Rickenbacker 360 12-String Electric Guitar 

Comments about Rickenbacker 360 12-String Electric Guitar:

I've been playing, mostly rhythm, for a long long time. I own several electric and electric-acoustic guitars to include three 12-strings. I've been looking at Rickenbacker 12 strings for over 10 years, but just couldn't rationalize the price for another 12-string. I'm glad I finally broke down in February and bought a 360/12 Ruby Red. I just love it. Played it right out of the case. I hardly ever have to retune it. It's gorgeous and feels and plays great. Chris at Private Reserve was terrific to deal with. It was well packed and arrived at my Army Mail Room in Germany through the US Postal System in six days. Thanks Chris and MF.

Comments about Rickenbacker 360 12-String Electric Guitar:

I have not owned a Rick 12 for over twenty years so to have one again is a blessing. I have to say that the guys at MF were great in getting this out to me on the east coast from a snow storm in the midwest. when I pulled my Fireglow 360 out of the box and opened the case it was like christmas. It took me 5 Mins to tune it up and she was singing through the marshall like I remembered. I think down the road I will put the toester pick-ups on when I change the strings but for now all I can say is if you love the sound of Rick 12s and have the bread to buy it go for it. P.S. I was looking at second hand Ricks from the GC but I was afraid of the condition I would find it in. Buy this their was a reason that Harrison and McGuine loved the Rickerbacker 12.

Comments about Rickenbacker 360 12-String Electric Guitar:

I always wanted one of these. The Byrds were a favorite band when I was a kid. And the way George Harrison played it. And later, Tom Petty.

Beautiful sound, gorgeous looks (I got the mapleglo), but a few difficulties. I debated about sending it back.

You all know what this thing can sound like. There are numerous YouTube vids of demos. And this Ric (or similar models) have been used by famous performers (you know who they are). The jangle - the chime - you can't manufacture it with floor pedals (not even the Jangle Box). This is a sound that you can't mimic with any other guitar I know of. I only found two problems with it:

Buzz on the low E. And it gets much worse when I tune to drop D (which I love to do). I will ask my local luthier if he can alleviate it. But I would expect something like that to not happen out of the box for a guitar of this caliber.

The neck is very narrow (1.63"). I'm used to fingerpicking an acoustic 12-string with a neck width of 1 15/16". I was almost ready to send it back for either the 660/12 or maybe the Gretsch 12-string. But I slowly started developing ability to play this thing. (I've read it's a beast to restring - can't wait for that).

MF absolutely rocks when it comes to beating everyone else's prices. I'm basically stoked, but I haven't taken it to the luthier yet to see about the buzz (I was waiting till I decided if it was too narrow for my liking).

Comments about Rickenbacker 360 12-String Electric Guitar:

It's a Rickenbacker 12 string! What else can I say?

Comments about Rickenbacker 360 12-String Electric Guitar:

I waited nearly a year for this guitar. I've always wanted a 12-string - and being into the Byrds, Beatles, Petty, 60s music, I decided to go with Rickenbacker. The guitar is well made. The craftspeople at Rickenbacker know what they are doing. When the guitar arrived, the fit and finish was very good. But it didn't take long to notice the intonation problems. The individual saddles are not adjustable per string - they adjust in pairs. So, you have a thick string and a thin string riding the same saddle and you have to make compromises. String height is also important because when you press the string to the fret, too much finger pressure pulls the strings sharpe. Lastly, the "new" style pickups that come with the guitar, are OK, but the guitar doesn't sound jangley. You need to get a set of toaster pickups from Rickenbacker. They are not too difficult to install yourself, but allow a couple of hours. (They are not cheap.) The good news is that the guitar tech I use knows how to set these guitars up for proper intonation and string height and I'm having more fun with it now. But if your hands are of any size, be prepared to learn how to play all over again using your finger tips - as opposed to the flats of your fingers.

Comments about Rickenbacker 360 12-String Electric Guitar:

This amazing insturment in enshrined in recording and performing history. It is a Rock and Roll Star all by itself. The guiter was always the star, the players were lucky to have it available.
From the first time I heard one I wanted one. At that age I was a working musician- We did all the Byrds songs with the '6 strings' I added to a Wilshire style single PU Epi- their answer to an Esquire (wish I had it today). Played thru Super Beatles no pedals- we had 4 Hammond Beatles, 1 solid back for bass.I have had my Mapleglo for 25+ years now. The odd thing about it is, all hardware is BLACK... never seen another. I had been playing 12 string acoustics and acoustic electrics for years. Have an Aspen EPI-1275 with the original distance between the trapeze and the bridge. Still could never be a RIC.But, here's a surprise; if you can't afford a RIC right now, you'll be amazed at the Dean 12 string for $200 or so. I just love playing that guitar and it will jingle, fabulous and unexpected. A MF close out, primo red/flame maple top and paint.I've had the Ric out of the case one day in 4 years, just to tune it, fool around with Turn, Turn Turn, look at it and return to the case. With the factory black hardware on the maple it's really near a one off.
Playing since I was 14, now 63 retired since 50. Just finally stopped trading (never a seller) in 1975- Playing keeps you young and sharp and interested! All Good Fortune-
Workmanship and sound uniqueness, playability
On-of-a-Kind--- It's either a Rikki or it's a12-string something....else

