Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

Hey Jeff.....you said in a recent post:

"I prefer 2 mono outputs and no ric-o-sound"

with that setup, how does it all work? I can see with 2 mono ouputs you can plug into two channels or two amps easily enough to get two different sounds. Does the switch still work with that setup though? Or did you add a switch to short one mono output and put that pickup on the other mono jack?

I'd like to be able to run my 4001 to two different amps to get two different sounds as the Ric-O-Sound is supposed to do, but I'd also like to be able to plug into one jack and be able to get both pickups as a normal mono setup.
My Ric-O-Sound setup currently doesn't really work right and adjustments to the neck pickup will affect the sound on the bridge pickup and vice versa. I'm trying to figure out a fix that will get me the best of both worlds and I have a hunch it may be able to be done with your setup. Care to explain?
Thanks!

I do prefer 2 mono outputs ... the toggle switch has no impact on this setup ... for my money this can do what the ric-o-sound does but even better ... you can send each signal to a seperate amp ... also you can then plug a mono jack into either output and get then same signal ... 2 signals is a good setup for recording ... one clean and bassey and one trebley and distorted ...

I've seen several ric basses where the ric-o-sound was malfunctioning ... my way to repair it is to replace it with 2 mono outputs ...

Geddy splits his signal 3 ways ... one regular ... one distorted ... and one with more bass ... all mono ...

So what your saying is, that instead of splitting up your pickups, Neck pu into one amp, bridge pu into another, you are taking two independant mono signals ( both pu's) and sending them to two seperate amps. right??

And with this you can still use the toggle switch to select each pu, blend, tweak, or whatever right?

yep that's it ... in my opinion it is a much superior was to split your signal ... better for recording and better for playing live ... and simple mono jack are less likely to malfunction than stereo jacks ... and you don't need a special adapter to plug into ... just use an ordinary cable ...

There's a long time misconception on how Ric-O-Sound works.

Most people think, and I think the Rickenbacker description doesnt' help, that the ROS output is in fact a true stereo, ie, the Neck pickup goes top one channel and the bridge to the other. It would be really nice if this was how it did indeed work. The terms "Mono and Stereo" are completley misleading, and the ROS box itself is labled Bass and Treble, which further adds to the confusion.

In reality what you get is whichever pickup you select summed to both outputs on the ROS. This is to allow for splitting into an EFX loop, or into two seperate amps, or in my case two seperate channels. You can achieve the same effect, as Jeff says, with a single output Rick, just put a mono splitter at the end of the cable.

What Jeff is describing (At least I think so Jeff) is how ROS could, or should have worked in the begining, ie each pickup was available as a totally seperate output, with both being available in the middle.

Thanks Jeff. I understand how your setup works now. It does seem like a viable alternative, although it doesn't allow you to get the neck pickup and bridge pickup signals out of the bass at the same time and still have them seperate. But I can see how you can just make adjustments on your amps to optimize each sound and get a good setup. I may try it!

Greg, you could potentially rewire a ROS jack to achieve this, and the center switch position would give you both pickups active at the same time.

Jim,
I think you are mistaken about the ROS. For stereo operation you should only use the stereo out with a stereo splitter to separate the pickups.

www.rickenbacker.com/us/19507.htm

Are you using both outputs at the same time?


I edited this for spelling (my spellchecker [brain] wasn't working!)

I like that idea Jeff, Im on it. I have a very good friend that just lives for wiring projects like this.

Hi Jeff,
I'm positive (course now I'm doubting it again) about the operation,(at least in my case) and I've spent some time discussing it with the Service folks at Rickenbacker.

I only ever plug into one output jack. I've a stereo cable that I plug into my ROS jack, and on each channel of this cable I get whichever pickup I've selected available at both output jacks. I've owned my 4003 since new and this is how it's always worked.

I understand the diagrame shows each pickup is supposedly wired individually to the seperate toggles for the stereo jack, however if you look at how the pickups are bridged together at the mono jack, they are interconnected, and this in turn defeats the pickup seperation, you end up with the same signal available at each side back at the Stereo jack.

I've discussed this misnomer with the folks at Rickenbacker, and after a long discussion they agree that what you end up with is a copy of the signal sent to both outputs.

Like I said, it's very misleading. Now, if anyone actually has a ROS cable that truly splits the pickups one to each side I'd be interested in hearing about it.

If you were to disable, or remove the mono output completley then the ROS output would function as a true split between the pickups.

No I think a seperate output for each pickup is a bad idea ... If I split my signal I want to split a signal that includes both pickups ... the ric-o-sound splits the signal by pickup ...

I have been playing Rickenbackers since 1973 and I have never wanted to split the signal from each pickup ...

Hi Jeff,
I'm positive (course now I'm doubting it again) about the operation,(at least in my case) and I've spent some time discussing it with the Service folks at Rickenbacker.

I only ever plug into one output jack. I've a stereo cable that I plug into my ROS jack, and on each channel of this cable I get whichever pickup I've selected available at both output jacks. I've owned my 4003 since new and this is how it's always worked.

I understand the diagrame shows each pickup is supposedly wired individually to the seperate toggles for the stereo jack, however if you look at how the pickups are bridged together at the mono jack, they are interconnected, and this in turn defeats the pickup seperation, you end up with the same signal available at each side back at the Stereo jack.

I've discussed this misnomer with the folks at Rickenbacker, and after a long discussion they agree that what you end up with is a copy of the signal sent to both outputs.

Like I said, it's very misleading. Now, if anyone actually has a ROS cable that truly splits the pickups one to each side I'd be interested in hearing about it.

If you were to disable, or remove the mono output completley then the ROS output would function as a true split between the pickups.

Maybe I am wrong, but as I see it as long as the mono jack has no plug in it the two channels are not shorted together. Have you carefully examined your wiring on your bass? Maybe the mono and stereo jacks are reversed on the jackplate.

As far as I know the wiring on my 4003 is original as it came from the factory.

If you see Jeff's comments on this thread he confirms the same operation, ie each pickup is sent to both outputs.

I just tested the three basses I have with ROS, and they all work as advertised! I have a '67 4005WB, '73 4001 and '04 4003FL, plus an '03 4004Cii, obviously without ROS. To test them I ran a stereo cable into the stereo input of my Raven Labs PHA-1. I get total pickup separation without the pickups blending in mono no matter how I set the controls and toggle switch on the basses. Perhaps your ROS unit is at fault? Try running your ROS output from the bass directly into a stereo channel of a mixer and see if it works like you think it should, ie, the pickups go to the left and right outputs of the mixer. Perhaps your stereo cable is shorted (the ring and tip connections on one or both plugs) so the two leads are acting as one?