gazgoldstar Posted December 23, 2014 Share Posted December 23, 2014 Hi everyone and merry Christmas and all that! My friend has a G&L USA L2000 (as do I) and it has a very peculiar fault and I wondered if anyone here has experienced it or what to do? Bass was bought on here by me for my friend but the seller denied any knowledge of the issue. Basically what happens is that there is a dirty noise that happens when you play a note, it sounds like almost like a layer of distortion (in a bad way) rather than hum. It makes this noise whether the bass is in passive or active mode. My instinct is that perhaps it needs a new preamp board but i have no idea where to get one or how much they would cost. Thanks in advance, Gaz Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
icastle Posted December 23, 2014 Share Posted December 23, 2014 First thing to do is change the battery. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cytania Posted December 23, 2014 Share Posted December 23, 2014 Check the jack sockets on both the bass and amp are tight and clean. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stingrayPete1977 Posted December 23, 2014 Share Posted December 23, 2014 Jack socket connections dirty or not springing down hard onto the instrument cable plug, bad earth connection, loose connection on the PCB, dodgy pot (we've all had some!) Or a good old fashioned batt flattery! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Graham Posted December 23, 2014 Share Posted December 23, 2014 It's not the amp input overdriving is it? Those MFD pickups are very hot, so you'll want less gain than on other basses. If not that I'd certainly check the battery first. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gazgoldstar Posted December 23, 2014 Author Share Posted December 23, 2014 Thanks guys, tried new battery and connections seem good. My feeling is that there is something wrong with the electronics maybe a wire is grounding against another or something along those lines. My L2000 doesn't exhibit this issue at all so it makes me think that there is something amiss with my friends one. I think I was hoping that someone had experienced a similar issue and knew the solution. I really appreciate you all taking the effort to help out though! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
3below Posted December 23, 2014 Share Posted December 23, 2014 [quote name='gazgoldstar' timestamp='1419363376' post='2639222'] ..... maybe a wire is grounding against another or something along those lines. [/quote] Get the magnifying glass out, have a good look for 'wire whiskers', bits of stray metal or wires touching somewhere on the circuit(s). Good look. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gareth Posted December 26, 2014 Share Posted December 26, 2014 is it the same in all settings - passive/active parallel/series normal/high active? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gazgoldstar Posted December 28, 2014 Author Share Posted December 28, 2014 Again thanks so much for the replies. As far as I know the problem is on all settings but as it is my friends bass now and not in my hands I can't test it for sure. I think the thorough investigation with a magnifier is something I will urge him to do as that seems most likely. I wonder if anyone knows if there is anywhere in the UK where you can get hold of replacement G&L preamps? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
machinehead Posted December 28, 2014 Share Posted December 28, 2014 There is some useful information here. http://www.bassesbyleo.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=1764 Frank. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
3below Posted December 28, 2014 Share Posted December 28, 2014 (edited) This will be fixable without the need to purchase a new pre-amp. A sound clip of the noise would be useful. Without any test equipment / measurements etc my brute force method would be (i) replace any electrolytic capacitors (ii) check for dry joints and re-solder. A good electronics engineer will sort this quickly, it is a straightforward simple circuit, especially with Frank's link to the circuit. Edited December 28, 2014 by 3below Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HazBeen Posted December 30, 2014 Share Posted December 30, 2014 +1, but do verify it is the preamp by trying it in passive mode first. [quote name='3below' timestamp='1419778070' post='2642622'] This will be fixable without the need to purchase a new pre-amp. A sound clip of the noise would be useful. Without any test equipment / measurements etc my brute force method would be (i) replace any electrolytic capacitors (ii) check for dry joints and re-solder. A good electronics engineer will sort this quickly, it is a straightforward simple circuit, especially with Frank's link to the circuit. [/quote] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JapanAxe Posted January 1, 2015 Share Posted January 1, 2015 The tone controls on the L-series basses are simple passive ones. The battery-powered preamp is added in to the circuit when you select active mode. If the noise is occurring in both active and passive modes, and you are sure it's not amp overdrive, then there are very few components and connections to check. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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