Rickenbacker 650 Frisco

I liked the mod shape and the sound was way cool. This is no chav guitar it's pretty pimp. I wasn't crazy about the wood look, just comes off like a guitar shaped coffee table and thats pretty naf. I guess it's fancy woood. the guy I bought it from rambled off some foregin sounding wood names. Anyways I thought that looked naf so I had it refinished in sherwood green. Now it's pimp! the humbukers are a bit weak sounding, but thats the vibe with this type of guitar. if you want to do metal get actives.

I've always played fender jags and I like jangely sounding guitars. In the jangle department this guitar wins hands down it's like 20 times more jangel than the jag. sometimes it can get too jangely and it sounds kind of naf but over all I like that jang if you're into jang this is the guitar for you. I recomend a fender twin reverb with it and crank the reverb.

I love the way the guitar plays it's pretty sweet. great action and I like the maple fret board.

This guitar is well made. with alot of fancy naff looking wood that would be better painted. but it's well made. I don't have any worries about this guitar messing up and I would gig without a backup but not because I think this guitar is so great. I just hate lugging shite around with me to the gig.

I guess customer suport is ok but the guy below is right getting a ric in the uk sucks arse. The one guy I bought it from said he complained to ric about not being able to get the guitars he wanted in the UK and got a nasty email from James Hall, who is I guess the CEO. I don't know if thats true or not but if it is he should be beat and fired. You don't talk to your customers like that. Anyways, I've had no personal dealing with them. But they should work on distributing their products better over it. Cause it is a pain in the ass to get them here. I needed a knob for an old ric 360 and it took almost 2 years for my local store here to get one. Thats pretty naff, wtf?

I've been playing for 20 years.
if it were lost I would probably buy another jaguar just because I dig tremolos but it's a fine guitar.
Rics are original, I can't really compare them to anything else. Maybe eventually ric will sell some of these in the uk with a trem. I've seen them around way to pricey to import if you can even find a US dealer who will?

This is a 2001 (i understand this is the last year of production) Ric 650f manufactured of course, in the USA. 24 frets like the rest of the 650 range Eastern Rock Maple neck runs the full length of the body with beautifully glossed African Vermillion wings on the body and headstock. The grain of this vermillion is amazing, has both light and dark grains, my guess is that this wood is where the idea for liming woodgrain to give a light look was taken from.

Twin passive humbucking pickups one at neck and one at the bridge, these pickups are the same size as the single coil hi-gains on my 330/6 but are mounted further into the body. Bass and Treble Tone and Volume controls, only gripe is there is no illusive third tone control which i use a lot on the 330 to blend between lows and highs quickly while playing. Neck is only slightly fatter than that of the 330, and is comfortable to play and easy to work with.

All hardware is 24ct gold plated and looks amazing, but u have to make sure u keep it clean. Which is not a problem really, i take great care of all my guitars. Machine heads are schaller. Not of the locking variety, but as long as u make sure the nuts arent loose, they rarely slip out of tune. Comes with Rickenbacker hard-shell case, which it dosent really fit in very well. I keep mine hangin on the wall though and the case is just for collecting dust on top of my wardrobe.

Penalty points given in this category because the case didn't seem to fit the guitar properly and due to lack of third tone control.

I play many different types of music from rock and country to jazz and classical. This guitar suits it all really, it loves distortion, and plays a lovely clean sound. I've only had it a short while and am still experimenting with it, but i'm definately happy with its performance so far. Can be a little bit too bassy but this can be ironed out by playin around with the tone controls, or slappin a bit more top-end on at the amplifier. I normally play straight into a solid-state Orange CR30 and it's fine, the bassy problem only arises when plugged into Boss ME-6 multi effects.

Theres a nice bit of twang to the top end and the humbuckers are great for pickin up pinch harmonics when soloing. They are great pickups, they hold a note beautifully despite being passive pickups, nice and quiet when not in use and very rich sounding when they are.

Penalty points in this category given for the excessive bassy sound

I like a low action on my guitars, this was purchased second hand so i dont know how it came from the factory. The action was quite high so i had to adjust this myself, also the guitar had not been set up so i had to do that myself as well. Set up how i like it, however, it plays wonderfully. I did not need to adjust the height of the pickups, as once i had dropped the strings a bit, they were at almost perfect distance.

You can only really play this guitar for a little while sitting down as the lower horn on the guitar pokes into your leg. Its really best for playing standing up, the fact that it is small and relatively light for a solidbody (only 200grammes heavier than the 330)makes it a good guitar to do so with.

When i first got this guitar home, i had to re-string it and give it a good clean as some of the gold plated hardware looked a bit shitty. The wood is absolutely beautiful, both the Maple neck and the African Vermillion Wings look amazing. Although it is a good 4 years old already, there is no sign of wear or scratches which is a big bonus.

