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Easy fixes.


isaac42

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Guitarist in one of my bands was playing my Gibson SG, and had some noise issues. Managed to get around it by putting some tension on the cord, but that shouldn't be necessary. So I brought it home and opened it up. I couldn't see any problems with the jack, so I cleaned the contacts and bent the tip contact in just a bit to increase the tension on the plug.

 

We parted ways with our lead player recently, he being the one who had the noise problem. I got it out to play a couple of rhythm parts on one of my songs that we're recording. No noise issues, the guitar sounded great, and we decided to keep my parts and delete his. Makes me laugh, because I'm not much of a guitar player, but the parts I added fit the song.

 

I've also been trying to learn to play my Carvin LB-75. That's a five-string bass, and the scale length and string spacing are different from my usual Rickenbacker basses. I had a similar noise issue with it, and the fix was the same. I pulled off the jack plate, saw no issues with the connections, cleaned the contacts and slightly bent in the tip contact. The bass sounded good yesterday. Now, if only the bass player sounded good!

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The real issue is likely the cable. The plugs on many cables are pressed together with a rivet running from the tip, through the sleeve, to the tip connection. The electrical contacts of both the tip and sleeve are held together by pressure from the rivet that runs through the core as you can see by the long arrow on the right FTYZSI5I0A592OA.LARGE.jpg

 

 

 

As the plug wears, the tip and sleeve get loose and over time make intermittent contacts. The contacts are all sandwiched together by pressure from this rivet and when the insulation layer below the hot contact gets worn, all the contacts become intermittent.

 

This can either cause hum if the sleeve makes poor contact or it can cause the signal to cut out (or both). You can also have the wires inside move and short together or fray and break off the contacts.

 

What you likely did by tightening the Jack in the guitar is add more pressure to the Tip and Ring of the plug when the cords inserted, so it makes a better electric contact, but its not a fix. The jacks in most guitars are usually good for the lifetime of the instrument, especially the Switchcraft type. They can get dirty or come loose. Cheap ones can waller out and get loose.

 

The cause of your problem is likely the cord however. If you take the cord tip and try spinning the tip or sleeve, and if there's any movement at all, you've found your problem and the plugs need replacement.

 

You can see how cheaply made these are here. The contact on the top is just pressed in too, not welded.

 

fetch?id=31580139

 

 

 

There are "Very" few manufacturers who make good 1/4" plugs. a good 90% of them are riveted together and will come loose. The latest ones are the worst. They use Nylon as insulation layers and soldering new wires instantly melts the insulators and loosens the connections.

 

The best plugs are PJ-055B military grade one piece design that used to be used with the old telephone exchanges. These plugs were pushed in and pulled out by operators all day long and compared to the junk they stick on guitar cords today they wouldn't last more then a few hours.

 

These will virtually last a lifetime and the only way you can damage them is with a sledge hammer. I have a couple that have lasted me 50 years and will last another thousand with regular use. They are brass plugs so they do need to be buffed occasionally to remove tarnish, but other then that they're indestructible. I've only had to replace the cords when they get worn.

 

They cost a bit more (between $6~10 each) but you'll earn that back the first time your cord goes out and you have to buy another.

http://www.gibson-barnes.com/prod-29...Cord-Plug.html of course the soldering has to be good and its worth adding heat shrink for cable relief. If a good beldin cable is used it too should last a good 20~40 years.

 

 

$_35.JPG?set_id=880000500F

 

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