I like the 24 better. I guess you can’t please everyone. lol This for the reason that I sometimes move high on the neck and go off board with the 21s. Rickenbacker quality has always been custom shop level, so I wonder how that could have been improved, but it would not surprise me.
I was lucky enough to get a 330 with an unlacquered fretboard when they briefly made them. I've owned at least 7 different Rickenbackers over the years, but my 2021 330 probably plays the best of all of them to me. I wish the Hi-Gains weren't overwound as much as they're currently aiming for - I had a late 90s 360 many years ago where the Hi-Gains were wound just about perfectly for me. I think if Ric could offer just a couple of customizations to the customer, it would be a really good thing.
I have a '95 330 that I don't play much and always wished it had the proper neck join of he originals. THIS video convinced me to buy one of these new 360s! You should get a kick back from Rickenbacker for this video!
@@guitargearconnection I got a fire glo 12 and then had to pick up a maple glo 6. I had a 360/12c63 which I loved the toasters on but the neck set went bad on that. I think you are onto something with putting the toasters in these.
Thank you Paul ! Watching this video a few months ago lit the fire in me and I bought a 2023 Fireglo 330 which I love. As soon as I played it I realized that I was going to get the 12 string as well. I appreciate your insights here ! Best Wishes - John
@@guitargearconnection Hi Paul - A quick question regarding the 2023 models. Do you know which tool is recommended for truss rod adjustments on these instruments ? There seem to be many differing opinions on this matter across the internet. You inspired me to get a 2023 330 and since then I have added a 2023 360/12 as well. I love them. Planning on switching out the Thomastik Infield .010 - 44 12 string set with the Ernie Ball Slinky 12 .008-40 set and figure I may have to loosen the rod a bit. Thank you for inspiring me to give these guitars a chance. It's been a great pleasure !
Maybe I havent bought a 360 because I was meant to have one of these instead!! haha. I remember in 2014 i played a 36012 limited edition that came with toaster pickups, klusons, and the 21 fret profile and I fell in love immediately. I will 100000% be buying one of these. Thank you for the video
so what did they do to mitigate the necks breaking now that they've gone back to the 21 fret? You said something that in the past, they went to the longer neck to make the neck stronger, so now that they went back to the shorter neck, I wonder how they are mitigating that?
I’m stealing this quote on Rickresource: “The 60s era neck angle issues were the result of poor craftsmanship, not a flawed design. The neck pockets were simply too wide for the neck tenons, and the factory just filled that gap with white wood glue and best intentions. Usually worked for the 6-strings, but not the tension of 12 strings! Plus the neck pickup route, three-piece body etc (both of which evolved over time trying to try and prevent the neck issues). With the sort of CNC precision the factory offers today, that neck joint can be really strong and still have 21 frets.”
I’ll always prefer the 24 feet necks but my question is this…… With all these glorious “upgrades”, why hasn’t Rickenbacker fixed the severe problem with the “R” tailpieces? I bought my Roger McGuinn Limited Edition in 1989. The original tailpiece snapped around 2008. I’m now on my fourth one. Highly irritating.
My problem with all of them is the necks are so thin and therefore the strings are too close together. It's almost not playable. If they fixed that, I'd have one in a heartbeat because I've wanted a fire glow 330 since I was a kid, and I'm not kid anymore.
They are much wider. I’m not sure if the exact date, but I’d say any of them built around 1973 and newer will all feature a “standard” style width neck. These new 300 guitars come with a slightly smaller than standard profile, but barley anything you would really notice. And of course so much wider than the 60’s.
Great video! I’m wondering if they were able to keep the longer neck tenon on the new 21 fret run and just hiding it under the pickup. Anybody wanna pop a pickup off and find out?
This could be apples and oranges (and I might change my mind later), but I wish Rickenbacker could have evolved the same way that Silvertone did. Shortly after I started learning to play in the mid-1990s, I noticed that Silvertone was manufacturing completely different instruments from the ones they had built 30 years before. Rickenbacker has pretty much remained “back at the wall” of their classic models.
