Pope Flexcore preamp

[thepontif]

In my opinion, that's the way to do it. I have mine setup that way and I really like it.

As for installing the jumpers....just use a real small long nose. It's not easy, unfortunately. I can get them on there with my clunky, callused fingers, now because I've done it a lot.

[lowfreqgeek]

Is anyone using a Pope with fretless? I can't imagine that it wouldn't sound superb...

[mb94952]

I think I am FINALLY getting a hold of the functions of the Flexcore.

I am so used to the Peavey Cirrus onboard EQ, that I expect other EQ's to funtion the same. I love the sound of the Cirrus and I have mine usually with the mid flat, bass flat, and the treble boosted a little for those lovely, crispy highs.

So, when I had my Bartolini NTMB in my bass, it functioned very similarly, almost identically, but the Cirrus pre was way quieter ; it is actually silent.

So, I keep thinking the Pope is the same way. I have the 7 knob 2.1 model, so it has vol,blend, 4 band EQ. I thought if I run it flat, with a little boost on the highs, I will get my lovely Cirrus tone, but I'm not. It's too "something" and not enough "balls".

Then, last night I was searching the web and TB again to get more opinions on the Flexcore. I stumbled upon the frequency ranges of the bass, low mid, hi mid and treble. Normally, these numbers would mean NOTHING to me, BUT I realized, "Wait - the low and hi mids are the same numbers that are on my SWR Super Redhead." I never ever have run that EQ flat. I always had the low mids at between 7-9 o'clock, and the high mids at about 10 o'clock.

So, I took out my bass and before I plugged it in and turned on the amp I turned both low and hi mids counter clockwise to about where I have my SWR set. I turned on the amp and there was the tone I like !!!

[dasto]

Hi
During my vacation in the US I took the opportunity to purchase a pope flexcore. Today finally the weather was bad enough that I decided to give the installation a try. My plan was to swap the emg-preamp of my Spector Euro CRFM. So I started with taking out the original preamp and had to cut the wires of the input jack. Then I started to assemble the modules of the flexcore and wanted to install the prewired input jack. Big surprise! Only then I realized the the original input jack has a long threaded bushing and the one delivered with the flexcore a way more short threaded bushing. So what should I do? Could anybody give me an advice how to connect the original jack with the wires provided with the flexcore?
In fact I have no idea about electronics (I know how to solder but that's already all).
Thanks for helping!

I just encountered another problem. The emg pickups have a wire with a center wire and shield around this wire. So I suppose the center is the hot and the shield is the ground wire. But, there is an additional wire (a red one) coming out of the pickup cavity? Is this because these are active pickups and how should I them connect?

[mb94952]

Originally Posted by dasto

Hi
During my vacation in the US I took the opportunity to purchase a pope flexcore. Today finally the weather was bad enough that I decided to give the installation a try. My plan was to swap the emg-preamp of my Spector Euro CRFM. So I started with taking out the original preamp and had to cut the wires of the input jack. Then I started to assemble the modules of the flexcore and wanted to install the prewired input jack. Big surprise! Only then I realized the the original input jack has a long threaded bushing and the one delivered with the flexcore a way more short threaded bushing. So what should I do? Could anybody give me an advice how to connect the original jack with the wires provided with the flexcore?
In fact I have no idea about electronics (I know how to solder but that's already all).
Thanks for helping!

I just encountered another problem. The emg pickups have a wire with a center wire and shield around this wire. So I suppose the center is the hot and the shield is the ground wire. But, there is an additional wire (a red one) coming out of the pickup cavity? Is this because these are active pickups and how should I them connect?

I'm sure someone here will have an answer for you, but in the meantime MAYBE youtube has an installation video ?

[Kalango]

Originally Posted by dasto

Hi
During my vacation in the US I took the opportunity to purchase a pope flexcore. Today finally the weather was bad enough that I decided to give the installation a try. My plan was to swap the emg-preamp of my Spector Euro CRFM. So I started with taking out the original preamp and had to cut the wires of the input jack. Then I started to assemble the modules of the flexcore and wanted to install the prewired input jack. Big surprise! Only then I realized the the original input jack has a long threaded bushing and the one delivered with the flexcore a way more short threaded bushing. So what should I do? Could anybody give me an advice how to connect the original jack with the wires provided with the flexcore?
In fact I have no idea about electronics (I know how to solder but that's already all).
Thanks for helping!

