Ric newby has a few 4003 and 360 questions for group

[Freddy]

Hi, y'all.

I recently fulfilled a lifelong fantasy and picked up a 360 (6 string)
and a 4003. I've always been a Les Paul guy until now, though I have
17 guitars and only two are LPs, but since I started playing the 360
I'm just totally in love. I intend to get a 360-12 in the next few
months, if I can get a decent price for my Gretsch Country Club.
Anyway, I have a few questions I'm hoping someone here can help me
with.

1) Don't boo and hiss, please, but I removed the metal piece that I
believe is called "the horse shoe" from the 4003 because it's right
where my hand wants to be when I play bass. I thought I had seen a
post here saying people just take that off all the time, but now I
have my doubts, since it left a big crater with a razor sharp rim.
The question is DO people remove this, or is there a good reason for
it being there, and if they do remove it, are there any suggestions
for making it less lethal?

2) For the 360, is there any real reason to buy the "Ric-O-Sound"
cable? What exactly does it do? When I look for descriptions of it
at Musician's Friend or anywhere else, it doesn't make it clear what
it does.

3) Does anyone know what basic amp settings and effects Peter Case
(Plimsouls) generally used with his Ric? I loved his sound and would
like to add it to my arsenal.

That's about it. Thanks in advance for any help you can give me.

Freddy

[Richard Melville]

Pickguardian makes a beautiful "filler" for the area around the 4003 bridge
pickup. Made expressly for people who don't like the factory cover.
http://www.pickguardian.com/pickguardian/RICBridgePUPlate.html

Ric-O-Sound basically splits your pickup output signal so you can amp the
two pickups independently. You can get some interesting effects with it.

Post by Freddy
Hi, y'all.
I recently fulfilled a lifelong fantasy and picked up a 360 (6 string)
and a 4003. I've always been a Les Paul guy until now, though I have
17 guitars and only two are LPs, but since I started playing the 360
I'm just totally in love. I intend to get a 360-12 in the next few
months, if I can get a decent price for my Gretsch Country Club.
Anyway, I have a few questions I'm hoping someone here can help me
with.
1) Don't boo and hiss, please, but I removed the metal piece that I
believe is called "the horse shoe" from the 4003 because it's right
where my hand wants to be when I play bass. I thought I had seen a
post here saying people just take that off all the time, but now I
have my doubts, since it left a big crater with a razor sharp rim.
The question is DO people remove this, or is there a good reason for
it being there, and if they do remove it, are there any suggestions
for making it less lethal?
2) For the 360, is there any real reason to buy the "Ric-O-Sound"
cable? What exactly does it do? When I look for descriptions of it
at Musician's Friend or anywhere else, it doesn't make it clear what
it does.
3) Does anyone know what basic amp settings and effects Peter Case
(Plimsouls) generally used with his Ric? I loved his sound and would
like to add it to my arsenal.
That's about it. Thanks in advance for any help you can give me.
Freddy

[Frank Piotrowski]

from - http://www.edromanguitars.com/guitar/rickenbacker/parts_ric.htm


Rick-O-Sound Output Jack and the R.O.S. Kit

Rickenbacker's deluxe instruments are equipped with two output jacks. One
jack is used with a standard cord, and is simply for normal mono use. The
other jack is a Rick-O-Sound effects output, designed for use with a stereo
equipped amplifier or with a Rick-O-Sound kit. These two output jacks should
never be used at the same time.

Rick-O-Sound can be used to produce special effects and multi-channel output
when used with a stereo amplifier, a dual channel amplifier, or two separate
amplifiers. Additionally, Rick-O-Sound can produce many other special
effects with the use of external effects devices. Different external effects
may be run through each amplifier or channel, producing many unique tonal
variations.

Plug the Rick-O-Sound kit cable into the Rick-O-Sound output jack on the
instrument. Then, plug one standard mono cable into each of the two sides of
the Rick-O-Sound kit box. Run each of the two lines into either:

Two separate amplifiers, or each channel of a dual channel amplifier.

Rick-O-Sound provides a choice between three different types of effects at
one time. With the pickup selector on the bass pickup, Rick-O-Sound puts out
a lush and full bass sound. With the pickup selector in the middle position,
a beautiful blend of highs and lows can be achieved, much like a clean
chorus effect. The tonal separation is particularly good when using two
amplifiers. With the pickup selector in the treble position, Rick-O-Sound
produces a bright and full ringing lead tone. An example set-up might have a
soft, full jazz sound with plenty of reverb at the bass setting in the
amplifier or channel one, a loud and distorted heavy rock sound at the
treble position in the amplifier or channel two, and a big pop rock stereo
chorus type sound as a combination of the two in the middle position using
both amplifiers or channels. Experiment with the endless unique stereo
variations which Rick-O-Sound can produce. The results are surprising.

