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Post new topic Bad Pickups ?????
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Author Topic:  Bad Pickups ?????
Dave Morrison

 

From:
Whbg Ohio Usa
Post  Posted 30 Apr 2007 4:43 pm    
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HI guys.At the risk of sounding like a complete moron ,has anyone ever had pickups to go bad? about 2 weeks ago I was playing live and my tone went south and my volume dropped to half its normal level
I have been trouble shooting ever since I finally took it over to the studio tonite and wihout the volume pedal;going straight to the console I still am hearing an almost overdriven tone when I hit the bass strings. I forgot to mention I did find that my pickup grounds were not soldered good. could this have caused both pickups to burn out?
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Jerry Erickson

 

From:
Atlanta,IL 61723
Post  Posted 30 Apr 2007 5:34 pm    
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A bad ground won't cause your pickups to burn out. What kind of pickups do you have/brand of guitar? Can you bypass the selector switch and connect a pickup directly to a cable ? Do you have a volt/ohm meter? You can measure the resistance of the pickup to see if it's shorted or open.
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Billy Murdoch

 

From:
Glasgow, Scotland, U.K.
Post  Posted 30 Apr 2007 11:26 pm    
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Is your cord O.K.
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Dave Morrison

 

From:
Whbg Ohio Usa
Post  Posted 1 May 2007 1:25 am    
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Ive changed cords and even the pickup selector switch Its still there Ive been playing almost 30years and have never had any thing like this happen before
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Bo Borland


From:
South Jersey -
Post  Posted 1 May 2007 3:28 am    
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I played a place, where we did not know the overhead lights on a dimmer, were on my circuit...needless to say, there was a a major difference in sound.
Just last week I was playing and noticed a drop in power, my volume dropped way down.
_________________
Bo Borland
Rittenberry SD10 , Derby D-10, Quilter TT12, Peavey Session 400 w/ JBL, NV112, Fender Blues Jr. , 1974 Dobro 60N squareneck, Rickenbacher NS lapsteel, 1973 Telecaster Thinline, 1979 blonde/black Frankenstrat
Currently picking with
Mason Dixon Band masondixonband.net
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Roger Francis

 

From:
kokomo,Indiana, USA
Post  Posted 1 May 2007 11:23 am    
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I swapped out pickups in a guitar and then went back to the original and shortly after that i had problems with my sound, sort of a distortion and fast tremolo sound and after alot of confusion, testing and checking i finaly found that i had ond little strand of wire of the ground at my 1/4 in plug on the guitar touching the + i seperated them and every thing was fine, but i don't recall if i lost any volume.
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Donny Hinson

 

From:
Glen Burnie, Md. U.S.A.
Post  Posted 2 May 2007 8:13 am    
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Dave, I think your problem is a bad connection or ground somewhere. Try loosening the nut on the jack in the guitar, and then re-tightening it. I've seen cases where the jack, even though firmly fastened in the endplate, wasn't making good contact. Also, resolder all the connections in your guitar, just to be sure they're good.

No, I don't believe both your pickups would go "semi-bad" at the same time.
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Ken Fox


From:
Nashville GA USA
Post  Posted 2 May 2007 1:01 pm    
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I have replaced three bad pickups this year that were still putting out a nice loud and very thin volume. One was a Barcus Berry in a 20 year old GFI, a Super Sustain in an older MSA and a lead pickup in a 1969 Tele. All three showed open coil with an ohm meter.

Easy way to test, just plug in a guitar cord and check the ohms reading by touching the test leads to the tip and sleeve of the cable. If it is open then go straight to the pickup and test again (in case it a jack or wiring issue).
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Dave Morrison

 

From:
Whbg Ohio Usa
Post  Posted 2 May 2007 5:33 pm    
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Thanks guys for all your input.Ive ordered a new seletor switch and a piece of shielded cable from Mullen im going to replace them and recheck all my solder connections.I will let you all know how it works out
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Gary Preston


From:
Columbus, Ohio, USA
Post  Posted 3 May 2007 5:23 pm    
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Smile Hi Dave . I did have a pickup go bad on one of my Sho~Buds but it didn't loose any volume ,it did hum very bad ! Your Mullen sounds great so get her fixed . I remember playing it when the group that i was playing with recorded at the studio there . The group was Generation Of Faith . Best regards , Gary .
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