Rickenbacker 3001

This is a bass manufactured in the USA, Los Angeles to be more specific. It has a maple body and neck with a rosewood fingerboard. There are 20 frets and it has a long scale. There is only one humbucking pickup, and there are three knobs (volume, bass, and treble). There is thus no switch to select pickups.

UTILIZATION

This bass is actually a pretty easy play. It's got a great tone all around so there shouldn't be any reason you can't get a good sound out of it, as long as you're using a good enough amp of course. There is one thing that I will say about this bass, and that is that it's HEAVY. Really need to make sure you don't wear your back out using this bass! It is most definitely a possibility. I used one that was dated from the late seventies when I was recording an album on a rare occasion that I get commissioned to play bass, and I was amazed at how well it played, stayed in tune, and felt, which means that with the proper care this bass should be in great shape regardless of its age.

SOUNDS

The sound of a Rickenbacker bass is classic, and loved by many, dating all the way back to Paul McCartney and others from the classic rock era. This bass follows in that tradition. It has a lot of power and resonance, and can really put some oomph into your music with the right amp. I personally wouldn't play anything but rock music with this, and that can go anywhere from 60s style psychedelic to punk. The bass and treble knobs give you a lot of variety out of one pickup, which is surprisingly versatile. You can go from a warm, fat tone to a brighter, more intense rock tone. This will be great at balancing out the tone for different types of guitar and drum sounds, giving this a surprising amount of diversity.
I really can't emphasize enough how great this thing sounds. It's not that good for jazz or country, probably (unless it's the newer pop-country that is becoming more and more ubiquitous, unfortunately).

OVERALL OPINION

This is a great bass. I don't know how many are around nowadays, and since it's not one of the most popular Rickenbacker models the demand isn't really all that high for it. If you can get one used it's definitely worth it though, it's got a dynamite sound. I couldn't believe how (relatively) cheap the studio owner had bought it for, considering its age, but I guess that's because it's not as celebrated or well known as it's other models (it also had scratches in it, which to a studio owner is irrelevant but might not appeal to a collector). This is definitely worth checking out.