Geek99 Posted March 30, 2022 Share Posted March 30, 2022 (edited) Yes - any random piece of wire should go through the slanted hole into the control cavity and then to an earth point like the casing of a tone control - leave some copper wire exposed So that it makes contact with underside of bridge this is all do-able Edited March 30, 2022 by Geek99 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Badscrew Posted March 30, 2022 Share Posted March 30, 2022 (edited) This neck pickup is completely off-center, no wonder the E string isn't picked up properly! Ideally you should be moving it left (towards the E). Also, if this is one of those "Artec" gibson-like pickups, then these aren't great to start from and any misalignment will make the string balance worse. Edited March 30, 2022 by Badscrew Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dajaphonics Posted March 30, 2022 Author Share Posted March 30, 2022 Thanks @Geek99 I lifted the pickguard and was able to find the wire. It looked like it had fallen into the cavity and wasn't connected to the bridge or the tone controller casing or anything else for that matter, just lying there. Perhaps this is the reason why I get some feedback at times? Anyway, since this wire is sort of short, would I be able to solder it to the closest metal point which is the input jack? Also, I assume that I won't need to solder the ground to the bridge since the bridge's pressure would not allow the wire to move. Looking at the pickups, I noticed that not only was the E string not aligned over the pickup, the bridge pickup sloped downward away from the string. Now I was able to loosen the screw and pull the E side toward the strings so it's more level. Hopefully this will create more volume from the E string once I get everything installed. As for the bridge, the string holes do not line up with the poles at all. Is there a way to sort of angle the end of the string toward the saddle so it will align? I'm assuming once the strings get tuned, they will just become taut and straightened between the saddle and the string hole. Are there bridges that allow you to move the string spacing so you can better place it over the pickup pole? I was thinking something like this... Lastly, when I lifted up the neck pickup, I discovered the guy who installed it put a little foam underneath. I have no idea why this is there. Any ideas why and should I just remove the stryrofoam? I'm not getting along with this mudbucker sound anyway. Wow that seems like a lot! I'm very grateful for everyone who's helped me out! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dajaphonics Posted March 30, 2022 Author Share Posted March 30, 2022 @Badscrew This is an Allparts Gibson style pickup - mudbucker. I just want it out of my life! It looks like there is no space inside the cavity to even really adjust it at all. It's a pretty tight fit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Badscrew Posted March 30, 2022 Share Posted March 30, 2022 You'll need to remove some wood then. But placed off center like it is today it won't work great. Allparts is better than Artec - at least this is a good news Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Badscrew Posted March 30, 2022 Share Posted March 30, 2022 The foam is there to make the height adjustable, it pushes the pickup up and you can vary the height a bit with the screws. About the bridge: your threaded saddles allow for some lateral adjustments, but don't go too crazy or the string will slip sideways back to the center. You need to pace your bridge so the strings are nicely centered over the neck first, then place the pickups so they are centered under the strings, then you'll be able to adjust the string spacing _a little bit_ 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geek99 Posted March 30, 2022 Share Posted March 30, 2022 (edited) No I just strip the wire section that’s under the bridge and spray the strands out - all you need is electrical conductivity. you can replace it with a longer piece if you like. I use copper shielding tape to stick the under bridge section in place and to give good grounding all over the control cavity this is basschat - help is what we do. It’s not like you’re on talkbass here Edited March 30, 2022 by Geek99 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Downunderwonder Posted March 30, 2022 Share Posted March 30, 2022 You want the bridge to line up with the neck. Presumably the spacing of the holes is entirely appropriate for the width of the neck. Then you want a pickup that more or less matches the string spacing where it is going to go, not biased to one side as it was. It looks like yours will be ok once centered. Forget about wrangling the strings at the bridge to match the pickup. 2 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dajaphonics Posted March 31, 2022 Author Share Posted March 31, 2022 14 hours ago, Geek99 said: No I just strip the wire section that’s under the bridge and spray the strands out - all you need is electrical conductivity. you can replace it with a longer piece if you like. I use copper shielding tape to stick the under bridge section in place and to give good grounding all over the control cavity this is basschat - help is what we do. It’s not like you’re on talkbass here Sorry I don't quite understand. Should I only connect the wire to the underside of the bridge or so I also need to connect the other side to the tone control? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dad3353 Posted March 31, 2022 Share Posted March 31, 2022 9 minutes ago, dajaphonics said: Sorry I don't quite understand. Should I only connect the wire to the underside of the bridge or so I also need to connect the other side to the tone control? This wire is to electrically connect the bridge (and thus the strings...) to earth, to reduce buzzing from radio interference. It doesn't need to be soldered to the underside of the bridge, as the bridge being screwed down will hold it in place. A length of the plastic sheathing should be stripped away, to allow contact between the bridge metal and the copper wire inside. The other end of the wire has to be connected to earth in some way. One common method is to solder this end to the casing of a potentiometer. The 'earth' tag on the output jack socket is another option (be sure that it's the earth tag, and not the signal tag, of course...). Sometimes, copper shielding is present in the control cavity; in this case, the bridge wire can be connected to this shielding. Hope this helps. