Rickenbacker 4003S-5

1995 mapleglo w/ white scratchplate & chrome parts (I had to order this trim specifically & against ric's wishes, because I already owned a 1974 4001 with this colour scheme). came in a ric semi-flight case which, when I used it to fly the aforementioned 4001 from london to LA, got a big hole bashed into it by virgin atlantic. luckily the bass was OK but it taught me a lesson about so-called flight-cases.
the white plastic they used for this scratchplate isn't a patch on the 1974 version- the pickup & cable routing is clearly visible through the plastic, like a thin dress on a summer's day.... I may have to line it with foil somehow.

I read with some frustration the other reviews of the 4003/5, since mine doesn't come anywhere close to the famous aggressive ricky growl of my 4001 or any other 4001's I've heard. I think the problem is that they used the same neck & hardware as the four string basses, without factoring in the tension difference.
also, the slightly-shorter-than-fender scale doesn't really work for the B-string.... the string spacing is a little tight too- it's great for fast runs but there isn't much room for that low B to vibrate. better to string the thing with a high C string instead.
I have reversed the phase of the bridge pickup so that chords sound a bit clearer; when the pickups are blended, a lot of the mud is cancelled out. most of the time, though, I use the bridge pickup on it's own.

ah... but it's beautifully made (apart from the white plastic being not opaque enough, but then I had that trim against their advice....).
the action is.... you know those two grub screws in the bridge saddle? took 'em right out, still no fret noise. same on my old 4001. the two truss rods, coupled with excellent construction & craftsmanship, mean that you'll never play a better bass than a properly set-up rickenbacker. absolutely perfect.

solid. once it's set up, it stays put. not entirely convinced by the jack sockets- there have been problems with the "standard" sockets on both my 4001's too. strap buttons are a little insecure, & they needed a drop of wood glue to keep 'em from working loose. my 4001 had schaller locking pegs on it, but you could hear them rattle against the strap attachment.... I will be buried with my four ricks (this 4003/5, my 1974 4001, my mapleglo 1978 fretless 4001 & a rather nice red 620/12) & one day someone will dig them up & they'll still be in tune. but rather dusty.

took 'em 9 months to make this one.... no idea what their support is like, but I like the way they won't sell you a new truss-rod cover without you send them the bits of the old one first. they're right to protect their reputation. too many copies. the ibanez 4001 was pretty good though....

been playing bass about 25 years. I have amassed some 22 basses, 8 guitars & about 30 keyboards over the years. the other notable basses are:
1974 4001 mapleglo, 1978 4001 fretless mapleglo.
1980-82 ibanez musicians- 4 string, 4 string fretless, 8 string.
various fender p's & j's from 1971-78 (the so-called rubbish period was actually just inconsistent & there are good basses if you hunt) + a reissue fender VI.
squier (jv-period) p-bass. this thing rocks.
yamato "jazz" bass.... don't know much about this except that it's a bloody good bass.
tokai "jaco" jazz bass. ditto.
peavey midibase. great idea, decent enough construction but totally lacking in character.

if the 4003/5 got nicked, I would check the rest of the collection & then call the insurance company. probably replace it with another regular 4001, to be honest. it is gorgeous, but if I needed to go low, I'd just restring a normal 4-string, probably either the squier-p or one of the fenders, just because of the longer scale.

February 2001, natural finish single coil pickups, neck through body, case included

Has a sound similar but different from other Ric's I've owned. Smoother with a real nice bottom end. Best bass I've ever owned

When I got my bass I played it constantly for weeks getting the feel of the instrument. The factory action was far too high, but was very easy to adjust. The intonation got a little off when I adjusted the action, but again was easy to fix. I have had little or no trouble with single coil hum. Of course much of that is dependant upon the grounding of the electrical circuit you're on. I play through a Fender 2x15 cab with a Hartke 3000 head with a Behringer compressor. Even tho the sustain of the 4003/S5 is wonderful by itself, the compressor kind of rounds out the edges. I leave my bass volumes wides open and I get a tremendous response from both treble and bass frequencies.

