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Post subject: American Jazz better than a Rick?
Posted: Thu Sep 17, 2009 9:47 am
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I am about to make my first big bass purchase, i was looking for some insight on whether an american jazz bass would be better than nplaying a rickenbacker. i play mostly rock and jazz, but also church music. i appreciate any help.


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Posted: Thu Sep 17, 2009 1:24 pm
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They are both fantastic instruments, and both happen to be my favorite basses out there. However, they are VERY different.

A jazz bass has a thinner neck profile than the rick, and the weight distribution and general feel of it is quite different.

In terms of sound, they both have a ton of midrange. The Jazz bass is more low-mid and mid-mid oriented, whereas the Rick is really focused in the hi-end. You will generally get a "darker" sound from the jazz, but both are very midrange heavy.

It's very difficult to say which would be better, and a purchase of this magnitude REQUIRES you try both of them out. You can read as many reviews online as you want, and no mater how descriptive, they'll never be the same as trying them in person.

One last thing, because of the body wood and construction of the Rick, it's tone will change far more depending on what strings you put on it than a jazz. Steels sound brighter and flats sound duller than on the Jazz.


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Posted: Fri Sep 18, 2009 12:15 pm
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Ricks are famous because of their trebly bite and Jazz are well knowned for that sweet midrange growl sound..

I'd have to agree with anubis on this one trying out for yourself will determine which will be.. I think you can't go wrong with these two..

Both are awesome instruments, well just a plus.. Fender parts well are easier to find IMO..


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Post subject: american jazz better than a rick
Posted: Wed Sep 23, 2009 9:27 pm
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WOW thats a tough one. I suggest you go to a few music stores and try them out. IMO you cant go wrong eather way.


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Posted: Thu Sep 24, 2009 1:04 am
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I bought a new Ricky in 2007. Visually it is lovely and probably worth framing and hanging on the wall.

As to playability I found it difficult. The pickup polepieces for the G and E strings were much lower than for the A and D strings and this had a noticeable effect on the volume (making these strings too quiet relatively), so i had to adjust them. This itself wasn't easy, as the pickup cover makes alterations such as this difficult. Yeah, i could remove the pickup cover but this does require some manual dexterity and I have not got any!

I also found it difficult to cleanly fret the low 'F' on the E string without the A string still ringing from a previous note. Now, this might be my technique (or lack of it) but i never had this issue (before or since) with any other bass.

Bought a Geddy Lee Fender Jazz a month or so ago and sold the Ricky. The Fender just makes me want to pick it up and play; it's dead fast, looks as nice as the Ricky and has a wide(r) range of tones. And it's built like the proverbial out-house. (And costs at least one third less than the Ricky).


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Post subject: Rick :)
Posted: Thu Sep 24, 2009 3:51 am
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I would say, that that a better guitar cannot be concluded. Its only the matter of being different.

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Posted: Thu Sep 24, 2009 1:31 pm
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Well this is a Fender forum LOL :lol:


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Posted: Fri Sep 25, 2009 6:17 pm
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The Rick is a very cool instrument. I played one in my younger days and had to sell it (no money). I have a Jazz now (Geddy) and can tell you it is definitely easier to play than the Rick. I will not tell you anything bad about the Rick though. It was one of the coolest basses I have ever owned and I will own another again. Go with the Jazz first though. IMO you can get more of a range of sounds out of it than the Rick. It is amazing how much you can do with 2 volume knobs and tone control. When I slap I have both volumes cranked with the tone on treble and when you want to get that growl use your bridge pick up. Play a Geddy. It is totally worth the $$$


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Posted: Sun Sep 27, 2009 8:20 am
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gnosticbass wrote:
Well this is a Fender forum LOL :lol:


haha yea it is.. but we cant say which is better, lots of people have different taste~ :lol:


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Posted: Mon Oct 05, 2009 11:48 am
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I own both a Rick 4001 and a Jazz bass- The Fender Jazz bass is better in terms of ease of use and adjustment. The Rickenbacker bridge is not that easy to adjust and the pickup locations are not the best. IMHO the Jazz bass is a better bass, overall, but the Rick does have its own sound.
The preferential differences lie in that the Rick neck is almost the same width throughout its entire length while the Jazz bass tapers quite dramatically.
The new Rickenbackers 4003 bass has a pull switch on the bass p u tone control that takes a cap out of the circuit and gives you another tone option.

Try out both basses, but you should be able to buy an American made Jazz bass for less than half of what a Vintage Rickenbacker bass will cost.

