Rickenbacker 4003 Bass

You know the features by now. I like the mechanical mute- some don't. Just preference, but it will get in the way of palm muting. The two trussrods are cool, and useful for taking care of crazy warping if that happens. I really like the Rick-O-Sound, a cool feature for sure.

VERY deep. If people tell you it's not deep, they are crazy. The thing thumps, even with roundwounds. Do yourself a favor and turn on the mechanical bridge mute, and play with your fingers at the base of the neck. Sounds like an upright, will shake the house down, in a good way. Nothing sounds like it, and damn does it sound fine.

Okay, here's where things get dicey. Rickenbacker, as a company, is coming to a turning point in their status. Right now, they are coasting on a good reputation, that 'all ricks are the same quality- good'. This DOES NOT APPLY today. If you buy a rick bass sight unseen, it will have flaws, I guarantee it. If not, you are very lucky. Problems usually in the form of warped necks, poorly cut nuts, bad finish (more on that) or sloppy wiring.

Their problem is that they are backlogged for many many months with orders, and can't make them fast enough, and so they are hacking them out. People are now getting defective Ricks, and I guarantee in a few years the number of people who play them will decrease a lot. Many people collect them because they look pretty- these people are jackasses. It's a christing instrument, play it. Anyway, their reputation is going downhill a bit, so something will happen with them...


Onto my problems.

They recently changed their midnight blue to a different formula, a much darker, sexier color. Unfortunately, this color is defective and everybody with a midnight blue rick from the past few years (2004-2005 as far as I can tell) will notice the color bleeding into their binding, and possible other flaws that come out with playing. Some bindings turn REALLY blue with this. ONLY BLUE IS AFFECTED though, so if you buy fireglo you're fine. They very recently changed their formula back to the old style, but people are pissed. I'm pissed. On the rickenbacker.com forums there were a large number of complaints about this problem, from twenty or so different midnight blue owners. This post got deleted by the powers that be, so you can't see how many people are angry about this. What a crock of $%^&.

I have an odd electronic problem (must be a bad ground) where sometimes the three way switch starts fuzzing out, especially when I touch it. I guarantee this is ground, and I hope to fix it, but it's pretty bad sometimes.

My neck is fine, thankfully. I have taken it out in some cold weather and it has remained straight as an arrow.

Anyway, they try to run this company like there's no demand and they are a boutique manufacturer like Alembic. There is a high demand for Ricks and they are being stupid. Not to mention those stupid features like a clearcoated neck, bridge pickup cover, and a mechanical mute (I like it, but I'm the only one, and I could live without it). Evolve, that's what I say.

Like I said above, it's all up to the winds... some get a good one, some get a dud. It's built like your obese aunt, but if the neck is screwed up, it matters not.

Like I said above, the finish suffers in some cases. Sometimes with a bad neck people have to adjust the trussrod all the time. I don't, thank god. I would gig it without a backup, but that's only because I'm poor.

Sucks ass. I haven't had problems, but I am in the minority and I know this. They have very few people handling complaints and too many complaints to handle. If you get them on a bad day, they will, in so many words, tell you to pound sand. They run this damn company like it's the fifties. They are so stupid with this tradition $%^&! You can't handmake basses the way you did forty years ago with so much demand for them, not gonna work, and the times are a-changin.

Good bass, if you get a good one. I have an OLP POS Stingray knockoff that's actually more fun to play. The rickenbacker is clunky and awkward, but WHAT A SOUND. If you are serious about recording a good bass sound, look no further, this thing sounds freakin great. For slap it sucks, but slap sucks. The finish on the Ricks neck looks really good but plays like ass@^&%. Sticky and very pointless. Not a players bass, it's a showroom bass. But again, the sound... it's all worth it because of the damn sound.

My Rick 4003 is an early model--late 70s to early 80s, whenever they started phasing out the 4001 and switched to the 4003 for use with roundwound strings. I haven't checked the serial number for the exact date of manufacture. I bought it used in 1984. The color of the bass is Ruby, a beautiful red that I wish Rickenbacker would bring back (maybe as one of their colors of the year?) Unlike current 4003s (and earlier 4001s), mine has a two-piece pickguard. I'm sure this feature makes working on the electronics slightly easier for a guitar tech. I'll bet a one-piece pickguard would fit, though, if you wanted it to look more "vintage" close up. It has all of the typical Rick setup as far as electronics and controls go. The small neck is great for me, since I have relatively small hands. The only features that I've modified in any way are the volume and tone controls. I bought four of the vintage knobs like the ones on the 4001v63 took make it look a little older than it is. The binding is mellowing to a nice ivory shade. It's hard to believe that I've owned this bass for over twenty years!

I love the sound of a Rick bass with Rotosounds on it. To me it's just THE perfect bass sound. I've been really lucky with this bass. It has such a great tone, either live or recorded. I feel like one can coax many different sounds from a Rick bass. It's just a matter of experimenting with the pickup selector and tone and volume settings. I know many people feel that the Rick bass has only one sound, but I disagree. I'm able to get anything from a classic Chris Squire sound--with emphasis on the bridge pickup--to a full James Jamerson sound with the neck pickup selected, and the tone control turned down about 2/3 of the way. My favorite setting, though, is with both pickups selected and volume and tone all the way up. To me, that gives a great early Mike Mills (R.E.M.) sound. This bass has sounded fantastic through every bass amp I've ever played through! The best it sounded was through an old Vox Super Beatle amp. Unreal!

