Electric shock through bass...

Maybe open up the outlet (if you are qualified) and see if the earth wire is loose. It's definitely a bad ground connection somewhere.

 

I had a similar thing happen. I was playing and all of a sudden i started getting shocked from the strings. I later found out it was the cable. I don't know what exactly happens when it starts shocking you, but I don't think you can fix it. Try borrowing somebody else's cable and seeing if you get shocked at all.

 

Some would pay money to have that 'effect' on their bass all the time.

 

http://www.talkbass.com/forum/showthread.php?t=549979&highlight=really+good+idea

 

+1 on the static

 

The exact same thing happened to me, same bass, same amp same problem.
What i did was, changed the amp AC cable with the 3 prong (3 legged) plug. I use an LCD computer monitor AC cable, which has a 3 prong plug and a fuse in the plug. But you have to make sure that you check the voltage as well.
And that's it..good luck

 

It doesn't seem likely that static would build up on your body if you're touching a bass which is connected to ground--you only get static build-up if you are isolated from ground. Your body is a very good conductor.

In the world of electronics (and high-reliability devices for space applications, etc.) we put a resistor (1 Megohm) in series with the human body to bleed off static, but prevent electrocution by limiting the current. The capacitor sounds like the same idea, but of course it would pass high frequencies and block 60 Hz, so it would not function very well as a ground to reduce hum in your sound.

I still go with the original poster's idea that it is something with the wiring in the building. Is there any chance you were plugged into a different outlet than you usually use when this happened? Were you using an extension cord? Maybe that outlet is wired incorrectly? It used to be very common in the US that outlets would be wired in reverse--that was the reason that old amps had ground reverse switches.

Ed

 

I would not rule out an issue w/ the bass. A bad solder joint or similar could be an intermittent open to ground. If the bass has a bad ground, you can indeed still get shocked as the current will use your fingers and body as ground, not good.

Not likely to be static, as already mentioned a properly grounded bass will dissapate any static charge to ground.

Do you have an ohm meter? If so, check resistance between your bridge and the "sleeve" portion of your output jack. You should have zero.

Another test, first *unplug* your amp from the wall, but hook your bass up with the instrument cord. Then measure ohms between your bridge and the receptaple ground prong. Again, you should have zero.

If your equipment checks out, and it is indeed dodgy wiring in the building, at the minimum you should consider a wireless setup if you wish to continue playing there.

Good luck, and be safe!

 

This is one reason I typically don't connect the ground wire to to the bridge unless it is necessary.

Disconnect the ground wire from under the bridge, and if it still sounds okay, you will never get shocked from the strings. I don't worry about getting shocked from my amp, I worry about the mic and my amp not being on the same circuit!