• 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 GZR Short Circuit

bons

bons

Jul 9, 2023
112
110
#1
Just installed EMG GZR in a Fender precision bass (just the P pickups, not the PJ). Sound is quiet and thin. Not what I expected with this pickup. With my pots turned fully open on volume and tone I used my multi-meter on the 20k ohms setting, put the red probe to the bottom of the input jack and the black probe touching inside of the jack cylinder. I and am getting a 0.00 reading. On my other basses that work well I am getting readings between 9.5 and 10.5. Has anyone experienced a similar short with these pickups? Any tips on troubleshooting?
 
Last edited:
#2
First things first, let’s make sure you have a good cable. Read a short cable with your multimeter tip to tip, and barrel to barrel.

It can be difficult to read directly at the jack, so first let’s plug in a shortish cable known to be good, dime the pots, and read across the circuit at the end of that cable, tip to barrel. The DC resistance of a short piece, or really any reasonable length of cable, is negligible next to the expected -10 K. And then we’ll see if you really have no DC resistance across that circuit.

If you do, then we can pop off the pickguard and start looking for the problem, which unless you just got bad pickups, very unlikely, should be very easy to find.
 
  • Like
Reactions: OzzeAsjourne
#5
Paul New said:
First things first, let’s make sure you have a good cable. Read a short cable with your multimeter tip to tip, and barrel to barrel.

It can be difficult to read directly at the jack, so first let’s plug in a shortish cable known to be good, dime the pots, and read across the circuit at the end of that cable, tip to barrel. The DC resistance of a short piece, or really any reasonable length of cable, is negligible next to the expected -10 K. And then we’ll see if you really have no DC resistance across that circuit.

If you do, then we can pop off the pickguard and start looking for the problem, which unless you just got bad pickups, very unlikely, should be very easy to find.
[/QUOT
Click to expand...
 
#6
Thank you @Paul New

I've checked this guitar cord - am I doing this correctly? If yes, it appears my direct method into the jack was producing false negatives (0.00). With this method I'm getting readings between 10 and 11. Thank you to the others who have posted to this question as well, received!

IMG_0843.jpg
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: Paul New, OzzeAsjourne and Matt Liebenau
#8
bons said:
Thank you @Paul New

I've checked this guitar cord - am I doing this correctly? If yes, it appears my direct method into the jack was producing false negatives (0.00). With this method I'm getting readings between 10 and 11. Thank you to the others who have posted to this question as well, received!

View attachment 7388512
Click to expand...


Yes, that’s correct and without looking up the specific numbers for the GZR that’s the range I’d expect for a split Pbass pickup.
 
  • Like
Reactions: fig
#10
Hi @bons - I think I have the exact same bass - Fender American Special Precision Honeyburst - and am about to install an EMG GZR Ivory pickup this afternoon...will report back if I have any issues. I previously had a prewired solderless harness in this bass and had problems with the jack lug contacting the cavity shielding paint and shorting the signal.

Curious if you have both the bridge and cavity ground wires connected to the ground bus?
 
  • Like
Reactions: bons
#11
winston said:
Hi @bons - I think I have the exact same bass - Fender American Special Precision Honeyburst - and am about to install an EMG GZR Ivory pickup this afternoon...will report back if I have any issues. I previously had a prewired solderless harness in this bass and had problems with the jack lug contacting the cavity shielding paint and shorting the signal.

Curious if you have both the bridge and cavity ground wires connected to the ground bus?
Click to expand...
Cool! Yes mine is a 2013 and I’ve basically changed everything on it including the neck and tuners.

And, yes, I’m pretty sure I have the grounds connected correctly. I need to check the phase issue @Matt Liebenau mentioned above. That’s my next todo as I am finding these pups very lacking. Maybe I’m just used to my Fender AOs with the PV63s. My other basses are AO 50s and one with SDQPounders. Right now, comparatively, the GZRs sound far too clinical and thin compared to all of the above. Which led me to think a short, and based on the initial test results I had.

As background, I originally dropped GZR in as a quick fix for this bass’ OE grease bucket circuit. Which I do not like.

I’m close to pulling the GZR out and going another direction.
 
#12
Is your GZR a recent one (made in late 2024 or after)? They started using a .047 tone cap in mid-2024, previously it was a .022 so half the treble rolloff you'd expect.

I got my GZRs installed yesterday. Took 2 tries, first time I thought I had crimped the ground thingy fully but hadn't, and there was a hellacious grounding buzz that went away when I touched strings. I had 3 wires, one from pickup, one from bridge, one from cavity ground, on second try I discovered that when crimped correctly it squeezes out a little bit of goo ;-)

Reassembled it's very quiet and sounds how a high-quality ~11K resistance Alnico 5 P pickup into a .047 should - good note/string balance across the 2 coils and up/down the neck, plenty of detail, full lows and highs, and as ppl generally say about the GZR, plentiful mids.

I replaced the stock pickup on this Honeyburst P as I couldn't get a tone I liked with roundwounds I love (DR Pure Blues/Sunbeams, GHS RoundCore Boomers), and felt like the 2 coils were tonally imbalanced. FWIW my 2013 didn't have the Greasebucket. Right now I have LaBella 760FL flats on it, and with the GZR tone below about 60% it really warms up nicely, low volume through my desktop practice amp last night I got some great dubby tones with thumb muting and a foam mute.

I've recently experienced a Lollar standard wind and Fralin 5% overwound (both on this bass) and Aero Pe Bass pickups (another bass). Lollar would have stayed on this bass, but I had a noise problem from a solderless harness which is going back to maker, and I just need a setup that's silent. Will hang on to Lollar & Fralin as I have other Ps to put them on. Aero is 2-3x price of all these other pickups, it came on a custom PJ I had to return for truss rod issues. It is a fantastic pickup but I don't think I would shell out for one separately. All this is to say to my ears the GZR is quite close to other similar gourmet (P)ickups and you might want to go in a slightly different direction if it's wired correctly.
 
Last edited:
#13
winston said:
Took 2 tries, first time I thought I had crimped the ground thingy fully but hadn't, and there was a hellacious grounding buzz that went away when I touched strings. I had 3 wires, one from pickup, one from bridge, one from cavity ground, on second try I discovered that when crimped correctly it squeezes out a little bit of goo ;-)
Click to expand...
Thanks SO much for this text. I just installed a GZR set and this was crucial
Click to expand...
 
  • Like
Reactions: winston

Latest posts

Top Bottom
Back