Penalty points in this category given as i had to set it up myself, but realistically a guitar would never hold a factory set-up for 4 years! Also due to lower horn on the guitar digging into your leg like a bitch when sitting down.

I am confident this guitar would withstand live playing, i play a lot of guitar at home, its basically my alternative to TV! Holds tune nicely when playing. I played it hooked up to some old skool Fender Valve amp at the shop, and it sounded incredible.

The hardware looks like it'll last forever as long as its looked after, which it will be, i would have liked to seen a removable pickguard like on the 330, to avoid damage to the gold plating, but i guess that would ruin the overall look of the piece. There are some very light scrathes on the gold that are only revealed after very close inspection, this is only on the pickguard where some wear is bound to be evident after 4 years use. The gloss on the wood has picked up no scratches or dings over the years.

The strap buttons are cut in deep so using a thick leather strap as i do, it practically locks in. However, you're not likely to see me doin any crazy guitar swinging stunts with this beauty. Even the strap buttons are 24ct gold plated and no wear is evident.

I would probably use this on a gig without a backup if i had to, but common sense would tell any guitarist to take a backup with them as no-one can predict the future.

Penalties given in this category for slight scratches on the gold plating and lack of a removable pickguard (i'm just bein picky really)

Right then, this is the box i've been waiting for. DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA HOW MUCH OF A BLOODY NIGHTMARE IT IS TRYING TO GET RICs IN THE UK???? I've contacted them and always received a speedy response but i'm just amazed that they cant get their arses into gear and send some 650s over here. I was told i would be waiting 2 (yes TWO) years before i could get my hands on a new 650 Sierra, same story for the Dakota. In the end i found this Frisco at Vintage and Rare guitars in Denmark Street, London. Even the UK wholesaler of these guitars gave me some bullshit like "you'll have to find a dealer who knows a dealer who knows us who might order one in for you if the... blah-blah-blah-bollocks-bollocks!"

The frustration of having cash in your hand and no guitar to blow it on was immense. I ended up calling and emailing every guitar shop in my area. No-one could get one in without having to wait a long time. Turned out that this must have been the only one in the UK!!

Open a factory in the UK, Rickenbacker, i'll craft your guitars for you!! (as long as you give me staff discounts)

Moaning aside the shop i bought it from has given me a year's warranty which is very good by second hand guitar standards and Rickenbacker have responded with much haste when i've emailed them.

BIG Penalty points in this category for the TWO YEAR WAIT i would have had to suffer if i hadn't found this one!

I've been playin for about 6 years. I have a Rickenbacker 330/6 in Fireglo, An orange CR30 solid state combo, some heap of shite 15watt Marshall combo, a Boss ME-6 Pedal, a Boss TU-15 tuner, 2 leads and an ever-depleating stock of plectrums!!

I squeezed them down nicely on the price on this guitar and they gave me a bloody nice leather "Bear" strap.

If i lost this guitar, i would find it, if it were stolen, i would search and destroy whoever stole it! But seriously if i did lose it or have it stolen i would definately wait TWO YEARS to get another 650. Obviously replacing it with another Frisco would be near-impossible, but i would try my best to.

I love the look and sound of this guitar i've needed a good solid body and wanted to get a 650 before, i bought the 330 in the end cos it was down my local shop saying "come on, buy me, buy me" and again the waiting list for a 650 factored in. I hate that bloody lower horn, hopefully that part of my leg with harden up over time or somethin. It does look the Dog's Bollocks though and the irritating lower horn certainly plays a part in the looks. My favourite feature is the twin humbuckers, they sound incredible.

I didn't really compare this to any other guitars, because i couldnt think of anything that i wanted for the price i was willing to pay. And due to the fact i've fallen in love with RICs after owning a 330 for a good few years, i think its a brand i'm gonna stick with.

I wish it had that 3rd tone control for blending between the highs and the lows. And i wish it came free with a twin brother!!!!

My next guitar is going to be a 380 Laguna with a bit of luck. Wonder if i'll have to wait TWO YEARS for it!??? Oh and guess what, they've just discontinued them as well, JOY!

i'm gonna rate the overall as an 8 as other than the bitch i had at the customer support part, its a solid performer with very few, very slight downsides to it.

Like all Rickenbackers, this beautiful solid-body piece was made in the USA. Has 24 frets on a maple neck which runs through the thin body as one piece. The neck is a bit wide and of moderate thickness, medium frets. On either side, the famous Ric cutaway "wings" are made of African Vermillion wood, with a glossy finish, allowing the natural beauty of these woods to come through. The following are all 24k gold plated: two humbucker pickups (Rickenback originals), tuners, specially designed bridge with wheels to allow adjustment of position, strap pegs, a plate upon which sit two volume controls and two tones, plus a 3-way selector switch. The bridge allows for stringing through the end of the piece, where the balls of the strings are neatly concealed. No tremolo (although you can get it done custom through Rickenbacker). Black Rickenbacker nameplate with gold writing. I got this at a pawn shop, so I don't know what original accessories came with it. Only drawback is that it would have been really nice if the tremolo was an automatic factory feature.

