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Originally Posted by ejm customs Do you have any soldering knowledge/skills? The ground is the wire that connects everything metal (pickups, strings, electronics, etc.) to our fine planet earth. If you have the skills you can simply solder a new ground from the jack to the control pots and up to the bridge. Just follow what was already there. If you don't trust yourself with an iron, anybody with skill the art of soldering fine electronics and common sense enough to just replace what was there should be able to get the job done. I'm not by any means an expert on this issue, but when you touch the strings you become the ground, hence the silence. It is this reason exactly that I am a firm believer in the EMG DCs, CSs (the extended series humbuckers) that do not require string grounding. You'll never get zapped on the lips when you're singing and they sound dern good to boot. |
Unless the Urge schematic that I looked up on the web is incorrect, the urge bridge is not grounded as it comes from the factory.
I don't know what effect grounding the bridge might have on the bass.
In fact most active pups don't require a bridge ground.
It's pretty important to know whether the noise is AC hum or RF interference in order to attempt to diagnose the problem.
If it's an AC hum there are at least four possible common causes. One is improper grounding. Another is a ground loop, with the third being ineffective shielding. A fourth possibility is a "dirty" power line.
Diy tests are pretty limited unless you have access to, and the knowledge to use it, at least a minimum amount of test equiptment. A multimeter is a must but when working with an active setup it is imperative that the ohm meter part be suitable for solid state testing. An old Simpson 260 or a tripplet uses a test voltage that is high enough to damage some solid state devices.
The first thing that I would suggest would be to determine if the noise is AC interference or RF interference.
If it's AC related the noise will be a low pitched hum that is similar in sound to the dial tone on a telephone. If it's RF related it will sound more like a "swishing' sound, sort of like the background ocean noise on the beach.
If the noise is AC related, simply turn the face of the bass in different directions and see if there is a large difference in the noise volume while facing different directions. The closer that the bass is to the source of interference, the louder the noise volume will be.
If the noise is the same regardless of orientation, chances are that it's coming in through the power line. The only simple test is to try another power source in another location. The other location should be completely removed from where the problem occurs. Preferably on an AC source that's not on the same power line transformer.
If everything points to a dirty line, a power line conditioner may be simpler than trying to get the AC line cleaned up. Not a bad practice even if it doesn't correct your immediate problem.
If the noise does change with orientation, the prob could be faulty shielding, an unbalanced setting of the humbucker pups, unbalanced pups due to one of the pups being weaker than the other, or simply an appliance that is generating interference.
If the problem goes away in another location the cause of the problem is probably not in the bass and will have to be dealt with at the source.
If the noise is RF interference, save yourself a lot of time and find a good electronics tech to fix the problem. Remember that if RF interference follows the bass when you try another location that the noise is being generated by the bass itself. If the RF noise goes away at another location, the prob is that something in your home creating the interference. Not likely to be a passive appliance like a stove or refrigerator. More likely to be a TV, computer or electronic device of some sort.
I realize that my answer may sound overly complicated but finding the solution to your prob can very well become VERY complicated.
Fender Urge Problem ! 
