Tone Pot Buzzing

[rpoynter]

Hello!

I have a Spector bass with 2 stock EMG (I believe EMG's made for Spector).

Anyways, their are two tone pots, one for each of the pickups...I believe. The neck pickup pot buzzes really loud when I have the pot dimed. This buzz goes away, or becomes quieter as I turn the pot down.

Touching the bass, or the strings isn't the issue. It is definitely the pot.

Like I said, I can eliminate it by turning that specific pot down, however I like the tone more with it up.

Anything to correct this? Would cleaning it help? If so, what do you recommend I use?

Or do you think I should replace the pot? I bought the bass used, and it is in great condition. After upgrading my rig, adding a furman, compressor, and a tuner to my rack I now notice that this buzzing occurs.

Could it be a bad cable that I am using in my rack? I have all new cables except for one, which connects my tuner to my amp.

Should I try plugging directly into my amp to see if the buzzed occurs with this pot?

Would plugging into the passive or active inputs on the amp make a difference here? I plug in passive, but I have an active EQ in the bass. I was told in really didn't matter, unless I am experiencing clipping on my amp plugged into the active input. Pretty sure it just lowers the dbs, and I wouldn't think it would cause a buzzing with one particular pot.

Sorry for the long post =)

 

[hdracer]

Does the pot "scratch" when you turn it? It could be dirty. Go to Radio Shack and get a can of DeoxIT D5 and clean it. Use a towel and be careful not to spray it on the paint.

 

[rpoynter]

No it doesn't scratch. It is a definite buzzing sound, which seems to get louder as I turn the pot up.

 

[Gord_oh]

it sounds like a grounding issue.
first what i do is try a new cable.
that can be the culprit sometimes.
i work at Radioshack and if they dont have that specific cleaner ask for electronics cleaner.

 

[rpoynter]

Ok, so try a new cable? Basically bought all new cables, including one for the bass. Like I said in my original post, the only "old" cable I have is one that connects my tuner to my amp. I guess I can try that.

What I am curious about is, how it could be a grounding issue? I mean, I don't believe I had the issue before. I do not believe I hard this buzzing before my new setup.

Prior, I just ran directly into my amp, well I had two pedals in between.

Anyway, I will try replacing that one cable. And if not, I guess I will take into the shop and have them to a look. Grounding could be the issue here, as I noticed lately as well, that my input jack is making a little crackling noise here and there.

Haven't dropped the bass since I owned it, so not sure why it all happened. But I guess it can happen hauling it around in a case.

 

[rpoynter]

Ok, pardon for not knowing my bass better! But my bass has the Tone Pump circuit. However, I am not really sure if it is the norm, or the JR version.

Anyway to tell? I think I was told I had the Euro version, so it maybe just the Tone Pump. But if I open up my bass, would it be easy to tell which one?

With this information, if cleaning, and a new cable doesn't fix the buzzing...would I be looking into replacing the Tone Pump? Or could I just replace the one pot?