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geek99 Posted March 31, 2022 Share Posted March 31, 2022 1 hour ago, dajaphonics said: Sorry I don't quite understand. Should I only connect the wire to the underside of the bridge or so I also need to connect the other side to the tone control? No - connect one end to tone control, other end should be stripped back and the exposed copper splayed around under bridge to get the best conductivity (i copper tape it) then screw the bridge down tight https://www.bassesbyleo.com/bridge_grounding.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dajaphonics Posted April 6, 2022 Author Share Posted April 6, 2022 (edited) Hey everyone who's still listening. I just got back from a trip so started looking at my bass again. I really don't think the bridge is suitable for my short scale bass. I just measured the distance between the pole pickups and they're 16mm apart. The holes in the bridge look like they're about 19mm. I think someone on a previous forum years ago thought I had a 17.5mm spaced bridge. I've looked at other forums and it looks like some people used Schaler Roller Bridge which works for string spreads ranging from 2-3/32" to 2-1/2" (53.39mm to 63.50mm). You can check the Schaler out here. Here's my current bridge: Pure Vintage '58 Precision bass bridge On a positive note, I did my first successful solder today. Thank you again everyone for the help and guidance. Edited April 6, 2022 by dajaphonics Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geek99 Posted April 6, 2022 Share Posted April 6, 2022 Not an expert on shorties but I’m still tuned to your station… Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dajaphonics Posted April 6, 2022 Author Share Posted April 6, 2022 Thanks @Geek99 Please stay tuned for even more slow slow progress of trying to make an old bass usable again! My first mistake was just trying to copy someone else's bass mod without knowing the exact pickups and bridge that the originals were swapped for. Now at least I'm understanding some key elements of the bass even more. I'll take this as a great learning lesson almost 10 years after I originally bought this bass. It's just one of those things like an unfinished piece of art, it just hovers over your head and taunts me if it's not perfect to me. I realize this will never be "perfect" but I would like to at least like to get some satisfaction of better intonation and no longer having low volume on the e string. A fairly modest goal I feel. Also that nut was made by a luthier as the original was broken. I think this one is ok but I guess I wouldn't know for sure. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dajaphonics Posted April 7, 2022 Author Share Posted April 7, 2022 I think this hipshot bridge with string spacing may be the best solution for my situation. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Downunderwonder Posted April 7, 2022 Share Posted April 7, 2022 42 minutes ago, dajaphonics said: I think this hipshot bridge with string spacing may be the best solution for my situation. Maybe, but remember that the spacing decreases over the distance to the pickup in the same ratio as the distance to the nut. Ie not an inconsiderable amount. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Velarian Posted April 7, 2022 Share Posted April 7, 2022 You could try using some string or elastic from the machine head, through the nut and align it over the pickup poles then mark the position on the body at the bridge location. This should tell you what the bridge string spacing needs to be. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Badscrew Posted April 7, 2022 Share Posted April 7, 2022 Or math 🤣 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maude Posted April 7, 2022 Share Posted April 7, 2022 19 minutes ago, Badscrew said: Or math 🤣 I agree, but with maths you can be bad at it and get it wrong. You have to be very very bad to physically look at two pieces of stretched out string and get it wrong. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigRedX Posted April 7, 2022 Share Posted April 7, 2022 4 hours ago, Maude said: You have to be very very bad to physically look at two pieces of stretched out string and get it wrong. You be surprised... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Badscrew Posted April 7, 2022 Share Posted April 7, 2022 Yes, lots of people without spacial awareness. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Downunderwonder Posted April 9, 2022 Share Posted April 9, 2022 (edited) The maths is simple if you apply the principles of ''similar triangles''. Nut separation Pickup " Bridge " p is nut to pickup distance b is pickup to bridge saddle distance. SIDE 1 is difference P-N yadadayada similar triangles: ( P-N )÷p = ( B-P )÷b Solve for B... B = P + ( P-N)÷p×b Edited April 9, 2022 by Downunderwonder Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Downunderwonder Posted April 9, 2022 Share Posted April 9, 2022 You should also try solving for the ideal pickup separation at the chosen placement with the existing bridge at the correct distance. If the difference between that and the current pickup is a couple of mm I wouldn't worry about changing bridges. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Downunderwonder Posted April 9, 2022 Share Posted April 9, 2022 14 hours ago, Downunderwonder said: ( P-N )÷p = ( B-P )÷b Solving for P P×b - N×b = B×p - P×p P×(p+b) = B×p + N×b Pideal=(Bp + Nb)÷(p+b) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Velarian Posted April 9, 2022 Share Posted April 9, 2022 1 hour ago, Downunderwonder said: Solving for P P×b - N×b = B×p - P×p P×(p+b) = B×p + N×b Pideal=(Bp + Nb)÷(p+b) Is that Russian? A bit of string tied to the machine heads seems easier to me. 🤔🤷♂️ 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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