Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

I've been looking into drop-in humbucker replacements for stock 4001 bass pickups. The available options seem to be:
Joe Barden - good reviews, but pricey
Seymour Duncan - reasonable price but supposedly sound nothing like original Rick pickups
Filtertron toaster pickups - looks like they have a toaster that would work for the neck, but nothing for the bridge pup that would drop in to the bridge pickup assembly

Did I miss any, suggestions?

Gilmourisgod wrote:Did I miss any, suggestions?

RIC HB-1?

jps wrote:

Gilmourisgod wrote:Did I miss any, suggestions?

RIC HB-1?

+1. These are versatile 4-conductors and should not be overlooked. I have wired them series, parallel and as matched "RWRP" single coils with success. Of course I also have some for sale so I'm biased.

I've tried the SDs and the Barts and they are... not so great. The Barts are so-so, but the SDs are awful.

Gilmourisgod wrote:...bridge pup that would drop in to the bridge pickup assembly

It is quite easy to mount an HB-1 or a toaster® onto a bridge mounting plate, so don't worry that they don't "drop in".

For Humbuckers in a Rickenbacker bass I would not try anything that was not an HB-1...

Eden.

Excuse my ignorance, electronics not my strong suit. Are the "toaster" pickups humbucking.? I see them on old basses, thought they were all single coil. Can you mix humbuckers and single coils, neck as an Hb or toaster with original bridge pickup? Are any modifications needed to the pickguard or bridge pickup ring needed to mount HB-1 pickups?

Don't forget the Bartolini option. Some have like that…others not.

My toaster comment was just to indicate that they are the same size and mount the same way. Here is a toaster (single coil) I mounted in the bridge pickup location on a 4003FL I used to own. Pay no attention to the temporary pickguard on the bass, that was on loan from Ken Swearingen (remember him?) until I got proper ones made by Pickguardian.

The HB1's are very cool pups. Had one in my 4001 neck/bass position. I had a little bit of mismatch with the HG but the sound was killer! I love what I get from them in my 4004's.

Humbuckers seem like a no-brainer if it doesn't mean sacrificing the treble growl. I love the sound of the 4001, but not the 60-cycle hum.

JPS: How was the toaster mounted in the bridge pup assembly? Did you make a mounting plate for it? Can't see what they are fastened to in the photos.

The plastic (black) mounting plate has holes already drilled in the correct locations to screw a pickup on it, all you need to get are screws, washers and nuts to screw the pickup onto it using the normal, one on each side, holes in the base of the pickups. I suggest stainless steel hardware from your favorite store.

Has anyone tried these by Classic Amplification?

http://classicamplification.net/Pickups/Rick_pickup.htm

They appear to be single-coil, but they claim to be less noisy than OEM high-gains. They actually appear to be much better made than the stock OEM pickups, with shielded cable and aluminum bracket for the bridge pickup. Opinions?

HB-1's,definitely. Super quiet,great sounding pickups with a variety of wiring options available.speaking of which,you will also want to upgrade your wiring/ pots to 500k units to get the best out of the Hb's. I've done that to 2 of my 4004's,and am about to do the same for the Ci I just got last weekend.