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Topic: Where has all my beautiful tone gone???? |
Nick Waugh
From:
United Kingdom
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Posted 4 Sep 2014 2:18 pm |
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I struggled for several years with a thin harsh tone. What finally gave me the warm full round tone I had been looking for was:
1. Changing my George L's for an Lace Alumitone.
2. Installing a Teleonics speaker in my Peavey Nashville
3. Purchasing a chip replacement kit for my Peavey Nashville.
The first was the most dramatic difference, but all 3 contributed to a strong, punchy but warm full tone. I thought I would never look back, but after 6 months of aural bliss, it's all gone thin and harsh again. Maybe not quite as bad as it was, but certainly enough so that my band mates have commented that my sound has deteriorated. I have tried different leads, and plugging directly into the amp - without volume pedal or any other effects. I have a friend who is an electronics wizz who says that the pick up and the amp are without fault. Has anyone got any ideas? I want my sound back again, I miss it. Can a pickup lose tone? Please help!!!! |
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Billy Murdoch
From:
Glasgow, Scotland, U.K.
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Posted 4 Sep 2014 2:38 pm
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Nick
That certainly is a strange one.
What cord(lead in U.K) are You using? If You are going straight from guitar to amp and You are certain that the amp and pickup are good then there is only that one item to check.
Have You tried the guitar with another amp?
Do You have a steel playing friend who can try His guitar with Your amp?
Best regards
Billy |
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Bob Hoffnar
From:
Austin, Tx
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Posted 4 Sep 2014 9:21 pm
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Have you tried changing your strings ? I had the same issue not to long ago and fresh strings cleared it right up.
_________________
Bob |
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Lane Gray
From:
Topeka, KS
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Posted 4 Sep 2014 10:19 pm
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Change strings?
Try shooting Deoxit at the connections at switch and jack?
Try different cables?
_________________
2 pedal steels, a lapStrat, and an 8-string Dobro (and 3 ukes)
More amps than guitars, and not many effects |
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Craig Baker
From:
Eatonton, Georgia, USA - R.I.P.
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Posted 5 Sep 2014 12:49 am
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Nick,
Your avatar is one of the best I've ever seen. . . BUT have you checked the battery in that Li'l Izzy. When the battery is exhausted who knows what kind of "funky" sound you might get? You've had the Li'l Izzy for over a year and if it's still the original battery, that may well be the cause. In any case, I do hope it's something as simple as a battery. Please let us know your findings. Thank you again for using a Li'l Izzy Nick, and all the best to you.
Sincerely,
Craig Baker 706-485-8792
cmbakerelectronics@gmail.com
C.M. Baker Electronics
P.O. Box 3965
Eatonton, GA 31024
_________________
"Make America Great Again". . . The Only Country With Dream After Its Name. |
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Dick Sexton
From:
Greenville, Ohio
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Posted 5 Sep 2014 6:04 am Thin lifeless sound...
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This is a common problem with Peavey amps, maybe others. It only takes a minute amount of oxidation on the input/output jacks to cause this problem. As mentioned, Deoxite on the connectors should work. The NV112, NV400 and others use a self cleaning connector. The action of inserting a cord end several times usually corrects it in the short term. Proper cleaning and/or re-tentioning should correct for the long term.
Damaged or poorly constructed cables can also cause this problem, as well as any jack/connector in the signal chain.
At least from my personal experience... |
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Lane Gray
From:
Topeka, KS
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Posted 5 Sep 2014 6:49 am
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I'll bet £1 that Mr. Baker might be on the right track. BUT when mine dies, it often gives cutouts on sharply struck chords.
_________________
2 pedal steels, a lapStrat, and an 8-string Dobro (and 3 ukes)
More amps than guitars, and not many effects |
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George McLellan
From:
Duluth, MN USA
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Posted 5 Sep 2014 7:07 am
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Lane, my "L'll Izzy" makes a whistling sound thru my 65 TR when the battery is just about dead. Saved me from having it go dead on the job.
Geo |
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Buddy Castleberry
From:
HAWKINSVILLE GA USA - R.I.P.