I just encountered another problem. The emg pickups have a wire with a center wire and shield around this wire. So I suppose the center is the hot and the shield is the ground wire. But, there is an additional wire (a red one) coming out of the pickup cavity? Is this because these are active pickups and how should I them connect?

You can just dessolder the wires from the jack that comes with the flexcore and solder them to your original jack. I don't have a jack around here at work, so I can't say which terminal goes to which, but when I did this the first time I just checked with a multimeter which terminal had to be in contact with which. Do you have a multimeter?
I really don't think I helped much, but you still got a free bump. Better responses will come, it may take a little longer than usual because most TBers are gigging now.

Edit: The red wire goes to the battery red wire.

[dasto]

Thanks for your advice. I've imagined the same thing for the red wires (but this was not obvious, because they were connected directly to the emg-preamp).
Unfortunately I have no multimeter. My concerns are that I make the wrong connection with the left and the right wires to the output jack. Or does this really matter? I know so far, that the middle one is the ground and one is going to the battery. Since these wires are ending in a mini plug it's quite difficult to say which one leads to the battery, isn't it?
Thanks for your help. For the time being I don't continue to work on this until I'm sure to do the right thing.

[Kalango]

Originally Posted by dasto

Thanks for your advice. I've imagined the same thing for the red wires (but this was not obvious, because they were connected directly to the emg-preamp).
Unfortunately I have no multimeter. My concerns are that I make the wrong connection with the left and the right wires to the output jack. Or does this really matter? I know so far, that the middle one is the ground and one is going to the battery. Since these wires are ending in a mini plug it's quite difficult to say which one leads to the battery, isn't it?
Thanks for your help. For the time being I don't continue to work on this until I'm sure to do the right thing.

I don't know which EMG preamp you have, but usually there is a white wire going to the jack. That is the hot wire. In the jack provided with the flexcore, you can probably identify the hot wire. It is connected to the part that is in contact with the tip of the plug when it is inserted in the jack. So if you can identify hot and ground in both jacks, it gets easy.
But yes, it does matter which wire goes where.
Unfortunately, I work very far from home (offshore oil rig) and don't have acces to any instrument jack here. If nobody else can help till next friday, I will be able to tell you who is who when I get home.

[dasto]

Originally Posted by Kalango

I don't know which EMG preamp you have, but usually there is a white wire going to the jack. That is the hot wire. In the jack provided with the flexcore, you can probably identify the hot wire. It is connected to the part that is in contact with the tip of the plug when it is inserted in the jack. So if you can identify hot and ground in both jacks, it gets easy.
But yes, it does matter which wire goes where.
Unfortunately, I work very far from home (offshore oil rig) and don't have acces to any instrument jack here. If nobody else can help till next friday, I will be able to tell you who is who when I get home.

Thanks again for your help. I'll try to figure it out according to your description. I hope that I'll find out before Friday, but if not I'll be back ....

[thepontif]

Output Jack

Green=Hot
Black=ground
Orange=Ring terminal. This is NOT the battery negative!! It's a different signal.

I don't sell the long threaded jacks because they are garbage. They constantly break, and I would have to support them. I don't want the headache. I say, bite the bullet and have the hole drilled out so you can mount a standard open-frame jack on a plate there. Otherwise, you have to solder the wires to the old one.

EMG wiring: braided wire is hot inside, ground outside. This is an audio GROUND, not a shield. The red wire is how the battery power gets delivered to the EMG's. Connect both of them to position 1 on the green screw terminal.

[dasto]

Originally Posted by thepontif

Output Jack

Green=Hot
Black=ground
Orange=Ring terminal. This is NOT the battery negative!! It's a different signal.

I don't sell the long threaded jacks because they are garbage. They constantly break, and I would have to support them. I don't want the headache. I say, bite the bullet and have the hole drilled out so you can mount a standard open-frame jack on a plate there. Otherwise, you have to solder the wires to the old one.

EMG wiring: braided wire is hot inside, ground outside. This is an audio GROUND, not a shield. The red wire is how the battery power gets delivered to the EMG's. Connect both of them to position 1 on the green screw terminal.

Thanks for adding your knowledge. As for the output jack I decided to solder them to the old one. If I got you right I should have soldered the green wire to the position where the battery was connected on the original jack.

