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My Newly Revised Rig
Tue, 11/29/2011 - 12:23am
As a few of you may recall, I recently got a new Carvin stack to replace the two combo amps/mini-stack that was giving me trouble, and threatening to give up the ghost. I'm still very happy with the new stack, but I was also having electronic problems with my Ric, and had to put her in the shop for a couple of weeks. This left me with a 1982 Fender Bullet and a 1990 Aria Pro II SLB-2 as my back-ups. The Fender looked and sounded great. The Aria sounded and played great. But, I was hating life. I'm spoiled by the Ric, I guess, which looks, sounds, AND plays great. So, I set out on a quest to see what I could get in trade. I started at Sam Ash, but they didn't have anything that got my motor running. I subsequently hit almost every music store and pawn shop in a 25 mile radius of my home, which was quite a few, being LA/OC county, receiving only lowball and non-offers. Finally got frustrated and put the stuff on Craigslist. Then, I happened by that same Sam Ash, and stopped in again. Found a goergous mint condition MIM Jazz, and the bass guy told me to bring my stuff and he'd see what he could do. I ended up trading the 60W amp, the two basses, and $60 cash for the Jazz. I ran the set-up routine on it and it darn near plays itself. I'm pretty happy with the deal. Here's what I'm rockin' now...
Tue, 11/29/2011 - 5:53am
#2
I had an old 4001 that had
I had an old 4001 that had problems w/the bridge p/u
it's mounted opn springs I think
anyway I replcaed it w/ a bartolini
never liked the sound of the bart
I traded the Ric for a Kramer some months later
Looks like you've done well at getting your gear upgraded
sweet...
Tue, 11/29/2011 - 6:11am
#3
very nice horse tradin!
and
very nice horse tradin!
and pickup swappin is easy, if you ever wanted to DIY and save some dough... i would really scour online (and evilbay) when you do go pickup shopping. imho, replacement pickups are extremely overpriced.
Tue, 11/29/2011 - 2:52pm
#4
Not Ric hatin here
I bought a
Not Ric hatin here
I bought a 2007 Ric 4003
that looks almost like the one I traded off
Tue, 11/29/2011 - 3:04pm
#5
Thanks!
Thanks, guys! Sorry the pix aren't sharper. My wife's camera. Maybe the red eye was on or something. All that red! Dunno...
Also, if anyone in the LA area is interrested in the G&G cases, let me know, and I'll get you the contact info. These things are sweet, and hard to come by. Some of the cases that you see claiming to be deluxe really aren't. You would have to be local, and pick it up though, because he can't make any money shipping them. UPS just reclassed 'em as oversize, and it doubled his shipping cost. He's phasing out the Jazz cases, completely. Four left, last I spoke with him... Three tweed w/orange velvet, and one black on black. I grabbed the last red poodle he had.
Tue, 11/29/2011 - 3:10pm
#6
Real purdy...
Quote:
Not Ric hatin here
I bought a 2007 Ric 4003
that looks almost like the one I traded off
Sweet. Betcha won't trade that one away.
Fri, 12/02/2011 - 2:07pm
#7
Hey Heavy, what's the finish
Hey Heavy, what's the finish on your Ric? From the pic it looks like a Montezuma Brown (unfortunate name) I finally scored one last year in that finish after losing many ebids. But the wait was worth it. Awesome setup BTW!
Fri, 12/02/2011 - 6:51pm
#8
Not sure...
When I bought it, the guy at the evil superstore told me that it was tobacco burst. But, that's certainly not right. I've been told that it could be Autumn Glo, or a very light walnut stain. Do you know if Montezuma Brown might be the correct term for a walnut stain? It's a 1984, and records are kind of sketchy. They started phasing out the 4001 in 1979, and some would suggest that there never was a 1984. Ric has continued to make 4001-(various numbers and letters) in smaller numbers, over the years, but 1984 was the aproximate time they ceased production on the actual 4001 model. It's definitely a 1984. Of that much, I'm sure, because I used Rickenbacker's identificator, and ran my serial number. Unfortunately, it only gives model and year, and no vital statistics, unless they have expanded it, since I was on there. Definitely one of the last of it's kind. What year is yours, and how do you like it? I'd love to see some pix. hrb
Fri, 12/02/2011 - 7:16pm
#9
Update on the rewind...
Finally got a chance to crank her up, a couple of days ago. (I live with my duaghter and her family, now, and don't get too many chances to bump the volume.) Well... the bridge pick-up sounds better than it did when it was new! Just stellar! It's still got that vintage sound - just lots more of it. The results were so amazing that I just had to do the same to the neck pick-up. The neck pick-up was weak, out of the factory, and I just lived with it, before. But, it's been losing volume over time, and I would have had to address it eventually, anyway. Just dropped her off, today. I'll let you know how it comes out. Stay tuned! hrb
Thu, 01/26/2012 - 4:27pm
#10
Can you feel my pain?
I'm still waiting for the Ric pick-up back. Sent the neck pick-up to the same guys that did the bridge. They returned it a month later, with apologies, saying they just couldn't get to it. I found that most rewinders currently have 2-4 months of backlog, and most aren't even accepting new work, or won't accept anything besides Fender and Gibson. I ended up sending it to a guy in PA, who quoted four weeks. Should have it back in about three weeks.
In the meantime, I've done a complete maintenance and set-up on the bass, and it's slicker than snot, and prettier than it's ever been. Just needs the pick-up, and it's going to be a stellar instrument. But, the waiting is killing me. It's like GAS to the tenth power. I've got the Jazz, to keep me going, but it just ain't the same. It's like having a family member in the hospital, or something on that scale. I feel like my life is on hold. The next three weeks might be longer than the last three months.
I'm sorry to vent, but this is killing me. hrb
Tue, 02/14/2012 - 6:16pm
#11
Back in the saddle!
Got the 2nd pickup back and soldered it in, but still had almost no bass volume. The rewinder told me the pickup literally fell apart in his hands. So, it wasn't a waste, having it rewound. But, rather than put her in the shop again, I ordered and installed a new wiring harness. And, bingo! She sounds better than she did new... no more digging for bass, and I still have all that vintage tone! Now, I just need to bi-amp the rig, and I'll have something Chris Squire will be jealous of!
It turned out that the Ric's bridge pup was dead. I had the option of rewinding to factory spec, or hot rodding it, so I told 'em to make it loud and proud. Just got her back, today. Haven't had a chance to crank her up yet. Can't wait. Also, when I picked up the Ric, I had my luthier quote me on putting some Dimarzios in, figuring it would be my next spend. He quoted me $130, installed, which is about the same as the on-line price with tax and shipping. But, it gets better... he informed me that the neck pick-up had already been replaced with an American Standard Jazz pick-up, and he suggested I wait a while... maybe until I have some pup or elec problem.
I gotta give props to the folks at Sam Ash and World of Strings. First class service and a fair deal, from both stores. This is a welcome change from the treatment that I received at that evil superstore that will remain nameless, when they screwed me on my last major purchase. (Never going there again.)
And check this out... Picked this up from a Craigslist posting, locally, for Just $90! Saved about $100. And it looks almost as pretty as the guitar, don't you think? Fender Deluxe Tweed Jazz Case, with lipstick red poodle interior, made by G&G, and brand spanking new!