• TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
    Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
    Join free Log in
    Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.

Most likely circuit problem?

J

jster

Apr 22, 2014
20
0
39
#1
Newish Squier bass with one pickup. I changed the pickup height a few times. To do so, I took the screws out and yanked the wire more than I perhaps should have. The last time I did so, I lost the sound. Then I took off the back plate and pushed the wires around. I got sound for a day. Now I have lost sound again. Where is the MOST LIKELY problem? Inside the pickup? Inside one of the pots? Or maybe some wires touching/shorting?

Thanks
 
#3
I loosened everything up and I couldn't find any wires touching. Is it possible that I yanked loose something inside the pickup? If so, is that easy to fix with a soldering iron?
 
#6
I don't really have a tech nearby.

Is it OK to use a soldering guy to open up the fidelitron and look inside? I really don't see anything else it could be. Except maybe the ground wire that somehow goes to the bridge.
 
#8
I don't have a camera. But as I said, the wires are all connected reasonably well.

It seems most likely that the problem is inside the pickup. Can I just unsolder it and look inside?
 
#11
1) With regards to electronics: I have forgotten more about electronics than most guitar techs know. The "yank" was accidental rather than intentional.

2) Yes, I really do not have a tech nearby. It would take me four hours each way to get it to a tech.

3) As I said numerous times, all the wires are connected reasonably well.

4) Nobody has answered my question about what could have happened inside the pickup. An image search for the Fideli'tron interior turned up nothing.

5) I was able to procure a soldering iron, so I am going to look inside the pickup.
 
#14
jster said:
1) With regards to electronics: I have forgotten more about electronics than most guitar techs know.

...

5) I was able to procure a soldering iron, so I am going to look inside the pickup.
Click to expand...

Most people who know as much about electronics as you claim would already have a soldering iron and would not be asking the kinds of questions you are asking, so I have my doubts and I fear you are in over your head here. But assuming you are not:

A pickup is a coil of wire, the most likely damage is that you broke a wire or a solder joint inside it. In that case the pickup coil will now look like an open circuit to an Ohmmeter so the first thing most of us would do is to check the pickup for continuity. If it is open (or shorted though that is much less likely) it is broken and it would be worth while to open it up physically and take a look. If it is not open then the problem lies elsewhere and the best thing, by far, is to leave the pickup alone. You can continue to use the Ohmmeter to isolate the open (or short) in the rest of the wiring.
 
#15
With regards to electronics: I have forgotten more about electronics than most guitar techs know.

Did you remember Ohm's law? Apply that to the circuits in your instrument and you should be able to find the problem.
 
#16
you could wire your pup directly to the output to see if it produces sound. This will eliminate the other components from the equation. Most passive guitar wiring can be done by a newbie IMO and you're better off learning for yourself how to fix these problems and through the process learning more about your bass. Im certainly glad I took on problems myself with the help of forum peeps than going to a tech and learning nothing/spending more money than necessary. Especially since my electronics are only accessible through F-holes which equates to twice the cost.
 
#17
Slevage said:
With regards to electronics: I have forgotten more about electronics than most guitar techs know.

Did you remember Ohm's law? Apply that to the circuits in your instrument and you should be able to find the problem.
Click to expand...

What does Ohm's Law have to do with this? Ohm's Law relates voltage, current and resistance. Voltage and current would not be relevant to diagnosing shorts and open connections. All that is needed is an Ohm meter.
 
#18
line6man said:
What does Ohm's Law have to do with this? Ohm's Law relates voltage, current and resistance. Voltage and current would not be relevant to diagnosing shorts and open connections. All that is needed is an Ohm meter.
Click to expand...
When you are using an ohm meter--- you are using Ohm's law. The meter pushes a small amount of current through the circuit, measures the voltage drop across the meter probes, then calculates the resistance of the circuit and displays the value.

You can also trouble shoot a circuit while powered up, and measure voltage drops yourself. In either case, you have to have some idea of what you are looking for. When dealing with small circuits that have low current flow when operating properly, it's easy to get fooled because a "short" and a "dead short" are different.
My response was in reply to the OP's mention of his knowledge of electronics compared to what "most guitar techs know". By that response, I assumed the OP knew Ohm's law, a very valuable trouble shooting tool.
 
#20
line6man said:
What does Ohm's Law have to do with this? Ohm's Law relates voltage, current and resistance. Voltage and current would not be relevant to diagnosing shorts and open connections. All that is needed is an Ohm meter.
Click to expand...

An open circuit has infinite resistance so 100% of the available voltage is dropped across it.

A closed circuit has 0 resistance, so the voltage drop across it is 0.

Why do you think its called an Ohm meter.
 

Latest posts

Top Bottom
Back