Although best known for their highly individualistic straight-through necked 4000 Series basses and superb semiacoustics (see our review of the 360 12-string in Issue 5), Rickenbacker have another range altogether, their relatively new '2000 Series' of much more basically constructed guitars and basses, designed to sell at more affordable prices. From this range we selected their 2030 'Hamburg' bass for review.

Unlike most Rickys, this bass isn't a complex assembly; in fact it follows the simplest and most popular format of them all, featuring a solid Maple body with a bolted-on Maple neck and Rosewood fingerboard. Maple tends to give a nice bright sound, especially when used on its own (it's the Maple top that gives the Mahogany based Les Paul its 'edge') and this promises a pleasantly 'hard' sound from this instrument.

Simple, however, doesn't imply that there's anything unsophisticated about this bass's shaping. The instrument is really well contoured and fits both the body and right arm (or left - depending on your persuasion) just as if it was custom shaped for you, and this, combined with an excellent balance and medium/light weight, makes the 2030 a pleasure to hold.

From a hardware point of view the Rickenbacker uses what amounts to just about the state of the art these days - open backed Schaller machines and one of those superb Schaller bass bridges, which offers a substantial and solid piece of metal screwed down tight onto the body, plus full individual string adjustment - even including string spacing alteration. The pickups are of Rickenbacker's own design, a pair of 'blade' single coil types which are height adjustable via screws set right through the body, so that adjustment is extremely easy - as would be repairs if they were ever damaged. Controlling them are twin volume and tone controls and a flick switch pickup selector. All in all it's a convenient, simple to use system which works well.

The 2030's bolt-on neck carries one of those unusual and unique Rickenbacker fingerboards - a light coloured wood, apparently waxed and then polished to give it the lustrous glow which makes Ricky fingerboards look (and feel) so unusual. Whether you'll actually like this finish is very much a matter of personal taste. Our testers were more or less equally divided between those who found it too strange in texture to feel comfortable on and those who loved it for the silky feel and comfort it offered, especially when playing at high speeds. Proportionally, the cambered neck is very fast, measuring approx 1 ¹¹/₁₆" at the nut but staying slim as you move up to the top (20th) fret on the 33 ¹/₂" scale, and having a shallow depth which made it amazingly fast to handle. Nice fat frets also add to this impression of ease, comfort and potential speed.

You wouldn't expect a Rickenbacker to be much like any other instrument and, despite the apparent similarity to the legions of bolt-on necked basses around, this really does both feel and sound like an original. Having already established that it's a lot faster to play than the average Japanese or U.S. Fender-style bass, the sound sets it even further apart from the run of the mill. We said earlier that we anticipated a bright sound from this model, initially because of its Maple body, and later when we spotted the single coil pickups. In fact it isn't as sharp and edgy as you'd expect - it has a noticeable warmth and drive in the sound, which makes for a very individualistic combination.

Having said that, you might assume that this bass wasn't really so well suited for slap style playing, but in fact it is. We tested it through a variety of amps (ranging from an HH B100 head and 15" speakers to a V-Amp single 15" VA100 combo) and, given the right setting-up, the Rickenbacker slapped really well, the body shaping and neck proportions suiting the playing style and the sound staying warm but still 'cutting' in the desired way.

Another (equally suitable) role for the 2030, however, would be with a heavy rock band, where its drive and warmth could really power a band along - especially in an outfit with just one guitarist and a bass player.

There's no doubting that this Ricky (for all that it appears a 'simple' instrument) is definitely a professional bass, with the potential for the currently fashionable slap and pull styles which the 4000 Series, on account of its hardware positioning, let alone its sound, doesn't have. As current basses go, this Rickenbacker stands quite alone - nothing else sounds like it and nothing else plays like it; it's an individual and that implies that you might (almost) equally love it or hate it. For our part, IT's testers were unanimous in their praise for its individualism. At £395 it isn't cheap, but it is a character in a field in which there are far too many clones. For the player who values individuality and likes the Ricky's feel and driving sound, we reckon it's fair value for money, and a good buy.

RRP £395 Inc. VAT

More details from Rickenbacker (U.K.) Ltd., (Contact Details).