Neck Pickup Question

rob · Post by **rob** » Thu Jan 02, 2003 9:31 am

I've got a small problem that's been bugging me for a while. Sometimes, the A and D strings hit the polepieces on the neck hi-gain on my '76 4001, causing a popping sound. Today, I tried adjusting the pickup downward, only to find out that my pickguard might crack while doing so. The polepieces appear to be adjustable, but I couldn't get them to move.

Any ideas?

Rob.

carr · Post by **carr** » Thu Jan 02, 2003 1:54 pm

maybe you have bottomed out and need to raise the bridge a little and adjust the two lowest poles up higher?

jwr2 · Post by **jwr2** » Thu Jan 02, 2003 5:57 pm

The '60's basses had a spring between the pickguard and the neck pickup ... the modern basses have a rubber grommet ... I have found that only adjusting the pickup closer to the strings causes stress and distress to the pickguard ....

Maybe you need to put in new rubber grommets or put in springs ... you might need to rout out a little wood under the neck pickup so it can go down .... I had to do this to one Rick bass

aceonbass · Post by **aceonbass** » Thu Jan 02, 2003 6:51 pm

Each of the strings should be the same distance from the pickup pole pieces. It sounds as if the center two strings are probably in the same plane as the outer strings.Raise the bridge until your problem goes away. Then notch the bridge saddles for the E and G strings until those strings are again the same distance as the center two strings from their perspective pole pieces. I use a Dremmel with the appropriate sized bits and get a nice smooth, semi-circular slot for the string to sit in. You'll need to re-adjust the intonation on the E and G strings once you've notched the saddles. I've done this on both of my Ricky basses starting with brand new saddles from RIC and although it's a very time consuming and arduous process, the results are well worth it as your intonation, action and string to string volume consistancy will be optimized.

gpatt5762 · Post by **gpatt5762** » Fri Jan 03, 2003 7:40 am

Install a Toaster-- Problem Solved!!

Garry

rob · Post by **rob** » Fri Jan 03, 2003 9:02 am

Actually, I think I know what the problem is.
I recently bought this new amp, an SWR L.A. Series practice amp with a 12" speaker. It has some beefy power for a little practice amp. I didn't quite notice the popping sound on my "regular" amp, a Fender BXR 200 watt amp head. Since the new amp has a bit less wattage, I was "digging in" more on my bass, causing the strings to hit the polepieces. The output of the amp has a spikey attack, causing the popping sound.
I still would like to drop the pickup a bit, but without causing permanent damage to my pickguard. Longer pickup screws? How much longer is the max?