Rickenbacker 4003 Jet Glo

Everyone knows the specs - I won't bore you with them. I deduct 1 point here for the dinosaur bridge. While it looks beautiful, it is a pain in the a** to adjust & it does not contact the body solidly. Replaced mine with the Hipshot aluminum Ric bridge - worth every penny as it makes the bass ring forever without changing the tone, and you do not have to drill any new holes. I love the new vintage tone selector - it really expands the range of sounds I can get.

NOTHING sounds like a Ric! Funny thing is, I've owned 7 of them over the past 20 years and no two have sounded quite the same. This is the first one I've owned that has all of the growl, clang and bite that I have heard on recordings (Rush, Yes, Etc.) and until now have been unable to duplicate. Hand-crafted instruments can vary quite a bit from one to another, so try out a few if you can. This is my favorite sounding bass for progressive rock and metal.

Rickenbackers have flawless build quality - superb woods, perfect craftsmanship and mirror-like finishes. If I could give it an eleven or even a twelve here, I would!

Built for decades of heavy use. Ric necks seldom need neck adjustments, but be very careful when & if you do. It has a dual truss rod system which can potentially twist the neck if you don't know what your doing. Just remember, what you do to one truss rod, do to the other as well - i.e. tighten or relax both rods an equal amount. I always bring a backup in case I break a string.

John Hall stands behind every instrument his company builds - just don't contact Rickenbacker for some petty issue you or your dealer can solve. I believe many musicians need to learn a bit more about properly setting up, troubleshooting and maintaining their own instruments - learning these skills can save you a lot of time and money over the years.

I have been playing for 25 years - mostly rock & metal in bar bands, and my Ric handles everything I can think of. I occasionally use a preamp & a small amount of compression to help even out the dynamics & give it a bit more of a modern "active bass" sound. I made the mistake - more than once - of selling my Ric(s)for the "flavor of the month", only to find myself regreting it later & buying another. Never again, I'm keeping this one for life! It is everything I have ever wanted in a bass.

2007 Rick 4003 bought for a studio session. Jet Glo, 2 pup Rick manufactured passive. Bridge strung, 34" scale Hard case included.

Great sound capability, though the standard "Rick" sound is probably the most easily achieved. Very Bright with rounds on it. But that's why you bought a Rick wasn't it. Best for the stage I believe as it is rather clanky. I'm sure a good engineer could EQ those ranges out, but it might leave a sound you don't like. Great rock bass for live performances.

Arrived perfectly setup from the factory (as it damn well should for their price). I did have to adjust the pole pieces to even out the response from one string to another. To bad they could include a hex wrench that fits the pole pieces at this price point.

Solid. Shaller lock buttons came with the bass. You can rely on it in the real world of live performing.

Seems I remember the warranty being longer that a year. Had no dealings with CS.

Well made, great sounds, very uncomfortable for me to play. The bridge pup hood was always in the way. Took it off and there's a gaping hole in the pup surround to get your fingers caught in. Replaced that with a Pick Guardian surround and it was better. My biggest problem was that I wear my bass fairly high and rest my right arm along the top of the body. The binding and edge and the body are pretty sharp and uncomfortable. No contouring at all. I understand why dedicated Rick guys have their bodies contoured and shaved on their main basses now.

Rick necks are pretty flat in profile, kind of a flattened "D" shaped. Very fast for those used to that profile and who like them.


ADVICE: Play one for a while before you buy it. Great axe, but may not be comfortable for 4 hours on the stage.

