• 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.

New bass won't get loud

Xthumpx

Xthumpx

Guest
Nov 19, 2014
21
0
chicago, IL
#1
Not sure if this is the right place for this post. I just got a new SX swamp ash 6 string bass. It looks great and sounds pretty nice but no matter what amp I plug into I can't get the bass loud enough to play in a band setting. I'm not sure what the problem is, hence my post here. I don't want to return it because it was a gift from my dad. Any ideas on what I can do to correct the problem. All the amps are good and play loudly with other basses so that is ruled out. Other than that I'm in the dark.


Thank you for your time
 
#4
Do you people read the post? It's a SX, you don't buy them in stores.

It sounds to me like the pick ups could be out of phase or a bad pot. Does it do it with both pick up turned all the way up? Have you tried soloing one pick up?


You will have better luck getting help in the pick ups & electronics forum.
 
Last edited:
#5
Xthumpx said:
Not sure if this is the right place for this post. I just got a new SX swamp ash 6 string bass. It looks great and sounds pretty nice but no matter what amp I plug into I can't get the bass loud enough to play in a band setting. I'm not sure what the problem is, hence my post here. I don't want to return it because it was a gift from my dad. Any ideas on what I can do to correct the problem. All the amps are good and play loudly with other basses so that is ruled out. Other than that I'm in the dark.


Thank you for your time
Click to expand...
If it's an active bass, it might need a new battery or batteries.
 
#8
A friend of mine bought an SX Jazz a few years ago online, and it was pretty bad out of the box. The PUs were badly installed - the Neck PU was about 1/2" higher on the bass side, and the Neck PU the oppostite.

Are your pickups straight and relatively close to the strings?
 
#9
Pickup height could be possible. It's also possible your signal is being partially grounded. I have fixed this problem for people a few times, make sure your jack is not touching anything conductive such as shielding paint or foil in the jack cavity. So to check this, test it without the jack in its cavity and see if your signal is stronger. Another possibility is the hot wire from the pickups is touching something on an uncovered section of wire.
 
#11
Corrosion anywhere in the signal path is a red flag. Re-solder the connection that is corroded first. Then if it still had the issue I would temporarily wire the pick-up directly to the output jack and see if it is louder. From there it would depend on what results I did get from my temporary mod. Corrosion is my number one suspect because you can see it. Second is split between bad pots or pick-ups. IF the bass output is low for both pick-ups uniformly then I would be more inclined to think it was in the tail end of the circuit after the p/u's are blended (near the output jack...). Since the corrosion is present on the jack either clean or replace the jack. A good jack costs bout $2, but expect to pay $5 in a music store.
 
Last edited:
#14
hdracer said:
Do you people read the post? It's a SX, you don't buy them in stores.

It sounds to me like the pick ups could be out of phase or a bad pot. Does it do it with both pick up turned all the way up? Have you tried soloing one pick up?


You will have better luck getting help in the pick ups & electronics forum.
Click to expand...


All of this. +1
 
#15
Xthumpx said:
The pup hieght seems to be ok. I'm gonna raise the neck pup a little but the bridge pup is already pretty close to the strings. I am lead to believe it is an electrical issue.
Click to expand...
Don't do that,the neck pickup must be at least 1mm lower from the bridge pickup.If the two pickups is in same distance from the strings,then the neck pickup dominates the mix of the two.
 
#16
Visible corrosion on a new bass sounds like trouble. It might've been sitting in a warehouse with no humidity control...and everything under the hood will have been subjected to the same forces that corroded the jack.

SX should take responsibility and give you a fresh one. You're under no obligation to accept an instrument that's already been abused before ever being played, and I don't think they would even want you to have that bad experience. I recommend getting in touch with them about it (and I'm a guy who got a new bass with bad wiring, but rewired it myself just to learn more about wiring...but it definitely had no corrosion!).
 
#17
I'll call customer service today. I looked on the website, and it appear they took the 6 sting swamp ash bass model off the website completely, so I hope they didn't stop making them all together. If they are unable to replace it with the same model then I might just purchase a jazz bass wiring kit with new pots and jack. They range from $25-$50+.
 
#20
Yea it could be...
Pickups
Pickup height
phasing between pickups
wiring/circuit related

Good luck fixing your problem. Shouldn't be a big problem to fix unless the pickups are shot, like disconnected wires causing the resistance to be lower equating to less output.
 

Latest posts

Top Bottom
Back