@@plasticsurgerydisaster6180 thanks for the reply! I'll be picking mine up within a week, very excited.. I'm also a rhythm player for the most part and it'll be used as the main electric guitar in my band (along with my 360/12MG from late 90's) I had some reservations ordering what is basically the same guitar that I already own, minus 6 strings/fireglo colour - but I love how these 21 fret models look, the single truss rod will make setups easier, etc. Very lucky to be able to own both a 6 and 12 :)
@@camwalkersings lucky indeed! The only 12-string I’ve ever considered buying is the Danelectro 12 at a sensible sum of 1000 CAD. A fully acoustic 12-string would be a dream too.
They also gave up the double truss rods for a single 2 way. This is true for the vintage models as well. My new 350v63 Liverpool has one truss. As well as my 23 ‘ 330. However……I just got that 2023 walnut 330. Fret sprout all over. I’ve had all types of Ric’s the walnuts have this issue. Which really is unacceptable for a 2000.00 guitar. And my 350 same thing also the lacquer started peeling off the board. I got it new like that for an insane discount. Right now that brand new 359v63 is being re-fretted and a satin finish is going on the fretboard instead of thick gloss and a new nut. 565.00
We have a problem here. My friend just return the brand new guitar because the f hole was paint in black paint very irregular. and the tuner was line up incorrectly. now he got the money back and call sweetwaters and they have three brand new with same problem. my is from 90s and does not have that problem
It’s pronounced “cath-ode”. Derek Underdown told me to never run a JMI-made amp over 100 volts as the Mains tranny didn’t like the increase in current draw.
Yeah I’ve been corrected tons of times on that one lol Ive learned now! And you are right on the vintage. I use a variac on all my JMI stuff solid state or tube. 110 I run them at.
Thankfully no! From what I gather, Rickenbacker figured out how to make the best joint for it in the mid/late 70’s. Then once they started CNC processes, they are better than ever!
No. The weakness back then was due to poor craftsmanship. They made the body/neck joint too wide and would fill it with extra glue. It wasn't a design flaw, it was shoddy workmanship.
At this point I don’t think anyone knows! I was under the assumption they were sticking to the 21 feet forever, but now Ive seen on the forums talk about it being just this one year. We shall find out!
@@guitargearconnection Thanks for the quick reply. At first I found it weird looking since I was used to the one with 24 frets. Now, I think I actually like the one with 21 frets more, lol. Anyways, I'm buying it in a few years so many things could change in that time.
These look fantastic but have the neck profiles changed? I had a 2019 model I didn't like the neck or but recently played a non-gloss fret board version from a year ago and absolutely loved the neck. Maybe I just got better at playing but I'm worried the rick I ordered has a totally different neck profile
They are about the same, but Rickenbacker has confirmed that the new necks aren’t bad “bulky” in the back. They shaved that down while leaving the width of the board the same.
I disagree. The songs and tones from some of the most popular songs and users came from the 60s. 24 had a longer production run but the 21 made it what it was.
Good video. However, my bandmates and I bought all our Rics new in the 80s and 90s. A total of 9, and wouldn't benefit from the change. It's what we've known for nearly 40 years of 24 frets.
No the neck width itself was about the same as my 2007 360. Maybe a hair smaller, but nothing that noticeable. I do know what you mean. Those real thin necks in the mid/late 60’s on most guitars is a bit tougher to play for some.
@@guitargearconnection Thanks for the confirmation. Yes what really hurts are the mid to late 60s Gibson 335's with the stupid thin nut. what a waste. Are these necks fat or thin profile (not talking about width) on the new 2023 ones? I cannot find neck specifications of the >2023 models. Lots on the older ones, but not these. Nice to have the large pickup spacing on the post 2023's. The close spacing always annoyed me.
When I got mine, someone on the Facebook Rickenbacker group posted that they bought one from Sweetwater, and they still had some left in stock. If you search around and call different guitar stores, usually someone will have something (in America). It’s definitely tough finding good guitars in general that are lefties!
