Rickenbacker 4003 Bass review

[wazkelly]

Around May last year I bought a 2008 Rickenbacker 4003 Bass via Gumtree from a Japanese guy in Melbourne who imports rare & high end used guitars from Japan and have finally got around to doing sound demo videos in both mono & stereo.

Let me introduce you all to my Fireglo Ric 4003....

[wazkelly]

Bridge PUP mounting ring was a bit corroded and was lucky to find the last one in the country. Also bought a plastic thumb rest insert so that there is now a more convenient place to rest your thumb when playing finger style....


Had a 1970's Azure Blue 4001 in mid 80's that was sold off once kids arrived on the scene and thought that was the best Bass I had ever played until this one arrived. It definitely sounds better than the 4001 due to having the push/pull switch on the Bridge PUP tone control.

[wazkelly]

This is what it sounds like in mono through my Hartke HD75

[wazkelly]

And now in stereo with Neck PUP through the Hartke HD 75 and Bridge PUP through a Vox VT40+


And yes, they are worth every cent. Truly unique sound and feel that is extremely hard to find in any other Bass. The neck is super thin and feels more like a 6 string guitar than a Bass and also has a super low action which gives it a very fast action.

[Andy40]

Dressed for Queensland winter I see Waz.

That is an effing cool bass Waz. It looks awesome. You can see form the vid that the neck is not awkward to play. I think the body is maple on those? should give it a clear solid brighter sound than normal?

[gavinturner]

A beautiful instrument Waz, and a great demo!

cheers,
Gav.

[billb]

There's just something about a fireglo Ric! Thanks for showing it!

[andrewdosborne]

Nice one Waz, lovely bass and ohhh that Ricky sound

[wazkelly]

Cheers Guys.

Yeah Andy, all maple and that adds to some of the weight and probably part of the reason why these sound so bright.

Qld winter? Can't be too far away but enjoying these 13-14 overnights up to 23-25 daytime temps.

[DrNomis_44]

Hey Wazkelly, that's a great looking and sounding bass guitar you scored, I noticed that to my ears it sounded bigger when it was played in stereo, they do definitely have a different tone to something like a P-Bass......good score mate!!!