Since I bought the bass used, I can't really address factory finish/setup questions. Unfortunately, whoever owned the bass before me wore a hole in the finish of the back with a belt buckle. It's about the size of a fifty-cent piece (remember those?). The action has always been great, and apart for the buckle wear on the back, there aren't any other problems with the finish anywhere. Ruby is a gorgeous color for Rickenbackers. Personally, I feel that Rickenbacker comes up with great red-based guitar finishes. Fireglo and Burgundyglo are just classic guitar colors! I have to give the finish a rating of 6 simply because of the worn finish in the back. Like I said, the rest of the bass looks great. If I ever get a sudden windfall, I'd love to send the bass back to Rickenbacker to see if they can somehow repair or refininsh the back. Luckily, it isn't visible from the front.

This bass has been absolutely outstanding in the twenty years I've owned it. Usually, the only upkeep it requires is changing the strings when they start to sound dead. The only repair I've ever had on the bass came about two years ago. The wiring for the pickups had either come loose or the solder was beginning to crack and it was buzzing, so I took it to Neil Sargent in Houston (the only guy who should touch guitars in Houston, I feel!) and he had it repaired in about two days. Absolutely no problems since then. The neck has always been perfect, as has the intonation.

Well, we ARE talking about Rickenbacker here! Since it's a used bass, I never have dealt with them regarding the bass. However, I have dealt with them and my Jetglo Rickenbacker Model 1997. (I did write about my experience--see Harmony Central for Rick Model 1997 guitars). They're just awful! I know they're a small, family-owned business, but come on! Also, while I'm on the subject, why not a Rick Custom Shop? Even Martin (another small, family-owned guitar maker) has one.

I've been playing bass for about twenty-five years now. I owned a couple of Rick 4001s before I came across this 4003. It's just a classic bass in my opinion. I can't get enough of the sound and feel of a Rick bass! If I were to change anything about it, I might switch out the neck pickup for a vintage "toaster top" Rick bass pickup. There's a wonderful Rick dealership here in Houston called Southpaw Guitars, and they order all of their Ricks--guitars and basses--with vintage Rick pickups. They sound absolutely fantastic. This bass looks exactly like the one Bruce Foxton is playing on the back of the Jam's album called "This is the Modern World," if you've ever seen the record cover. It's a large reason that I decided to buy the bass in the first place.

This bass features 2 volume controls, one for bass and one for treble, and 2 tone controls, again one for bass and one for treble. There is also a pickup selector for switching between the bridge pickup, the neck pickup or having both on. The finish is a beautiful Midnight Blue and has not shown any wear since I got it. Standard 20 frets and tuners. The neck is different than anything I have played before. If looks beffy and does feel a little bit on the bigger side but playing it is easy and fast. I don't really get it but it works. You should deffinitally try it out before you buy it to get a feeling for it. The pickups sound great, really meaty and loud but quiet and give me a great range of sound. I like to be able to have options over my sound from my bass but don't like to use batteries so the 4 tone controls and pick-up selector is a big plus for me, not too much but still has options. This is a passive bass though and wont give you a huge range of sounds that you can use but I feel that a decent amp and this guitar will give you a few great sounds that are well worth it.

I mostly play alternative rock and jazz and this bass is very good for both of these. This may just be my opinion so you dont have to agree but the clear but heart stopping noise that comes out of both pickups on is really amazing. The highs are crystal clear but the lows are always there. *note-I use mostly roundwound rotosounds and sometimes flatwound rotosounds to get my sound. This sound seems to fit my style of finger playing very well because it doesn't just all sink into that muddy sound that I used to get with my P-Bass. Of course turning the tone down to half on the treble side and maybe to 3/4ths on the bass side will give you a nice thump that is great for jazzy tunes or just mellow sounds. This doesn't make you quieter though, the pick-ups pump out a lot of sound. It sounds about 2 full times louder than my P-Bass. The only thing that I might tell you to watch out for is if you use very brigh roundwounds such as DR Highbeams, GHS Boomers or Ernie Ball strings. You might get a little bit more high end than you might like but besides that the bass seems like it can take any string you could put on it.

When my bass arrived at Sam Ash I went out immedietally, picked it up and played it at the store. The bass came complete with locking case, finish warrenty, truss rod wrench and a large yellow polishing cloth. I inspected the finish and hardware and everything seemed in order. I have heard some nasty horror stories about rickenbackers but have also heard some great ones to so I wasent sure what to expect but I was happy to notice that all of the parts were in place, the finish was flawless[I don't mean it was good, I mean there wasen't even a fingerprint on it!] and it had even come with packaging materials inside the case from when it was shipped to prevent any movement damage at all. Big plus for that one Rickenbacker. The action on the bass was just a tad below medium I would say but what factory bass comes with a 100% amazing action anyways? I normally play with my action a little higher to get a better sound but it sounded AMAZING just the way it was so I only turned the action up a slight bit. There was no fret buzz when I dug in either so that was also a big plus. The frets felt smooth on the sides of the neck, I could see that they were shaped to fit the neck smoothly so they would not nick up your hand. Overall the craftsman ship on this bass is A+ and if I had the money I would certainly get another one without thinking.

So far I have had this bass for one month and I have just made sure to wipe it down after every use and put it back in the case. The finish is still just as clear as the day I got it and no nicks or marks are in the finish either. I feel that if I continue to take good care of it that the finish will certainly stand up to what it might go through. I can't say for sure though because it has only been a month so I will update this review in a few months to keep everyone in the know about how it is going. The hardware feels strong and I see no flaws in any of it at all. But again, we will have to wait and see.

The finish has a one year warrenty and I got a deal through Sam Ash for regular set-up/check ups just to make sure everything is going fine. The tech there is very helpful and seems to know what he is doing. As for the customer support I have never had a problem so I can't comment.

I have been playing for two full years and I know I am just really getting into bass I love it to death and would never sell it. It sounds amazing and looks just as great. If you have any questions about anything related to this bass I would be very happy to E-Mail you back.
Rock on everyone!!!