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Posted 6 Sep 2014 2:02 pm
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i had that for about 2 months talked emmons and others
turner out to be a bad pot in volume pedal ordered one from billy cooper sounds great agin |
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Nick Waugh
From:
United Kingdom
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Posted 6 Sep 2014 2:20 pm
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| Nah, it's not the L'll Lizzy, as I have tried bypassing this and it sounds the same. In fact I can't use the Lizzy with my current thin sound as it just makes it sound even thinner. I have tried changing the strings and deoxing the sockets but no difference. I am interested in re-tensioning the amp. How is this done with a transister amp? I have only heard of this in relation to tube amps, where the sockets need to be retensioned from time to time. |
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Jon Light
From:
Saugerties, NY
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Posted 6 Sep 2014 2:31 pm
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Forget about 'retensioning'. It is a physical, not an electronic thing and it does not apply.
How does your electronics wiz explain his pronouncement that the pickup is fine? I have heard a partially shorted out pickup that resulted in a thin, unsatisfactory sound. It had been good. Then it was not. It was not mine and I was not involved in the fix--I don't know if it was replaced or repaired.
I have also heard jacks that were partially shorting with a stray bit of wire strand bridging the gap. That was a simple fix. These things will seriously degrade the sound without necessarily totally shorting it out. |
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Craig Baker
From:
Eatonton, Georgia, USA - R.I.P.
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Posted 6 Sep 2014 2:46 pm
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Nick,
It seems like process of elimination would be the logical method of finding the problem. First, prove the speaker is good, then the amplifier/speaker combination. If the amp is good, work back towards the steel until you've located the problem. You might begin by playing a known CD through the amp. The amp must sound OK before you can move on.
Since you're using a Peavey amp, the Molex connectors might need a good cleaning and tightening. Common problem with Peavey amps, but an inexpensive fix.
Best regards,
Craig Baker 706-485-8792
cmbakerelectronics@gmail.com
C.M. Baker Electronics
P.O. Box 3965
Eatonton, GA 31024
_________________
"Make America Great Again". . . The Only Country With Dream After Its Name. |
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Dale Rottacker
From:
Walla Walla Washington, USA
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Keith Hilton
From:
248 Laurel Road Ozark, Missouri 65721
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Posted 8 Sep 2014 7:07 pm
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| Air pressure, humidity--change hourly and daily. Room size, room shape change. Location of your speakers and other speakers. Volume level you are playing and other instruments are playing. Drummer riding cymbols. |
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Roger Francis
From:
kokomo,Indiana, USA
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Posted 9 Sep 2014 7:44 am
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Nick, good advise so far and this kind of stuff can get very aggravating and to not leave a stone unturned i had a very simular prob with my 10 yr old nash 112. I was ajusting EQs one day and i noticed my mid knob when i turned it it was very scratchy, after turning it back and forth a bunch of times till the noise went away then it seemed fine till a week or so later and the prob returned, so if plucked a few notes and let them ring while turning the knob and i could hear weird things going on with the sound, , then leaving it in one spot and playing the guitar i could still hear freqencies going in and out from thin to kinda muddy, i replaced every pot in my amp and it gave new life to it. Just a thought i woud consider
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Rittenberry SD10, 2 nashville 112s with telonics speaker, behringer EPQ450 power amp, 705 pups, Telonics FP-100, live steel strings, mogami cords, wet reverb |
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Nick Waugh
From:
United Kingdom
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Posted 12 Sep 2014 3:54 am
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Hey Roger
Can you tell me how much you paid for your pots and where you purchased them please? My Peavey is quite old so I will try replacing the pots.
On the Alumitone website it says ...'250K
FOR FOLLOWING PICKUPS
250 pots recommended for better tone.
.022mfd cap recommended
Is this referring to the pots in the amplifier used? Also, does anyone know what the 'cap' is? |
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Stephen Cowell
From:
Round Rock, Texas, USA
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Posted 12 Sep 2014 5:06 am
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| Nick Waugh wrote: |
Hey Roger
Can you tell me how much you paid for your pots and where you purchased them please? My Peavey is quite old so I will try replacing the pots.
On the Alumitone website it says ...'250K
FOR FOLLOWING PICKUPS
250 pots recommended for better tone.
.022mfd cap recommended
Is this referring to the pots in the amplifier used? Also, does anyone know what the 'cap' is? |
Nick, the pots are in the amp... the Alumitone info is referring to pots (and cap... 'capacitor') in the guitar.
Your best supplier for your amp pots is Peavey... the pots are soldered to the circuit board inside, you'd be best advised to let a technician do the work.
_________________
New FB Page: Lap Steel Licks And Stuff: https://www.facebook.com/groups/195394851800329 |
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