Happened to Gary Thain of Uriah Heep twice. Didn't kill him but apparantly messed him up so bad he was never the same. Great bassplayer btw.
Enjoy the benefits of a premium membership!
Upgrade Account
-
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.
My Bass burnt me?
- Thread starter mattsbass
- Start date
Happened to Gary Thain of Uriah Heep twice. Didn't kill him but apparantly messed him up so bad he was never the same. Great bassplayer btw.
I used to have a 67 fender bassman amp and the cord didn't have a ground prong. I couldn't turn it on without getting shocked unless I was wearing shoes, so I'm gonna have to agree with the other guys and say it's most likely an amp grounding issue.
We only know the incidence of these accidents 
with famous ("VIP")players, but I suspect the prevalence is much higher as there is surely an underreporting in the media about amateur players.
Oh, don't get me wrong... I had the **** shocked out of my lips before on a microphone just recently and have had that happen several times. So I know that happens! I'm just wondering about the "can cause death" part of it.
Does anyone know first hand of this happening to anyone?
Does anyone know first hand of this happening to anyone?
If the current's enough to cause pain, and it flows through you the right way, your heart will stop. It doesn't take much, unfortunately.
I've had this happen before. Probably amp. I mean they always say its not the voltage it the amps that kill you, right 
bongomania
Commercial User
I don't know about likelihood or number of victims, but I got a very bad shock once (there was a blue arc!) from an amp ground failure and I asked a doc about it. He said if I had been touching the strings with one hand and the other end of the ground fault with my other hand, the current would have flowed straight through my heart and cooked it. Luckily one of my hands was not touching anything and I just got a surface burn.
"Keith Relph" was apparently killed in this fashion. I also recall a news report of a guy (no one famous) getting killed in this way a few years back.
Exaggerated? They're dead. You can't really exaggerate that - there is no "very" dead.
Does it happen often? Probably not.
Does it happen if you use equipment you KNOW to be faulty and have been getting serious shocks from? a lot more likely (and I'd count something that burns/leaves a mark as pretty serious).
Exaggerated? They're dead. You can't really exaggerate that - there is no "very" dead.
Does it happen often? Probably not.
Does it happen if you use equipment you KNOW to be faulty and have been getting serious shocks from? a lot more likely (and I'd count something that burns/leaves a mark as pretty serious).
No offense to "heinpete" (seriously), but saying "quite a few people have died this way" is exagerrating if this is a very rare thing. People have died from EVERYTHING, so the chance is ALWAYS there.
I'm not arguing that it's common or uncommon. I really have no idea. It just seems like it's one of those rare "freak" things. But again, I don't know. That's why I'm asking.
It's one of two things, both of which have been mentioned above:
1) Amp problem, possibly a broken lead on the grounding wire from the AC cord where it connects to the amp chassis.
2) An improperly wired AC outlet which has no ground, and possibly reversed hot and neutral wires.
You can test for the second problem with an inexpensive outlet tester available at all hardware and Home Depot/Lowe's type stores. they run about $14 and look like this:
You plug it in and follow directions - the three lights in the butt end of the tester will tell you if the outlet is missing a ground or is wired backwards. EVERY homeowner should have one of these and check their outlets - because electricians and previous homeowners make mistakes.
After you buy one - which you should do immediately - check all the outlets in your home. If there's a problem with one, there may be problems with others...and that's dangerous to your whole family.
1) Amp problem, possibly a broken lead on the grounding wire from the AC cord where it connects to the amp chassis.
2) An improperly wired AC outlet which has no ground, and possibly reversed hot and neutral wires.
You can test for the second problem with an inexpensive outlet tester available at all hardware and Home Depot/Lowe's type stores. they run about $14 and look like this:
You plug it in and follow directions - the three lights in the butt end of the tester will tell you if the outlet is missing a ground or is wired backwards. EVERY homeowner should have one of these and check their outlets - because electricians and previous homeowners make mistakes.
After you buy one - which you should do immediately - check all the outlets in your home. If there's a problem with one, there may be problems with others...and that's dangerous to your whole family.
I've seen this before, it could be either an amp problem or a outlet problem. Either the amp is not connecting properly to the third prong in at the outlet or the third prong at the outlet is not connected properly to ground. If you only see the effect on one outlet or circuit then it is the outlet. If you see it on multiple circuits then I would suspect the amp.
If your are using one of those 2 to 3 prong adapters then stop.
As far as can this be lethal the potential certainly exists. It takes only about 0.1A through the right part of the body to be lethal. Most breakers in your house trip at 15A.
As far as how likely this is you can use a scientific approach... There is a concept called a safety pyramid used in industry. I'm making up numbers but it is basically as follows: For every million unsafe acts (using amp without ground) there are 10,000 minor incidents(shocks) and 1000 recordable injuries (burns), 10 lost time injuries (major burns) and 1 fatality.
The proportions may be different but the concept always applies. Bottom line, if you are getting shocked, get it checked out.
If your are using one of those 2 to 3 prong adapters then stop.
As far as can this be lethal the potential certainly exists. It takes only about 0.1A through the right part of the body to be lethal. Most breakers in your house trip at 15A.
As far as how likely this is you can use a scientific approach... There is a concept called a safety pyramid used in industry. I'm making up numbers but it is basically as follows: For every million unsafe acts (using amp without ground) there are 10,000 minor incidents(shocks) and 1000 recordable injuries (burns), 10 lost time injuries (major burns) and 1 fatality.
The proportions may be different but the concept always applies. Bottom line, if you are getting shocked, get it checked out.
http://www.guitarnuts.com/technical/electrical/safety/index.php
KO
Added: It's your amp or wiring, but you can minimize danger at the guitar/bass. Still, get your amp and wiring checked.
KO
Added: It's your amp or wiring, but you can minimize danger at the guitar/bass. Still, get your amp and wiring checked.
