uk_lefty Posted June 28, 2020 Author Share Posted June 28, 2020 I tried an adjustable wrench this morning and it just wouldn't grip... Think I'll try a gentle level where the finish is already a bit cracked Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul S Posted June 28, 2020 Share Posted June 28, 2020 If you happen to have a small rubber suction cup hanging around that might work? I had one here that came with some halogen lights that were tricky to get out otherwise. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
prowla Posted June 28, 2020 Share Posted June 28, 2020 On 23/04/2020 at 10:56, uk_lefty said: OK so lockdown is making me reluctant to make the non essential trip to get this professionally looked at or even posted. So, if I want to find out what's going on under that lacquer crack is 80grit sandpaper a good way to get through this sensibly? It's all I've got at the moment... Another view of the neck crack... That's a cracking neck! (...gets coat...) 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
uk_lefty Posted June 28, 2020 Author Share Posted June 28, 2020 32 minutes ago, prowla said: That's a cracking neck! (...gets coat...) Not anymore it's not...! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
uk_lefty Posted July 31, 2020 Author Share Posted July 31, 2020 So some progress... Replacement knobs arrived from the USA. Brilliant. I just couldn't get the old pickup out so again had to go to the tech. He had to break it to get it out. Brand new Armstrong replacement pickup in, great. I've collected the bass today, and plugged in. Everything works.... But. The A and D strings are just so quiet. E and G strings are loud and punchy. I tuned it. I tried two different amps. It's not the pickup height, that's really low on the E side and high on the G side, and it's hump shaped towards the middle anyway. I'm at a bit of a loss. Got loads on with work today but will have to investigate more later... Really wanted to be playing this at rehearsal on Thurs. Learning a lot through this process... Sadly not exactly what I set out to! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
uk_lefty Posted August 21, 2020 Author Share Posted August 21, 2020 The frustration continues.... I got nowhere trying to contact the luthier or the pickup maker about the issue so I took matters in to my own hands. The jack would be cheap and easy to replace, surely?! So I did. My soldering skills are poor and my soldering equipment is budget range to say the least. Had a friend who knows what he's doing, and has built a bass before, help me out. He's my drummer so we did it in a break at rehearsal. Even less output now, including with the original jack. He commented that the solder joints look poor throughout. I might look in to ripping out the original guts and replacing in full... This bass will be resurrected. It will. I hope. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deedee Posted August 21, 2020 Share Posted August 21, 2020 ☹️ Sorry to hear it's still not sorted. I'd contact @KiOgon who can supply you a solderless loom very quickly and very reasonably. He supplied me with a replacement for my SB-R60. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
uk_lefty Posted August 21, 2020 Author Share Posted August 21, 2020 32 minutes ago, Deedee said: ☹️ Sorry to hear it's still not sorted. I'd contact @KiOgon who can supply you a solderless loom very quickly and very reasonably. He supplied me with a replacement for my SB-R60. That was my thinking this morning too. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dom in Dorset Posted August 21, 2020 Share Posted August 21, 2020 What strings do you have on it? The signal takes the same route through the wiring whatever string you are playing. New wiring will certainly help but in my experience when different strings produce different outputs it's down to the pickups or the strings. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nibody Posted August 21, 2020 Share Posted August 21, 2020 Bit of a long shot but could the A and D strings be twisted? Might be worth just releasing the tension on those two then retuning again? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
uk_lefty Posted August 21, 2020 Author Share Posted August 21, 2020 Have tried different strings. It's definitely an electronics issue. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nibody Posted August 21, 2020 Share Posted August 21, 2020 22 minutes ago, uk_lefty said: Have tried different strings. It's definitely an electronics issue. Thinking about it, the pickup looks the same as the one that was in my old 1980 Ibanez RS900 - and I seem to recall that had a similair issue with the E and A being oddly quieter than the D and G. Never did get to the bottom of it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
uk_lefty Posted August 21, 2020 Author Share Posted August 21, 2020 1 hour ago, Nibody said: Thinking about it, the pickup looks the same as the one that was in my old 1980 Ibanez RS900 - and I seem to recall that had a similair issue with the E and A being oddly quieter than the D and G. Never did get to the bottom of it. This pickup is a brand new Kent Armstrong replica of the original Aria, should be fine Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nibody Posted August 21, 2020 Share Posted August 21, 2020 2 hours ago, uk_lefty said: This pickup is a brand new Kent Armstrong replica of the original Aria, should be fine Is the bass active or passive? If it has a preamp but the pickup itself is passive it might be an idea to just jerryrig a small circuit (volume/tone/output) to see if the issue is the pickup or the wiring inside the bass. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
uk_lefty Posted August 22, 2020 Author Share Posted August 22, 2020 13 hours ago, Nibody said: Is the bass active or passive? If it has a preamp but the pickup itself is passive it might be an idea to just jerryrig a small circuit (volume/tone/output) to see if the issue is the pickup or the wiring inside the bass. Passive Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
uk_lefty Posted September 6, 2020 Author Share Posted September 6, 2020 Right, hopefully an end to the saga. Armstrong suggested I take it to a chap at my local music store, Music Department in St Albans. I figured that if it definitely is an issue with the pickup then they would accept that as an explanation from the people they recommend... So the bass went in and a few hrs later I was asked to collect. There was some loose wiring and poor soldering, probably through age, so they neatened it up and tested it. I've given it a quick test at home and I now have a working 1984 Aria Pro II SB-Elite 1. The Armstrong pickup is great in dual coil, really throaty deep lows and quite percussive too. Very thin on the single coil but I need to play with EQ a bit more. I haven't thoroughly given it a bash yet but plan to in the next few days to really see where this bass has its strengths. Overall I'm just pleased to have it working. It's number 4 out of 4 basses, but I'm hopeful that it will do the job for bashing out covers. With what I've had to spend on it I'd probably break even selling it, but actually hoping it finds a place and earns it's keep. It's been a frustrating journey but one that has led me to a few good lessons learned. 7 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deedee Posted September 6, 2020 Share Posted September 6, 2020 Glad you finally got it sorted 👍 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
uk_lefty Posted December 5, 2020 Author Share Posted December 5, 2020 Well, the bass has been through the mill a bit. I decided to sell it, it went on Reverb almost immediately, DPD lost it for a month, then it turned up for the buyer who had already been refunded, and I got it back minus the knobs and with the electrics fubar'd. So, considering the pickup was new I thought this has to be the wiring, so I got a Kiogon loom, took it in for a set up and I got the bass back today. It sounds amazing, I was never fully happy with the sound before. Though the new pickup was in for a while I never felt I was getting the best from it until now. Hers the dilemma... When I had it sold a few months back I kinda spent the proceeds.... But I've started an 80s band and having 6 basses is ridiculous... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andyjr1515 Posted December 5, 2020 Share Posted December 5, 2020 2 minutes ago, uk_lefty said: But I've started an 80s band and having 6 basses is ridiculous... It is ridiculous! Everyone here, including me, will tell you that you need at least seven! At least. 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.