2002 Fireglo - same specs as others here

Great live or recorded (watch out for that single coil hum!). I use the Ric bass with Fender stainless steel flatwounds (45-105?)in an alt original band with retro vibe, and this bass suits the music perfectly. Everything from trash punk, psychedelia, retro rock, to mellow singer-songwriter stuff. It's flexibility lies in it's two pickups, 3-way switch, and adjustable tone and volume knobs for each p/u. A lot more low-end than you might expect. It's fundamental tone is very smooth and punchy like McCartney's Sgt. Pepper era stuff. It will, however, growl like a mad dog depending on which p/u and tone settings I use. Don't expect a Ric to sound like anything but a Ric though. If you like classic Ric tone, you won't be disappointed. Personally I love it.

Perfect, beautiful finish and tight, solid hardware. After changing the suck-butt original factory roundwounds with flatwounds, I had to adjust the dual trussrod system (quite easy) and the intonation (not very easy). Also, the nut was cut a bit too high from the factory! - - I had to break out my little round tapered file to cut the nut right. That's OK too, since I always do my own setups. If you are unsure about doing a setup, it would pay to have a tech do it (20-40 bucks) since you will end up with an awesome playing bass - - like mine! Some would deduct points for a bass setup not being great from the factory. I won't do this -- I only deduct points if I can't set one up to where I like it.

No horror stories here to be told about warped necks and such.

Hope to never have to use the warranty! I don't even know if my warranty registration card even made it to the Ric factory on time... (10 days from the date of sale??!!) Hell, it may take you a week to get your bass if you buy it online! They could join us here in the 21st century and allow you to register online...

I've been playing 18 years pro and semi-pro. I love everything about this bass.

Its a 2003 fretted in Fireglo. I had an old 70's 4003 but sold it (darn) Needed a new one once I began to long for it again. Standard controls w/ treble p/u cover, 3-way toggle and standard issue factory specs. Tuners rule! Ive played dozens of basses (including Fender, Warwick, Ibanez, hagstrom!) and this is thing stays in tune more consistently than any of em'. Not many frills but who needs em'. Ive come to realize that these classic basses (like the Jazz, P-Bass, Music Man, etc.) really have all you need sound, feature wise (for 4-strings anyway). If you want a new piece of furniture buy yourself a $5000 Fodera or the like.

I play in small-medium clubs, everything from Classic Rock, Dead, Country, Bluegrass, to Sabbath riffage and punk and the occasional slap solo foray. The RIck kills for everything save for slap. And this is only due to the lack of a comfy position to whack. This thing just has balls! Compared to my old Warwick (which sounded positively wimpy and non-distinct) the Rick cuts like crazy. I play w/ two loud dueling guitars and I have no trouble cutting through the mix. Its highs and mids are pronounced but the lows still thump. And you can really get a wide range of tones by messing w/ the controls (or use a good preamp). Try flatwounds and ease of the treble for a great Upright impersonation. Overall a totally unique and distinct sounding instument.

Super low action out of the box, but free of bzzzz. Beautiful craftmanship, really unlike anything else. All maple, neckthrough design = heavy! Doesnt bother me. This is a bass not a ukelele. Thick binding and high-gloss rosewood board actually plays more like maple. Frets are well dressed and even. Beautiful maple grain under trans-finish throughout bass.

So far so good. No problems. Seems to be a timetested tank like design. Maple is hard as hell so it should hold up under climate fluctuations.

n/a

A dude/chick just looks cool playing a Rick. You just dont see many of em' and you'll be sure to get a hell-yeah from some of the old-timers in the crowd. It does have a distinctive sound and playing style. It must be tested first to see if its right for you. After playing one for a bit (especially live)I belive you'll find other basses to be a bit vanilla in comparison.

mine is a 2005 in the 5004 limited edition color Montezuma Brown.
with the other reviews the features are already posted here

This is the best sounding bass I have. It compliments my collection well. Sounds like nothing else but a Ric

Perfectly setup from the factory and the intonation was perfect all the way up the neck

It is a Ric 'nuff said

Had some questions about a few features on it and got a responce within minutes from the comapny when I emailed them.

I've been playin about 5 years steady now had played for about 3 or 4 years then stopped for about 5 and took it back up about 5 years ago. I also own a Dean Rhapsody 12 string bass, a Dean Edge 5 string, and a "P" bass that I parted togeather. a wide range of bass sounds and I love that fact.

Classic Geddy spec 4003 bass in jet glo. It's my 4th rickenbacker as I also own a 4001/v63, a 4003/s5 and a 360v64/12 string, all factories lefties. This guitar is as well made as all my other rics, the finish is faltless and near custom order quality.

Hardware is also well finished and more robust than on my Fenders, nice blue tint chrome with no blemishes and bomb proof frets.

I read in some of the earlier reviews that the 4003 does not have the sound of a Tobais or Spector, If you are out shopping for a Mishubishi evo would you buy a Morgan??, no so don't compare a classic passive sounding bass to a modern active one.

The sounds that are available are fantastic with crisp piano like definition and a real low end bark, granded like any guitar it will take a few years playing to reach it's full potential and I would change the strings to rotosound nickle swingbass 66's as the help to tame the sometimes over excitable top end harmonics. Honestly these basses mature like fine wine, my 4003/s5 is 10 years old and sounds awsome!!

Said it earlier, nothing comes close for the price (except fender japan perhaps?). Let me re-phrase that, nothing built in the states buy a "classic" guitar builder comes close for the price haha!!

This is wear the guitar lets me down a little, they are very fragile instruments and I have to get the Rics set up more often than my Fenders.

The oil based finish on the necks also seem to get very sticky in hot weather, more so than cellulose Fenders and Gibsons I find.

