Bill-R

Hi Just wanted to add... Still have my Rockinbetter and its still going strong. no problems with in in the last 4 years... only ever had to change strings, still stays in tune for months at a time.... I'm more that happy with it and it was well worth the money for the plesure i have got out it.... thanks to all the guys for the excelt discusion....in the end nothing proved... only that i have a good bass that has lasted 4 years so far... seems much harder top find them nowadays....Cheers...

I think with a Ric you have the chance to get really control your sound, if you use the stereo output like I have done in the past and put one of the pick-ups through something like a pod X3 and the other pick-up into the amp then you have so much more control than you do with a Fender of Gibson. the greater choice of blending is something all basses should offer. its something you have to work on. My Rockinbetter does not have a stereo and I have thought of changing the mono to stereo and doing it on my other basses too, It on my next to do list. I also find it easy to get a McCartney sound or something a bit heaver like Lemmy, on my Rockinbetter and you can get without using the stereo.

I changed the tone to a tone-switch with the "Ric vintage tone switch kit" and that made a really big difference on my Rockinbetter.would say it was well worth doing. is the problem with the tone you don't like or how it feels when you play!!! the Ric do take a bit getting use to as there fret board feels flatter. well it does to me!

What Rockinbetter do you have, the 20 fret one or the newer 22 fret one, with the 22 fret one you have high gain pickups and are really very good and they well balanced and not that different from the Ric ones, the older 20 fret Rockinbetters did not very powerful pickups and maybe a good idea changing them. you would be better fitting the "vintage/modern tone switch kit" as that makes much more difference than changing the pick-ups. I did change the bridge pick-up to a Ric but changed it back as I liked the sound better with the Rockinbetter stock pick-up and it works well with the tone switch too. another thing to do is change how it wired, with the Rockinbetter it goes pick-up to tone and volumes and then to switch, and I changed it to the Ric setting of pick-ups to switch to tone and volumes.

[quote name='Lifer' timestamp='1361991105' post='1994158'] Guess I'll find out tomorrow While searching for it I read a lot of the Rickenfaker threads and specifically their use of litigation which made me wonder...how do Rockinbetter get away with it? [/quote] they get away with it as the do not have Rickenbacker on the truss rod cover. in the Uk the truss rod cover and headstock are tradmarked to ric since 2002. the body was never tradmarked in the UK. think its the same with Reblerockers in Austraila. both Rockinbetter and Reblerocker 20 fret basses are made in China in the Tokia factory. the 22 fret Rockingbetters are made in [color=#000000]Indonesia and again are made in a Tokia factory but they wont admit they make them, they are imported by Tokia Uk into the Uk and Tokia Austrailia for the Reblerocker. In the USA the importing of both basses is banned under there trade laws.[/color]

hi mine is 42.93mm at the bottom of the nut and 42.00mm at the top, mine is also the 22 fret and it has only one truss rod but its a double action truss rod. its is said to be better than than the two single actions truss rods. the older 20 fret Rockinbetters and Reblerocker do not have the double action truss rods. if you want to learn any more let me know!

i would also check it not the stereo output socket, it acts like a switch putting both pickups to the mono output. my friend had that on his jetglo 4003 and i changed the stereo socket and that worked, he never ever used the stereo output.

have to agree with iiipopes about not much changes over time with the trubass 88s, had then on my 5 string fretless for around 3 years now and still sound great. maybe not as much sustain as when new! but still ring out well. i have them on my beatles viola bass and they are only a year old and do sustan a bit more than my fretless. but even after 3 years of playing the 88s still sound to good to change on my fretless. i realy love the double bass sound of the 88s.

