Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

There's plenty of info kicking around on HOW to adjust setup on a 4001 or 4003 series bass (Joey's Maintenance Tips for one), but I can't find a common recommended set of numbers for the following:

String height above first fret (nut action height)

String Height at 12th and 20th fret

Amount of neck relief at the 7th fret (or approximate midpoint of neck) with first fret capo and fretted where neck crosses body (20th fret)

This assumes as nearly dead-flat a fingerboard as it possible to tweak the truss rods to.

I realize that "action" is pretty subjective, but there must be a set of adjustments Rick uses as a starting point on instruments shipped, the "factory settings" as a point of departure. Can someone direct me to a thread on this or a good link?

Thanks!

Doubtful. They're setup by hand, and subject to player's taste anyway.

Set the bass up to what feels right for you i normally set the height of the bridge then adjust the truss rods to my taste.

You have to ease them in to a set up over time, I bought a 4003 that had action really high and buzzed on every fret , I put very heavy strings on and tensioned the rods slightly about 8th a turn each night until it came down, switched to medium strings, did the same and then medium light and same again.
It took probably a month, what I do know is creeping them down is better than swinging on the rods with a wrench.
Now the action is credit card high all the neck with no fret buzz.

The guy I got the bass from sold it after he paid two different people to set it up and made it worse.

That's pretty odd, most other manufacturers (Fender, Gibson, G&L, PRS, Ibanez, etc) provide at least basic information on baseline setup, either in original documents issued with the instrument (like my G&L bass, which also came with a complete set of hex keys for bridge and trussrod adjustment) or on their company websites. Why doesn't Rickenbacker? I know they keep everything pretty close to the vest, but surely
recommended factory initial settings can't be considered proprietary, when anyone with a good ruler in hand can measure string height? Am I the first guy to ask this question?

Not sure about your first measure but these are my numbers when setting up the others:

Gilmourisgod wrote:String Height at 12th and 20th fret

I measure from the fingerboard in all cases, and at the 12th fret my final action tends to be 3 mm for the E and 2-2.5 mm for the G, decreasing from E to G. If the neck angle is good the 20th fret will be nearly identical, but possibly a little larger (up to 3.5 mm from 3, up to 2.5 mm from 2). If it is smaller, that can be a bad sign. After measuring the fingerboard, if there are frets, you can check them too for consistency. If they are in need of dressing you will notice inconsistencies with the fingerboard pattern.

In one unique case (my 4001FL) you can shave 1 mm off all the values I listed up there. It has very, very low action.

Amount of neck relief at the 7th 9th fret (or approximate midpoint of neck) with first fret capo and fretted where neck crosses body (20th fret)

This value I am not precisely certain of but it is definitely <0.5 mm for fretless basses and about equal to 0.5 mm for fretted basses.

Gilmourisgod wrote:That's pretty odd, most other manufacturers (Fender, Gibson, G&L, PRS, Ibanez, etc) provide at least basic information on baseline setup, either in original documents issued with the instrument (like my G&L bass, which also came with a complete set of hex keys for bridge and trussrod adjustment) or on their company websites. Why doesn't Rickenbacker? I know they keep everything pretty close to the vest, but surely
recommended factory initial settings can't be considered proprietary, when anyone with a good ruler in hand can measure string height? Am I the first guy to ask this question?

It has more to do with the fact that it's not that big of a deal than that it is some trade secret. Start with Fender numbers if you wish. Rics are not special in terms of how the string action ought to work and its range of useful parameters. All good basses can be set up pretty much the same.

Factory Rics tend to have low relief but mid-high action in my experience. The first thing I always do is lower the bridge.

Cassius,
Thanks for the info, that's exactly what I was looking for. My old 79' Jetglo 4001 was set up with a nearly dead-flat neck, so it was really sensitive to any adjustment. I recently played a new 4003 in Guitar Cente store and the action was really high, I wondered if that's the "new normal" for factory settings, or is it just an anomaly?

Gilmourisgod wrote:Cassius,
Thanks for the info, that's exactly what I was looking for. My old 79' Jetglo 4001 was set up with a nearly dead-flat neck, so it was really sensitive to any adjustment. I recently played a new 4003 in Guitar Cente store and the action was really high, I wondered if that's the "new normal" for factory settings, or is it just an anomaly?

Almost all basses I've played from the factory in stores including Fenders are set with high action which I think comes from setting them up and shipping them out and then the neck settles. It takes a few days at least for the neck to stop moving after being set so I would be willing to bet they don't leave the factory like that. I have seen figures for Rickenbacker published somewhere but I set them as a compromise between playability and sound. I can be a bit heavy handed so I will usually set the action a little high. I will usually get the heck fairly straight with maybe a credit card or two at the 12th fret and then play with the bridge raising it and lowering it until it sounds good and feels good and has a minimal amount of fret buzz. All I do is press the E string down at the first (then the G) and last fret and sight in the middle by eye and stop adjusting the truss rods when it's fairly straight, I don't like the feel or sound of a dead straight neck. You don't want to tighten the truss rods to the point of them being difficult to turn, you are inviting disaster with a 4001 when you do that (Don't ask me how i know that) It can take a good month as someone else said to get a neck where you want it especially with a 4001.

Personally I think every bass I've played at our GC had action high enough you could drive a semi under the strings. I believe it is a combination of necks settling after shipping and also the prevalence of slapping.

johnallg wrote:Personally I think every bass I've played at our GC had action high enough you could drive a semi under the strings. I believe it is a combination of necks settling after shipping and also the prevalence of slapping.

I played a fender Jazz 5ver a while back at my local Sam Ash. the action was so damn high, it was a chore to play!! That and the neck was a wide as a fat chicks arse!!

Sepp

Gilmourisgod wrote:Cassius,
I recently played a new 4003 in Guitar Center store and the action was really high, I wondered if that's the "new normal" for factory settings, or is it just an anomaly?

My new 4003's action was fairly high, as well, but it was due to the nut height, which I assume is intentionally set that way to accommodate adjustment for personal playing preference. The neck is straight as an arrow.

Getting a factory fresh instrument, no matter the manufacturer or the cost, will most certainly require a set up or tweaking - some more than others.