I am based in the UK and ordered the guitar through the excellent Rics R us so no probs there, Although I have never dealt with the company I have heard some pretty bad things about customer service.

I have been playing for over 10 years and own about 14 intstruments, I always seem to be on the look out for Rics over Gibsons,Fenders and Gretsches etc as they have a look sound and build quality that puts them a cut above the rest.They are also one of the few companies out there that cater for us south paws without the stupid price hikes.

4003 + Svt = RNR

96' fireglo, made in the USA. Standard features for 4003 rics (check the website at www.rickenbacker.com).

Lost of tonal control for a passive bass!

I play mostly fingerstyle alternative rock and this bass can really cut through the mix with our two guitarists even though I play fingerstyle (I prefer to have all tone and volume knobs on full with both pickups running).

I was a j-bass kinda guy but I instantly fell in love with the look, (and especially) feel and sound of this bass. Breathtaking in every way. Different from the traditional fender sounds I was used to... but breathtaking.

I originally was looking for jetglo or mapleglo finish... but when I saw the fireglo in the flesh I was stunned. The finish, binding, neck and general construction is flawless.

Easilly the most beautiful bass I have ever laid eyes on. Everyone who sees it compliments it's looks... and people are always drooling over it whenever I bring it to any of the local music stores.

thinner body than my fender basses... but a very solid bass. Due to it's stunning finish and general knockout looks I find that I baby and protect this bass more than I do any of my other basses.

n/a

I think I would sell my first child before I would sell this bass. If I lost it I would cry... a lot... and then buy another.

I love the feel of the neck... it has killer looks, and a one of a kind sound that really cuts through. I am playing this bass a lot right now... for the longest time I was a 100% fender jazz bass guy (any bass that I would try out never matched my fender in sound or feel), but once I played the ric, it was love at first sight. Now my fender is my #2.

Standard Rickenbacker 4003 Fireglow bass made in 2003
It's an all-maple neck-through design (with rosewood fingerboard).
She's long scale, got two stock Rickenbacker single-coil high gain pickups,
Also got some obsolete features like Rick-o-Sound and the mechanical
mute. She's got a pickup gauard over the treble pickup. Most players
take this baby off as soon as they get the bass (myself included) but
I've heard there are some (pick players mostly) who prefer it on.

All in all quite a few features - maybe a few too many, actually.

It's neck-through so it's got lots of sustain and not too much punchiness.
I wouldn't use it for slapping but you can if you really want to. It suits
my style well - I'm more of a melodic player and I play anything from hard rock to heavy metal to blues to jazz to R&B to whatever the hell.
VERY versatile bass - it's got great highs and big boomy lows (it's bassy as hell), though not that much mid.
It's a got a rich, full, woody, growly sound. The high-gains are beautiful pickups and I love their sound,
though they can be noisy (they are single coil). It's a bit of a trade-off I suppose - you can always use a noise gate if you're stuck. I normally play it with the treble pickup turned all the way up and the bass pickup volume turned down about one-quarter.

It was set up well when I bought it, though I changed to flatwounds so
I had to set it up myself again. Note that many stores set the action
too high for some reason which might turn off potential buyers.
I noticed no flaws on the bass.

Good, reliable, solid bass - it'll last forever. The finish seems a little
delicate, though - try not to scratch it - not that I don't think it's durable - it's just so damn beautiful I don't want to risk anyone or anything sharp coming anywhere near it. For myself I only bring it
to gigs with a decent-sized stage. If someone scratched my baby I'd
have to kill them and I don't want to go to prison.
The strap buttons are a little small though I've never had a major problem - I try and keep one hand on the bass at all times but if you like to run around a lot you might want to consider replacing them.
I like to adjust the truss rods on all my basses (or at least check up on them) twice a year - once in spring and once in fall. This baby has a dual-rod system and only needs minor adjustments once in a while.

Never had to deal with Rickenbacker directly, but there is an online
forum of Rick users (very knowledgeable guys) that's frequented by
the owner of the company himself so most questions you have can get
answered by going there. I hear that customer service - in the
traditional sense - can be slow, though (keep in mind this is not a huge multinational company like Fender)

I've been playing for nigh 20 years - my other bass is a MIM Fender P.
They both have their advantages but for most things the Rick is the better bass. I just love it and I wish I had the money to buy five more. I only give a 9 rating because 10 means perfection and nothing, not even a Rick is perfect.

made in USA where else, (2002) came with case which was lined like a coffin, very good, but can't fit it in boot (trunk) of car

Unusual colour of deep blue

usual features

sounds top notch, great for rock, really booms out & cuts through, however tends to be a bit clicky if played to far up the neck, but hey it still sounds great.
Very user friendly for pop and slap,
Really turns heads when played through twin harkie 100w heads!!!
sounds great when using boss processor

action set up at factory
pickups set if it aint bust don't fix it

what can I say will it play live well, is the pope catolic??

just like a VW very reliable

always have a back up just in case a string snaps but that can be any chunkerar!!

not had any trouble with support left handed was not a problem

top totty

What more can you ask for in a passive style bass? There's 2 pickups, 2 Volumes, Two tones, and a whole lot of useful sounds. Anything else would compromise the incredible sound of this bass.

I play straight up rock, from The Who to Yes to Rush and Genesis. This bass is great for that. It cuts through a mix, has plenty of bottom end and near endless sustain. I expected this of course. What I didn't expect was for a friend of mine, who's into Marcus Miller, to start slappin' and poppin' some jazz stuff and have it sound so completely right! It was amazing. He does have a very light touch, which is needed to get a good clean atttack out of the pickups when employing such a style, but the pickups compress nicely and produce a fine musical attack even when my less skilled hands do the Entwistle thing.

There is also a myth that a Rickenbacker is a one trick pony. Not true. Try a couple of these settings.

