Here is a really clean 1980 Rickenbacker 4001 in one of the best finishes ever to roll out of the Rickenbacker favorite: Fireglo! This bass was produced at the Rickenbacker factory in Santa Ana California, U.S.A. in September 1980. The bass is 100% original, super solid and ready to go-it needs nothing.
The body is clean and the finish really does glow! There is some flame in the body-it is more visible on the backside. The Fireglo fade was done really well on this bass. it is very even and has an amazing gradient. The binding is clean on the front and backside. The neck through body design supplies the ultimate in resonance and sustain.
The neck itself is smooth and perfectly straight. The profile is best described as a Vintage Slim-D shape. The nut measures 1.67" wide and the neck depth measures 9.26 at the 1st fret and 919" at the 12th fret. It feels very comfortable and plays like a guitar. The original tuners all function smoothly and the bass keeps perfect tune. The headstock and logo display excellent! The firego finish fades in the middle on the headstock for a dramatic effect-again, someone did a stellar job at Rickenbacker the day this bass was created. The rosewood fingerboard is clean and shines nicely with a smooth as glass touch. The triangle position markers look great with a touch of vintage mojo. The frets are nice and tall and crisp-see photos. The action is set low for an easy and fast playing experience. Currently the string height is set at .010" at the 1st fret and .065" at the 12th fret. The bass plays like butter up and down the fingerboard.
The pickups both have an excellent signal and produce the classic Rickenbacker tone: deep warm growl in the neck position with a bright and cutting bridge pickup. Amazing clarity. The pickups read 7.94 ohms in the neck and 9.41 ohms in the bridge. The original potentiometers date to the 30th week (late July) of 1980. The whole harness is all original and very nice-just like the rest of the guitar. The bridge is fully adjustable and the tailpiece is clean.
The bass is fun to play and easy to wield. You can feel the resonance as soon as you pick it up and start playing. It's prefect for the studio, on stage or even just sitting on the couch; coming up with that new killer bass line. The original hardshell case is included and it is pretty clean and nice also.
