Double Bass Ground Loop/Hum With Radial ToneBone PZ Deluxe

[Francois Blais]

I'm glad you found the issue!
As for a pickup, I like the KNA DB-1.
Not boomy like the Bass Max, and not expensive either.
Good luck!

 

[JazznFunk]

I'm glad you found the issue!
As for a pickup, I like the KNA DB-1.
Not boomy like the Bass Max, and not expensive either.
Good luck!

You know, I was just looking at that one as well and pondering it. The price point is nice for sure. I remember the Bass Max being a bit boomy, but I also didn't use a proper preamp with it back in the day, or a HPF.

 

[DoubleMIDI]

Might be a jack/plug incompability.
Some combinations don‘t work together well.

Had a similar problem a while ago with an amp at the rehearsal room (GK MB150E) that was not mine and my Yamahiko. But rather might have been a defective short cable from preamp to amp.

 

[JazznFunk]

Might be a jack/plug incompability.
Some combinations don‘t work together well.

Had a similar problem a while ago with an amp at the rehearsal room (GK MB150E) that was not mine and my Yamahiko. But rather might have been a defective short cable from preamp to amp.

This problem was present using multiple different kinds of cables.

 

[JazznFunk]

I'm glad you found the issue!
As for a pickup, I like the KNA DB-1.
Not boomy like the Bass Max, and not expensive either.
Good luck!

I decided, in the spirit of going with something totally new, to try the DB-1. Ordered from Gollihur this AM. Also picked up a cake of Kolstein rosin to replenish my stock since I had no idea it was in such short supply these days!

 

[Francois Blais]

FWIW, I use thin strips of cork to shim the KNA.

 

[JazznFunk]

FWIW, I use thin strips of cork to shim the KNA.

View attachment 7480707

Very nice. I'll see if the ones supplied with it work first... Did you get your cork shims from any particular source? They look like the little cork 'feet' you see on the bottom of some furniture pieces, etc. That's the best example I can think of outright.

 

[DoubleMIDI]

Seems that either the shield wire or the hot wire has detached from the Realists piezo disk. You hardly can repair that (probably not at all).
Piezo disks have a very thin coating of silver (dried liquid silver dust with some glue) on one side of the piezo disk (the other side is brass). The wire soldered to the silver coating can easily detach from the piezo ceramic with even light mechanical stress taking the silver coating with it.

Theoretically repairable with liquid silver, a clamp and a lot of drying time, but taking off the copper shielding probably takes away any silver coating too.

I‘m happy with my Yamahiko, might fit US adjuster threads, less sensitive to mechanical stress than a Full Circle and you can get a replacement cable if needed. Better bowing sound than (most?) bridge wing pickups if this belongs to you.

Sure, the piezo in the Yamahiko can be damaged too, but when I drove too fast around the corner with my bike trailer, the trailer fell on the side and then slowly further so that the weight of bass, trailer and amp/cab pressed (at least partly) on the corner of the bridge. (Anything was well strapped onto the trailer, nothing fell out.) Didn‘t had the time to check (was in a hurry and there was another bass at the gig in case mine was damaged) but no damage to the bass or the pickup and it was the pickup side it fell onto.
Lucky me. So I would say the Yamahiko is really robust.

BTW, my best MBOL pickup is a AKG C411 contact mic close to the bass bar with a Genz Benz Shuttle 3.0(-10T) or even better a Genz Benz Focus 112.
But the Yamahiko sounded very good with the Shuttle 3.0 and the Focus at the big band gig too.

 

[Francois Blais]

Very nice. I'll see if the ones supplied with it work first... Did you get your cork shims from any particular source? They look like the little cork 'feet' you see on the bottom of some furniture pieces, etc. That's the best example I can think of outright.

This cork came in sheets about the size as a regular paper sheet.
It’s 1/16’’ thick I think.
Got this from a hardware store if I remember well, or artist’s supplies, not sure.
Probably the latter.

 

[Earl]

This cork came in sheets about the size as a regular paper sheet.
It’s 1/16’’ thick I think.
Got this from a hardware store if I remember well, or artist’s supplies, not sure.
Probably the latter.

Just curious - why not use the wood shims that come with the pickup? I would think cork would hinder vibrations, no?

 

[JazznFunk]

Just curious - why not use the wood shims that come with the pickup? I would think cork would hinder vibrations, no?

Not trying to answer for Francois, but I think it's probably a more secure fit and a bit more 'squishy' to customize the fiit, especially if the wood shims aren't enough or don't provide a snug seating in the bridge wings. Depends on how wide the space is. Past mods may have made it wider than even the stock shims allow. Just spitballing.

 

[DoubleMIDI]

Cork works astonishly well as a pickup space filler. Much better than rubber or soft synthetics.
You don’t know before you have tried it yourself.
I didn’t believe it when I first about it.

 

[Francois Blais]

JazznFunk and DoubleMIDI are right, it works wonderfully well, and indeed has a more grippy fit, furthermore with the asymetric shape of the element.