Generally, this Ric works well for the majority of songs I play. I tend to play crunchy pop, rock and experimental, and it covers a variety of tones. One thing that I've noticed, is that it doesn't always get the bite in the lower registers from tuning down as much as I'd like. Definitely no slushy sounds. I don't think Rics are really made for that anyway, but it would be nice if it had that extra versatility. The amount of tone combinations is great with or without further effects. Clean playing is the best, but I also got some equally amazing sounds using a DOD GS30 and also a Boss distortion pedal (the orange one). I noticed that it doesn't sound as great as the Rickenbacker 330s and 360s I've played, but those guitars are constructed differently. This is a solidbody and those are hollowbodies. Still, it's one of the nicest solidbodies I or anyone I've let play it has ever heard. You can get super bright to warm and crunchy, A rough recording that I did, sounded like almost as good a finished product, but with no mixing. I had recorded the same song with a different guitar and it was extremely noticeable that the *guitar* seemed to have a great effect on the sound. There really isn't any noise that I've noticed, that I didn't want. If you turn up the gain and treble and have moderate distortion, you can get some fantastic sensitivity from the neck pickup, hear all the scrapes, movement of fingers, feedback... it seems to let you control it. I think the more you get used to the combinations of controls available, the better control you'll have and endless possibilities to your liking, but still, if you don't plan on tuning down super low on this model should be great.

The action on this guitar is everything I would expect from Rickenbacker, even though I got this from a pawn shop. Pickups set up very nice, spaced apart - the neck is truly the neck pickup, and the bridge is the bridge pickup. The wings fan out pretty much right there at the 24th fret, so you'll have no problem getting access to any notes you care to play. Very comfortable. I really have no complaints about this... it's a great handmade guitar, everything fits perfectly, still looks factory fresh after sitting in the pawn shop for who knows how long. I accidentally knocked it over twice pretty hard since I've had it and there's still not a single scratch or dent on it. No noise on the the controls, nothing poorly cut, aligned or designed. The gold plate that tone controls sit upon, gets dirty very easily - but it's just a matter of keeping a good polishing cloth around. This is definitely an art piece as well as a guitar and you almost feel obligated to keep up high maintanence on it. I'm used to owning scrappy guitars, so this is overly cautious TLC is taking some getting used to... but it's worth having such a beatiful guitar to show off visually and sonically. Everyone is completely impressed with it.

As I've said, this thing has already taken some knocks from me (by accident) and who knows how many from the previous owner/s and the pawn shop... but not a single dent or scratch, nothing out of place, nothing worn down, no shorts in wiring - nada. I don't doubt this guitar will last a long time. Again, I would prefer to have the Ric 330 and 360 as my main guitars, but this one would be the main solidbody and already has replaced all the other guitars as my most favored. I wouldn't use it exclusively only because it doesn't hit all those low-end tones with the same bite I like and it doesn't have a tremolo, which I use every once in a great blue moon. I don't take tons of guitars with me... I'd like to have two versatile ones to cover everything. I'd use this for the brighter and crunchier stuff on stage, if I didn't have the 330 or 360. Otherwise, I'd probably rely heavily on this in the studio. I could definitely use it for a gig with no backup if I wasn't playing super low or in need of a trem. It goes out of tune a little more than I imagined it would, but only slightly. Compared to other Rics I've played, those didn't have to be tuned very much. This one I have to tune about twice for everything I do, but I don't know if it's the individual guitar. I seem to notice it more if the guitar's been sitting for a day or two. The tuners hold pretty tight, overall. And I don't forsee having the major tuning problems of yore I've exerienced with other guitars. As long as you have a solid strap, these buttons should hold pretty firm. They're kinda thick at the top and specially-designed.

Got this from a pawn shop. Never had to deal with them and don't forsee ever having to. Seems like this was built to last. If Ric made some more affordable models of classic style guitars, they would be deities, but as is, I hear they're pretty good.

I've been playing for about 8 years. Most of the guitars I own are ones that I've built myself from spare parts as I could not afford things like the 330 and 360 straight away. Again, those are the best guitars I've ever played in my life and I'd even give up this one to own one of those. Still, this is a fabulous guitar and definitely, if I could never own one of the others, this is the next best thing. My heart would be broken if something happened to this one though. It's very unique and a gorgeous work of art and great tool, that actually inspires me to play differently, more expressively and creatively. I always wanted a Rickenbacker, based on my experiences with other models. This was the only one available and it was available on layway. It wasn't exactly what I expected, but that's not necessarily a bad thing because it's nearly as good as the others and has a personality of its own. Again if it had a tremolo and got more bite out of the low end, I'd probably forget all about those other Rics, altogether. This is great though and currently is my favorite guitar... that I own.