EMG wiring: Do I have to connect the braided wire to somewhere? I tried to connect them on the screw terminal on position 4 and 7?
Sorry for asking you so many questions on a sunday.

[thepontif]

Originally Posted by dasto

Thanks for adding your knowledge. As for the output jack I decided to solder them to the old one. If I got you right I should have soldered the green wire to the position where the battery was connected on the original jack.

EMG wiring: Do I have to connect the braided wire to somewhere? I tried to connect them on the screw terminal on position 4 and 7?
Sorry for asking you so many questions on a sunday.

Output jack. No. The orange wire would go to where the battery WAS. My point is, on my preamp, the battery negative does not connect to the jack, ever under any circumstances. It has a proprietary power supply and turn-on circuit so the battery negative is 9V BELOW ground at all times.

I think you have the EMG braid wires correct.

[dasto]

Originally Posted by thepontif

Output jack. No. The orange wire would go to where the battery WAS. My point is, on my preamp, the battery negative does not connect to the jack, ever under any circumstances. It has a proprietary power supply and turn-on circuit so the battery negative is 9V BELOW ground at all times.

I think you have the EMG braid wires correct.

OK. In this case I was not absolutely wrong. What I additionally did, was soldering the orange and the red wires of the pickups together and soldered all three to the connector where the battery was, instead of screwing the red ones from the pickups to the green terminal. On my first test connected to the amp, there was no sound at all, no even a hum, nothing ......
I'm sorry for my lack of knowledge in electronics but I thought the installation of this preamp would be much easier than it appears now.

[mb94952]

Wow, thanks for that, thepontif ! I soldered my ground to the ring and got the buzz to go away 90% , but if I solder it to the black, then I will be set.

I just assumed the ring was negative ! Thanks Mike !!

[thepontif]

Originally Posted by dasto

OK. In this case I was not absolutely wrong. What I additionally did, was soldering the orange and the red wires of the pickups together and soldered all three to the connector where the battery was, instead of screwing the red ones from the pickups to the green terminal. On my first test connected to the amp, there was no sound at all, no even a hum, nothing ......
I'm sorry for my lack of knowledge in electronics but I thought the installation of this preamp would be much easier than it appears now.

Batteries have two terminals....a positive and a negative.

Battery NEGATIVE used to go to the jack, and that is where you connect the orange wire.

Battery POSITIVE is how you power the pickups. Do what I said and hook the red wires to position ONE on the green screw terminal. Orange wire where the battery was.

[dasto]

Originally Posted by thepontif

Batteries have two terminals....a positive and a negative.

Battery NEGATIVE used to go to the jack, and that is where you connect the orange wire.

Battery POSITIVE is how you power the pickups. Do what I said and hook the red wires to position ONE on the green screw terminal. Orange wire where the battery was.

OK. I'll do that after work an let you know about the result.
Thanks again for your precious help Mike.

[dasto]

So far so good. The preamp works but....not perfect yet. The volume pot does not work progressively. When I turn the pot the volume comes on an stays always at the same level. I have the 2.2 configuration and I placed a jumper on the volume control as indicated on the manual (on the outer contacts).
Another question I have is concerning the balancer board. Instead of 2 jumpers for the active pickup I have 3 jumpers? Should I place jumpers on all 3?
Thanks in advance.

[thepontif]

Jumpers on 2 for active. The third one is for single pickup basses. Are you plugged into the white connector on the volume board, or green?

[dasto]

Originally Posted by thepontif

Jumpers on 2 for active. The third one is for single pickup basses. Are you plugged into the white connector on the volume board, or green?

"Jumpers on 2 for active"; then I did it right

Yesterday evening I put the plug Into the white connector and a jumper on the outer connectors and the volume worked but not as linear as I'm used to with other preamps. It comes on very loud (the gain pot is all the way up) but stays more or less at the same level when turning it full on. I have to turn the gain trimm pot full on, that I can play the bridge pickup only with reasonable volume.

BTW what I heard so far coming out of the bass is impressive!
It's just a pitty that the threads of the pots are so short that I can't even ad a washer on the outside of the body of the bass. I suppose to fix the flexcore to a metal plate like you find on jazz basses there wouldn't be any problem.

[CrashClint]

Originally Posted by dasto

"Jumpers on 2 for active"; then I did it right.

Take some pictures with your cell phone and post. A picture tells a thousand words and it may help in troubleshooting any issues.