Univox Stereo Rickenbacker Copy

I just got my hands on a Univox /Ric copy that I had originaly used in a Beatles cover band back in the early 80's. It belongs to a friend of mine who played in the band as well. I owned then and still do now, a 68 fender jazz which I do not need to even compare basses with, but this ric copy gave me the other element I needed aside from the jazz bass.To me it was as good as a real ric. I compared them side by side and thought it was good enough for me. It hjas that exact Chris Squire sound. The stereo output. or mono...I just love it. It is in a natural laquer finish with a white pick gaurd. Triangle perloid inlays. laguered fret board.Just beautiful.
So as I said I recently saw this old friend and asked him about this bass... He new I still am active as a player and that I have a studio. He told me to come over his house and take it...Can you imagine....It is in the exact condition I remember it in. very nicely perserved. The only thing I am goinng to do is replace the back bridge pickup with one of theose new bartolini replacements. the original rear pickup that is in it is shot and distorting beyond control....It is like being back with an old girlfriend you once loved...in a way.... wellllll.....this bass guitar gets a 10 from me for sure......

awesome sound.. will soon be better

action is close and tight but it has a slight bow now. I will have it set up after I replace the rear pickup

this bass is from 1976 and is still kickin ass in 2006....30 years folks.....original pots too.....

2 thumbs up

bought it for 200 Euros from other musician in Poland. It was made something about 1977 by the famous Univox company from the USA... It's a four - stringed Rickenbacker bass copy - the best bass I ever had... It has two passive handmade pickups and it's painted all black. It's a passive axe. I bought it with an original case... Almost perfect craftmanship, but it needed some luthier's repair (he changed it's frets, renovated the pickups, etc.)... IT LOOKS JUST GREAT!

it's a rich, punchy sound with this ramous Rickenbacker - like growling... I LOVE THIS SOUND, it's really unique - this axe has balls! I love to play a postpunk (new wave) or hard rock (or even a country rock and some ballad - like songs) with that bass - it suits my style almost perfectly...
Both pickups were set up for a very high output signal... It's very hard to control the dynamics of playing - just one false move and this bass repays with a real ingratitude. One of the best ways to control this guitar properly is to attack the strings with a pick somewhere near the bridge pickup. Playing with fingers only is rather hard to do, because this 4001 copy is a rather big thing...
The microphonic of the pickups are very annoying and frustrating - for example when you can hear the friction between a strap and the guitar's body, during a recording session...
This is NOT a good guitar when you want to play with your thumb - it's just a waste of time, don't even think about that.
I used it with a Behringer 100 Watt Combo, with a Marshall combo, with an Ampeg and Ashdown amps - and it sounded great... Even with a budget 50 Watt Tonsil (a Polish one) combo it was far above the standards.

The bass had been set up by a luthier, who is a pro. I don't know how it was made by the Univox, because I bought it used, after something about 26 years from the date of it's birth. The action is very low and it's rather comfortable to play (when you'll learn how to control such a big monster). This guitar is a 26 - year old veteran, but it plays surprisingly well, it has a spirit and something that determined that's my favourite... Some people made faults and they were thinking that's a real Rickenbacker, when I was playing live. This is a very good quality guitar from the '70s.

This bass is a perfect choice for a live player (but it has some pickup's faults - I described them in the "Sound" section). I trusted this guitar and I take only one axe with myself. It looks great and sounds great - in that order... It has almost all of the feautures of a bass that's created to be played live. It's a good studio guitar, too - but you must be very carefull about the high output from it's pickups... For the amateur musicians or the freshies - a Fender Precission bass (or it's copy) will be a better choice...

the Univox company is a historical trademark. no support available, except the private luthier's repairs. some info about the firm is here: http://www.univox.org/

I have this bass about a year and I'm very satisfied with that. I used many basses, mostly Fender P-Bass or their copies.
The other guitars I have is a Peavey Strat copy from the early 80s and a semi - accoustic MEG (a Polish brand) from 1999 (it's similar to a semi - accoustic Fender P-Bass that was made in the mid-80s). I'm satisfied with all of them - but this Rick copy is my fav.
If it were stolen or lost - I wouldn't forgive myself... The old guitars are just priceless treasure...
I hated the microphonic of the pickups only... But everything else is great. My favourite feautures are: it's apperance, sound and a stereo jack output. Just a fantastic instrument for all the naughty rockers...

Great piece! My Uni was built in 1976 (found this out through a Univox fan site) and it plays better than most "name brand" basses I've had the opportunity to play. Neck through the body design gives it that sweet sustain that fans of the "real thing" enjoy so much. While I'm not positive of the wood used to build my sweetie, I'm pretty sure it's maple. Passive electronics, stereo switch sound just about like all the great Rush records I used to have. The laquered neck is a cool feature, pretty fast action for such a slow player as myself.

Warm rich sound through my best friend's Hartke, but even sounds better than average through my cheap little amp.

I had mine set up by the guy I purchased it from and he did a great job. I like my guitar set ups "made to order" and he did a fantastic job setting it up to my specs.

I can't get over how much abuse this little lovely puts up with! I never dreamed I'd find a knock-off Rick (or for that matter anything) that could withstand what I dish out. I'm not the world's flashiest bass player but I really get into the music and my Uni is always there for me.

Sadly, Univox is not around anymore....

What more can you ask from a 26 year old bass? She takes a beating from me and still comes asking for more. Rock and roll!

Up until I actually saw the genuine article in a Toronto music store, I didn't realize just how accurate a copy of a Ricky bass I once owned! Very similar in looks and hardware to a real Rickenbacker. I had to part with it 12 years ago, a move in retrospect that I regret, so there are details that I don't remember.
I do remember that the fingerboard was lackered, and sported those weirs triangular inlays. I haven't a clue of the woods used.
It utilized dual passive pickups near identical to the real ones, a toggle select switch with a stereo wiring and dual jacks.

Through a good bass amp, it sounded great: a nice, punchy sound. The one drawback was that they were very microphonic: slightly tapping the body or even worse, the leather strap creaking against the strap buttons could be heard, even when recording direct - that's sensitive!

Plainly put: be it not for the Univox name plate one couldn't tell the difference. Well, I couldn't anyway! Surprisingly great workmanship for a knock-off!
The action was hard though - it probably required new strings and a proper setup, neither of which I could afford at the time (ah, those student years!)but you can expect that form any second hand axe, the maufacturers wern't at fault there.
The pickups looked like vintage Ricky (they use De Armond - is that right?)down to the pickup covers.

This sucker was solidly built, yet lighter than my previous bass (an El-Degas precision bass copy). I'd say it weighed around 18 pounds but I'm not certain.
Durable? Yes, that particular model was road-worthy but meant for the studio (how many bassists use a dual amp setup live?) - at least that's what I think!

This was a second hand bass, I never dealt with Univox.

Contrarily to the cheapo axes I previously owned (El-Degas, Mansfield,Hondo & Marlin)this is one I regret selling. All it probably required was a lighter set of strings and a proper setup - chalk another one for learning!
A properly setup Univox could just nail "that tone", deep yet punchy. The microphonics could be a pain though - imagine playing a groove, swaying to the beat and you can hear this "crreak! crreak!" in the background because of the friction between the strap and strap button! That can get pretty frustrating!
But overall, for the money it was great bang for the buck, a "poor man's Rickenbacker" of sorts. It looked and sounded good, and would have played great with the proper adjustments.
If the same quality and workmanship went (Are they still in business?) in all of their guitars and basses, I'd really like to get my hands on a Univox Rickenbacker guitar copy - one similar to John Lennon's ... yeah, that'd be so cool!