They are nice guitars but just a musical tool . Getting caught up on details is pointless to me as people in a audience will have no awareness of any of these and other matters . It's about music and that's it .
Yeah kinda not a pointless detail. You could relate this detail to anything in life. Central air in a house is pointless. Why do people get it? Comfort? Underwear. What’s the point? Small detail that no one sees under your cloths. Does it help you pee? Maybe luthiers & every guitar company should be mandated to switch their designs to square only. Not cutouts and no designs. Why? Well, it’s only a musical instrument. Right? So what’s the point in painting or doing anything to a guitar. Just stick strings on a block of wood. You need to wake up and smell the roses Mark. People like things in life. Maybe you should too.
Rickenbackers aren't just guitars, they are works of art.
Uh thats paul reed Smith bud
Thank you Paul it's great to hear rickenbacker pronounced the right way! I loved these guitars for over 4 decades & own 3 ricks great video
Thank you!!!!
Great video Paul! Rickenbacker has been knocking it out of the park recently. These 21 fret models look way better
Thanks Dom!!!!
Paul! Could we get a video soon of that vox Cambridge @ 3:48?
@@bobbystereo936 yes sir! I’ll work it in eventually!
Thank you! This makes sense
Picked up a brand new Rick 360 a couple weeks back and I absolutely love it!
I like the 24 better. I guess you can’t please everyone. lol This for the reason that I sometimes move high on the neck and go off board with the 21s. Rickenbacker quality has always been custom shop level, so I wonder how that could have been improved, but it would not surprise me.
As someone who have never played a Ric and is now considering one (620 or 330), the video helped a lot just in time. Thanks!
Awesome! Glad I was able to help someone! And enjoy whichever Ric you decide to buy!!!!
I think it's great that they went back to 21 frets, but that being said I absolutely ❤❤❤ my 2012 330/6, 24 frets and all!
I just bought a brand new 2023 360 12C63 and love it. I had an older one from 2013 and I can tell the 2023 is even better than the old one I had.
Love all your VOX amps....
I was lucky enough to get a 330 with an unlacquered fretboard when they briefly made them. I've owned at least 7 different Rickenbackers over the years, but my 2021 330 probably plays the best of all of them to me. I wish the Hi-Gains weren't overwound as much as they're currently aiming for - I had a late 90s 360 many years ago where the Hi-Gains were wound just about perfectly for me. I think if Ric could offer just a couple of customizations to the customer, it would be a really good thing.
Great video love rickenbackers recently finishd my self built short scale semi hollow 325 rockenbacker made frome all blackwood love it sounds so nice
Excellent video. Thank you. I have a 2015 330 in midnight blue and I absolutely it.
I love 330’s. And that midnight blue is an awesome color!
Love my 360. Made in early 90’s. Work of musical mojo
Great clip! Just bought a 360 /6 Jet Glo because of these changes back to the original spec vibe.
How do you like it? I'll be picking mine up soon!
Finally someone talking about this haha, wish you made a full demo though.
I have a '95 330 that I don't play much and always wished it had the proper neck join of he originals. THIS video convinced me to buy one of these new 360s! You should get a kick back from Rickenbacker for this video!
That’s awesome to hear! Enjoy that thing! What color did you end up with?
@@guitargearconnection I got a fire glo 12 and then had to pick up a maple glo 6. I had a 360/12c63 which I loved the toasters on but the neck set went bad on that. I think you are onto something with putting the toasters in these.
Sweet combo - I've got a fireglo 6 and a Mapleglo 12! 😁👍@@justanotherguitarplayer3742
Thank you Paul ! Watching this video a few months ago lit the fire in me and I bought a 2023 Fireglo 330 which I love. As soon as I played it I realized that I was going to get the 12 string as well. I appreciate your insights here ! Best Wishes - John
Wow that’s awesome! Thank you so much for commenting back. Glad my video was able to lite the fire!!! Happy playing!