Full on bridge pickup is a nice sharp attack great for rock, metal, and punk.

The neck solo'd is great for a more vintage vibe. I use it to capture an old school motown sort of tone.

Both pickups full on produces a great rhythm sound. Very full and dense.

Both pickups, bass pickup tone rolled off, with slight roll off on treble volume knob gives you a full 4001'esque tone that has a lot of uses.

Try some other settings as well. You won't be disappointed. There are any number of great, musical tones. There's nothing I dislike about the sound of this bass.

The finish was beautiful. The binding, controls, tuners and frets are all high quality and well worth every penny. What brings this down to an 8 is the stock nickel strings, which I don't think have the right sound, and the fact thhat the nut slot for the D is a little narrow. Nothing major, and I would definitely recommend this bass to anyone.

Even though it's light and wear's nicely this bass has every indication that it'll last a lot longer than me. It's put together with a solidity that my Fender, Yamaha, and Carlo Robelli can only dream of.

The warranty is 5 years from manufacture, which is pretty good. I've heard that Rickenbacker themselves are hard to deal with, but Mike Parks at www.ricpage.com is the best. He's the only man you should consider buying a new Rick from. Not only does he give you a great price, but he backs it up with impeccible service.

Where else can you get a quality American made, neck through instrument with such a great sound and reputation for under $1000? Not Fender. Not anyone. I am a huge John Entwistle and Geddy Lee fan. I like a bass with a bright attack and was going to get a Geddy Lee model Fender Jazz. But that bass is $700. Add the case (Rickenbacker's all come with cases) and the total comes to $800 to $850. That's for a japanese instrument. I think the extra $100 is more than worth it to support American craftsmanship.

2004, factory standard.
Fireglo finish.
Hardshell case.

The perfect bass guitar. It'll go anywhere from deep pulsing sounds, to punchy punk rock, to a full piano-like ring. There's no sound that I haven't been able to achieve with this bass. The output is super hot, and I've found that I usually have to run it through something to take it down a notch before hitting effects or an amp. For recording, I usually go direct into a tube preamp and straight into my audio interface. Sounds unbelievable DI'ed. I just can't say enough good things about the sound of this bass.

The factory setup is the best of any instrument I've owned, from Gibson to Fender and everything in between. You can feel that this instrument is hand made, it's as if every detail was tuned for this particular bass. The action and intonation came preset exactly how I would want it to be -- Perfect. The finish is deep and the trim/accessories are perfectly integrated. It's also well balanced, as far as weight is concerned (if you let go of the bass, it stays put and doesn't start creeping up).

It's a brick, what can I say? I'll be playing this for the next 30 years.

Haven't had to deal with Rickenbacker.

I would buy this bass again and again. I was worried ordering this mail order, as I hadn't played a Rick in a while and was just going on memory from that initial "wow, I want one!" factor. I'm so emmensely pleased with this instrument.

rickenbacker 4003 bass, born in 2004. all maple neck-thru, two hi-gain (passive) ric pickups, 2 volume & 2 tone controls. mono and ric-o-sound (stereo) output. dual truss rods. straplocks come standard, and it comes with a sweet case.

the electronics are passive, not active, so there's no fancy-pants musicman stingray active eq, nor do you have to worry about replacing batteries (i'm retarded enough that i can barely handle changing the battery in my TU-2)

what should a bass feature? it's a bass. its job is to play low notes. my 4003 does that quite well. the ric-o-sound thing could be really cool, but i haven't had an opportunity to use it yet. i'm going to give it an 8, but if you consider "being totally awesome" to be the most important feature of a bass, then you should give it a 10.

my musical style is rock music. my band sounds like this band: www.israeliwarplane.com. that's because it is my band. so, the 4003 sounds great for our type of music, but probably so would any other bass that isn't a complete piece of garbage. actually, the bass i used before i got my ric was a mexican p-bass that my friend's dad picked out of the trash, only worked when the volume was on "10", and the nut was slid to the treble side almost 1/8". it sounded pretty good for what we were doing.

right, so just about any bass would work for us, but the 4003 works really, really well. i'm deeply in love with the neck pickup, and always play neck or neck & bridge, rarely bridge only. i play through an svt 3 pro, and sometimes have dreams of buying a second 3pro, racking them, getting an 810 and wiring it in stereo, and playing through the ric-o-sound. that could be amazing, but there are probably other more amazing sounds i could get if i ever got the money.

i'm going to give it a 9, because i guess it's not "versatile". if not a loser and you want something that sounds like a balls to the wall bass, though, then you should give it a 10.

the bass was set-up quite well at sam ash. i went all wayne's world and went in like twice a week for two months to play it until i could justify parting with the the wad of fifties so big my wallet wouldn't close. i've had it for about six months now, and as far as i can tell, it's totally flawless. as an aside, i just got a tiny dent in it, looks like a cable end hit it. as it accrues more battle damage, i will get less upset, but for now, i'm deeply depressed.

perhaps the best thing about the 4003 is that it's the prettiest bass you will ever play. mine has a jet glo finish, and, honestly, it's the only instrument that i've ever played that i would consider a work of art. that said, it doesn't matter how it looks if it plays like crap. fortunately, it's also the best-playing bass i've ever played. i've only ever played three basses extensively (ones that i've owned, or borrowed for an extended period of time) but i've played a lot in stores. stingrays are nice. i played a thunderbird that was okay. fender p's and j's are okay, but i wouldn't spend a grand on them. to me, the ric just played better. the fact that it's a pretty stunning beauty is just icing. oh - and i really love the fact that it's a neck-thru, as it's ridiculously easy to play "way up high on the tiny strings", if i ever need to.

