Fender grounding plates

[fretno]

For some reason I still do this and I am wondering if it's voodoo or does it affect tone ? The instruments are not noisy so perhaps it helps with that . & They always sound great so I keep doing it

 

[96tbird]

if it inhibits RF hum then yes, it affects tone. A full copper shield will do more though.

 

[DiabolusInMusic]

They are not for grounding they are for shielding. I am sure they are better than nothing but they don't work worth spit in my experience. It would affect tone but to what degree is pretty debatable, you probably wouldn't notice a difference especially in a band mix. Personally, I line my pickup surrounds with foil because I find most basses still hum without it.

If you are going for the 60s style then you should add one in the control route as well.

 

[Brian D]

For some reason I still do this and I am wondering if it's voodoo or does it affect tone ? The instruments are not noisy so perhaps it helps with that . & They always sound great so I keep doing it

Hello my fellow eB'er!

I've got them in my jazz, and even included the copper grounding strip from the bridge. It was mostly laziness though as the body wasn't drilled for the grounding wire when I got it.

 

[fretno]

Thanks Fellas ! I guess I'll keep on doing it

 

[line6man]

Zero effect on tone. They are too far from the magnets to alter the magnetic field. The idea is to provide some shielding, but they are worthless at that, so Fender stopped using them. The only reason to have them is if you want to be vintage-correct.