American Deluxe P bass question

masque · #1 02-27-2013, 01:15 PM

i've doing lots of searches on here related to the noise that many experience with this bass..

i have tried nearly every suggested remedy i have see on here including a good shielding job and installing a brass cavity plate under the bridge pickup.

98% of my issue of noise is coming from the bridge jazz pickup.

my question is this......can I replace the "noiseless" fender N3 bridge pickup with a different one that really is noiseless and still use the fender preamp???? essentially just swapping the pickup and nothing else.

or will i find that changing the pickup really does little and the noise issue is within the fender preamp?

lastly, if you feel changing the pickup will correct my issue then can anyone turn me on to some they like??

thanks in advance for your help!

Cadfael · #2 02-27-2013, 01:40 PM

I don't know it 100% - but "I wouzld lay my hands into fire" (as we say in Germany) that the PUs in your bass are "normal high impedance" PUs.

Do you / a friend / relatives / neighbours have a multimeter?
Something between 6k and 12k Ohms would show. 2k Ohms or less are low impedance PUs.

If it is a high impedance PU (as I believe) you can replace it with every "J humbucker" PU like DiMarzio and many more. I have Delano AlM2s in my J - but I think these are not availabe as replacement PUs? I have a DiMarzio 123 (or 124?) in my Fender Aerodyne P-Bass Special (PJ). It has no chance against the built in Japanese P-PU but I think this is the desteny of most PJ basses ...

rubbadubdub · #3 02-27-2013, 01:49 PM

I have no experience with that particular bass but I can say with some confidence that a noiseless pickup which is noisy is faulty. If you have a functioning ground and also screening properly done then there's something wrong with the pickup.
I had a quick look at the spec for your bass and they are passive pickups with an active preamp so you can fit pretty much any pickup that will fit in the hole as far as output and impedance goes. You will run into phasing issues if you try to mix a Seymour Duncan with a Fender neck pickup though you could just reverse the wires on the bridge pickup. There's a lot of information both on the internet generally and especially on the Seymour Duncan site.
If you want an easy life you could just replace it with another Fender pickup the same. I assume your bass is out of warranty?
If you can desctibe the noise you may get more help. It wouldbe even better if you could offer a recording. There are many sources of noise and each may have it's own particular solution. Is it a hissing sound or a humming sound. Does it only happen in acertain location such as near to your amp? Maybe it only happens when you arent touching the strings?

masque · #4 02-27-2013, 01:49 PM

i do have a mulitmeter and i will check it this evening.

so are you saying that something like the dimarzio ultra jazz bridge pickup would be a nice QUIET suitable replacement and work with the active fender preamp in the bass?

P Town · #5 02-27-2013, 01:56 PM

I have both an Am Dlx P, and Am Dlx J. Bought the P new last year, and the J new this year. Both basses are quiet under normal conditions. I can make them buzz a little if I lean abnormally close to the power transformer of my B-15.
Otherwise, no noise. I would say you have a warranty issue.

Cadfael · #6 02-27-2013, 02:05 PM

Every "normal quality" humbucker can be as quiet as possible.

I often play with headphones on as I live in a flat. There is a big difference between by SC-Js and my HB-Js.

I onl own passive basses but an active EQ makes the difference more hearable as it also can boost the "SC noise" ...

I am a "child of the 70s/80s", so Seymour Duncan says nothing to me but DiMarzio is cult. This has nothing to do with logic - must be the female part in me???

I can't say which DiMarzio would be best for you (if you like a DiMarzio). Ultra and Area have both a very good reputation. Others my answer. But for the question which J-PU is best, you have to specify which sound you like. The classic J sound or a hotter, punchyer J sound?

masque · #7 02-27-2013, 02:58 PM

I would prefer it sound like the fender pickup that is in it now just with no noise. So I suppose that would be closer to the classic j sound right?

masque · #8 02-27-2013, 03:00 PM

The type of noise is a high pitched hiss or buzz that primarily comes from the bridge pickup. Touching the strings or bridge has no effect. Turning Away from my gear makes the noise go away almost completely. The issue is still there after shielding. It's not a 60hz hum

masque · #9 02-27-2013, 03:01 PM

The bass is rather new and technically under warranty but after me shielding it etcccc I am sure I will have voided the warranty on it now. Lol

Cadfael · #10 02-27-2013, 04:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by masque

The bass is rather new and technically under warranty but after me shielding it etcccc I am sure I will have voided the warranty on it now. Lol

Germany has totally differnent rights than the USA ...
But here you would not have voided the warranty but only the right to give it back (and get full money).
If it's obvious that you did/could not have damaged the PU with your shielding and the PU is "wrong", you would at least get a PU that's okay ...

But you shurely should have contacted your dealer first before you modify the bass to solve a problem.

But the warranty should at least be on a good neck etc.?!

masque · #11 02-27-2013, 04:21 PM

Well I did call fender and the guy I spoke to said to go ahead and shield it and that the warranty would still be good etcccc but I don't have that in writing from them. Lol. So I could see them maybe giving me a hard time about it. I LOVE the bass outside of this noise issue with the bridge pickup. So I had hopes that I could just do a top notch shield job and correct the problem.

I know some folks have indicated that the pickup must be bad to be making noise when it's supposed to be noiseless and maybe it is but what confuses me is that I can just about make it completely quiet by turning my back to my gear.

