Fender Deluxe Jazz problem

[bassnj]

Ok, si I just got a brand new American-made Fender Deluxe Jazz 4. Thing sounds amazing and plays amazing. EXCEPT . . . I'm getting a lot of hum/buzz from the pickups, in both active AND passive modes. These are the new N3 pickups.

Didn't have that problem when I tried out this bass several times in stores. And I tried changing cables, bypassing my effects board, different amps, different settings to rule out RF. Changed the batteries.

Funny . . . these N3 pups were supposed to be super-quiet.

Any suggestions?

[starmann]

I have a '11 deluxe. And yes the pick ups ARE NOT noiseless.

However, I had a 2011 Ric and that POS had more noise than you can imagine.

How bad is your noise. Depending on lighting and the type of amp D vs AB, I have a large AB class amp, you will get some noise.

But, Yes, they ARE NOT noiseless. Regardless of what Fender says.

Hope this helps

Jeff

[bassnj]

In which case I will switch out those POS pups and put something better in there. But I'm not gonna get rid of the bass. It has mojo.

Thanks!

Originally Posted by starmann

I have a '11 deluxe. And yes the pick ups ARE NOT noiseless.

However, I had a 2011 Ric and that POS had more noise than you can imagine.

How bad is your noise. Depending on lighting and the type of amp D vs AB, I have a large AB class amp, you will get some noise.

But, Yes, they ARE NOT noiseless. Regardless of what Fender says.

Hope this helps

Jeff

[jwj1701]

Starmann may have the answer. Depending on where your set up any number of things can cause interference (hum or buzz). ie; in the room I'm set up when I turn off the Dish box and TV I hear it through my amp. Troubleshoot before you get in a panic about that sweet new high dollar bass.

[starmann]

How bad is your noise???? Like I said, compared to the Ric it is nothing.

You can also "EQ" a lot of it out.

And I agree, I love my natural Deluxe, with Maple fretboard. I have even added chrome knobs...I am a "chromeaholic".

Mine does don't bug me enough to warrant a pick up switch.

[DiabolusInMusic]

The good ole "fender hiss", I thought this couldn't be removed for years, but if your a DIY guy you can easily shield the pickups and completely remove that noise. I've done it on many precisions, never a jazz but its the same principle. Even the stock mexi pups aren't that bad once shielded, of course I'm a seymour duncan guy though. It's cheaper than new pups, and you may have to shield the next ones too because even though it's an american I'd bet your bottom dollar that the shield job is pitiful at best. They only started shielding a couple years ago even at the lame attempt they do now.

For the record, I'm a Fender guy and have owned about 15 Fender/Squier jazz and precisions so I am biased....


If you touch the strings/bridge/metal on the guitar and it gets quiet it's a shielding issue. If it gets louder it's grounding (not the case but its good to know) If you want to test your ground noise level at home use a noiseless bass (assuming you've got one) and crank your amp, listen to it's noise and compare.

[Gougedeye]

You need to do a search. There are a lot of threads on this topic. However, in lieu of that, you need to shield all of the cavities in your bass. Get some copper shielding tape from StewMac and shield your pickup cavities, preamp cavity and batter cavity. You might also put a screwdriver to the ground to be sure it is tight. This should take care of your excess buzzing. Good Luck.

[bassguitarthund]

Like others have said. I would do a little more research first before you do a pup swap. I am no expert by any means but if it was good in the store and changed when you got home. I would think (this is only my thought and could be wrong) you might be picking something up in the house? House wiring, grounding issues, amp or ect. From what I have read on here they are not NOISELESS pups but are much quiter than the normal pups. If in the end you still want to swap them out then atleast ya tried everything else first Hope this helps

[starmann]

In case you're interested...Here is what your baby can look like with more chrome.

Enjoy,

[bassnj]

Thanks for the input everyone. It's appreciated!

[bassclef04]

get your bass completely shield and problem solved.

[bassnj]

Shielded it is.

[bassbenj]

Originally Posted by bassnj

Ok, si I just got a brand new American-made Fender Deluxe Jazz 4. Thing sounds amazing and plays amazing. EXCEPT . . . I'm getting a lot of hum/buzz from the pickups, in both active AND passive modes. These are the new N3 pickups.

Didn't have that problem when I tried out this bass several times in stores. And I tried changing cables, bypassing my effects board, different amps, different settings to rule out RF. Changed the batteries.

Funny . . . these N3 pups were supposed to be super-quiet.

Any suggestions?

First you have to determine where the hum is coming from.

The first test is to see of the hum changes/goes away/ gets louder if you touch the strings or ground (jackplate etc.)

The second test is when the hum does not change when you touch ground, does it change when you change the position of the bass? Rotate it around into all sorts of positions (even unplayable ones) trying to find if you can discover a position where the hum is "nulled" and minimum.

If you have the first case where hum changes level when touching ground, you need shielding. I recommend copper foil for this. I don't know what it is but Fender basses use conductive paint and sometimes it's just not effective.

If on the other hand, the hum level does NOT change when touching ground, but you can find a bass position where the hum is "nulled" out, that means your "noiseless" pickups are not noiseless and you are getting single coil hum. In that case only answer is new "better" pickups.