@@guitargearconnection Hi Paul - A quick question regarding the 2023 models. Do you know which tool is recommended for truss rod adjustments on these instruments ? There seem to be many differing opinions on this matter across the internet. You inspired me to get a 2023 330 and since then I have added a 2023 360/12 as well. I love them. Planning on switching out the Thomastik Infield .010 - 44 12 string set with the Ernie Ball Slinky 12 .008-40 set and figure I may have to loosen the rod a bit. Thank you for inspiring me to give these guitars a chance. It's been a great pleasure !
I think that sucks. I love 24 frets. I was going to order one, but not any now
I'm going to buy a nearly new used one for that reason
I have a '66 360 Mapleglo. Love this guitar. Bought it back around 1976 for $200
Lucky! Such a beautiful guitar and what a great price!!!
I am curious how the difference affects the sound of the neck pickup, but I have to say that having a 24th fret is really nice.
It doesn’t
These look absolutely beautiful!
I really hope they bring back the Capri series one day...
That would be awesome!
I pick up my 360/12 C63 tomorrow. I can’t wait.
You are going to love that thing! The coloring and all details on the C are right down to the way George had his. Enjoy it!!!!!
Maybe I havent bought a 360 because I was meant to have one of these instead!! haha. I remember in 2014 i played a 36012 limited edition that came with toaster pickups, klusons, and the 21 fret profile and I fell in love immediately. I will 100000% be buying one of these. Thank you for the video
Your gonna love it!
What a fantastic video have a good night
so what did they do to mitigate the necks breaking now that they've gone back to the 21 fret? You said something that in the past, they went to the longer neck to make the neck stronger, so now that they went back to the shorter neck, I wonder how they are mitigating that?
I’m stealing this quote on Rickresource:
“The 60s era neck angle issues were the result of poor craftsmanship, not a flawed design. The neck pockets were simply too wide for the neck tenons, and the factory just filled that gap with white wood glue and best intentions. Usually worked for the 6-strings, but not the tension of 12 strings! Plus the neck pickup route, three-piece body etc (both of which evolved over time trying to try and prevent the neck issues).
With the sort of CNC precision the factory offers today, that neck joint can be really strong and still have 21 frets.”
@@guitargearconnection cool. I have a 2011 370-12 in Jetglo. Kinda wish it was fireglo, but Jetglo does look nice still.
Thanks for the great video
Awesome! Glad you enjoyed it
Would be nice to hear if there is any difference.
Ugh I know I wish I got a sound demo in!
I’ll always prefer the 24 feet necks but my question is this……
With all these glorious “upgrades”, why hasn’t Rickenbacker fixed the severe problem with the “R” tailpieces? I bought my Roger McGuinn Limited Edition in 1989. The original tailpiece snapped around 2008. I’m now on my fourth one. Highly irritating.
I’ve had at least 45-50 Ric’s. That’s never happened to me, the exploding tailpiece. I hope it doesn’t.
Nice video Paul!
Thank you!!!
Pickup placement makes a big difference in the tone.
Now I can't un see those giant tuners sticking out of the small head.
If the neck joint was suspect before, what changes have been made to the joint on these new 21 fret models to improve it?
Completely changed how the joint was structured, used CNC to get the closest fit possible, and better glues.
Great video
Thank you!!!
Finally !
That's great, now we can all wait two years to actually play one.
Yeah I know I got lucky with this one. I’ve heard some horror stories of 2+ years for some models!
My problem with all of them is the necks are so thin and therefore the strings are too close together. It's almost not playable. If they fixed that, I'd have one in a heartbeat because I've wanted a fire glow 330 since I was a kid, and I'm not kid anymore.
They are much wider. I’m not sure if the exact date, but I’d say any of them built around 1973 and newer will all feature a “standard” style width neck. These new 300 guitars come with a slightly smaller than standard profile, but barley anything you would really notice. And of course so much wider than the 60’s.
You get used to it, I have hands like shovels and I love my 360, and for context, my other go to guitar is a Suhr Custom T.
Great video! I’m wondering if they were able to keep the longer neck tenon on the new 21 fret run and just hiding it under the pickup. Anybody wanna pop a pickup off and find out?
