pick up adjustment.

[gary mac]

[attachment=5174:musical_009.jpg][attachment=5174:musical_009.jpg]Hi chaps.

My Fender seems to be suffering varying string volume, the E and A strings being louder than the D and G.

I was thinking of attempting some pick up adjustment today, as I suspect that might be the prob.

Just thought I would ask for any tips prior to wielding the screwdriver. I think its the neck pick up that wants raising under the[attachment=5174:musical_009.jpg] D and G strings, is there a recommended height for clearance between the pick up and strings?

Thanks any advice would be much appreciated

Gary

[Lfalex v1.1]

Precision Deluxe, Sir?

Lovely.

Just a couple of thoughts;

Are all the strings okay? Does a re-string improve matters?
Otherwise...

Adjust one pick-up at a time- Blend out one completely and ascertain which of the pickups is causing the issue. From the pics, it looks like the bottom half of the "P" is tilted downwards quite a bit. Flattening it out will restore any imbalance between the G and D strings. Once you've done this (so that G and D produce equal volumes) try raising the half such that G/D give a similar output to A/E

The bridge HB can only be tilted as a single unit

One good tip: Keep a pencil and paper handy so you can jot down how many turns/ half turns you take on and off of each screw.
That way, you can "reset" the instrument to its current state (should you wish to do so!)

Take plenty of time and experiment.
If your pick ups can be pushed down into the body, do so gently (with one hand) and strike the relevant string/s. This can at least demonstrate the changes that lowering the pick ups can give.

Do remember that the relative height of the neck / bridge pick ups can play a part in the overall tone of the instrument. I've a rip-snorting Squier VM Jazz which has its bridge pick up very high and the neck considerably lower...

[gary mac]

Thanks for the info, just what I was looking for and much appreciated.

Might have a try this afternoon and will let you know the results.

Yes it is a deluxe. Got it about ten years ago from the bass centre. Never actually gigged it and its lived in its case most of the time, as I have been afraid of it getting damaged. I recently decided that it's no life for a bass, living in its case and never seeing the light of day. So I have used it for the last couple of band rehearsals and plan on using it for the next gig in February, hence the desire to sort the string/pickup problem.

All the best Gary.

[Lfalex v1.1]

No worries.

I like P deluxes.
The last one I played was very nice indeed!

There's only one of my instruments I rarely gig. The rest share duties according to my mood!
I keep them in the case until we go on, put it on, play and it goes straight back in its case afterwards. The only damage I've sustained is miniscule headstock dings from guitarist collisions.

Hope the practice, gigs and screwdriver twiddling goes well.

One other thought!
Measure how far the strings are from the pick-ups at the moment (before you start) so you've got a rough idea what the factory set-up is.
That said, the only issues you'll get from extremes of pick-up height are;

[u]Too high (close)[/u]
Loss of natural sustain with pick ups with beefy magnets
Intonation issues (ditto)
Strange, unnatural overtones, harmonics or wolftones
Strings hitting polepieces - Not good!

[u]Too low (far away)[/u]
Weak output
Poor signal / Noise in noisy environments
Weedy tone!

[gary mac]

Thanks again mate.

[The Burpster]

A good 'start point" is to fret the strings at your highest fret (22nd? cant remember how many the P deluxe has). Then set the pole tops 2mm from thier respective strings. The split P is easy, the J should 2mm from the E and G.

Then move away (larger gap) 1 turn at a time from the strings, to balance.