BOD2

Bearing in mind that the pickups themselves are not humbucking and can therefore be a source of noise, there comes a point where you can go too far with the shielding ! Also, there seems to be quite a lot of "try it and see" to the mystic art of shielding. It's usually the control cavity that is shielded most. It won't do any harm to line the wiring tunnels to the pickups but it might not make any difference either. Yes - the shielding has to be continuous and has to be grounded at some point also. The object of shielding is to create an earthed "metal box" around the electronics - any incoming electrical interference will hit the "metal box" first and be dissipated to earth before reaching the electronics. Often the underside of the scratchplate (at least around the control cavity area) is lined with foil - creating a lid fo rteh "metal box". The foil in the cavity itslef if overlapped onto the body so that when the scratchplate is screwed down both foils touch and close the "metal box". There is an earthing arrangement called "Star grounding" (info here [url="http://www.guitarnuts.com/wiring/shielding/bass.php"]http://www.guitarnuts.com/wiring/shielding/bass.php[/url] ) in which all earths are connected to a single common point rather than the mish mash of earths and earth loops on most Fenders. I would try shielding first and see how quiet that makes things.

[quote name='bilbo230763' post='266118' date='Aug 20 2008, 10:21 AM']YEAAAAAAH! No need to practice - the Time Fairy will come and sort you out! Drum machine or metronome. Its the same thing. The discipline you are developing is in learning to play your lines whilst LISTENING to another sound source and making the minute adjustments you need to ensure that your playing is locked in with this other sound source. You could just as easily use recordings.[/quote] In some ways you might be better to use recordings as, in a live situation, a drummer wll rarely keep to the mechanical, artificial tempo of a metronome. As bilbo says, the key is LISTENING. For example, I have been recently playing around with some AC/DC tracks for amusement. If you try to set a metronome or click track to run alongside these tracks you will find that the tempo shifts, speeding up and slowing down to match the feel of the music (changing before and into a chorus, for example). I don't think anyone would deny that AC/DC are masters of the classic rock feel but to be able to play along to them you need to LISTEN and react to the tempo changes and not plough on at 123bpm because that's where the track started. Keep on plugging away at the metronome but also try playing with others and playing along to recordings too.

Thanks Please keep us updated on what the fault turns out to be for future reference.

Is there any writing on the pot to identify what value it is ? Tone pots on a passive bass are often not that effective but what you describe does sound a bit extreme.

I'm not familiar with this preamp but my first check would be the valves. It's most unlikely to be a fuse. If a fuse blew it wouldn't work at all. I would be inclined to swap the valves around first. I think they are all the same type so they will be interchangeable. The process of removing and reseating them could be enough to resolve the problem.

Two 4 ohm speakers in series will give you 8 ohms total. Two 16 ohm speakers in parallel will also give you 8 ohms total. Can't recommend a speaker (not tried any) but hopefully someone else will come along shortly....

+1 to what 2x18 said Sometimes you'll find that 13A sockets in the same room are actually on different eletrical circuits - just teh way the room was wired or wiring changed at a later date. If this is the case then connecting one piece of equipment to one 13A socket and another piece to a different 13A socket - and then link the equipment together via a mic cable or something can cause serious earth loops or humming. Try connecting all the audio gear to the same single 13A socket if possible. Alternatively, identify which cables connect equipment that is plugged into different 13A sockets and look into ground lift options for these cables (but NEVER be tempted to remove the earth wire from a 13A plug).

Not specifically but from what you are saying it might be worth considering some ear protection ? If your ears are "shutting down" as you get into the set then you might be setting up hearing problems for yourself. When I played guitar in a heavy rock band years ago I noticed a similar problem in that the guitar sound seemed to get steadily worse as the set went on despite not changing any settings. Like you, I put it down to my ears gradually blocking out some of the frequencies as the night wore on. That band didn't last long enough to damage my hearing though !