This could be apples and oranges (and I might change my mind later), but I wish Rickenbacker could have evolved the same way that Silvertone did. Shortly after I started learning to play in the mid-1990s, I noticed that Silvertone was manufacturing completely different instruments from the ones they had built 30 years before. Rickenbacker has pretty much remained “back at the wall” of their classic models.
Beatles byrds petty smiths the who That’s why. But mostly Beatles
Please tell me that neck profile feels like the late 80s early 90s, which are sleek and eminently playable.
They play incredibly. Maybe a hair thinner in the back of the neck compared to my 07’. But if you like those neck profiles, you’ll love this one.
Why would fret spacing change? Was there a scale length change? Simply changing the number of frets has no bearing on their spacing.
Thanks for giving me GAS !
That’s cool, they need to bring back the 480 with the 24 frets instead of making it 21 frets for the limited edition
They did last year. Special editions they’re like 4800.00
@@JimmyBmusic1 yeah but those have 21 frets and that’s actually from almost 3 years ago not 1
I prefer my Fenders with 21 frets always have like the 70's bullet truss rod models
Waiting on my 360 fireglo, one more week!!
Congrats! Your gonna love it!
How do you like it? Waiting on one myself!
@@camwalkersings incredible, hard to give my other guitars use now haha. I’ve always been a very chordy player so this is my dream guitar.
@@plasticsurgerydisaster6180 thanks for the reply! I'll be picking mine up within a week, very excited.. I'm also a rhythm player for the most part and it'll be used as the main electric guitar in my band (along with my 360/12MG from late 90's) I had some reservations ordering what is basically the same guitar that I already own, minus 6 strings/fireglo colour - but I love how these 21 fret models look, the single truss rod will make setups easier, etc. Very lucky to be able to own both a 6 and 12 :)
@@camwalkersings lucky indeed! The only 12-string I’ve ever considered buying is the Danelectro 12 at a sensible sum of 1000 CAD. A fully acoustic 12-string would be a dream too.
I think the 21-fret 360 looks kind of odd. The 21-fret 330 looks much sexier.
I have a 2005 24-fret 330. Fantastic guitar!
Just wondering have they changed anything on the new 2024 model rickenbacker 12string 1993+ mine should be in anytime soon 🤠
No. Prob the double truss is now a single truss 2 way
They also gave up the double truss rods for a single 2 way. This is true for the vintage models as well. My new 350v63 Liverpool has one truss. As well as my 23 ‘ 330. However……I just got that 2023 walnut 330. Fret sprout all over. I’ve had all types of Ric’s the walnuts have this issue. Which really is unacceptable for a 2000.00 guitar. And my 350 same thing also the lacquer started peeling off the board. I got it new like that for an insane discount. Right now that brand new 359v63 is being re-fretted and a satin finish is going on the fretboard instead of thick gloss and a new nut. 565.00
so did they fix the structural issues with the new release? or did they just go back to how they used to build them?
They fixed it! Better jointing & glues. They are stronger than ever!
. . . but I would hang a Trapeze tailpiece if I were getting one.
Perfect in all other respects.
We have a problem here. My friend just return the brand new guitar because the f hole was paint in black paint very irregular. and the tuner was line up incorrectly. now he got the money back and call sweetwaters and they have three brand new with same problem. my is from 90s and does not have that problem
That’s not good at all! I’m surprised something like that got missed. Very unfortunate 😢
Wha?
Which tuner is lined up incorrectly??
You’ve swapped out the pickups on that 2023 360, right?
Yup! First I put the low gain toasters on, but I have since took those off and put the high gain toasters on it from my 1993 360/12
It’s pronounced “cath-ode”. Derek Underdown told me to never run a JMI-made amp over 100 volts as the Mains tranny didn’t like the increase in current draw.
Yeah I’ve been corrected tons of times on that one lol Ive learned now!
And you are right on the vintage. I use a variac on all my JMI stuff solid state or tube. 110 I run them at.
So is the weakness you mention at 0:50 back, then?
Thankfully no! From what I gather, Rickenbacker figured out how to make the best joint for it in the mid/late 70’s. Then once they started CNC processes, they are better than ever!
