what's wrong with my bass? Anyone...?

BassPlayer3187 · #1 03-07-2009, 08:13 PM

I have a Carvin 5-string kit that I bought and put together 9 years ago, almost 10. Everything in it is still the original part and until about a year to a year and a half ago it's worked great! Besides the battery pack that broke and Carvin couldn't replace for me because they stopped making it (I'll never buy another Carvin product simply for their customer support and inability to fix their own gear). About a year ago the bass started having a natural distortion to it. As I investigated it more, I found that the harder I played, the more present it was (obvious) and that it was much more present on the humbucker than on the single-coil. It happens vary rarely on the single-coil, I have to try to make it to it, but it will. The humbucker does it almost constant, no matter what the volume of my bass output or amp input. I bought a new pre-amp and replaced that and it did nothing. Is it my pick-up(s)? I'm at a complete loss a year into trying to get this bass fixed. I love it and want to be able to use it like I could when it was first built!

18eranaRic · #2 03-07-2009, 08:21 PM

somthin''s gettin overloaded post pickup. perhaps a resistor's not rated for the output of your preamp circuit which would make sense being a higher output of that humbucker. another prob could be in the grounding...where there's a puddle of solder on top of a pot...not getting a solid connection (very common).

BassPlayer3187 · #3 03-07-2009, 08:27 PM

Thanks for your help. I'm pretty sure it's not a solder issue since me, my local bass tech, and Carvin when I sent them that didn't find anything. If it is a resistor problem how do I fix this then? Also I'm looking to replace both pick-ups anyways especially the humbucker. Any suggestions?

18eranaRic · #4 03-07-2009, 08:34 PM

Re: Any suggestions?...tear it all out and start fresh. could be a needle in a haystack, and unless you just really love it broken, maybe not worth the trouble. Plus, for me, the peace of mind is always worth the few extra bucks.

BassPlayer3187 · #5 03-07-2009, 08:36 PM

Fair enough! Thanks for your input

18eranaRic · #6 03-07-2009, 08:39 PM

As for the resistor...just have to test each one with a multimeter to find the bad one. then replace it with a higher "voltage" one but with the same "resisting" value. Resistors are the little things that look like a wire with a lump of something on it, sometimes a ceramic disc, sometimes a cylinder with stripes on it.

JustDavid · #7 03-08-2009, 06:38 AM

Testing resistors is a good idea, but pre-amps blowing resistors isn't a very common occurance.

18eranaRic · #8 03-09-2009, 04:50 PM

any luck?

Rick Auricchio · #9 03-09-2009, 05:10 PM

1. Have you tried adjusting the pickup height?

2. Have you tested the bass with a different amplifier?

andk5591 · #10 03-09-2009, 05:59 PM

Do some basic troubleshooting and figure out where its not - jump past the preamp and go right to the output jack (make sure you are not connected to the preamp at all. This will tell you if the prob is or is not preamp related. Then go from there.

Alaska Bass · #11 03-09-2009, 06:03 PM

Remove the bass from the knobs and replace it with a Fender!

Jo6Pak · #12 03-09-2009, 06:26 PM

Try a new battery.

SGD Lutherie · #13 03-09-2009, 07:52 PM

It sounds like the battery. If the battery is known to be good (and always use alkaline, not "heavy duty" zinc batteries) then check your output jack. Sometimes they act up and the power is not switched on well. Contacts get dirty after a while. Could be the pots too.

Carvin doesn't make those battery compartments. Most of them are made by Gotoh for Carvin and others... they just have their name put of them. So it's not their fault if the company stopped making them.

But if you look you can find exactly the same battery box online.