This is my only bass at the moment. It's a beautiful instrument to look at and I have had a great deal of compliments on the sound. In the 2 years I have owned my Ric, the truss rods have never been touched, but I have never had to do anything with any Ric I've ever owned. I totally depend on my Ric and have never had any doubt as to it's reliability. Rock solid bass and a quality instrument. I take my hat off to the people that build these things because they really do a great job

Customer suppport is the one area of Rickenbacker that really sucks. While waiting for my bass to be made, I called the factory several times (since it was paid in full in advance) to find out when it was scheduled to be built. They informed me that I could either wait till they got around to it, or get my money back and get something else. Quite rude actually. Thankfully, my bass has been perfect from the beginning and I don't have to deal with them again

I can only say that my 4003/S5 is without a doubt the best bass I have owned to date. I have no plans to buy another new bass of any kind, but may buy a used one just in case I break a string. In 27 years of playing bass, I have tried almost all of them but keep coming back to the Ric's. They're not for everyone, but for those special few that really know how to make a Ric sing...... this is one beautiful voice

All black 4003/S5 U.S. made in march 1991, standard single coil passive pickups

Sounds just like a Rickenbacker should. If you like it, you love it, else you don't :-)

The body of this bass is just so solid. The sustain makes a compressor totally useless. Since my fingers are much to short for playing a Fender, the narrow strings of the 4003/S5 is just perfect for me. It is a shame they discontinued this model!

There was far to much hum comming from the original single coil pickups, especially close to a computer monitor. I know there are humbuckers awailable from Seymor Duncan, but then it wouldn't sound like a Rickenbacker anymore. I solved much of the hum problem this way:
1. Since I play with the volume full up on both pickups, I thought "Why not turn the original pickups into a pseudo-humbucker?". I disassembled the treble pickup. Then I turned the magnet upside down, reversing polarity. Then I reassembled the pickup and got polarity back to normal by switching the wires.
2. I made all wireing "balanced", e.i. I seperated the ground/shield from the wireing comming from both pickup coils. To do that I had to use shielded stereo/microphone cables, connecting the cable shield to the pickup housing and the two leads to the pickup coil. All grounding (strings, pickup and electrics housing) is thus disconnected from the pickup coils. Then I put in a stereo tele jack in and bought an ART Tube MP with balanced input.
Now it sounds just like before, i.e. like the original, but without most of the hum. Works great. And if I don't have the ART MP with me, the stereo tele with a mono plug connects pickup ground to earth, so thats no problem.
When turning both pickups on with the switch, you can hear the hum dissapeareing going from one to two pickups, now that the magnet is reversed.

There really isn't mutch that could go wrong with this bass: no active electronics and everything well built.

The customer support is a dissaster! I've tried two times to get some simple questions answered, but those guys are just on the edge of being impolite. And there was no way of getting my questions answered. They just said the warranty was out. And that Paul McCartney had a Rickenbacker and that he had never complained!?

I've been playing bass for about 25 years. I have my 4003/S5 connected to an Laney RBW200 through an ART MP tube pre-amp and an EI Bassballs. Sounds really clean

Neck-through-body, two pick-ups, two volumes, two tones. Schaller tuners, and btw all the metal parts are quite heavy-duty-stuff, so they sure ain't gonna break. It's a basic example of a RIC bass, the NT-construction makes the neck really fast to play, and very comfortable too. Love it.

Just like other RICs, the pick-ups deliver all the thunder ya could ever need. Remember to yell out "Ace of Spades" while you rock the world with it :) It sounds rich, powerful, yet no hum or noise. Sweetness.

Black finish, good action. Stays in tune well. A scratch at the back of the neck, but a small one. Looks fine.

It's reliable. Stays in tune, doesn't cause any unnecessary problems. After all, she's a RIC, and therefore built to last.

Don't know.

It's my second favorite bass (the 1st is a -75 4001). The fifth string doesn't come too useful, since I'm tuned down to D. Still, it's a monster. And a beauty.

I love this bass. 1989 4003s5 Tuxedo finish. Made in USA of course. 2 thunderous single coil Rickenbacker passive pickups. I bought it used on ebay. There are no new state of the art graphite necks or active electronics, just high quality neck thru design, massive bridge, and hot high gain pickups. These are the hottest passive pickups I've ever encountered. The scale is 33 1/4" which makes the strings a little looser and easier to bend. Dual truss rod design makes for a straight stable neck.