I think hamster was being a tad sarcastic there ..... There's no way you could turn your three 8 ohm speakers into a 4 ohm cab by buying only one additional speaker. You either need to replace the one 8 ohm speaker with another 8 ohm speaker to give you an 8 ohm cab or replace all of the speakers with 4 ohm ones to give you a 4 ohm cab. It doesn't have to be a Celestion speaker, as long as the power rating and ohms are the same it will work, but it is usually best to replace like with like where possible. But you need to open up the cab before you do anything - you'd have to open it up to replace the speaker so you might as well do it before. Always best to check what is actually inside before you buy anything, just in case you've been given duff information. I don't know this cab so i don't know if it will open at the back or the front. If there are screws on the back then undo these to remove the back and have a look inside. If there are no screws on the back then you will have to undo the front grille. Once removed the speakers will probably be loaded from the front - undo any screws around the duff speaker and pull it forwards out of the cab.

[quote name='ahpook' post='251437' date='Jul 30 2008, 03:59 PM']i've got a phonic mu502 that i really like...[/quote] The phonic mixers are ok (I've got the 802 version of that) but I'm sure they're made in the same Chinese factory as Behringer - the resemblances are too close to be coincidental. Mine has one dead channel due to a broken jack socket so I'd reckon the reliability would be similar to Behringer (i.e. mostly pretty good but you get the occasional duffer).

I doubt you'll beat the Behringer ones for price - the current range is called Xenyx but they have all the same small mixer formats plus a USB connection to a computer. If the brand name bothers you you could look at the [url="http://www.studiospares.com/Mixers-Analogue/Soundcraft-Compact-4-Desktop-Mixer/invt/267570"]Soundcraft Compact-4[/url] or the [url="http://www.studiospares.com/Mixers-Analogue/Yamaha-MG102C-Mixer/invt/274200"]Yamaha MGC102C[/url] Both of these are well featured but a little more expensive (still pretty good value for money, though). Note the number of XLR inputs before you buy as this will limit the number of mics you can connect simultaneously.

[quote name='johnnylager' post='251333' date='Jul 30 2008, 01:56 PM']I wanted to nip it in the bud before it got out of hand. Yet again. [/quote] I'm just encouraged that several different people have remembered this and posted it in answer to this OP. There's a long way to go but we're winning....

Is it worth trying the Eden Electronics forum ? [url="http://www.eden-electronics.com/forum/default.asp"]http://www.eden-electronics.com/forum/default.asp[/url]

Lemon oil will initially darken the rosewood a bit - especially if it's very dry - but it doesn't tend to last long. Don't be tempted to add more lemon oil as it won't be absorbed and just end up messy and have to wiped off. It's not uncommon to stain fingerboards - it makes cheap rosewood look more exotic - but the problem would be finding a stain that doesn't come off on your hands if it gets sweaty.

Ok - I think this will work. Have a look at the diagram and make sure you understand it before you do anything. [attachment=11231:ByPass.jpg] First of all this circuit should allows both pickups (including the blend and volume control) to bypass the preamp and got straight to the output. There's no other way to do it. The only wires you need to alter in the original circuit are the red wire from the volume control to the preamp and the white wire from the jack to the preamp. LEAVE ALL OTHER WIRES UNTOUCHED. I've not shown them in the diagram as it would get too complicated. I've had to show the "white wire" in yellow in order for it to show up on the diagram. What the switch does is flip the output from the volume control between the preamp or the jack, while at the same time disconnecting the preamp from the jack. Note that the battery is not disconnected so it may still draw power even when the preamp is bypassed. This shouldn't be a problem, just remember always to unplug the bass when you're not using it. If you've any questions then ask away.

The standard pickguard material tends to be "soft" rather than brittle. A slow speed jigsaw with a fine toothed blade should cut it ok, or you could even cut it by hand with a hacksaw, or a cpoing saw if you need to do curves. Don't be tempted to use a stanley knife (you WILL cut your fingers !). You'll need to file and sand the edges down afterwards to get a smooth edge. Also be careful not to mark the surface while cutting - cover it with masking tape or something to avoid any scratches. If possible try a test cut on a piece of scrap first to see how easy it will be to cut.