I got my jet-glo ric 4003 on ebay - it's a 1998 - had to adjust the string height and set the intonation - some guys remove the treble pickup cover - i left my cover on and find it VERY comfortalbe when playing finger style - when using a pick, it DOES NOT get in the way

the ric 4003 will play ANY type of music, although if you're SLAPPING, you owe it to yourself to go with the music man bass - i have ROTOSOUND Swing bass strings on mine - i hear an awful lot of talk these days about guys who put flat wound strings on these bass guitars - never tried it myself - when i first started using this bass live, the guy on the sound board could not believe the presence of this bass - said he never had so much signal to work with - if you want to "hide in the mix" this a NOT the bass for you

i got mine used - two of the intonation screws were out of place - not sure if it was a factory problem or the prevoius owner had messed them up - regardless, once fixed, the intonation is dead on - i use a KORG rack tuner and get an incredibly accurate intonation setting - these basses have an unbelievable sound from one end of the neck to the other - i sometimes play above the twelfth with the amp set on full bass; almost sounds like a cello

very well made instrument - i've heard people complain about wobbly strings that get a lot of fret buzz - i attribute this to novice players who do not take the time to strecth their strings properly after they have been replaced

i've had mine for three years now and have never had a need to contact rickenbacker, other than to buy the factory stings - as stated above, i now use ROTOSOUND Swing bass strings - i did go on the ric web site to check my serial number

been playing for over thirty years now - also own a gibson ripper from the early seventies, but that is a completely different animal than the ric 4003

bought it in Helsinki 1993. It came straight from the factory with a very good quality case. The bass has two pick-ups (bass and treble) and volume and tone knob for each. Two outputs, stereo (Ric-o-sound) & mono. I rated 10 because this bass has everything that is needed.

This bass sounds beautiful. I used to have a Fender standard P-bass but after playing a ric thgough an ampeg tube I fell in love. I did not no such sounds were possible.
The upper sounds are bright and clean and the lower sounds are very strong and full. I basically always have all the konbs fully on which gives me three totally different sounds depending on which pick-ups are on.
The bass pickup alone gives a unique soft sound that suits well for blues and jazz. The treble pickup sound is good for hard rock and heavier stuff. Finally, the two pickups together produce a good sound for slapping and funkier stuff. (Ric is not the number one choice slap bass. The sound is great but playability requires practise. If you want to slap, get MM)

The factory setup for the bass was perfect. The neck could not be more straight and the action is excellent. I have not adjusted anything on the bass (except changed the strings occasionally and removed the idiotic plastic cover from the treble pickup).
The most amazing thing about this bass is the glass-like body finish. It could be mistaked for plastic. Same goes for the finger board. The thick finish on the finger board must reject dirt, because it just stays clean. I have never cleaned it.
They must do tens of layers of varnish, grind and polish to get that kind of finish. Absoloutely beautiful.
Some say that rics are heavy. I think it is about the average. The bass is well balanced so once you put it on it feels comfortable and not heavy at all.

This bass in like a rock. It just keeps on playing. It never goes out of tune. It needs little maintainance. I have played a lot of this bass and the finish is as good as ever. Some marks on the back side from my belt but other than that it as good as new. The strap buttons are a bit small but if you have a good thick leahter strap it will hold.
This baby does not need backups.

If your instrument is built like mine, you do not need customer support.

I've playing 20 years.
Buy a Ric, do not ask questions!
I would be very unhappy if my bass was stolen. A new one can not replace this one. But yes, I would buy another Ric.
I love everything about it.

Having a 4003 is like having a life lasting relationship with a woman of your dreams. Once you have it, you dont want to let it go.

I bought my Jet-Glo Rickenbacker 4003 bass new in NYC. It is a 2001 model year. It is strictly factory-stock. It is the historic Ric passive setup. I run it from the mono-jack. It has the "fabled" Ric-O-Sound jack as well, but I've never used it. It's the old Geddy Lee circa 1976-79 cliche', white-pick guard and "shark tooth" faux-pearl fret inlays. I've rated a five here because...it's all standard.

I wanted to write this review because a lot of people dump on this venerable work-horse. My other basses are a '76 F-Jazz and 75' F-Precission. The Ric is a different kind of hammer. How hard do you want to hit them? I have two amp rigs, one a GK 800RB driving custom 12" and 15" cabs. For larger gigs I use a '76 Fender Bassman 100. The Ric rules BOTH the transistor and tube domains. As a McCartney/Squire/Lee/Entwistle disciple, I wanted the 4003 for the unmistakable "twang" you get with round-wound strings. BUT...I play a lot of blues, and if you run the Ric flat out and then darken it up with the amp (I also sometimes use a Tech-21 Sans Amp Bass-DI) you get a fat, rich, woody tone that is perfect. This, in my mind, blows away the "poo-poo" attitude that "The Rick is a one-trick pony." My butt....

