Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

I recently bought a brand new Rickenbacker 4003 at my local music store. it's a bit a dream come true..
But: the output of the pickups is substancially lower than all my other basses. (Fender P bass, yamaha B2025, Ken Smith CR, ..)

I set both pickups as high as possible.. but even with teh S knob pushin in (more bass on bridge pick up) the output of the bass is disappointing..
Friends that have a Rick 4003 all tell me their bass is louder than a Fender bass etc...

The bass still has the factory strings on.

Welcome!

Does this happen with all switch positions?

You're plugging into the Standard jack, not RickOSound, right? And you're not comparing to active basses? (Don't think so, just making sure, like "is the computer plugged in?" lol)

jdogric12 wrote:You're plugging into the Standard jack, not RickOSound, right? And you're not comparing to active basses? (Don't think so, just making sure, like "is the computer plugged in?" lol)

Yes it is the same in all switch postions.
The switches all work like they should.. its just that the PU seem to have no power... its about 70% of my other basses.

My Fender basses are passive.

I have a lot of active basses too, and it's a myth that they should be louder that passive basses by default

Can you take it back to the dealer and see if they can exchange it for another, or help diagnose the problem?

If it's not a warranty issue, consider swapping them out for Classic Amplification pups, the best direct drop-in replacement option I've seen on the market. Better made, better shielded, and can be wound to your preference.
http://www.classicamplification.net/pu/cr.html