Depending on the plastic you have to watch that it doesn't crack or melt while cutting. It depends on the type of plastic which of the two is most likely. If it's a softer material like a pickguard then it's probably more likely to melt if you use too high a speed or the wrong type of blade. Use a slow speed to prevent this. If it's brittle then the only solution is to sandwich it tightly between two pieces of hardboard and cut through the lot in one go slowly.

Don't know if these are any help ? [url="http://myweb.ecomplanet.com/TOWN8019/mycustompage0019.htm"]http://myweb.ecomplanet.com/TOWN8019/mycustompage0019.htm[/url] [url="http://myweb.ecomplanet.com/TOWN8019/MyStorage/General/SR5%20Wiring.jpg"]http://myweb.ecomplanet.com/TOWN8019/MySto...R5%20Wiring.jpg[/url] [url="http://www.ernieball.com/mmonline/techinfo/controls/cfd_stingray5.gif"]http://www.ernieball.com/mmonline/techinfo...d_stingray5.gif[/url] Also worth checking here [url="http://www.seymourduncan.com/support/wiring-diagrams/"]http://www.seymourduncan.com/support/wiring-diagrams/[/url]

I did a little research when this topic first appeared but the only information I could find made me feel that it was incomplete or not applicable to this example of generator use. If you look on generator websites you will see the advice that an earth is not needed, due to the inherently safer nature of the generator. So far so good. BUT...these websites are talking about general use of a generator - on a building site or to power a few small applicances outdoors. This is completely different to powering a band with lights, amps, PA, longer cable runs etc. etc. which is quite different to powering up a couple of small appliances. For that reason, although I accept that generators do not NEED to be earthed, I would feel more comfortable using a generator that has been suitably modified and earthed with an earth spike by a qualified electrician, and then using the normal RCD protection that I would use at any other gig. The problem is....are you going to find such a setup at the average small outdoor gig ? It might be wirth inquiring beforehand.

Is this the circuit diagram for your bass ? [attachment=11066:GB34A.pdf]

For reference, the metal parts on the switch are called the switch "contacts" or "poles" You can check what the switch does with a multimeter. With a DPDT switch you can think of the 6 contacts as 2 rows of 3 contacts like below 1 2 3 4 5 6 Contacts 3 and 4 are the "common" contacts and operating the switch changes which other contacts these common ones are connected to. In one state, the contacts are connected as follows - 3 to 1 4 to 2 When you operate the switch again the contacts are connected as follows - 3 to 5 4 to 6 The two sides of the switch (i.e. 1,3,5 and 2,4,6 do not connect to each other at all).

Try to check the relative heights (from body to top of saddle) of both. Provided you can adjust the Badass within the same range as the original bridge it should fit ok. I don't think the screwholes will line up, though. It's an option, though.

Hmmmm....you need to be a little careful here. Firstly you cannot read cabinet IMPEDANCE directly with a RESISTANCE meter. You'll get a reading but it won't be exact. But more worryingly I cannot see how you can achieve the results you're hoping to get by rewiring the speakers. If the cab only has two speakers then both speakers will almost certainly have the same impedance and both will be 4, 8 or 16 ohms. In that case you have the choice of wiring the two speakers in the cab in serial or in parallel. Here are the resultant impedance values for a two speaker cabinet - 2 x 16 ohm in parallel = 8 ohm 2 x 16 ohm in series = 32 ohm 2 x 8 ohm in parallel = 4 ohm 2 x 8 ohm in series = 16 ohm 2 x 4 ohm in parallel = 2 ohm 2 x 4 ohm in series = 8 ohm From the above there is no combination that would have given you 4 ohms wired one way and then 8 ohms wired the other way. So the question is, what exactly do you have now ?

Take your backline amp along anyway. You need to be able to hear yourself on stage so that backline must be there for that purpose, if nothing else. If, has been said before, the PA is up to the job of handling the drums and bass, and you have someone in charge of it who knows what they are doing, then it's generally better to use the PA for the sound the audience hear and your amp for what you hear on stage. For a first gig that's probably enough to think about. As you do more gigs you might want to experiment with the available options but that should come later. Just make sure you enjoy the gig ! Good luck.

"Mint" condition ? Sorry that's not my favourite flavour. You wouldn't have a "Strawberry" one would you ?