Leaderboard

Well, it's my first New NBD for a while and I have sold a lot of gear recently.... I've had one of these before and as much as I loved it, I couldn't gel with it for some reason. Still, I had a Ric-shaped itch that I knew I'd have to scratch again one day. I knew the 4003 wasn't right for me as I struggle with the top bezel edge digging in to my forearm. The 4003S is a totally different beast though and actually sits very comfortably for me. I heard recently that Rickenbacker was not going to make any more instruments in Midnight Blue, which to me was a real shame as it's a colour I love. Anyway, after a few fruitless Google searches I managed to find one: brand new at a ridiculously low price. Given the likelihood of finding another one any time soon, I decided I'd take a chance and order it online. Past experience has told me that online ordering is a bit like a reverse version of Russian Roulette, in that five chambers are loaded with not particularly well set up or well cared for instruments and I generally always try before I buy, especially with Rics and their, ummm, folibles. In this instance though I was lucky: perfect condition and finish (no QC issues here), low action, no tail lift, quiet electrics etc. As always, the treble pickup was a lot louder than the neck one so after a bit of adjustment I got that lovely warm "fizzy" Ric sound that I love and that nothing else comes close to replicating. I put on a set of TI Flats and it's a beaut. Haters gonna hate and all that, but to me this is the best Ric I've played and hopefully we'll have a good few years together. Maybe I should call her Taylor...

I'm normally okay with that. My problem EVERY freakin' time is the guitar stand coming with me when I lift my bass to start a set....

My fave spoonerism? "You're a fart smella" - a compliment apparently.

To keep the brass sealed I'll use a spray lacquer, this is the final result. These are a great functional bridge IMO, and I'm more than happy to keep this on the bass as I'm also replacing the nut with a chunkier brass version.

Then, after levelling off the base, going slightly larger and rout the inset edge for the flush fit cover..

My rig from last night. ACG Finn with LaBella flats (what a revelation they are!) Ashdown Little Bastard 30W valve head Barefaced One10 and Super Compact. Astonishingly loud and full, a big fat creamy bass tone all night long.

I'd just let it go mate. You seem to have built up a resentment over nothing there, and its poisoning you. Why don't you share their social media advertising, saying that you played at the festival last year and you wish them luck for this year. You get promo, the festival gets promo, the charity gets more money and you get a nice warm feeling that you've done some good in the world. Everyone's a winner baby!!

I would recommend the original classic ska ... if you can get the feel for this kind of stuff then the other stuff will come easy

;Pressure Drop' would be a great start - just learn one or two numbers properly and get the feel of how it's done .......... musically it's simple enough but different. If you can get hold of a copy, Club Ska 67 is a good value album to practice with - Whine and Grine Club Ska 67 is the same + one track extra - Amazon have one for £3.25 😎

My birthplace, the Whitstable and Tankerton Maternity Hospital.

That effing strap twist alway gets me. I swear there's a strap consipracy going on, and the strap knows it winds me up. It's not like it's just one strap, either. I have around 4 and the cunning bustards all do it. Like bungee cords that always manage to hit you in the bluddy face, the strap twists out of sheer bluddy mindedness. Accidently kicking the muthas down the stairs doesnt help at all. They're so light they just shake it off. I may take my Black & Decker heat gun to the next one and see how it likes that bad boy

It is actually a trick caused by perspective. The neck has a really nasty twist in it and is approx 6" wide! 😀

Ah, yes! I saw this over on the Dingwall megathread. A lovely beast - congrats. I really must do a NBD thread for my newly acquired Super P...

If you’re going to play a ska set , this is a must ,it’s not too difficult and a great rhythm 🙂

I have a spare old one, if you want one to match the tarnished look of the other 3! PM me your address if you want it.

Some favourites

Very nice Nick, nicest colour on a Rick by far.....I am a bit biased though.

This is my Aria after the body refinish:

Very pretty colour!

Also on this topic of Relic, remember buying a brand new shiny bass is a hard thing, the first “ding” in that new pristine instrument is always gutting. - Which is another good reason to buy a pre relic’d bass. A. Because relic’s look badass B. To the crowd you’ve played that bass more than eaten hot dinners C. Because even if you ding it or dent it, it will all blend in, you will be no sadder than when you bought it, because the dents won’t look out of place unlike on a non Relic version.