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Posted: Tue Oct 06, 2009 1:53 pm
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BCbassman wrote:
I own both a Rick 4001 and a Jazz bass- The Fender Jazz bass is better in terms of ease of use and adjustment. The Rickenbacker bridge is not that easy to adjust and the pickup locations are not the best. IMHO the Jazz bass is a better bass, overall, but the Rick does have its own sound.
The preferential differences lie in that the Rick neck is almost the same width throughout its entire length while the Jazz bass tapers quite dramatically.
The new Rickenbackers 4003 bass has a pull switch on the bass p u tone control that takes a cap out of the circuit and gives you another tone option.

Try out both basses, but you should be able to buy an American made Jazz bass for less than half of what a Vintage Rickenbacker bass will cost.


It's worth noting that the modern 4003s are different than the old 4001s. The necks are in my opinion more comfortable since they have a narrower profile and trussrod is far less finicky. Also, the modern pickups sound pretty darn good; a little more versetile than the 4001s. Also, the push/pull knob for the cap is only in post 2007 4003s. The 4001's had the bridge pickup cap hardwired in.

Also, guitar center has 4003s well over 2 grand, but often you can find them way cheaper. If you buy direct from rickenbacker they're about the same price as a MIA jazz, but you have to wait a looooong time for it to get to your door. I think they have a 2 year backorder.


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Posted: Thu Oct 08, 2009 1:41 pm
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I don't think Rickenbacker accepts direct orders and even if they did the list price on a 4003 is north of $2500. I think you can do better with a USA Jazz bass which at GC is now discounted to around $1100.

Annubis- you are right that the 4003 is different that the 4001. 4003s have a single truss rod and a one piece neck. 4001s have a double trussrod and a multi- ply neck. The 4001 was supposed to be strung with flat wound strings only, otherwise the warranty is voided. this was and is routinely violated and Rotosound strings will exert enough stress to pop the fingerboard off of a 4001.

The 4001 also gave you the stereo option or Rick-O -Sound, which means that you can use a stereo cord and split the output of the pickups across two amps.

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Posted: Thu Oct 08, 2009 5:39 pm
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BCbassman wrote:
I don't think Rickenbacker accepts direct orders and even if they did the list price on a 4003 is north of $2500. I think you can do better with a USA Jazz bass which at GC is now discounted to around $1100.

Annubis- you are right that the 4003 is different that the 4001. 4003s have a single truss rod and a one piece neck. 4001s have a double trussrod and a multi- ply neck. The 4001 was supposed to be strung with flat wound strings only, otherwise the warranty is voided. this was and is routinely violated and Rotosound strings will exert enough stress to pop the fingerboard off of a 4001.

The 4001 also gave you the stereo option or Rick-O -Sound, which means that you can use a stereo cord and split the output of the pickups across two amps.


Huh, I thought you could direct order. I know you could at least a few years ago, they might have changed that though.

And the 4003 also has the mono and stereo outputs. And yeah, I've heard there were a lot of issues with the trussrods on 4001s. I think the double trussrod system was only during a certain period of 4001's durring the 70's to account for the common use of roundwound strings, though they were problematic throughout the 4001 line. I really think the current line of 4003's are the best rick basses ever made.

I have to agree with you at some level that the Jazz is a more versatile bass than the rick, and a hell of a lot cheaper for what you get. But if you're willing to spend the extra money and really love the rick tone, it's hard to argue against it.


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Posted: Thu Oct 08, 2009 5:55 pm
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I just checked with my friend who's a rick guy, and he told me that the 4003's actually have a double trussrod, and that most 4001's have a single trussrod, but near the end of production they had an experimental double trussrod that sucked.


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Posted: Mon Oct 12, 2009 11:21 am
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anubis16 wrote:
I just checked with my friend who's a rick guy, and he told me that the 4003's actually have a double trussrod, and that most 4001's have a single trussrod, but near the end of production they had an experimental double trussrod that sucked.


I think your friend has that information reversed. The last time I checked, 4003s have a single truss rod, which allows them to be strung with roundwound bass strings and maintain their warranty. If they have started putting double truss rods in 4003s , then I think they would have to limit the use of round wound bass strings. I could be wrong though. I haven't bought a Rickenbacker since the 80's.

All 4001s have a double truss rod system which some people say sucks because it does not allow the bass to use roundwound strings under warranty. The neck has too much wood removed for the double truss rods. Now many players , me included, use roundwounds on their 4001s. I just don't use Rotosound bass strings because they will cause the fingerboard to pop off at the first fret!

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