Special Note: Rick-O-Sound is designed to be used optimally only with the
equipment described above. Use of the Rick-O-Sound jack with other
equipment, such as a stereo Y-cord, may result in an significant loss in
treble or undesired hum.

[Burnham Treezdown]

Post by Frank Piotrowski
Special Note: Rick-O-Sound is designed to be used optimally only with the
equipment described above. Use of the Rick-O-Sound jack with other
equipment, such as a stereo Y-cord, may result in an significant loss in
treble or undesired hum.

What's so special about the ROS kit that they include this warning? It's true,
if you use a dual-conductor cable without separate shielding for each conductor
you'll get a lot of cross-talk between channels and the same kind of treble loss
you'd get from any cheap cable but this warning makes it sound like there's more
involved to their kit?

[JangleRocker]

Just use good quality cable and connectors and you can build your own. RIC
has stopped producing the ROS kit and has said as much. I think they
included that warning to try and sell more of their own kits.

On Sun, 10 Dec 2006 15:20:42 GMT, "Frank Piotrowski"

Post by Frank Piotrowski
Special Note: Rick-O-Sound is designed to be used optimally only with the
equipment described above. Use of the Rick-O-Sound jack with other
equipment, such as a stereo Y-cord, may result in an significant loss in
treble or undesired hum.

What's so special about the ROS kit that they include this warning? It's true,
if you use a dual-conductor cable without separate shielding for each conductor
you'll get a lot of cross-talk between channels and the same kind of treble loss
you'd get from any cheap cable but this warning makes it sound like there's more
involved to their kit?

[Richard Melville]

Ed Roman knows not of what he speaks in this case.

Using a box to split the signals is actually MORE prone to noise pickup than
would be a properly designed split cable such as that available from
Procables N Sound.

I built my own (noiseless) ROS box by using a stereo jack and two mono jacks
installed in a conductive box. The box is easier to use than a split cable
because you can use common cables and with the box, you can change cable
lengths more easily to accommodate various amp placements. Again, the caveat
is that you need to do a really good job of shielding the contents of the
box to get a good result.

Post by Frank Piotrowski
from - http://www.edromanguitars.com/guitar/rickenbacker/parts_ric.htm
Rick-O-Sound Output Jack and the R.O.S. Kit
Rickenbacker's deluxe instruments are equipped with two output jacks. One
jack is used with a standard cord, and is simply for normal mono use. The
other jack is a Rick-O-Sound effects output, designed for use with a
stereo equipped amplifier or with a Rick-O-Sound kit. These two output
jacks should never be used at the same time.
Rick-O-Sound can be used to produce special effects and multi-channel
output when used with a stereo amplifier, a dual channel amplifier, or two
separate amplifiers. Additionally, Rick-O-Sound can produce many other
special effects with the use of external effects devices. Different
external effects may be run through each amplifier or channel, producing
many unique tonal variations.
Plug the Rick-O-Sound kit cable into the Rick-O-Sound output jack on the
instrument. Then, plug one standard mono cable into each of the two sides
Two separate amplifiers, or each channel of a dual channel amplifier.
Rick-O-Sound provides a choice between three different types of effects at
one time. With the pickup selector on the bass pickup, Rick-O-Sound puts
out a lush and full bass sound. With the pickup selector in the middle
position, a beautiful blend of highs and lows can be achieved, much like a
clean chorus effect. The tonal separation is particularly good when using
two amplifiers. With the pickup selector in the treble position,
Rick-O-Sound produces a bright and full ringing lead tone. An example
set-up might have a soft, full jazz sound with plenty of reverb at the
bass setting in the amplifier or channel one, a loud and distorted heavy
rock sound at the treble position in the amplifier or channel two, and a
big pop rock stereo chorus type sound as a combination of the two in the
middle position using both amplifiers or channels. Experiment with the
endless unique stereo variations which Rick-O-Sound can produce. The
results are surprising.
Special Note: Rick-O-Sound is designed to be used optimally only with the
equipment described above. Use of the Rick-O-Sound jack with other
equipment, such as a stereo Y-cord, may result in an significant loss in
treble or undesired hum.

[Freddy]

Thanks for the info, everyone. I now know enough to know I don't
think I need the ROS cable, and I'm ordering the bridge plate and
pickup guard from Pickguardian. That's what I was hoping the answer
would be. I really appreciate it.

Freddy