opened it up a few times to look in there and see what's going on with this problem at the jack.

It's tight, really tight in there. I've plugged in the jack and wiggled around the wires. Which is which, there's an orange, a yellow and I think 2 blacks?
No matter what I touched the bridge PU wouldn't come back. Same or even less as if I wiggled the instrument cable.

This is a really weird issue. I've always been super gentle and loving with my bass. It's been through the loop though, it's gigged and traveled alot.
It's been on tour, it's been in studios, it's been all over the place. And all of this was on the Standard jack. So I guess it'd make sense if it died. But it looks fine in there. Like new.

It could be the output wire from the stereo jack to mono jack that's bad, check all the solder connections on it.

Bassically, Michael

Best thing to do is take her in for a setup and ask them to check the jack whilst they are at it

Twist the jack in the hole a little bit. That jack has a switch built into it which gets pushed-on by the tip of your cord's plug, and the space cut in the wood it pretty tight. If the jack twists out of its original position it is possible for the wood to block that blade of the jack from moving enough, which can prevent the switch from working properly.

As a simple test unscrew the jack plate from the instrument and try using it that way; there should be enough wire length to pull the jacks away from the body to see if it solves the problem, then you'll know what has to be done (or not).

Thanks everyone I will try these new tips out.

I can't afford any service right now, living dollar to dollar daily. Bad times.
I've always have done all my own setup and repairs on all my gear for decades.
But, this problem has had no conclusion thus far with everything I've tried.

Like I said before, it's on the bridge pickup that it cuts out, the neck signal goes through, but sometimes that crackles, the bridge pickup just won't go through period.
I know it's not the bridge pickup itself because the bridge pickup works fine when you plug into the Ric-O-Sound jack.
It's got to be the bridge PU lead or the Standard jack itself.

I will take open it up (yet again) and see what I can find/look for... Thanks everyone, will also try and take pics.