The sound is absolutely fantastic. The 4003 is a little thicker and louder than the 4001. And if you want that Rickenbacker treble bite you can turn up the treble on your amp a little or use the bridge pickup alone or pick closer to the bridge. Also Rickenbacker does not put the capaciter in the bridge pickup that cuts the bass response like they used to in the 4001 models. The sound of this bass is very versatile. I can get that deep sweet Mcartney sound or that aggressive treble bite that Geddy Lee and Chris Squire get. I play mostly with a pick and play hard rock and classic rock. The maple neck and body make for great tone and sustain. This bass can get a treble bite, a midrange punch, and a full bottom. I use an Ampeg B2r with a 1 18" and 2 10" speakers. I aloso use a line 6 POD.

Rickenbackers have such great necks. Nice action all the way up and down the neck .. great for slides. The string spacing is closer than most 5 string basses. This is great for smaller hands and for those who play with a pick. This is not so good for those who play with fingers and like to pop and slap. I bought this Ric used and it has some finish checking and the white had faded to a Chris Squire like cream.

I installed Strap-locks .... the old Ric buttons were not good enough. Rics are built to last 50 years or longer. Once you set the dual truss rods they stay set unless you really abuse it. The Ric bridge is a little cumbersome to adjust, but again once it is set it is set for a long time.

N/A I have never dealt with Rickenbacker.

I have been playing for 30 years and this is the best bass I have ever owned. I own 6 basses and this is my favorite. I wish I owned 2 or 3 of these. The real bummer is that Rickenbacker quit making this model. They have a new 5 string based on the 4004. The 4004 has humbucker pickups and not single coil. I love that single coil edgy sound. All of my basses have single coil passive pickups.

USA made in June 2001. 20 frets and 5 strings. Beautiful Midnight Blue finish (glass like). Single coil Ric passive neck and bridge (mid) pickups with volume and tone knobs for each and a selector switch. Neck is maple and fretboard is rosewood with dot inlays. Wings are maple as well. As stated before...finish is a glass like, beautiful Midnight Blue. Body style is like a 4003 4 string minus the binding and the sharkfin inlays. Patented Ric tail piece and bridge. I think gotoh type sealed tuners (not big machine tuners). The neck is extremely narrow for a 5 string. I'd say it's the narrowest neck 5 string on the market. Perfect for not so large hands. It's neck depth is such that it feels perfect in your fret hand. Came with a Ric form fitted case and pre conditioned polishing cloth. Since this bass doesn't have the binding or sharkfin inlays I can't give it a 10.

GOD! It's got the Ric sound that I've become so accustomed to over the last 6 years (been playing bass for 12yrs). I owned a Ric 4003 4 string and sold it to a friend so that I could experiment with other brands and styles / string configs of other basses. After several different brands (some total crap) of 5 strings I finally came back to Ric. To me no other kind / make of bass feels, sounds or is right. I spent a whole bunch of money figuring this out! Wish I just went right to the Ric 5 string from the Ric 4 string and saved a bunch of $$$, but I did learn a HELL of alot about different basses over the course of this year spent experimenting (& driving my wife nuts). This bass is great for ANY style except for funk and slap pop(I play hard rock, METAL, southern rock). The EXTREMELY tight string spacing makes slap pop an impossibility, but makes fast runs sooo much easier. This bass is a "players" bass. Currently I'm running this through a Hartke 3500 amp through an Alumabass 4X10 capable of handling 800watts continous. I also use a flanger set up similar to a chorus pedal. Talk about amazing tone! I get the Ric sound and Then Some!...with the flanger set up the way I have it. Smooth DEEP lows, great mids and highs that totally cut through without overpowering the guitars. One thing I will say is that there is not alot of variety of tones you can get out of this bass. Pretty much just variations of the "Ric" tone. This bass is GREAT for stage and I can't wait to use it in the studio. I have no dislikes whatsoever with the sound of this bass...after all...it's what I came back to and what I'm used to.

Factory set up was ok. I need to have my tech set it up again. The intonation is a bit flat...nothing that a $50.00 set up won't fix. The action is perfect. I don't really know if the pickups are adjusted properly...they look like they are, but I'll have my tech be the judge of that (it sounds great the way it is). The bass contained absolutely NO flaws! Thank God for American made basses and guitars! You just don't get the attention to detail with overseas models.

This bass is a hell of a chunk of solid wood! Definitely withstand live playing. Everything about it seems like it will last many years. The finish is very Glass like as stated before and very thick. Strap buttons are SOLID, but I will have them replaced with Dunlop Straploks. I do use this bass without a backup.

