I'm intrigued by Eddie's first idea: some kind of metal connection between strings and bridge.
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tape wounds and noise
- Thread starter Green Knight
- Start date
Yeah that’s probably a good idea!
If this weren’t a string through bass I’d also recommend safety wire wrapped through the ball ends so that the strings press it into the butt end of the bridge. I do wonder if you could run the wire up through the ferrule along with one of the strings til you get to bridge metal without causing seating trouble. I think it should work pretty well and prevent shaving the tape...
I have brass shim stock that is paper thin and can be cut with scissors. Might be a little problem to get it into the hole. But might offer a possibility, but probably take a little effort.
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They sold them, as well as other instruments. One of the local bass heroes had one. Semi hollow body, two pick ups. Retailed for around $140 I think. Mine came from their outlet store so was half price (70) my parents paid half. I washed dishes at a truck stop, and trapped gophers to pay my half.
JeezyMcNuggles
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Yes, tape wounds are noisy. The three times I've used tapes, they've all been noisy. I think it has to do with the tape not letting the string contact the bridge. Or your fingers.
JeezyMcNuggles
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I actually do have one of those lying around that I bought for a noisy 80s Fender Performer I once had. Some people complain it cuts off bass frequencies, but I didn't use it enough to notice.
Turnaround
Commercial User
Two things in this case.
1. The strings are probably not grounded because there is no metal part of the string that is touching anything that is grounded. The usual grounding of the string is from the metal of the string touching the metal of the bridge that is grounded. Unless your string ferrules (termination point in the body that holds the ball end of the string) are grounded, your strings are not likely grounded.
2. Even if your strings are grounded, you aren't until you touch a metal part of the bass that is grounded, such as the jack, the control knobs if they are metal, or the bridge. You would also be grounded if you touched the bare metal strings.
The problem is that your body generates noise. Draining it away by grounding is the most effective way of dealing with the problem. But in the case of taped strings you won't be draining that noise through contact with the strings. So you are left with two choices. You can find another way to ground yourself to the same ground plane as the bass (or amp, since they share the same ground). Or you can shield the bass against the noise.
You could use a grounding wrist band like this:
and clip the free end to the bridge. I don't know how effective that would be - I never tried it.
Shielding the bass is the preferred option, but there are some caveats. First is that most basses these days are shielded. Many are not well shielded, but they have some level of shielding. So before you go buying a bunch of copper foil it's best to determine what is there and perhaps add to it. Putting a layer of copper over existing shielding can create its own set of problems because of the potential capacitive effect, so best to add shielding only where it currently does not exist. And make sure every bit of shielding is connected to every other bit of shielding, including the pickup cavity, the control cavity and any holes or routes between the cavities. no, you don't need to sheid the battery compartment if it is separate from the control cavity - there's no sound signal there.
The second caveat is that you cannot completely shield the bass. The pickups must have access outside of the shield or they will not pick up the string vibrations. And since they need to be exposed outside the shield they will pick up your body noise. Hot pickups are especially sensitive to this. You can reduce noise to some extent by shielding, but you cannot eliminate it. Nor does grounding yourself eliminate all noise since you are not the only source of that nuisance. So best to have adequate shielding and grounding of yourself.
1. The strings are probably not grounded because there is no metal part of the string that is touching anything that is grounded. The usual grounding of the string is from the metal of the string touching the metal of the bridge that is grounded. Unless your string ferrules (termination point in the body that holds the ball end of the string) are grounded, your strings are not likely grounded.
2. Even if your strings are grounded, you aren't until you touch a metal part of the bass that is grounded, such as the jack, the control knobs if they are metal, or the bridge. You would also be grounded if you touched the bare metal strings.
The problem is that your body generates noise. Draining it away by grounding is the most effective way of dealing with the problem. But in the case of taped strings you won't be draining that noise through contact with the strings. So you are left with two choices. You can find another way to ground yourself to the same ground plane as the bass (or amp, since they share the same ground). Or you can shield the bass against the noise.
You could use a grounding wrist band like this:
and clip the free end to the bridge. I don't know how effective that would be - I never tried it.
Shielding the bass is the preferred option, but there are some caveats. First is that most basses these days are shielded. Many are not well shielded, but they have some level of shielding. So before you go buying a bunch of copper foil it's best to determine what is there and perhaps add to it. Putting a layer of copper over existing shielding can create its own set of problems because of the potential capacitive effect, so best to add shielding only where it currently does not exist. And make sure every bit of shielding is connected to every other bit of shielding, including the pickup cavity, the control cavity and any holes or routes between the cavities. no, you don't need to sheid the battery compartment if it is separate from the control cavity - there's no sound signal there.
The second caveat is that you cannot completely shield the bass. The pickups must have access outside of the shield or they will not pick up the string vibrations. And since they need to be exposed outside the shield they will pick up your body noise. Hot pickups are especially sensitive to this. You can reduce noise to some extent by shielding, but you cannot eliminate it. Nor does grounding yourself eliminate all noise since you are not the only source of that nuisance. So best to have adequate shielding and grounding of yourself.
Every retailer back in the 60’s sold musical equipment, mostly vanity issues bought in bulk cheap and sold for huge profits. Keep in mind, back then, either you were an athlete, you were in a band, or a nerd. Nobody wanted to be a nerd, although there did exist...
JeezyMcNuggles
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I've never noticed anything. I use it all the time. There's no difference between on, or off, except there's no buzz.
Then again Sears and Roebucks used to sell Silvertone stuff back in the day. I even had a six 15 inch Silvertone Bass Amp. The thing was junk, but sure was a massive air mover back in the day.
Silvertone was a SEARS brand sold up until 1972 and then after that Sam Ash bought the name I believe?
Nerd or not, there were a lot of budding guitarists/bassists playing those nerdy guitars despite any stigma.
Just never knew JC Penney had a brand as well. Thanks to @Eddie LeBlanc for this tid bit of knowledge.
We now return to our regularly scheduled program, er, uh post......
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Man, you read my mind.
I think Montgomery Ward did too. I think most or all department store brands were actually made by Teisco?
A lot of the Silvertone stuff, the prized stuff, was made by Danelectro.
Is this a Fender PJ?
I am only asking as the bridges I have seen on Fenders (at least mine) that have string through bodies also give you a choice of string through the bridge.
