Re tone difference on between Ricky 1935 and 1938 B1's

George Rout · Post by **George Rout** » 18 Mar 2022 5:24 pm

A non-computer friend in Nova Scotia has the above Ricky B1's. According to him, his 1935 Ricky has a greater treble sound, whereas the 1938 model has a noticeably more base sound. Can any folks comment on this please? Thank you.

Geo

Glenn Wilde · Post by **Glenn Wilde** » 19 Mar 2022 2:07 pm

Not sure if you mean B6, are we talking Bakelite's? If so, that makes perfect sense as the earlier one has no tone control so it would be wide open. Tone control capacitors have an affect even when turned all the way up.

Jeff Highland · Post by **Jeff Highland** » 19 Mar 2022 3:00 pm

Or the early one may have been rewired. to a "modern" wiring configuration rather than the 100k pot variable loading scheme.

John Dahms · Post by **John Dahms** » 19 Mar 2022 4:24 pm

In my opinion, my 2 1935 B6 Rics are a little brighter than my later ones with 2 pots that load the signal a little more. That's ok since I always play through amps that have tone controls.
Remember Fender Stratocasters have the lead pickup wired bypassing the tone pots to add brightness as well.

George Rout · Post by **George Rout** » 19 Mar 2022 4:30 pm

Hello Glen and Jeff and thank you both kindly for the response. And yes, I meant B6 (I have one myself).
Geo

George Rout · Post by **George Rout** » 19 Mar 2022 6:32 pm

Thank you also John, I'll pass that data along to my buddy.

Geo

Jeff Highland · Post by **Jeff Highland** » 19 Mar 2022 10:26 pm

I'd say the main thing to take away from this, is that if he is dissatisfied with either one, there are fairly easy and reversable rewiring options to move the tone in one direction or the other.

David Ball · Post by **David Ball** » 20 Mar 2022 3:00 am

They weren't bakelites, but I had several model 59s from the same era at the same time. They were identical in terms of wiring, etc, but had completely different sounds. From these and other Ricks I've had over the years, I think there's quite a bit of difference in pickups from one to the next--maybe tightness of windings, maybe one has lost a little more magnetism than the other. Maybe a combination of factors...

Dave

Noah Miller · Post by **Noah Miller** » 20 Mar 2022 3:56 am

The magnets in these pickups tend to weaken over time, and the coils rarely have exactly the same numbers of turns. Two B6 pickups assembled on the same day in 1936 may not have sounded identical then, and they may have drifted apart over time as the magnets aged. And yes, the wiring also plays a part.

That's not to say that no trends exist - just that you'll need more than two samples to demonstrate one.