Never really dealt with Ric customer service.

Played for 12 years. Use a Hartke 3500 head, Alumabass 1200watt (800watt continuous) 4X10 cabinet. If this bass was stolen I'd probably fall into a deep depression being that I couldn't afford another! I love everything about it and hate nothing. My favorite feature would be the "Ric" tone and the beautiful finish. One cannot compare this to any other bass...it's in a category of it's own. If you are sick of WIDE 5 strings this is the bass for you. It might take a little getting used to the tight string spacing, but it's worth it. Also...I totally support Musicians Friend. Check em out on the web. If you find something advertised elsewhere for less...MF WILL match the price. They've matched prices for me several times and came down on this Ric significantly!

Made in USA in 1998, 5-string Maple neck through body with Rosewood
fingerboard, natural finish, 20 frets, passive electronics with 2
single coil pickups with volume and tone controls for each. Slim
neck 1 3/4" at nut to 2 3/16" at 12th fret suits my not-so-large
hands and fingers much better than the tabletop size neck of most
5-string basses.

There's nothing like the fat sound of a Rickenbacker bass! I like it
for jazz and mellow type songs. It really doesn't have a bright,
noisy sound suitable for Rock (I use a Peavey Cirrus 5 for that).
I use it with SWR and Ampeg amps, mostly on stage, but I also loan
it to a friend who swears by it for studio work.

My bass is made of good quality maple with a rosewood fretboard, but
the frets really need to be dressed. An intermittent problem with
the treble (bridge) pickup has made the instrument unreliable since
I bought it 01/22/2001. I guess I should mention that in the 1980's,
I bought an all black Rickenbacker 620 custom 6-string and it's hard
to believe that the 620 and this bass were even made by the same
company. This bass is a huge disappointment.

The body and finish seems solid enough, but the intermittent failures
of the treble(bridge) pickup have caused enough performance problems
for me that I haven't used it on a gig since May and I would never
use it without a backup.

Rickenbacker claims to have a 5 year warranty, but if you look at the
fine print, it's 5 years from the date of manufacture, not from when
it was purchased, and they won't honor it unless they receive the
warranty card you get when you purchase the instrument. Problem is,
my card somehow never reached them, so they are refusing to honor the
warranty on my 1998 manufactured bass that I purchased new on 1/22/2001,
even though I have provided them with copies of the original purchase
receipts. Since it is obvious that the guitar is less than 5 years old,
their latest basis for refusal is that I must not be the original purchaser.
It's bad enough when a new $1000+ guitar doesn't work properly, it's
devastating when the manufacturer doesn't care about the quality of their
instrument or customer satisfaction. After 15 years, my faith and trust
in the Rickenbacker Corporation was obviously misguided, and they have
lost a once loyal customer.

I've been playing guitar on and off for 39 years. I also play
french horn, sax and keyboard, and spent 7 years in a military band.
In addition to my dysfunctional Rickenbacker 4003S/5, I own a
Peavey Cirrus-5 bass (surprisingly awesome), a Rickenbacker 620,
a Traveler guitar (4 pounds and goes anywhere), and I really like
my audio-technica pro127g wireless system.
Based on my experience with Rickenbacker support, I would not
consider buying another Rickenbacker product, in spite of the fact
that when my bass is working, it's wonderful. The close spacing
of the strings makes the transition to a standard 6-string guitar
effortless (not the usual spacing readjustment issues when you go
from bass to 6-string). I chose this bass because it was comfortable
for me. As much as I love the sound of the Fender Jazz bass, it's
large body and wide neck made me feel like I was playing my father's
guitar. I really hate the fact that buying this bass has been
a large, expensive, unreliable nightmare.
If you fall in love with a Rickenbacker bass and absolutely
have to have one, make sure you copy the warranty form before you
send it to Rickenbacker and send it by certified mail so you can
prove they received it. I'm not sure that even taking those
precautions will help, but it's a start.

(5 string) '93 model, red w/black hardware, no binding, dot inlays, 20 frets. Standard single coil passive Ric pickups w/volume & tone controls for each and 3-way selector switch, mono. As with all 4000 series Rics (excluding doublenecks), neck-thru with twin truss rods, adjustable at the headstock. Nothing beats a Ric neck for playability, and this 5-string has the closest spacing that I have seen in a high-end bass. Patented Ric bridge/tailpiece is easily adjusted.

