vax2002

I had a Hondo pro mkii, not a bad bass, but walked in my local music shop that was going bust at 5 mins to 5, they closed at 5 for the last time and walked out with a USA fender precision for £115 in 1983, all the money I had in my bank, it had a ticket on of £675, I just took it home and stared at it all night, frightened to even put my greasy hands on it. The guy in the store, recognised me as someone who bought everything from the store, strings, picks, the hondo mkii, I had top go in every week as he let me have the hondo at £10 a week and called me forward from the massing crowd of bargain grabbers. He took it off the wall and said, screw the receivers, I know how much you want a fender. I think it made his day to see my face as I ran my hands over the face of the bass. I think we both shed a few tears The bass lives in my loft, even I need an appointment to touch it.

Unfortunately the pickups fitted on the 70's bass and the re-issue suck, very thin. The 70's re-issue mim jazz is probably one of the nicest jazz bases I have ever seen and played.

I have played Ricks for 27 years off and on, now, we often hear of "the sound" they do have a distinctive clank and growl, but that can also be the problem, if you want a smooth finger bass sound, then forget the Rick, they are a very 1 trick pony soundwise. Also they hang very funny, to be comfortable you have to hang them high or low, you can not get them where you can get a jazz or precision bass. Often you see most people move them on after the urge to have one has settled and they find out that it has no versitility at all sound wise and is akward to play live. You hear of famous players, but how many stuck with them ? not many is the answer. If the band suits that sound, say a mod band, or a sixties band then they are ideal. With the advent of bass effects the sound is easily replicated with some good duncan pickups and a compressor and eq, so that angle is even under attack these days. Then we move on to the price. Here is where you often sit and wonder why they are valued so high, the bridges can bend up, new strings can sound very dull very quickly, yet sparkle when swapped to other basses and the finish can mark very easily. But if it is a Rick you crave then only 1 thing will quench your thirst, ..

They were the amps that just about broke Trace Elliot, if you had a bad one, they rarely stayed working for long and often mid gig was it's chosen time. I once had a hnc tech from a university look at mine and his opinion was someone in design had misclaculated the voltage in in pre-output stage and the problem woul re-occur constantly. With that I dump it. It was replaced with a white front peavey fire bass 10 years ago, that just works week in and week out.