Comments about Rickenbacker 360 12-String Electric Guitar:

In my consideration of a 12 string guitar I admittedly considered looking at a number of other brands that were less expensive. . I feel that this is the wrong way to go about purchasing something, I wanted a guitar that would both appreciate in value and provide me with the pleasure of a great playing experience now. The Rickenbacher 360-12 is that type of instrument. Even the staff at the shop were I had the guitar set up had a "wow" moment just looking at it. Ican't say that for very many other guitars. This is an instrument for those who are serious about music.
I was impressed with this instrument but felt it was out of my price range. However, my wife decided that this would be the perfect gift. She was right! Even just out of the package, I had to admore the beauty of craftsmanship. This action was a bit high and I took the advice of many others who reviewed this guitar and had it professionally set up by a lautest thst I have used before. Now it plays beautifully.

Comments about Rickenbacker 360 12-String Electric Guitar:

The RICKENBACKER 360/12 is one great guitar. The fit and finish of my particular model was and still is perfect. It is one very meticulously made instrument. As one or two reviewers have mentioned, there is a paint odor that can be noticed on some of the instruments. It doesn't really bother me, but you find it offensive, you can always air the case for a few hours and the odor will evaporate. Of greater concern, however, is the difference between the 'vintage' pickups which are narrow band high gain pickups and NOT the pickups Jim McGuin of the Byrds got in the mid-60's with his sweet sounding, chiming Ricks. You can check with John Hall of Rickenbacker and he can verify that the Byrds Ricks had toaster low gain pickups, with a broader, sweeter frequency range, so you May not be able to get that perfect tone you think you might get. You will probably need to get and use a good compressor to get your jangly notes to sustain the way Harrison and the Byrds were able to. There are a couple of good Rick parts suppliers that can sell the original 60's toaster pickups and the .0047 MF capacitor recommended to get the bright tone of the Byrds. I will try to modify my analysis after I get my toaster p/up as I am still waiting at this point. Rickenbacker says the standard pickup (high gain) is more versatile, but I am looking more for the Byrds sweet 12 string chime, as opposed to a general one size fits all tone. We shall see. At any rate this is one very high quality well built, beautiful instrument and I am mighty proud to have it. Of course the Fender bandmaster amps with the wonderful Alnico JBL D-120 speakers are no longer widely available, so getting the exact Byrds tone may not be exactly possible. As far as the instrument itself, I cannot imagine any 12 string electric available to be a better investment than the Rick 360-12.

Comments about Rickenbacker 360 12-String Electric Guitar:

I did a review already but i had said that the case could be better. Now i'm revising my review. I did a garden party a couple weeks ago and a 5 year old kid comes and starts jumping up and down on my case! Man - i almost freaked! The parent came running and grabbed the kid and told them to stop but i was really worried that my case and 12-string Ric were damaged. NOT EVEN A SCRATCH! The case just needed a damp paper towel wipe off the dirt from the shoes. The Ric inside was not even touched. So - it seems these Ric cases are tougher than people are saying. I now revise my review to fives all across the board! This is a great guitar and the case is SOLID!

Comments about Rickenbacker 360 12-String Electric Guitar:

The Rick 12 is quite simply the most beautiful guitar ever built...the FireGlow Red finish makes any stage look like Carnegie Hall, and the sound...well....hard to describe, but diamonds raining on cold silver bells does it for me. It is not insignificant that the first off prototype was given to George Harrison by the then CEO of the company, and George took it to his heart. Some of the Beatles greatest works have at their core, George's Rick 12. Jim McGuinn, now known as Roger, took the Rick 12 farther into history with every Byrds album he played, the versatility of the guitar reaching its zenith with "Eight MIles High", the Coltranesque jazzy psychedelic masterpiece written by McGuinn, Gene Clark and David Crosby. When you see a Rick 12 in real life, you'll know what I mean---it took my breath away back in 1966, and the one I bought in 1996 still blows me away. Buy the Janglebox or the DoD Milk Box compressor, and you will never hear a purer sustain or tone----the Rick 12 takes any song up several notches in the aural field....I'd buy another one if I could.