Well, I think my 78 has a deeper sound than my others, but recognisably Ric.
Incidentally, I've only ever played one Ric bass which I didn't like - it had a really chunky neck, as opposed to the slim one on every other one I've played. However, that's personal preference - I was chatting with someone a short while back who said he didn't like Rics because the neck is too thin!