Batteries do not sound dead and I did not hear a squeal. I would use a new battery to see how it sounds and when it wears down, you will hear the difference. I have a new active bass and have only changed the battery once. The volume started to sound low and less clear. I leave my cable plugged in since I don't want to wear out the plug just in case. The battery lasted 3 months playing it 15 to 30 mins per day most of the time and a few days not at all. I have a battery tester for most types of batteries. Now I use a rechargeable 9V battery. Been plugged in for a few weeks, no problem.
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Do I need new batteries on my active bass?
- Thread starter Mtoklitz22
- Start date
I love Jazz basses. But they do have more of a penchant to pick up noises more than other basses, in my opinion
Ive had some make squeal noises (sorry I didn't hear them in your clip) being close to: computer, phone, fluorescent lights, plugs with bad grounds, the cable or WiFi box, et al
Try changing your area around so that it's not close to things that cause these outside interference and see if what you hear changes
Ive had some make squeal noises (sorry I didn't hear them in your clip) being close to: computer, phone, fluorescent lights, plugs with bad grounds, the cable or WiFi box, et al
Try changing your area around so that it's not close to things that cause these outside interference and see if what you hear changes
Look closely at the pole pieces on your pickups. Any small filings, like from steel wool...or anything... will create that exact sound. Use a piece of masking tape to remove any possible filings...press it down on the pole pieces, and peel it off. Look at the tape....You might be surprised to find some. If not, well it didn't cost much to do that.
Interesting and surprising. Although, the preamp in you bass is "on" regardless if you're physically playing it when the cable is plugged in. Not saying I don't believe you, but 3 months of continuous usage and no dead batteries? Strange.
But is it using the same amount of power when not being played? (Not a rhetorical question, I don't know the answer, but suspect it doesn't use as much because the output signal level will be minimal.)
A couple things. New batteries do not always mean fresh batteries and depending on the brand some batteries go flat really quick. Check your battery voltage.
When my active bass battery gets low it loses a lot of volume but I don't get any distortion, squeals, etc, just a dramatic drop in volume.
When my active bass battery gets low it loses a lot of volume but I don't get any distortion, squeals, etc, just a dramatic drop in volume.
I recently had a "scare" where apparently the amp side of a cheap cable I use when practicing at home got a little dirty, and I started having weird distortion kicking in while playing an active bass.
Changed the battery, no difference. Wiggled the cable, then wiped off the connectors. THEN things got clean. It was weird that it resulted in a distortion much like dying-preamp clipping, but electronics are always going to be a bit of a weird science.
Changed the battery, no difference. Wiggled the cable, then wiped off the connectors. THEN things got clean. It was weird that it resulted in a distortion much like dying-preamp clipping, but electronics are always going to be a bit of a weird science.
I thought it was strange too; however, maybe it was just the originally installed (non-consumer) new battery in a new bass. The current battery might not last as long and I will see what happens this time. There was no mistaken when the battery was low, the quality of the sound from the bass will be affected.
My Fender jazz deluxe V active uses 2 x 9v batteries, and it gets regular gig use, the batteries last at least 3 years.
I use alkaline Duracells or Energizers.
I use alkaline Duracells or Energizers.
Buy yourself a cheap battery tester for start and don't buy cheap battery..they have a tendency to die fast and leak..
your going to be set for many years to come...
your going to be set for many years to come...
Get a battery tester and check the voltage. The cost will pay off when you have saved several batteries from thrown away too soon. I don't think 'actually using the preamp or not' makes a big difference. Once it's plugged in, it consumes the battery anyway.
I think I heard the squeak you are referring to on the recording.. around the middle of the recording.
How far away are you from the recording device, the speakers etc?
We're you facing directly into the speaker?
Are you able to run the preamp with just one battery instead of two?
How far away are you from the recording device, the speakers etc?
We're you facing directly into the speaker?
Are you able to run the preamp with just one battery instead of two?
D
The "squeals" sound to me like you're pickup up noise from a laptop/computer monitor or similar. If that's the case it should disappear (or at least become a LOT quieter) with both pickups at full. A J-bass with one of the pickups soloed will pick up lots of noise from electronic equipment (unless you've got noice cancelling J-bass pickups of course).