Rics have a distinctive growl that I have always found to be very cool. Not the most versatile sounding bass, but one of the most recognizable. Lots of punch with solid underlying warmth. My performance rig is A/B'd with a SVT w/810e cabinet for the lows and a Crate half-stack for the high end, usually heavily distorted. I have used this bass to record and perform, and it is especially stage friendly in that it is well-balanced and very light for a full-scale bass with great sustain.

As well made as they are, Ric basses need to be set up when you receive them from the factory. Once this is done properly you will find them to be very fun to play. I have owned about a dozen Rics since the mid '70s, and they are very consistently well crafted. If the rating is for the way it comes set up, then I would give it a 5. They do not spend the time with this procedure that they should before shipping them out. But then again, this is a bass made for the serious player who generally can do this himself.

I am not destructive, but I have never had a single breakage of any kind on any Ric bass or guitar I have ever owned. I always replace the strap buttons with straplocks as soon as I acquire one of these basses, but the standard Ric buttons are cast with a good gauge machine-type thread, so you shouldn't expect any problems there. This is a dependable bass.

I have been treated like a preferred customer by Rickenbacker since the '70s. I endorse not only their instruments, but their strings as well.

I have played bass for over 25 years, and this is by far my favorite 5-string. The close and consistent spacing from the nut to the body is something I really like, being a player who primarily uses a pick and plays a very progressive style. I find most 5-string necks to be annoyingly wide at the body since I do not have exceptionally long fingers as most great bass players do. That's not a problem with this bass. I also keep the bridge (treble) pickup cover in place, using it as a hand rest. Most players, especially those that finger pluck and slap, remove this. The bass would look better with the triangle inlays that the 4001s and 4003s have, maybe in ebony, and rear access plates instead of the outdated pickguard. Maybe they'll make my next model to these specs?

It's a 91 Rickenbacker Mapleglo black hardware 4003S-5. The unbound body/neck is the traditional Ric shape with dot fret inlays. Passive electronics with your basic single coil pickups (toaster style at neck). Other than being a five string, it is the standard Ric in appointments and style.

I play through an Ampeg SVP-Pro preamp, Ashley 1000 watt power amp and EV 4-10 speaker cabinet (and some effect doodads). The sound is typical Ric....unending sustain, full lows, rich highs and the signature grunt that cuts through the mix without overpowering. My band is a Metallica tribute (also some Pantera, White Zombie, Motorhead, etc.) and this bass is a perfect addition to my two 4003's so I don't have to retune for certain songs or dedicate a "tuned-down" bass. The tone of this bass is very consistant.

This Ric was purchased used, but it is in like new condition. The finish is flawless and glass-like. The black hardware is uniform in color and looks like it just came from the factory. The previous owner said that he only bought this bass because it was a good deal and he only played it a few hours since he had it and made no adjustments (he also believes he was the original owner...bought from a "going out of business sale" of a local music store. It plays perfect, just like it was set up for me, no adjustments necessary.

Like I said, I have two 4003's and they are rock solid, super durable and there is no reason why this 5 string addition to my modest fleet should be any different. My Ric experience says that once it is setup, forget about ever having to adjust anything again, period. After launching this thing duct taped to the bottom of the Space Shuttle (with defective o-ring booster rockets)....I would fish this thing out of the Atlantic Ocean and take it straight to a gig with no questions asked.

I'm in the midst of a Warranty Claim with them right now (on one of my others). They have been excellent so far, but I'll hold off on my opinions until the work is complete.

I've been playing for 15-ish yrs. This is the first 5 string that I have owned and I love it. While most 5 strings that I have played keep a fairly wide string spacing (consistant with the average 4 string), Rickenbacker chose to jam all 5 strings on a neck only 1/8th of an inch (I think) wider than their 4 string. Interesting. While other people I have heard from dislike this approach, I love it. I think it keeps the feeling of a 4 string and the fast neck that Ric's are known for remains intact. I also think that Rickenbacker did this so they could use the same hardware (slightly modified) and save some $$$$. Fine with me. At first with the narrow string spacing, playing it was rough, I kept tripping over my own fingers, but I quickly adjusted and would have it no other way. If it were stolen, I would replace it without even thinking about it, it is my new favorite.