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Riverhead Unicorn...reaching out again

InvisibleAirwav

InvisibleAirwav

Aug 15, 2011
15
12
#1
Hey gang, I am still trying to repair my Unicorn bass. The wiring from the battery to the circuit board have become unsoldered and I don't know where they go. If anyone has one of these and can share a picture of where the wires go, I would greatly appreciate it. I have been searching for several years and have not had any luck (other than bad) in finding an answer to this conundrum. I love this bass and would really like to get it back in action.
 
#7
Here are a couple of pictures of my Unicorn. One of the output jack, and one of the circuit board cavity. I couldn't bring myself to pull the circuit board but the ground side of the battery goes over to the jack, the plus side straight to the circuit board. Hope this helps and good luck.
 

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#9
Sorry to be a PITA, but I see what looks like a black wire to the left of the circuit board on the pic with the battery. Your ribbon cable and some wiring are a different color. I have a red wire where that black one is and it just screws into the body. No metal , so I don't see how it could be a ground Do you know what/where that wire goes to?
 
#10
Progress! I got power back but it seems only the upper pickup is working. It is good to hear it work though. . .

I forgot how different the scale is on the neck, but it is one of the things I love about this bass though. 4 octaves of E, F and G
 
#11
Gonna need to replace the battery connector...so I was measuring the distance of the black wire and lo and behold, I noticed that the volume/mid eq knob moved and a wire was disconnected. Tested it and got a response! Resoldered it and it seems I am back in business!!!

I am still curious about the "extra wire" though but everything seems good to go. Just gonna need a good cleaning and some new strings. The original clearcoat has yellowed a wee bit so I am considering whether to strip it and repaint it or stain and clearcoat the natural wood....

Opinions???

Much thanx to Maxdusty and UNICORN BASS for their greatly appreciated help!!!
 
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#12
InvisibleAirwav said:
Gonna need to replace the battery connector...so I was measuring the distance of the black wire and lo and behold, I noticed that the volume/mid eq knob moved and a wire was disconnected. Tested it and got a response! Resoldered it and it seems I am back in business!!!

I am still curious about the "extra wire" though but everything seems good to go. Just gonna need a good cleaning and some new strings. The original clearcoat has yellowed a wee bit so I am considering whether to strip it and repaint it or stain and clearcoat the natural wood....

Opinions???

Much thanx to Maxdusty and UNICORN BASS for their greatly appreciated help!!!
Click to expand...
That's awesome! All kudos should go to Unicorn Bass though. It was his bass and pics...(unless he sells me his bass one of these days. lol)
Makes me wonder if that extra wire was even attached to anything, if everything works on it and you're not getting any grounding issues or noise, this might be the case. I have a few basses where there a couple of black ground wires twist-tied to the other wires but not attached to anything.
Would love to see a picture of your bass and see what the current finish looks like. Not sure what wood is on the Unicorn and how it would look like with either a stain or clearcoat. There's a small crack near the volume knob on my Riverhead bass model (sort of a Spector NS2 type body and shape), I can see a bit of the wood underneath and I believe mine might be some kind of ash, not too sure.
10408507_10205008703245874_5246647139622996436_n.jpg
There's also there's a Riverhead Club here on TB should you be interested, there are a few of us here. Congratulations and enjoy your wonderful bass.
 
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#14
Well my "One Little Victory" was kinda short lived. I think there is something in that middle knob. When I tried to adjust the tone, I lost the second pickup (down toggle). It comes and goes, mostly goes. Still trying to figure out what is causing it. My red wire is in fact a ground wire to the wood body. Never heard of that, but when I connected it to a spot on the circuit board with a "G" on the underside where the soldering is done, the feedback and crackle stopped. There is also some kind of an insulator where the screws go. It looks like it was some kind of gel that hardens. I am going to try hot glue, but I am still also waiting an a new battery connector. I did also find another poorly soldered wire that goes to one of the pickups but I do not think that is causing the intermittent "short", for lack of a better explanation.
I know it works, just not why it's a come and go thing, so I am still positive about it. I can still use the toggle in the up and middle position, (I do not believe it is the toggle wiring...) so it is still playable, just limited on the tone adjustments which is one of the features I come to love about that bass. It sat for a near 2 decades so I am sure there is some corrosion in the knobs. (I can hear it when I turn them) so hopefully some cleaning and exercise will help.
It's a labor of love so I will keep on keepin on with it. I didn't get rid of it for a reason~ ;)
 
#15
InvisibleAirwav said:
Well my "One Little Victory" was kinda short lived. I think there is something in that middle knob. When I tried to adjust the tone, I lost the second pickup (down toggle). It comes and goes, mostly goes. Still trying to figure out what is causing it. My red wire is in fact a ground wire to the wood body. Never heard of that, but when I connected it to a spot on the circuit board with a "G" on the underside where the soldering is done, the feedback and crackle stopped. There is also some kind of an insulator where the screws go. It looks like it was some kind of gel that hardens. I am going to try hot glue, but I am still also waiting an a new battery connector. I did also find another poorly soldered wire that goes to one of the pickups but I do not think that is causing the intermittent "short", for lack of a better explanation.
I know it works, just not why it's a come and go thing, so I am still positive about it. I can still use the toggle in the up and middle position, (I do not believe it is the toggle wiring...) so it is still playable, just limited on the tone adjustments which is one of the features I come to love about that bass. It sat for a near 2 decades so I am sure there is some corrosion in the knobs. (I can hear it when I turn them) so hopefully some cleaning and exercise will help.
It's a labor of love so I will keep on keepin on with it. I didn't get rid of it for a reason~ ;)
Click to expand...

Yes, cleaning it might help too. Spray some electronic contact spray on the switch and knob as it has been sitting for a while. I just did that on a bass I bought that was sitting around for a while unplayed, a lot of static when using the switch and in one setting, didn't even work at all. I thought I'd have to replace the switch but after spraying it, the thing started to work properly - might have been some crud or dust built up on some of the contacts.
 
#16
Success. So far no cutting out.
I am including pics for posterity should anyone else ever need the info. I don't know the year if the bass other than I bought in around 1986. Compared to UNICORN BASS, my circuit board has different electronics and wiring colors. I have included a view of the underside of the circuit board and the repairs I made, to include the new battery connector and new soldered connections. The use of hot glue to keep the circuit board off the bottom of the grounded mounting surface worked well.
I still need to replace the original strings and clean the neck out of the fretboard. Any advice on that is appreciated.

I an just so stoked that I got her back up and running!!!
 
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#18
 
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#19
Thanks. I really did want the red, but hey, $200 off and a few accessories thrown in.... I can dig it!

Now I can boast a classic bass in my collection. I just need to really take better care of it. Any suggestions on the fretboard? It has a bit of grime that's just been sitting for far too long that needs to go. The wood at the 12th fret that I started on looks beautiful but I don't want to get all stupid in my enthusiasm and ruin the wood.
 
#20
I use Simple Green (sparingly) and a toothbrush or other soft bristle brush to clean gunky fretboards. Might take a couple of cleanings. Apply TruOil or linseed oil after. I have a blue unicorn which I didn’t even know existed until I saw the auction for it. Mine is passive, though so I didn’t have input on that. Cool basses though.
 
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