If you prefer the sound of the neck pickup soloed on a J-bass and struggle with noise you might consider getting a P-bass instead. Or get noise cancelling pickups for your J. Or at least make sure it is properly shielded (which is often not the case). But even the best shielding won't fix noise issues on a J-bass 100%.
Of course the squeals could be something else too but I strongly suspect that you're picking up noise from some electronic equipment. If you can locate the source you can probably reduce (or eliminate) the noise by moving away from the source of the noise, or maybe even just changing your position so the pickups aren't facing the source.
It could be something else of course but I doubt very much if it's got something to do with the battery.
The thing you said about the tone getting less "sharp" is probably your strings getting older and not caused by the battery.
The distortion in your clip... doesn't sound all that bad to me to be honest. Unless this was supposed to be a CLEAN bass of course. If that's the case then yeah, something isn't right. Maybe your signal is too hot and you're clipping your inputs but it doesn't sound like digital distortion. Maybe it's the battery. This distortion is the ONLY thing I'm hearing that would make me thing of the battery. But like I said, I don't think it sounds bad at all IF it's supposed to be distorted. If not... lower the gain and/or change the battery.
Maybe you've already eliminated these things yourself. You SHOULD have because no one can troubleshoot this except YOU. You can discuss this on an online forum for days, weeks and months but no one will be able to diagnose this 100% for you over the internet.
If you still suspect it's the battery: Go get a new battery. It's the ONLY way you will know for sure.
If you prefer the sound of the neck pickup soloed on a J-bass and struggle with noise you might consider getting a P-bass instead. Or get noise cancelling pickups for your J. Or at least make sure it is properly shielded (which is often not the case). But even the best shielding won't fix noise issues on a J-bass 100%.
Of course the squeals could be something else too but I strongly suspect that you're picking up noise from some electronic equipment. If you can locate the source you can probably reduce (or eliminate) the noise by moving away from the source of the noise, or maybe even just changing your position so the pickups aren't facing the source.
It could be something else of course but I doubt very much if it's got something to do with the battery.
The thing you said about the tone getting less "sharp" is probably your strings getting older and not caused by the battery.
The distortion in your clip... doesn't sound all that bad to me to be honest. Unless this was supposed to be a CLEAN bass of course. If that's the case then yeah, something isn't right. Maybe your signal is too hot and you're clipping your inputs but it doesn't sound like digital distortion. Maybe it's the battery. This distortion is the ONLY thing I'm hearing that would make me thing of the battery. But like I said, I don't think it sounds bad at all IF it's supposed to be distorted. If not... lower the gain and/or change the battery.
Maybe you've already eliminated these things yourself. You SHOULD have because no one can troubleshoot this except YOU. You can discuss this on an online forum for days, weeks and months but no one will be able to diagnose this 100% for you over the internet.
If you still suspect it's the battery: Go get a new battery. It's the ONLY way you will know for sure.
Listened to it with headphones. You have a lot of noise coming through from somewhere.
That would not help. It's the actual *plug* on the bass that closes the circuit, whatever happens at the other end. If you just unplug from the amp, the preamp is still being powered.
True, sometimes batteries are just not very good from new, although the chances of that happening are lower with some brands (and not buying the supercheap special deal on Duracells on eBay, because they're probably not Duracell at all, no pint saving a few pennies when the battery will last a year easily).
The effect of a battery getting old varies with different preamps. My old Warwick Corvette $$ would start to distort a bit and then squeal. My Stingray just drops output slightly and starts sounding a bit distorted and if I continue it'll eventually start having dropouts. Some others I had gave me no warning at all (minutes).
But if a bass is misbehaving soon after changing batteries, I'd try another battery (from a different pack/brand, in case it's a batch issue) and see how it goes. I've had a bad battery (new!) once, and I have heard of others soemtimes finding the same.
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I have put all of the worry, fuss and muss behind me with the NEW Fishman Universal 9v Battery Pack installed in my control cavity!
Always enjoy the no nonsense comfort of FULL POWER at all times no matter how long you play, with the USB rechargeable Lithium battery accessed through a port on the cavity cover plate.
No more having to run to Wal-Mart or rummaging around in drawers or trying to find your gear bag you can't remember where you left it? Just unplug the USB cable, insert your quality cable into the output jack and hear the difference not having sketchy batteries makes each and every time you play.
I am an uncompensated product spokesperson.
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