No. The weakness back then was due to poor craftsmanship. They made the body/neck joint too wide and would fill it with extra glue. It wasn't a design flaw, it was shoddy workmanship.
24 fret guitars look better to me
So no more 24 fret guitars will be produced?
At this point I don’t think anyone knows! I was under the assumption they were sticking to the 21 feet forever, but now Ive seen on the forums talk about it being just this one year. We shall find out!
@@guitargearconnection Thanks for the quick reply. At first I found it weird looking since I was used to the one with 24 frets. Now, I think I actually like the one with 21 frets more, lol. Anyways, I'm buying it in a few years so many things could change in that time.
It’s not just for 1 year.
I saw you have this guitar up on ebay - why are you selling it?!?!
Yes I am! I got my eyes on another guitar lol
These look fantastic but have the neck profiles changed? I had a 2019 model I didn't like the neck or but recently played a non-gloss fret board version from a year ago and absolutely loved the neck. Maybe I just got better at playing but I'm worried the rick I ordered has a totally different neck profile
They are about the same, but Rickenbacker has confirmed that the new necks aren’t bad “bulky” in the back. They shaved that down while leaving the width of the board the same.
@@guitargearconnection That's even better news than hearing they stayed the same! Thanks!
too bad they can't do a 660 width neck.
With 53 years of history now, 24-fret Ric's have more history than 60s Ric's. 24 frets looks right to me. Just sayin'.
I disagree. The songs and tones from some of the most popular songs and users came from the 60s. 24 had a longer production run but the 21 made it what it was.
@@clearspectrum324so in the 60s all ricks had 21 frets?
Good video. However, my bandmates and I bought all our Rics new in the 80s and 90s. A total of 9, and wouldn't benefit from the change. It's what we've known for nearly 40 years of 24 frets.
But do they have arthritis thin necks now since 2023?
That will just kill it for me and a lot of other players.
No the neck width itself was about the same as my 2007 360. Maybe a hair smaller, but nothing that noticeable. I do know what you mean. Those real thin necks in the mid/late 60’s on most guitars is a bit tougher to play for some.
@@guitargearconnection Thanks for the confirmation. Yes what really hurts are the mid to late 60s Gibson 335's with the stupid thin nut. what a waste.
Are these necks fat or thin profile (not talking about width) on the new 2023 ones? I cannot find neck specifications of the >2023 models. Lots on the older ones, but not these. Nice to have the large pickup spacing on the post 2023's. The close spacing always annoyed me.
Where can you even buy a Rickenbacker? They’re not readily available and as a lefty even rarer.
When I got mine, someone on the Facebook Rickenbacker group posted that they bought one from Sweetwater, and they still had some left in stock. If you search around and call different guitar stores, usually someone will have something (in America). It’s definitely tough finding good guitars in general that are lefties!
Want the best deal? Dave’s guitar shop Wisconsin. Big ric dealer. Right now a 330 is 1499.00 shipped
All the changes that came in the '70s sucked. 21-frets and toasters forever.
Hats off to vintage-style Gotoh tuners, too.
They are nice guitars but just a musical tool .
Getting caught up on details is pointless to me as people in a audience will have no awareness of any of these and other matters .
It's about music and that's it .
Yeah kinda not a pointless detail. You could relate this detail to anything in life. Central air in a house is pointless. Why do people get it? Comfort? Underwear. What’s the point? Small detail that no one sees under your cloths. Does it help you pee? Maybe luthiers & every guitar company should be mandated to switch their designs to square only. Not cutouts and no designs. Why? Well, it’s only a musical instrument. Right? So what’s the point in painting or doing anything to a guitar. Just stick strings on a block of wood.
You need to wake up and smell the roses Mark. People like things in life. Maybe you should too.
I hate 21 fret guitars. I have a 21 fret MIM Strat, not desireable for some songs.
why would anyone want to go back to a 21 frett neck .....
If some of the best, most influential music was created on 21, why would anyone need more?
Bc they look spectacular like they did in the 60’s that’s what ppl want