this bass has withstood live playing, and it'd god damn better continue to withstand live playing, because i'm not getting a new one. the rickenbacker warranty is five years FROM DATE OF MANUFACTURE, not date of sale, which is kind of a big deal. the fact that it's a neck-thru can be a bit of a double-edged sword, i guess, since if the neck on a j or p got screwed up, you could just replace it and still have the body, electronics, and color you liked, whereas on the 4003 you're just screwed. still, i haven't had any problems with it, and i can't forsee anything going wrong with it. i give it a ten, because i can't see how someone could ask any more of it.

haven't dealt with them, hopefully will never have to.

i've been playing for almost 3 years, never had a lesson. just picked everything up by playing in bands - there are worse ways to do it, i think. that said, i'm far from the most experienced player, so maybe you should disregard everything i say.

i play the 4003 through an svt 3 pro and an avatar 2x10. it sounds good, and it'd sound even better if i had a 4x10, but my biggest concern is playing shows, and hauling a 2x10 around is much easier (and not impossible, as a 4x10 would probably be in some situations). the point being, i'm leaving some of this bass's potential untapped, which is a shame for now, but will be awesome later when i'm in a position where i can best complement it with an appropriate amp/cab/van.

what this entire review boils down to: i'm not the most experienced bassist in the world. i even cringe to call myself a 'bassist', though i play in bands that make good, original music and play shows, for people, not in my house. but this is how i feel: lots of basses sound good, but if i play anything else, it feels like i'm playing bass. have you ever seen return of the jedi? when i play my ric, i feel like emperor palpatine, firing lightning bolts out of my finger tips. i'm not even kidding. it's that awesome.

so, if you play rock music and are looking for an awesome bass, check out the 4003. if you are "G.A.S.ing" for one, and have never played one, don't buy one. it is not a warwick six string with active pickups, so if that's what you like in a bass, don't buy one. not to step on anybody's toes, but those are for wankers. 4003s are for rockers.

if you're looking for a great value, can spend around a thousand dollars, and don't need a bass that can make you dinner, check out a ric. but, please, play one first. they're kind of hard to find in stores - i know, i wanted to try another one out to compare but nowhere i called in nyc or on long island had a 4003. i finally gave up and just bought mine; couple months later, sam ash got another in. i played it, to see if it was any better or worse than mine, and it was exactly the same.

so, there it is. the rickenbacker 4003 is the finest bass i have ever laid eyes on, and hopefully will be the last bass i ever buy. if you also want to feel like you're shooting lightning bolts from your finger tips, then you should look into getting one.

2003, USA. Fire Glo. 20 frets w/ triangle-like pearloid fretmarkers. 33 1/4" scale.

Individual bass/treble volume/tone knobs (4 total).

2 single coil pickups. Has standard/rick-o-sound stereo output. Nifty indeed, the difference is interesting.

Maple neck/body. Body shines like a new car. The actual fretboard shines, too. Elegant/powerful looks.

Neck is a little fat, took some time to get used to. Will quickly improve the left hand motor skills if you play consistantly for a week or two.

Came with a hardshell flight case. After a while, mine wouldn't close right.

In short - it sounds as amazing as it looks.

If you have a decent amplifier, this bass can easily become the focus of any performance. Between this and a Fender Jazz, I think most people prefer this sound.

It can be amazingly bad-ass if you want it to be.

The sound is very rich/full. It establishes it's freaking presence. Everything you play is full and distinguishable.

The "10" rating is really not an exaggeration. It's incredible.

The action was a little higher than I was used to, the strings were a little thick, but I just kept playing and improving my game.

I'm going to bring it in for a pick-up checkup, just because I think my neck pickup is offset a little. I'm not sure. It's entirely negligable.

Other than that, the damn thing's a gem.

I like to envision this bass as a huge battle-axe when I play live. In the middle of battle, you know? It stands out, people fear it. It's powerful. I dunno.

I banged it up a good deal without it detuning. Never had any input trouble. I trust the tuning pegs more than I trust and other guitar or bass peg I've ever fiddled with.

This is the only bass you'll ever need. Just don't drop it off of a building or anything. Although I'm sure it would probably still work.

Finish will get dinged up a little if you're not careful, though. Negligable.

I've been playing for half a decade. I play it through an SWR 350x head, which I don't like, and Aguilar GS112, and an SWR Big Ben. I don't feel that my equipment is good enough for the 4003, but it contends well against my friend's amazing Marshall stack and his Hot Rod. At the same time.

If it were stolen, I'd get a job and save up for another one. Get this straight: I HATE spending my money. But I would for another one of these. I think it's the most worthwhile expense I've ever paid for.

When I was deciding, it was between this and a GOOD Fender Jazz. I just realized that I'd be saying "what if?" if I didn't get the Rickenbacker. For god's sake, it's a damn Rickenbacker. Can't deny it.

Mine was made in 2003, in jetglo. All else is previously covered.

Sound is fantastic. It is hard-edged and aggressive. It truly does ring with the clarity of a piano. The brightness and clarity of notes in the upper register are better than any other bass that I've ever heard. It sings in this area. Down low is very clear, too, with extreme definition of notes. Listen to Yes, Beatles' Sgt. Pepper era, Deep Purple, and this bass is nails these sounds. No bass can sound like a Ric; only a Ric can! It is not an extremely versatile bass, but it the essence of Late-60's through 70's rock. Slightly noisy pickups at times, but I won't lower the rating, as this comes with the territory of owning a Ric. Factory strings are really nice roundwounds that compliment the aggressive sound of the bass. I've recently switched to TI flats to capture the McCartney sound, and it nails it.

