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Fender Custom Shop Club

#145
cripula said:
I've heard that a couple of times in the last week... timing is everything, and as usual, mine is impeccable :p
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Sometimes I call it fate, there's always a story behind how some basses (or other instruments) end up with their owners. Surprisingly, most of my stuff, which I end up liking the most, are the easy buys, i.e. didn't spend too much effort contemplating the purchase. Sometimes I end up forcing some purchases, which mostly end up in owning gear that I though I would like but I actually don't like that much...perhaps something to do with my OCD...don't ask...:help:

Anyway, here's what I bought half a year ago (limited edition '58 closet classic), it was more or less one of those OCD buys, I'm still in doubt about it. The satin finish on the neck gets really sticky after extended playing, I really don't like it. It's funny how that can happen to a satin finish, I usually get that more from gloss finished (hated my Les Paul for that)!

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#146
And here's a side by side shot with my '59, I must say, I preferred V neck's much more on guitar over C necks, but for bass, I really don't see any advantage for me in using a V neck, the "edge" limits the comfortable positions of my left hand thumb...

Also notice how the pickup covers are quite different and the lacquer is missing on the anodized plate on the custom shop instrument

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#152
Klonk said:
Regarding my 59 CS P bass: the PUs are awfully noisy. Is that normal? It even makes a snappy sound whenever my fingers touch the PU poles. I wasn't expecting that, on a bass in that price range, to be honest. Anyone know if it is normal on P bass PUs?
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I have a CS '59 P and a CS '60 P. Both are completely silent whether I touch the pup or not. I'm not real knowledgeable, but it sounds like maybe a ground problem. I don't think it's normal.

Mastermold said:
The poles stick up a wee bit. They hum on my CS '59 too when I touch them.
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The pole pieces on mine stick up about 1.5 mm above the plastic cover. As above, I get no sound at all.

Klonk said:
On mine, the poles for the G string stick up, the others are almost level. The snapping sound makes it hard to play without the pickup cover, which is a drag. Would it help with shielding the cavity?
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I've read the pole pieces can actually be pushed up or down. I've not tried it and I don't think it's a good idea to test the theory. The only time I've heard of one pair of pole pieces being higher was on the original '57 (I think only 1957s) P Bass and for awhile the AVRI '57s. On those, the "A" string pole pieces were higher. I don't know if any CS pups were made to duplicate that, but I've never heard of any.

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#153
Try lowering the pickups, and perhaps modify your technique a little to avoid the noise.

When I played hard on the E string of my new CS Jazz, on the lower notes, I got a bad blast of distortion. I thought I had a fried driver in my Epifani UL410 speaker cabinet. :bawl:

Then I noticed that the rust on the E string poles of my bridge pickup had some grooves worn in it, right down to the shiny metal —no doubt from the windings on my round wound strings.

I lowered the bridge pickup beneath the E string about 3/32nds of an inch (2.38125mm), and my driver sounds fine. :D

Moral of the story: the setup has to fit the player, even when it is done by the custom shop.
 
#154
slick_tu said:
I have a CS '59 P and a CS '60 P. Both are completely silent whether I touch the pup or not. I'm not real knowledgeable, but it sounds like maybe a ground problem. I don't think it's normal.



The pole pieces on mine stick up about 1.5 mm above the plastic cover. As above, I get no sound at all.



I've read the pole pieces can actually be pushed up or down. I've not tried it and I don't think it's a good idea to test the theory. The only time I've heard of one pair of pole pieces being higher was on the original '57 (I think only 1957s) P Bass and for awhile the AVRI '57s. On those, the "A" string pole pieces were higher. I don't know if any CS pups were made to duplicate that, but I've never heard of any.

.
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Hm, on my 59 CS P bass, the poles on the G string PU are 3-4 mm above the PU.. not sure if it's correlated to the quite loud humming noise. Sounds like a grounding issue indeed. Thanks for the help everyone.
 
#155
Klonk said:
Regarding my 59 CS P bass: the PUs are awfully noisy. Is that normal? It even makes a snappy sound whenever my fingers touch the PU poles. I wasn't expecting that, on a bass in that price range, to be honest. Anyone know if it is normal on P bass PUs?
Click to expand...

Mastermold said:
The poles stick up a wee bit. They hum on my CS '59 too when I touch them.
Click to expand...

I had a '59 CS back in '07 and the tone cap wasn't soldered on very well so it wasn't fully grounded, causing an ugly buzz/hum. I had to re-solder it and it was quiet after that. I do remember thinking that a $2000+ CS bass should not have issues with the electrical connections. Kind of a joke at that price point, but mistakes happen at all levels. Luckily I have a soldering iron so it wasn't a big deal, and the rest of the bass was awesome. Maybe your problem is the same??
 
#158
Klonk whether that raised pole is part of your problem or not, I still don't like that one pole is higher than all the others.
Just wonder if you contacted the CS folks maybe they would replace the pup and while your at it describe you 'noise' issue.
 
#159
thebrian said:
I had a '59 CS back in '07 and the tone cap wasn't soldered on very well so it wasn't fully grounded, causing an ugly buzz/hum. I had to re-solder it and it was quiet after that. I do remember thinking that a $2000+ CS bass should not have issues with the electrical connections. Kind of a joke at that price point, but mistakes happen at all levels. Luckily I have a soldering iron so it wasn't a big deal, and the rest of the bass was awesome. Maybe your problem is the same??
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Don't know, the pickup on mine is always quiet unless I touch the poles--which I don't do when playing so it's never bothered me.
 
#160
rootsnfifths said:
Klonk whether that raised pole is part of your problem or not, I still don't like that one pole is higher than all the others.
Just wonder if you contacted the CS folks maybe they would replace the pup and while your at it describe you 'noise' issue.
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Seems strange that it is the G pole that is raised, no? :eyebrow:
 

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