[quote name='Musky' timestamp='1355856018' post='1903775'] I had thought your email had put this one to bed. And for the record, Tokai don't own a factory in China. Your email said that it was made in the same factory as the (cheap) Tokai (branded) instruments, the same as doubtless many other brands originate from the same factory. I'm not sure why there is the urgent need to associate the Rockinbetters with Chinese made instruments licensed by Tokai. It's probably doing Rockinbetter instruments a disservice. [/quote] have you any proof they dont own or part own the factory in China, they did say (Tokai) that they had sent over there top men to set up a factory in China, why do that if its only contracting out you guitars, and why is there a Ric copy shown in the Japan factory when they don't sell ric copys under the tokai brand since 1984. the China made Tokai all come from the factory that also makes Rockinbetter, we have no proof off any other Guitar maker having guitars being made there. that is all we really know so how can Tokai say that have no idea where Rockingbetters are made when all there dealers sell then under the tokai brand and say openly that there made in the Tokai China factory. there is more to this than meets the eye! here is a link to the Tokai China site, [url="http://www.tokaichina.com/"]http://www.tokaichina.com/[/url] i do not understand Chinese so I only looked at the pictures but it does talk about Tokai and no other maker!!! what ever the truth is, Rockinbetter is a very good bass and plays and sounds good and you are right it really does not matter as it does not change the bass in any way. here is what is said about them:- Part of the new to Guitars Plus 'Rebelrocker' range. These fine copy guitars are all based on famous Rickenbacker guitars and are made by the Tokai Chinese factory, and originally available only in the UK. As Rickenbacker have not been available via a distributor since 1999, it makes sense to have these high level lookalikes made available to the Australian guitar and bass players. This bass is available in 'Fireglow' also. Sounds authentic - even when unplugged. The Ace of Spades!!! Lemmy out of here.

I also agree that the RBX170 is a great starter bass. i have one and over the 5 years i'f had it it the most played bass i have, and still like its just out the shop. you can also set the strings very low if that what you like.

[quote name='BetaFunk' timestamp='1355698762' post='1901652'] It does look nice. Nice detailed photos of all the guitars and basses but none of the front side of the headstock. [/quote] not the same bass as the rockinbetter. the pick guard is about an inch further away from the bridge pick-up. no checked binding and it also has the twin ric type stereo outputs. the rockinbetter has a single output. its the older 20 fret model. all the rockinbetters since 2010 have been 22 fret. in the picture of the black hardware one, you have a black no name TRC. the maple one the grain seemed not to match so not sure if its a thru neck or a set neck. hard to tell with the picture. other than that it looks not bad.

[quote name='BetaFunk' timestamp='1355696070' post='1901583'] That's correct. I've been in two guitar shops recently that had new Rockinbetters on display but didn't stock a single Tokai. [/quote] I got my Rockinbetter from a shop, Rich tone music and they said they were a tokai dealer but that had no Tokai guitars in there shop or listed on there site, maybe they only stock Rockinbetter as there Tokai guitars.

Just got an E-mail back. Hi Bill, Well it's a little surprising that Tokai Japan have told you that they have nothing to do with the RebelRocker/Rockinbetter basses, but not totally surprising. They're actually made in a Chinese factory. The same one that makes the Chinese Tokai guitars. So technically Tokai Japan have nothing to do with them apart from distribution. Hope that helps. Cheers, [size=3] [b][font="'Century Gothic"][size="2"][color="black"][color=black][size=2][b]Dean Bennison[/b][/size][/color][/color][/size][/font][/b][/size][size=3] [size="2"][color="black"][color=black][size=2][font="'Century Gothic"]Store Manager[/font][/size][/color][/color][/size][/size]

BigRedX you do not have an e-mail address for Jade Australia. i click on contacts and it says "E-mail" but when i click nothing happens. i would like to send them an e-mail and ask them about any conection with Rebelrocker and Tokai and see what they say. it you can get there e-mail could you let me have it and i'll ask them about it maybe you could ask too. thanks Bill

[quote name='BigRedX' timestamp='1355690215' post='1901453'] Jade Australia distribute lots of other guitar brands. You just have to be looking at the [url="http://www.jadeaustralia.com.au"]right web site[/url]. [/quote] Yes they do sell other brands but do not list them in the Tokai Australia web site. they are under there own name. if you open up the Tokai new models it lists Rebelrocker but no other make apart from tokai. if you watch the video of the Tokai factory on the link you gave, near the very end of the film there is a guy playing a RG43. the strange thing is there is no rg43 listed in the Tokai guitars only the Rebelrocker. if rebelrocker are a diffrent make then why put them on there tokai site and not list them under Rebelrocker. why show a rg43 being played at the end of the video about the Tokai factory if there is no branded Rg43 made by tokai.