Bass was superb in its setup. The action is really low. Pickup height was perfect. There is one flaw in the upper horn--it is a scratch in the wood, on the front face, underneath the paint. It appears that it wasn't sanded out during that process. It can be seen at an angle. Other than that, no flaws, whatsoever. Chrome is fantastic in its shine. The neck is thicker than a wider and thicker than a Jazz, feels about the same as a precision, but deeper. I prefer the necksize of the Jazz & Precision, but in little time you get used to the thicker neck of the Ric. Thickness is due to the fact of having two trussrods, which means the neck will stay basically stable for the life of the instrument.

Very dependable. Slightly noisy, especially when cord is bumped or moved in the jack. Built to the ultimate standards, heavy duty bridge, straplocks are there to stay, etc. Mine is 1 year old and I've changed strings, and have yet to adjust the truss rod. Very stable neck. Would surely gig without a backup---no problem. Ric case,I will note, is the nicest I've seen. As durable as a MusicMan case, but have the best latches of any brand, bar none, and each of 4 latches lock! Blows away Fender cases, and the latches put them ahead of MusicMan.

Talked to Ric one time to ask a couple questions, and were very nice and helpful. I've heard stories to the contrary, but they were great with me.

One of the classiest basses you'll ever see, and has the most distinctive sound of any bass ever made. The body has the beauty and lines reminiscent of a classic late 50's car. It is the one bass that truly is a work of art to look at, and the sound is up to the task of matching the beauty of the body. Build quality, fantastic. Hardware, about the best. Looks and sound, nothing else like them. I couldn't be happier. Great bass.

Single-coil pickups, like old school basses can a bit noisy, but small price to pay for the tunderous sound. Conrolls for bass and treble volume and tone, 3-position pickup switch. The stereo "Rick-o-sound" feature is I think is outdated, but who cares I dont use it anyway. I personaly like passive electronics versus active, so I wont be bashing it for that reason

Nothing sounds like a Rick, lots of different tones that can be had. Thunderous, growly punchy GREAT!!! I play through an Ampeg B2-R half stack sounds amazing for they music I play (old school style metal and hard rock) suits that job exactly but could be used for almost anything

Very well made (I would expect that from a expensive US made insrument) Fireglo finish flawless

Rickenbackers are very durable. They dont feel as solid as say a fender precision, but as long as you dont run over one with a bus or throw if off the stage every night into a table they will last forever.

I have had to deal with Rickenbacker just once on another Bass. They are finnicky on what they will fix and tend to be slow (its just the nature of their business I guess) They got it done but was not stellar.

I LOVE MY RICKENBACKER!!!! I owned one for a short time about 5 years ago but sold it as I jumped on the designer bass bandwagon with all the active elctronics and bells and whisles, boy was I sad. I dont ever intend on selling this bass, in fact I will wait the 6-8 months and order another in Jetglo. I also own a Fender USA presicion bass in orange transparent, love it too but the Rick is now top dog in my roost.

The same as always. It's an old vintage style bass, although it's late production.

It's an old vintage sound. The sound is more unique than actually being better. You can tell when a Rickenbacker is playing. Like old Jazz basses, the single coil pickups can be noisy. There are no active preamp options, so some modern styles are not served by this bass. This bass is good for doing old music that was recorded on it when P, J, T-Bird, and Rick basses were about the only game in town. A Warwick, Modulus, Tobias, Lakland, or Spector player will view it as a trip down memory lane, but not as a competitive instrument. For about $500, you can get Asian neck-thru basses such as the Schecter Stiletto that are more than competitive with laminated necks of different woods and active electronics for modern styles. They will not sound like a Rick, but they will not sound any worse and will be more versatile. You buy a Rick bass for its unique sound, not the greatest sound out there. In other words, a lot like a Fender Jazz bass in its vintage sound appeal. Since I like modern tone and low action like a Spector, and you can get one of their top Czech import instruments for around $1000, the Rick is now barely passing in my book. RIC has a couple of great new guitars on the market, but it's time for them to give us a modern bass with a strong neck and active electronics, or at least lower the price like they did on their new 650D guitar. They now have a professional entry level guitar that outclasses their basses, and so does the 380L semihollow guitar with piezo pickup option. Time for a bass upgrade, RIC!

The good part is that RIC finishes these things in varnish. The bad part is that you don't get a choice of tonewoods. There are two truss rods, and you need them to hold the slim neck in alignment. There are no neck reinforcements, and you know it when you find the dead frets that don't ring out like the rest. I think a bolt-on sounds better if you go with a wood neck without reinforcement. Other companies like Spector give a choice of bolt-on or neck-thru construction, but not RIC. Other basses can get a lower action and hold it more reliably over time due to graphite in the necks. A bolt-on USA or Czech Spector will ring as long or longer than a Rick, and not suffer the dead frets on the neck, due to the neck reinforcements. Rick can have styling points for being unique, but then again nobody else wants to look like them either, except the Asian copycat ripoffs that have tried. Rick basses balance well, but some others balance and feel better, like Spectors, Warwick Streamers, Peavey Cirrus, and Mike Tobias designs. A unique look and feel that is OK but has been surpassed by several manufacturers. Ricks are lighter than some, but give up rigidity in the neck to heavier basses. Intonation can be a bit of a bear to adjust. The bridge pickup cover usually gets removed. The dual truss rods are just more nuisance. My Stingray and Spector are just as stable or moreso with a single truss rod. The Fireglo finish looks good, but dated.

The varnish finish and hardware are very durable, but the neck may need more attention than a bass with a modern reinforced neck. It's not likely to outright break on you at a gig unless you dropped it hard. The passive pickups are reliable.

It all depends. They don't do out-of-warranty work. There are no regional repair centers. It all kind of sucks.

