Rickenbacker is one of a oldest brand in the manufacture of electric guitars. Their semi-acoustic guitars were manufactured famed by The Beatles in the 1960s, while their bass guitars became a staple of 1970s rock. A house is headquartered around Santa Ana, California, and all of its production will require place there. Of the "Big Three" Our contries electric guitar makers (Fender, Gibsin, & Rickenbacker), it alone doesn't put its brand on instruments made by more, normally East Asian, business firm.

A company wwhen founded as a Electro String Instrument Corporation by Adolph Rickenbacher and George Beauchamp in 1931 to sell electric "Hawaiian" guitars designed by Beauchamp. These instruments, nicknamed "frying pans" due to their hanker necks & round bodies, were a number 1 firm-bodied electric guitars, though it were non standard guitars, but a lap-steel type. It experienced vast pickups using a pair of horseshoe magnets that overarch the top of the strings.

Rickenbacher (shortly subsequently changed to 'Rickenbacker' to make sure your not German connotations in weak of the world wars) continued to specialize in hawaiian guitar swell into a 1950s, but sustaining a rock and roll boom they shifted towards producing standard guitars, each acoustic & electric car. Around 1956 Rickenbacker introduced 2 instruments using a "neck through body" construction that was to get the standard feature of the company's products - a Combo 400 guitar & a model 4000 bass.

Inside 1959, Rickenbacker introduced its "Capri" series, including a double-cutaway semi-acoustic guitars which would turn into a notable 300 series. Witharound 1960 in Hamburg the then-unknown John Lennon bought a 325 Capri, which he would utilize throughout a early times of The Beatles. By 1963 George Harrison had bought a 425, however continued to like his Gretsch "Country Gent".

Inside 1964 Rickenbacker developed an electric xii-string guitar using an innovative headstock project that enabled 100% twelve machine heads to be fitted onto the standard-length headstock by alternately mounting pairs of machine heads at best-angles to the more. A 2nd exemplary 360/12 ever mass produced was given as a gift to Harrison. This instrument became the key section of the Beatles' healthy in ''A Hard Day's Night and Help!'' and was used by Harrison throughout his life.

Rickenbackers were adopted by more Sixties luminary, including Roger McGuinn of The Byrds and Pete Townshend of The Who, but it fell away from fashion in the Seventies, though Rickenbacker basses remained pro. In the future Rickenbacker guitarist include Tom Petty, Paul Weller and Bruce Foxton (bass) of The Jam, Peter Buck of R.E.M., Dan Lukacinsky of The Suicide Machines, Johnny Marr of The Smiths, Tom Gabel of Against Me!, Lloyd Cole, Dave Gregory of XTC, Thom Yorke of Radiohead, Pete Doherty and Carl Barat of The Libertines, and Marty Willson-Piper of The Church.

A 4000 series were a 1st Rickenbacker bass guitars. A 4000 was followed per super popular 4001 (withwithin 1961), a 4002 (which was introduced in 1977, however discontinued fallowing Hundred or even and then system were produced), a 4008 (an 8-string model introduced in the mid-'70s), a 4003 (around astir 1980 & however inside production within 2005), & last a 4004 series. These basses, along by owning a Fender basses, were a staple of Seventies & 1980s rock. the instrument has mass produced a major contribution to rock-and-roll, getting been utilized by creative person including Chris Squire from Yes, Geddy Lee from Rush, Lemmy Kilmister from Motörhead, Cliff Burton from Metallica, Roger Glover from Deep Purple and Paul McCartney, to name two or three. Paul Simonon of The Clash used a melanise Rickenbacker that he received as a gift from either Patti Smith.

Rickenbacker basses have a distinctive tone. A 4000 bass has neck-across construction for additional firm sustain imputable further rigidity. A 3000 series processed from either a mid-1970s to mid-1980s were inexpensive instruments using bolt-in necks. Paul McCartney used a 4001 in Revolver (1966) & off-and-in after.

Numerous Rickenbackers - two guitars & basses - come equipped to become compatible by owning the "Rick-O-Sound" unit vithe a pair of stereo output jack sockets, which allows the different pickups of the instrument to exist as attached to different results units or even amplifiers. A second foible of Rickenbackers is a have of deuce truss rods (like than the common 1) to right twists, also when curvature, in the neck.