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AB II Question for Dingwall experts

ad9000

ad9000

Supporting Member
Mar 30, 2004
1,865
2,788
Pasadena, CA
#1
I just picked up a 4-year old 6-string Dingwall Afterburner II. It has an Aguilar OBP-1 and the BlueEQube module. It is a really impressive axe, but there are a couple of things I find to be quirky, shall we say, with the electronics. When the volume control is lowered, there is a significant high-end cut that occurs. Is this normal? Is this what the "hybrid treble" function is supposed to be?
Also, in either of the positions where both pickups are switched on, the tone is definitely on the nasal side. I really prefer either the front or back pickups alone. No question there, just an observation.
Strangely, I don't have much problem at all with the fanned frets. The low B is incredible!
Thanks in advance.
I would post pix, but I sent the bass out for some fret work before I got around to taking any.
 
#2
There's something not quite right. I'd hit up Sheldon over on his Message board. It may take a while since he's moving shop this month though!

It's not the Hybrid treble control since that's only been around for just about 3 years or so. Also, the hybrid is a center detented treble knob which acts as a passive roll off on the back side of the sweep and the OBP-1's boost on the front side of the sweep.

It also sounds like you've got a wiring problem of another sort. You shouldn't be getting nasal from the series or parallel settings...the Series should be very full and fat with a hefty low mid kick, and the Parallel is as close as you'll get to a Jazz bass tone, much closer to vintage sounding.
 
#4
ad9000 said:
Thank you! When I get the bass back I'll check it out further and will contact Sheldon.
Click to expand...


Cool. I have a Z/Voodoo with an OBP-1 and also a passive AB1 and I've not noticed any great amount of high end attenuation with reduced volume. I certainly don't get nasal with either bass, which to me would be pronounced upper mid...the only time I think I hear that is when I have the bridge soloed.
 
#6
Do you know if the electronics have been mod'd? If so the pu's might have accidently been wired out of phase.

If to your ears it sounds nasally you might want to try Sheldon's new MachII pu's. Your FD3 pu's are wired parallel, MachII's are wired in series.

Parallel imo= scooped, can sound a little hollow and kinda nasally TME's, a little bass boost helps this
Series imo= vintage mid laiden wool w/more output & authority making the over all feel of the instrument feel and sound tighter.

You might want to make sure your batteries are new and retest in active and passive mode. Does the treble roll off happen at the same rate in passive as active?

I changed my FD3's to MII's in my ABII fretless. The hybrid treble works differently w/the series MII's in the rate it rolls off treble.
 
#7
I got the bass back and the first thing I did was shoot some De-Oxit into the pots, wiring connections and 4-way switch. Happily, that solved the problem! Apparently due to poor connections the neck pickup wasn't always on before, explaining the "nasal-ness." The fret work is amazing and I'm a happy camper!
 
#9
My ABII does exactly the same thing. The last 1/8 turn of the volume boosts the high end quite a bit. I just back it off a bit. I think if you bring up the bass boost it kinda works like an overdrive with the pickup selection set right.
 

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