Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

David: If you have a warranty, why not use it? RIC knows a problem when they see it and hear it.

I think the warranty may be void with the modifications you made. I would call RIC and ask for suggestions.

David, a couple of months ago we played a gig where as usual, my amp went direct to the PA. But this time there was a MAJOR hum coming from my amp which had never happened before. So I changed from using my 5-string active to my 73 4001. Same result. I changed cables, grounded everything and the hum was still there.

This had never happened to me before so it dawned on me during the 1st set to get the sound guy to change the cable he was using from the DI output in the back of my amp to his snake patch. He did during the break, same result. I told him to try another cable. He pulled out another cable, made the connections and the hum disappeared. It was the dam cable he was using.

They were well used and beat causing them to ground out creating the hum.

The following week, different gig, same equipment (on my end) different sound system and soundman, different cables. No issues!

Have your soundman check his cables, then tell him to check them again.

Good luck.

I would give Ric customer service a call and see what they say regarding the warranty. The answer will always be no, unless you ask. IMO, best to you in resolving the issue

That sounds reasonable to me David. Thanks.

David, I'm neither a bass player nor an electrician, so please take this with a grain of salt (I am a chemist!). Do you get the same noise through the RIC-O-Sound jack, and from both pickups? Do you have the capability to record the noise and look at the waveform to determine the frequency (to prove/disprove that it's 60-Hz hum; I can do this with Steinberg WaveLab Lite)? Also, does the noise have the same character and intensity with any amp used?

Do you stand close to anything electrical that your pickups might be "picking up?" I have an old video game in my basement/practice space. If it is on, and I stand too close to it I get a serious hum through my amp.

David, check to make sure the ground wire to the mute on your bridge hasn't broken and also that the ground wire with the loop on it for the horseshoe is correctly attatched to the lower mounting/height adjusting screw.

David,

Do you get the same hum from both pick-ups selected individually?

Hey David!

Just a thought... has plugging another bass into the same rig given you the same result?

If you don't have a second bass, can you borrow one just to check that out?

Keeping my fingers crossed for 'ya!

CALL RICKENBACKER!

I don't know if RIC makes you pay the shiping both ways in a warranty situation, but if the people you used to help diagnose and fix the problem(that they haven't diagnosed or fixed) have charged you, you deserve a refund.

That never happened to mine when I bypassed the cap. Although I soldered the insulated wire in, and I've had no problems.

Congratulations! I'm glad you figured it out. It's always good to hear a happy ending! Rick on!

Well done David. The good news is that you are the wiser for it and your instrument did not have to leave home.