Electronically this bass is clean. Too many knobs still looks cool, turn everything all the way up, set you p-up selector in the middle, and tailor your sound at your pre-amp. This bass is head-turning gorgeous in the way a 1966 Corvette is, sleek, refined, and lots and lots....and lots of chrome. All factory set-ups are "average." Buy a Ricky and go to a guy who knows how to set it up. In my case the third fret had to be ground down: when the action was fine-tuned there was a mighty unforgiving buzz. This was NOT expensive. THE NEGATIVES: I'm a little dissapointed in the finish. There are some imperfections that, granted, you really have to look for, but I see them. Those at the neck/body joints are to be expected in this kind of construction. I would warn folks who might be considering a J or P Bass, or heck even a Music-man-like config: The Rick is "busy on deck" meaning, there's lots of metal sticking up all over the place. The first thing you'll do is have the bass-pickup cover removed (this part is plastic!) . DO NOT DO THIS YOURSELF. The spring/adjustment is set up in a way that if you try to unscrew it, the mechanism just sucks the whole thing into the body. Have them do this at your setup.

I've clobbered thousands of people with this bass. It kicks-ass. It will do whatever you want it to. You'll need some kind of strap-locking solution. The Ric strap buttons are too small. I bought some cheap plastic Dunlops (the two rotating plastic discs) that work just fine, which you only need on "The Horn."

I've had no need to contact RIC.

I've been playing for 27 years. If you are a bass player, you know what you need to use this for. I've owned my F-Jazz for 25 years, it is finally getting the noteriety it deserves....but it won't do what the Rick does. Own an F-Jazz, a 4003, and enough wattage to push them....and you'll rule the world. Regarding "value," I ask you: Are you looking to collect....or are you a player???

U.S made, 20 frets, 4 string (why have any more plays all the notes) Maple wood, neck through body, rosewood fingerboard, 2 single coil pickups, mono and stereo out puts.
Weight: 4.1 kg
Overall length: 113.8cm
Overall width: 34.3cm
Overall depth: 31.8mm

I play the 4003 through a Orange Ad140b amp, and 2x15 handmade bass cab, no effects are used, i use the mono output and have the Ric controls all set to full. I use my fingers, never a pic and so removed the "annoying" pickup guard.
The music i play is powerfull, raw, rock / metal which i find the Ric is excellent for, many complain of "clicky" sounds coming from the Ric, i play this bass very hard and feel it adds to the Ric sound, but never dominates it.
The 4003 does not have a vast range of sound, but as a user of a Orange, i like the sound to be good without spending 1 hour fiddling with graffics, etc, before a gig, and the Ric sounds good as it is.

On delivery of this bass, nothing needed to be changed, however after the removel of the Pickup guard, i had to spend a couple of hours, ajusting the pickups / action to get it feel right again, not a fault of the Ric...just my bloody mindness.
The finish was beautiful,..too nice i did'nt want to pick the thing up in-case i smeered it!......sad eh?

This is a very "strong" bass, everything looks like it will last a very long time....i think if Keith Moon had been a bassist he would of met a challange in the 4003.
The bass comes with a "polish cloth" and if following the instructions, the Ric's finish should look nice in 20 yrs from when you first got it.

Never had to use them.

I have been playing Bass for 15 yrs, and this Guitar has been the best i have ever handled, It feels good, although i suspect if the player was small in frame the bass could be a little heavy.
For the last 6 yrs i have wanted a Ric....and i am in no way dissapointed with it.
I previously have played Fender Jazz, Peavy t-40, and Bass Collection, this makes the following play like banjo's.
It sounds good, it plays good, and my god.....it looks good!!!