jazz bass hum...?

[sonic assassin]

just ignore it. it wont be heard over the mix.

 

[VWbug]

Got a jazz bass for christmas (i know because i bought it) i was wondering what, if anything, you guys do with your passive jazz basses to get rid of the hum? Any suggestions?

Teach it the words?

Merry Christmas!

 

[M.R. Ogle]

The very best answer, thank you for that one!!!

 

[johnk_10]

..............Already mentioned was shielding but I don't like the way it affects the tone so I don't bother doing it on my basses anymore.......................

IME, properly shielding a bass will not change its tone at all. it will just lower its noise floor. some people think that it does, but only if having a little more hum is what you consider a part of your bass's tone.

 

[GL797]

I can't see how anyone can use a noise gate on a bass. If you hold a note the sustain won't naturally lessen. It'll get to a certain point and then just shut off. Not acceptable.

Then your noise gate is either set incorrectly or isn't a good one.

 

[brianh]

there is a silent single coil system that Suhr Guitars in Cali is putting in their strats and teles (and they are true single coils) and he has said that it would work in a jazz bass just the same. I would look into that.

Single Coils do not have to hum!
[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]

Last I checked John wasn't doing the single coil noise reduction for bass. The "Humphrey" pickups do sound very close to single coils but not quite (though are dead silent). I changed mine out for his "vintage" singles and while are noisy at times, they sound incredible.

 

[tjh]

What I have found, is if the volumes are set the same, you can roll one off slightly until you hear the hum come in and then back slightly towards even ... this will let you adjust volume and alter tone slightly in favor of one of the pick-ups, without excessive hum ... also, good grounding can be very important ... usually the hum minimizes greatly when the strings/bridge/etc are touched ... I always keep contact when needed, it has just become habit as a JB user ... also, I actually experimented a while back, with an old ring with a wire soldered to it, and a roach clip on the other end I would clip to the bridge ... it wasn't worth the hassle, but worked fine towards hum control ... I have had many models of Fender Jazz basses, and have found that my fav bass is probably the absolute worse of all the Fenders for 60z hum ... the Classic Series 60's Jazz ... as mentioned above, I live with it, and keep contact at all times to ground when it matters, and am conscious of where I stand, and good grounding when available ... other than that, its the nature of the beast and a small inconvenience at most after a while ... besides, its great way to play head games with a sound guy when you are direct, and want to drive him nuts, just give him a little blast of hum every now and then, and watch him scurry to find it ...

 

[RaginRog]

5. Good quality cables with decent shielding can make a big difference in what you perceive as your instrument humming. I had been playing guitarist who thought he knew it all but used the cheapest cables known to man. He had so much buzz it drove sound men crazy and no matter how many times he was proven it was his cables he would just get more of the same.

I've been told by a couple of soundmen that a quality cable goes a long way. Personally, I use Monster cables, but Mogami is top gear.

BUT....I must admit...no hum (or at least significantly reduced) for me since I use Dimarzio Model Js.