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I was just electrocuted!
- Thread starter AlexKidd
- Start date
Perfect! Just ordered one. I’ll start there so I know I won’t die and then proceed accordingly. Haha
As said before, the outlets need to be checked immediately. Glad you only got shocked and not electrocuted, or you'd be the proof of life after death 
Does the wall receptacle have two prongs or three?
If two, my GUESS is that "hot" and "neutral" are reversed at that outlet. Your bass' bridge is grounded to the shell of the output jack, which is connected to the same part of the input jack on your amp. If hot and neutral are reversed, you've now got hot strings on the bass. If you are grounded (extreme case would be that your hand is wet and you are firmly grasping a water pipe) then you'll get bit.
In theory you may be able to flip the plug over in the receptacle and return the "hot" line of the amp and bass to the "hot" line of the outlet.
It's also possible, however, that the neutral side of the outlet is not properly grounded but rather is what's called a "floating ground" in which case there will be some voltage between it and a true earth ground, and again you can get zapped.
In the US it's possible to use an adapter which connects a three prong cord to a two prong outlet and provides means for grounding the third prong to the outlet box. This works, IF the outlet box itself is properly grounded, which is by no means guaranteed.
The little "outlet detector" doohickey isn't real useful, not as useful as a proper multimeter.
If two, my GUESS is that "hot" and "neutral" are reversed at that outlet. Your bass' bridge is grounded to the shell of the output jack, which is connected to the same part of the input jack on your amp. If hot and neutral are reversed, you've now got hot strings on the bass. If you are grounded (extreme case would be that your hand is wet and you are firmly grasping a water pipe) then you'll get bit.
In theory you may be able to flip the plug over in the receptacle and return the "hot" line of the amp and bass to the "hot" line of the outlet.
It's also possible, however, that the neutral side of the outlet is not properly grounded but rather is what's called a "floating ground" in which case there will be some voltage between it and a true earth ground, and again you can get zapped.
In the US it's possible to use an adapter which connects a three prong cord to a two prong outlet and provides means for grounding the third prong to the outlet box. This works, IF the outlet box itself is properly grounded, which is by no means guaranteed.
The little "outlet detector" doohickey isn't real useful, not as useful as a proper multimeter.
Don't use "getting shocked" as your test method! Get a multimeter and measure voltages!
Yeah. Very lucky.As said before, the outlets need to be checked immediately. Glad you only got shocked and not electrocuted, or you'd be the proof of life after death
The thing is, the electrics in this whole building are probably riddled with faults. It’s very old by Chinese standards and lights/ bulbs regularly just fry out in our apartment. Our landlord even has it on his list of things which must be fixed on leaving. “All bulbs must be replaced and in working order” hahaha. Oh boy
BTW, you were shocked, not electrocuted.
The former is temporary; the latter is permanent.
I meant it in the descriptive sense. As in “wow, that roadrunner just went over my 2 story house!”. Shocked. Or “the Falcons made the playoffs!” Definitely don’t play that bass with your teeth until it’s sorted out.
Looks like a perfectly healthy outlet…. right?
As said before, the outlets need to be checked immediately. Glad you only got shocked and not electrocuted, or you'd be the proof of life after death
gggggghost ppppppost
The wall extension (that literally all my gear was plugged into) went into the bottom three pin outlet. I don’t like the look of those black marks around the top outlet though. Maybe it’s fried out before? Anyones guess
Have a qualified professional check the outlet. The ground may have been knocked loose (or never installed in the first place).
Not necessarily going to help you with the wiring but... on hearing some of these 'zapping' stories, I've resorted to using a wireless transmitter/receiver set (I think Boss WL20?) when playing out (and, well, frequently at home too) - breaks the 'wired' connection between bass strings & whatever may be going on downstream. Maybe not the best long-term solution, but has given me some peace of mind...
The joys of living in Japan, where, even in 2020's most outlets are two-pronged & only the microwave is likely to have a grounded socket.
The joys of living in Japan, where, even in 2020's most outlets are two-pronged & only the microwave is likely to have a grounded socket.
I could swear, it's smiling.
I've got a few basses that I'm either tinkering with trying to teach myself how the wiring in guitars works or wires have just detached from traveling or just being cheap...my American fender p for instance,it's not grounded,I've never been zapped...can we even compare American electric to Chinese electric? Are they like in Europe with the funny outlets and plugs? I'll be thinking about this one all day now,my son's and electrician he'll have an answer
Ok, ok. I may have been leaning into a bit of hyperbole. I’ll definitely remember it though. Haha
I’m not sure to be honest. Coming from the UK where we have the most ridiculous outlets I’m not sure how China compares to the rest of the world. When I lived in Japan most outlets were all two pronged and I never had problems.
It’s probably my own fault for basically running my whole studio through one outlet. The problem could be any one of those things but again, it wasn’t an issue until today. The only new additions recently were the cali76 clone and the two pronged 9v supply I used to power it (then switching to my trex chameleon but the outcome was the same)
