Re: What do you like/need in a bass?
Part of the problem is that, when gripping a plectrum, the wrist angle causes the forearm to be tense. Geddy Lee plays plays a lot with his second finger. Doing this straightens out the wrist angle and relaxes the forearm so that it does not chafe against the bound edge of the body.
This is true, but I never thought about it in terms of the forearm. I have limited range of motion in my wrists, and it's one of the reasons I use fingers instead of a pick the vast majority of the time. Even when a particular song or riff for me is better served with a pick, I often just hold my index fingertip between my thumb and middle finger, and use that for a pick. It works well for me.
With my Rickenbacker, as well as for my BC Rich Mockingbird and a couple other basses, the sharp 90-degree angle edge of the body was never a problem when standing and using a strap. On the other hand, sitting down and playing on those basses caused me pain if I played for any length of time. I eventually sanded down the edge on my Mockingbird and a Washburn, and it made a huge difference. Kinda hard to do that on a bass with binding, though.
Same deal dude. I got infatuated by ricks but when I got to try one it let me down. Stock am std fender p bass blew it away for half the price. Then I did more research and found most rick owners with a couple of exceptions heavily modded their ricks to get their sound. They basically got it for appearance. Lee, Lemmy Burton, Glover etc... And then most of them switched instruments entirely. And they have some questionable design choices. Probably gonna get a lot of flack for my lack of faith in the rick but hey, you're not alone.
People have the right to like what they like, so even as a certified Rick-lover, you're not going to get any flack from me about that. However...
I have heard that before, about Ricks being modded or processed to get that sound. I never understood it, though. When I first got my first Rickenbacker, I was able to get Geddy Lee's Rick sound, plugged straight into a regular bass amp, with no modification whatsoever.
Of course, that didn't stop me from tinkering with it. I experimented with swapping stuff out -- not because I was disappointed with the sound, but because I had GAS, and not much money, and not enough discipline to save up for another bass. The thing I found interesting, more than anything else, was that swapping pickups didn't change the sound. I went from stock Rickups to Carvin 22-pole humbuckers, and I still got that quintessential Rick tone. (There was a notable increase in output, but not a notable change in tone.)
I have never been a traditionalist in that sense. If something has more market value with the original doodad on it, but IMO the aftermarket doodad is better, I'll swap it out without hesitation.
