The Pros That Have Played These

You can't go wrong with a bass that has been used by the likes of Chris Squire, Geddy Lee and Paul McCartney. I love the neck width on this guitar. I have small hands and the playability is tremendous for me. The natural finish is beautiful and the guitar can have every kind of bass tone drawn out of it you like, from funk to heavy bottom! I love it!

Awesome thing

This bass with the stereo wiring is awesome, only problem is thumb placement when playing low E other than that is amazing

Best and favorite bass

Nothing bad really, treble pickup works great I always use the vintage capacitor. Except sometimes the neck pickup is quieter on smaller amps

Like an old friend that you can rely on.

I love the neck. Small and comfortable. The balance feels right. The body weight is light and the neck does not dive on you. Mine is a 1995 Model, and I am sooo glad that I got one of the last ones made in the old style tradition. (Before, the body was made smaller. Before the use of CNC's, were used). Hand cut and American made. I got caught up in the active pickups as well too. Passive gives you more of that old friend sound. I missed my old friend.

Great sound! (But high gain pickupscan be a problem)

Man, this is such a beautiful bass! Mine is a 1996 Fireglo model and I could just stare at it forever. The neck is amazing, super smooth, perfect radius (for me), and the tuners are super-sensitive (not always a good thing, I actually broke I string because of it, but usually it's pretty useful). The tonal variations between the two pickups isn't too noticeable, but still adds a nice subtle timbre difference to fit to whatever style you're trying to play. The pickup cover is pretty stupid, I removed it almost immediately. Just gets in the way, although when you take it off, there are a couple of sharp parts exposed that one should be wary of when playing, especially without a pick. The bridge is my main problem. I say this because it has these built-in mutes, which seems great, but you have to lower your strings to the point where there is excessive fret buzz, rendering them a bit useless. Whenever I want to mute the strings, I either have to have fret buzz or only half-mute them. I would definitely recommend putting on some roundwounds and letting this thing just rip. It sounds so amazing! But, the high gain pickups often cause a lot of noise with the gain knob anywhere above 1.

Finicky, but an undeniable classic must-have

The 4003 may not have the vintage panache of an original 4001 but it is eminently more usable for the modern player. In late 2019 the original bridge design (seriously wanting in many ways) was finally dropped in favor of a more modern, useful version that carries most of the features of the Hipshot drop-in replacement, meaning Ricky fans could finally properly intonate (and palm mute risk-free if desired). The pull-circuit for the vintage capacitance may drop too much low end for today's use, but when you use it and crank up along with some classic Yes tunes you'll know why it's there.

Big Difference From Fender

I have only played Fender basses. I had a short interest in the Music Man Stingray, but with the release of Fender's American Standard Jaguar bass, that interest was extinguished.
My 21st birthday is coming up and my dad has had his eye on Rickenbacker basses since I started to play bass guitar. This is mainly because his brother purchased a Rickenbacker 4001 from a local music shop when they both were young. My uncles 4001 is the same year and finish as the 4001 that Paul McCartney played with Wings in the 70s. Ever since, my dad has been interested in the instruments. Since my 21st is coming up, my dad decided a perfect gift to celebrate the occasion was 4003 of my very own. He purchased my bass in the same finish as his brothers bass; MapleGlo. The bass he purchased was featured in Sam Ash's Guitars of Distinction. Though he does not know that I am aware he purchased the bass, I have to wait until October to officially "get" the bass. However, I have been able to play the instrument when no one is home because I know where it is hidden in our house. The 4003 is much different from any of the basses I own. The neck on the 4003 is definitely wider than my Fender necks, but it is oddly comfortable and easy to play like other basses I have played. I feel as though the flat profile of the back of the neck helps in making Rickenbacker basses so effortless to play. I will say that the "horseshoe" cover over the bridge takes some getting used to as I am a finger style player and often find myself looking for a place to anchor my thumb. I am considering adding one of the zero mod thumb rests in order to solve this problem and wish to avoid removing the bridge cover to preserve the classic look of the 4003.
Sound wise, the 4003 is a completely different monster than any Fender bass I have played. It is articulate and clean as a Jazz bass, really emphasizing the mid range, but it is also round and almost hollow sounding like a Precision bass. The neck pickup of the 4003 is really thump-y and perfect for holding down the low end and nothing more. The middle position on the bass has to be my favorite as it maintains the thump from the neck pickup while adding in that added punch from the bridge pickup. Though I don't forsee myself using the bridge pickup in a clean setting, it really cuts through with the help from my Fuzzrocious Demon King overdrive pedal.
On top of all these pickup configurations, the Rickenbacker 4003 also has a push/pull pot on the tone pot that allows you to change the tone capacitor to that of the vintage 4001 basses, giving the 4003 an even larger tonal palette. In the vintage mode, the 4003 loose some of the the lowend but adds in a growl that the 4001 basses were known for.

A decent substitute for the real thing; for a quarter of it's price.

AliExpress has been notorious for being a beehive for copy guitars (namely Fender, Rickenbacker and Hofner products). I've seen many reviews for these copy guitars, surprisingly mostly positive and I got curious and decided to purchase a copy 4003 Rickenbacker bass. I've always wanted an actual Rickenbacker bass and it seemed that at least owning a copy bass would satisfy my desire temporarily. The guitar was in an awful state when it arrived, but after some adjustments (tweaking the trussrod and changing the china strings to ghs medium gauge strings), it doesn't sound too bad. Of course, I don't think it sounds like a real 4003, I wouldn't know cause I've never owned one. Still a cool bass nonetheless. I am also considering switching the pickups to real Rickenbacker pickups when I can afford it. I'd recommend getting said copy guitar if you don't have money for a real one and want to appreciate it's aesthetic.

Only does a few things, does them better than anything else

A Ric 4001 is the bass that helped me find my musical voice. I upgraded to a 4003 a couple years later, in 2008. It's an amazing sounding instrument for melodies and bright sustain. I've come to find it a little clanky with round-wound strings, so I've set it up with flatwounds. As a result, it's not great with aggressive rock sounds, but is really great for warmer tones.

One thing worth noting is that I've had a few problems with the neck pickup over the years. I got it rewound, but it's always been a pain.

My Bass of Choice

My 2010 midnight blue Rick is my end all be all of basses. I've played many other ricks (4001s and 4003s) and find that what ever is up with this year and build happens to be perfect for my needs. It feels quite similar to a vintage 4001 with a thin neck, but longer fret board. Every new Rick I've played post 2010 has a fatter necks and doesn't feel quite as good in comparison.