I have fender guitars such as deluxe tele and strat with noiseless pickups and they are dead quiet regardless of whether I face my gear or not.

But back to the pickup being faulty, it seems that if it were a "bad" pickup that it would likely buzz and have issues regardless of how I sit in my studio. I just don't know. But I know I'm frustrated.

rubbadubdub · #12 02-27-2013, 06:18 PM

In reply to your question about maybe fitting a Di marzio.... yes it would be ok but you may still have to mind the phase. I only have one Di marzio and that is in a guitar. I can't remember wether its Fender who wire their pickups opposite to everyone else or wether its Seymour Duncan. It's not that big an issue though. If no one has explained what I'm saying by the morning I will try to find some links to good explanationns on the net for you. It's after one in the morning here in the UK so I'm afraid that it's bed time for me.

masque · #13 02-28-2013, 03:33 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rubbadubdub

In reply to your question about maybe fitting a Di marzio.... yes it would be ok but you may still have to mind the phase. I only have one Di marzio and that is in a guitar. I can't remember wether its Fender who wire their pickups opposite to everyone else or wether its Seymour Duncan. It's not that big an issue though. If no one has explained what I'm saying by the morning I will try to find some links to good explanationns on the net for you. It's after one in the morning here in the UK so I'm afraid that it's bed time for me.

thank you!

rubbadubdub · #14 02-28-2013, 10:57 AM

Sorry I forgot....
Here are a couple of sites which explain phase and reverse wound etc. The information is in there but you may have to sift through it all....

http://www.1728.org/guitar.htm

http://www.guitarnuts.com/wiring/pickups.php

Hope that helps?

masque · #15 02-28-2013, 03:33 PM

Thanks a bunch for the links!!!

rubbadubdub · #16 02-28-2013, 05:18 PM

My pleasure. Just had a thought.... did you say you only notice the issue with the bridge pickup? I'm wondering wether it's something other than your bass?

morehorn · #17 02-28-2013, 05:27 PM

i'd make sure my light-feedback and iffy power sources were sorted out first. then i'd look to the preamp. i know its not a cheap test but i swapped out a late-90s USA DX preamp for nothing (passive) and then later to a bartolini and never had the noise problems that fender pre had...

MysticMichael · #18 02-28-2013, 05:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by masque

lastly, if you feel changing the pickup will correct my issue then can anyone turn me on to some they like??

I can't provide any better advice on troubleshooting your noise issue than has already been provided - although I will encourage you to be most thorough and methodical in the way you approach it. Leave no stone unturned, and all that. That would include obtaining some kind of tangible warranty support from Fender - if required. We're talking a new preamp and/or new pickup(s), etc.

If, at the end of the day, you decide that you would indeed like to swap out the stock Fender N3 noiseless pickups, you might wish to consider the Bill Lawrence / Wilde Pickups P46 Precision pickup + J45 Jazz pickup. Not only are they also noiseless, but they were designed by Bill Lawrence - the same guy who designed the Fender N3. In fact, many more knowledgeable than I consider the P46 + J45 to be an actual refinement of the N3s. And FYI, they are also designed to function as a matched P/J set - which many, if not most, P/J sets are not.

I haven't actually heard these in performance yet, so I can't attest to them on the basis of personal experience. But if I were you, I would at least search out some reviews before committing to a purchase. Based on everything I've gathered about them, they would work very nicely in your American Deluxe Precision.

Bonus: They're really cheap!

MM

rubbadubdub · #19 03-01-2013, 02:48 AM

Morehorns' post reinds me that I had a similar run around with my active Peavey Millenium.
I live on a boat and move around a lot and I have various noise issues from my inverter and solar regulator but one day I plugged that bass in and there was a strange spitting and popping sound that I hadn't heard before.
I did the same. I removed the pre amp... still the same. Then I tried each pickup one at a time by wiring them individually straight to the output jack. Next I soldered in a new jack socket (getting desperate by now).
The only thing left was the battery so I swapped that for a brand new one from a different supplier. Still hearing the odd popping noises.
A search on the net came up with several articles all describing the distinctive sound very well and all of them pointed to capacitors breaking down.
This bass has active pickups. That is that they each have their own buffer preamp sealed into the casing. I found it hard to believe that two pickups and an active eq pre amp could all go bad at exactly the same time.
I decided to bypass the battery and wire the pickups to my boats 12 volt supply. Unfortunately in my haste I forgot to change the polarity of my 9 volt adapter and melted one of the pickups. £50 down and a lot of time lost so I put the bass away.
The next time I got it out to try again the remaining pickup was as clean as a whistle and has been ever since. I had moved a few miles and have not been back since. I expect that the noise will be there again when I do though.
My mate is a radio research engineer for Land Rover and he has no idea other than that there must something in the area causing the problem. Another odd thing is that none of my other basses active or passive suffered from the noise.
I guess the moral of that story is to check your enviroment before you rip your bass apart.

rubbadubdub · #20 03-01-2013, 04:03 AM

I forgot to mention that I didn't refit the bog standard Peavey pre and it was far too noisy with even a slight treble boost not to mention that it never sounded good and I was constantly adjusting the mid control but that's a different issue. Maybe as already suggested your pre amp is noisy bydesign?
It's really difficult for us to say without hearing it an we are just therefore guessing as to your problem and the solution.