I have a 1989 Spector NS-2A which had an active EMG P-J set and BQC system installed by a previous owner. I've had it a couple of years maybe and always thought it sounded a little compressed, and the mid freq selector was a little wonky and made weird noises when adjusted, but a couple of weeks ago the bass started sounding distorted. If I turned up the bass, it was square wavy sounding. New battery, same thing. So I disconnected the tone circuit (mids board and BT control) and am now just running the active pickups into the balance control into the volume control and out. Sounds better than ever! I *think* it sounds less compressed than it used to before it started distorting, but there's no way to know. So I guess something fried in the tone circuit? Any ideas? I'm fine running it like this, I suppose. I mostly played it with the controls flat, sometimes a little bass boost.
Enjoy the benefits of a premium membership!
Upgrade Account
-
TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
Join free Log in
Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.
EMG BQC fail?
- Thread starter kevinsbass
- Start date
I have 3 basses with EMGs. 1 has a BQS, the other 2 are just a passive tone pot. They all sound great but I prefer the passive tone pots
Thanks, Jimmy. I gave EMG the same info and they replied:
It appears that the EQ circuit is the problem. There’s a chance of component failure, compounded by the age of the product itself. If you decide to replace the VMC/BTC they’ll have to be hardwired, as the solderless stuff is not readily compatible with the older hardwired products. Hope this helps.
So that just confirms what I thought. Am I right in assuming the EMG VMC/BTC when set flat should not change the sound vs. what I have now, the sound of active EMG pickups? I am also hypothesizing that if I put in a Spector Tonepump it *would* change the sound to be more Spector-y, no?
It appears that the EQ circuit is the problem. There’s a chance of component failure, compounded by the age of the product itself. If you decide to replace the VMC/BTC they’ll have to be hardwired, as the solderless stuff is not readily compatible with the older hardwired products. Hope this helps.
So that just confirms what I thought. Am I right in assuming the EMG VMC/BTC when set flat should not change the sound vs. what I have now, the sound of active EMG pickups? I am also hypothesizing that if I put in a Spector Tonepump it *would* change the sound to be more Spector-y, no?
No idea about the TonePump. And yes, the sound of the EMG preamps with the tone controls centered should sound the same as with the stock tone controls set full on. Hardwiring the pickups to the solderless pres isn't too hard, though. Take some single conductor quick connector cables (I used long battery cables for it), cut off one end, strip the wire a little, and twist and solder it to one of the pickup wires from the pickups, then cover it with shrinkwrap or electrical tape. Piece of cake.
i've installed lots of EMG pres wired through true bypass switches, and when the EQ knobs are set flat, it's dead-on identical to the bypassed sound (except for impedance/cable loading differences with passive pickups).
