What does it mean to have a dead pre amp?

[vincentpghpa]

And how much would something like this cost to fix? Is it something I can do myself? Would I have to repair or replace it? It's a Dean Edge for only 100 bucks. It's kind of hard to pass up but...

Here's a quote from the ad.

This is a fantastic bass guitar for its price bracket, and this one's cherry, absolutely no damage or wear of any kind. Plays beautifully and sounds great, when it works. The only problem is that the onboard preamp stopped working soon after I got it (on craigslist), and for this reason I have barely played it.

Comes with the case too.

[madbassplaya]

Well, you could either try to find the problem and see if you could fix it or just replace it.

I would first try to change the battery. I know that's simple but a lot of people selling things on Craigslist have no idea what they are doing.

If its not the battery, I'd go ahead and change the preamp. That could run anywhere from $50 and up depending on what you buy and if you can install it or not.

[Von Felgenhauer]

You could always wire it up passively. Or buy a new preamp

[vincentpghpa]

The ad also says that he took it to a guitar shop so I don't think it's just the battery. That would be awesome though.

Should I try to talk him down in price?

[1958Bassman]

Originally Posted by Von Felgenhauer

You could always wire it up passively. Or buy a new preamp

Can't wire it passively if the pickups are low impedance and need to go through the preamp.