One word: Catholicism. Left = the Devil = evil. I still have at least one friend who averts her eyes when she sees me doing something with the 'wrong' hand, and who is happy that her left-handed older brother was forced by family and school to learn to write right-handed. Even if she's never been able to read his handwriting as a result. Thank God for computers, huh? We went to high school together; similar backgrounds, main difference between us being, she and her family are religious, I and mine are not. We're all well over 50. I do hope things have changed now.

I’m on the mobile just now , I daren’t try edit the poll on it as I’ll bollox it all up , I’ll try in the morning on a real machine

Sounds good to me. Maybe Cato needs to wear a support with all the bollox he's coming out with., None intended Cato.

Lush. I think that blue colour goes nice with the reddish Ric' fretboard, which has shown well in the photographs. 😎 So are you saying it's comfortable because of the slightly rounded edges on the "S" body, vs the sharp edges of a bound body? It is very lovely... give me a shout if you decide to sell it. Local collection not a problem! 😜

They did disappear for a while, then came back. I stopped taking them seriously when I saw an interview with the owner, whose name escapes me, where said that he got the inspiration for his speakers in a vision from God. I might have thought better of it had he said it came in a vision while doing peyote and listening to Clapton.

If you want to sound authentic it never hurts to spend a lot of time listening to authentic recordings, whatever the genre in question - the main question I would be asking in this instance is what sort of sound is he trying to create, or this or something in between from Brit two tone era Different folks have somewhat different terms of reference depending usually on how old they are...

I used to find that with records. The time spent searching in record shops ( no interweb back then) and tracking down pieces of obscura was equally as pleasurable as finally placing the needle on the vinyl in question, sometimes more so

Absolutely this. I know it sounds clichéd but it really is about the feel. You can play all the right notes in the right order at the right time, but unless you're really feeling it it doesn't sound authentic.

I like Elixir's as the coating gives them a slippery feel - I've got NYXL's on another bass - they sound great but the Elixir's are better . The DR DT drop tuning strings are also really comfortable I've also just tried a set of D'addario half rounds which I really like and they might be the compromise you are looking for.( They do seem to get extremely mixed reviews though).

'Twas a bit surreal - I managed to keep calm (my son was only five at the time and I didn't want to totally lose it in front of him) - I took the bass to Guitar Guitar to get it checked out straight away (I walked there to calm down - only 25 mins from me) and Bob assured me that it could all be easily sorted. Was much calmer when I got home!

We play Mamma a Mia and used to play Does Your Mother Know. Both have fun baselines to play.

Ah I see. I usually really like those.

@Dazed agreed - cost difference I eluded to was about man hours to produce. its like car colours - got a new car recently, went with stock red - didn’t care enough for an extra £500 for a different colour. I think he got the Ding

I have the same bass and it's superb. How did you balance the pickups? Did you lower the bridge pickup or raise the height of the neck pickup or a combination of both? I need to do the same with mine.

Just got in from our first gig of the year - Cockfosters Football Club. A Deadhead invasion of this quiet leafy London suburb! We played a couple of lengthy sets which were well received by the knowledgeable audience - we played a couple of encores and they would have had us carry on for another hour or two, but the venue had to close at midnight. First gig with my Ibanez SR1206, sounded great through Ashdown ABM 600 & Barefaced Super Twin. Small venue so none of the instruments went through the PA. I received quite a few compliments on both the sound of my bass and my playing, which doesn't happen too often. Next one's in Putney on Good Friday.

JBL does make some unusual dual coil drivers, which they call Differential Drive. Instead of the usual one coil over another on the same former they have a front coil and a rear coil, along with front and rear neo magnets that don't use a pole piece, front plate or back plate, because they're small enough to fit inside the coils. I don't think they have the ability to choose between series and parallel wiring of the coils.

I’ve been playing for longer than I like to admit. I am no virtuoso but I think I am a decent player. I know my way round the fingerboard and when in a band situation can play AND sing to a reasonably high level. I still seem to fall to pieces when I’m flying solo with potential critics listening. This is a mental thing and certainly not down to the fact I’m not good enough

I also recently acquired this Pro II Laser Electric, but I've not tried it out yet as it's in the UK and I'm in Finland I've been after one for a while after not being able to afford one in the 80s