This is a backup and alternative bass for me. If I didn't have plenty of money for basses, I wouldn't own it. I prefer a Stingray to it, but I prefer a Spector to a Stingray. I will often rather play my old Jazz bass on some types of music. I haven't found a bass that rates a 10 yet, but my Spector rates a 9 any day and my Stingray an 8 on a good day with music it is suited to. The Jazz bass and 4003 are really the direct competitors and rather closely matched overall. I have a tube and solid state amp, and the 4003 works better on old tube amps, which is what it was designed for.

its a 2004 fireglo 4003. i prefer the passive electronics that it has to active. the single coil pickups can hum a bit if you face them toward your speaker cab and move in close, but the hum really goes away if you just dont do that! its got the classic ric bass crest wave shape which is pretty cool. the bridge saddle is awkward to adjust because the screws are located under the strings and are covered slightly by the metal tailpiece...you gotta look at one to understand what i mean. the tailpiece also includes a variable string mute that you can adjust by turning the two screw thingies clockwise. this must be used for stacatto because there is no place to rest your palm unless you get a new tailpiece. the dampener is great if youre a fan of james jamerson (motown) or the pet sounds bass playing, or if you just have a more melodic playing style. it comes from the factory with ric roundwounds.

ive tried this through my 1978 fender bassman and my solid stae fender bxr100. with the roundwounds that it came with, this bass gives the delicious growly, punchy tone that everyone wants and that i have no use for. the three way pickup selector gives you a lot of control over the sound you produce, but no matter how you set it it still sounds ric-like, in a good way. im not sure what kind of wacky extra-versatility options people want these days, but id rather have one thing done right than a bunch of ridiculous battery operated gimmicky tones. for live shows, obviously a tube amp will give you more punch than anything solid state. ive never had problems with getting drowned out by guitar or drums on this bass. the tone is probably better on record, but only because you can record quieter, clearer tones than you can live. i use rotosound flats and am happier with the bassier tone i have now.

very well assembled bass. made in usa. the neck is spectacular. the wood grain is good with a couple spots which are ok. the hardware is fine. its like...really shiny. i think its the perfect weight.

this bass is really reliable. the body is sturdy and the neck goes through the body so you dont need to worry about it falling off. the strap buttons work fine with any decent strap. the switch and knobs are very durable. its all sorta set up like an archtop electric guitar. the double truss rod neck makes it so you never really have to adjust it. i dont think its a good idea to gig without a backup ever just because of the string-break factor. i saw a guy playing bass at the gilman in berkeley and he broke a string and couldnt find a substitute so he started crying. it was funny. this bass is reliable though.

comes with a limited warranty. id rather not wait to send it away so if something bad happened i would go to a local place.

oh man if my ric were stolen i would cry like a little girl. i would get another one as a replacement. i usually have the string dampener pushed up right against the strings and play with a flatpick using the pickup cover as a handrest or pluck with one finger right on top of the end of the neck; i never play slap. the dampener is really the part i like the most i guess since its half the sound. the dampened finger pluck is like money, and you cant do it with your right hand alone on like a stingray or something. i guess id be happy with like a really old fender precision bass, the kind that had string dampeners and pickup covers. but other than that this is the way to go for that sound, since im not sure which other basses have that feature. it seems to freak most people out, at least on this review page. this is a great higher end bass and id rather have one of these than a beat up old 4001. i strongly recommend it.

classic 2 pickup 2 volume and 2 tone setup. very beautiful design ... a timeless classic look ... no modern preamps but those often lack warmth ... single coil pickups ... a couple of obsolete features like a mechanical mute and a stereo input ...

God I love the Ric sound ... those thunderous single coil pickups rule!!!

Ric Necks are the best ... they usually come from the factory with a high action setup ... but tweak the truss rods and bridge and you can get the action very low ... the finish on a Ric is a thing of beauty ... American made quality!

Rics are rock solid ... they hold up very well ... I have been playing various Ric models for 25 years ...

I have always bought used Rics and never dealt with customer support but I know others who had good success with them ...

I love rics ... I own several ... my favorite bass ... I converted this one into a five string ...

An old fashioned bass in fancy clothes. An upgrade of the 4001 model.

Yeah, it sounds good if you put it up against all those other basses that looked like they were designed when cars had tailfins, like the P-bass, J-bass, Thunderbird, Ripper, etc. In the 70's and 80's that all changed when companies like Alembic, Spector, Steinberger, Status, Warwick, Music Man, Tobias, and others started advancing bass technology and these old dinosaurs stayed behind. There is no active boost or cut, and that definitely hinders tone versatility.

Rickenbacker owners rave about the finish, but they are usually comparing it to an old Fender or Gibson bass, cheap imports, etc. It's good for what has happened to American craftsmanship lately. I have a cheap Chinese bass with a finish that looks about as good. It balances better than a Thunderbird, but there are cheap imports that beat it in the ergonomics department as well. It's a vintage design that's past it's prime. Most owners take off that dorky bridge pickup cover, and are left with a pickup with a big gap around it in the body. The body design is more weird than beautiful.

Rickenbacker basses have a durable finish that lasts a long time. The problem is the neck, and since it's neck-thru design, that's a major concern. I call it "Old Rubberneck" because of the thin and non-reinforced design. Going to dual truss rods helped out with the neck bow problems, but if you are used to bass necks that are reinforced for stiffness, this neck will have pronounced dead spots just like Jazz basses and other such all-wood neck designs from bassdom's vintage years. This is a good bass if you are into vintage feel and tone, but if you prefer the modern feel and durability like a Status Graphite bass and such, this will not suffice. Just remember that people like John Entwistle dumped basses like this as soon as better designs such as Alembics showed up in the 70's.

Depends on what guy you get on the other end and the mood of the day.

I just coundn't get into this bass, but they were a hot bass to own back in the 70's, in the 4001 model which is very close. If you like vintage basses