Members lexvandoef Posted May 1, 2007 Members Share Posted May 1, 2007 Hey Guys I've got a problem over here, I just bought this beautifull Orville by Gibson Les Paul. Every thing was fine whilst testing, but the pickup height of my bridge pickup got screwed up when a friend of mine was checking/playing the guitar and now my bridgepickup sounds very thin and sharp, just not the meaty tone it used to have. I've been fiddling around with the pickup height for days, never really got the tone back. My neck pickup still sounds beautifull, very rich and articulate les paul sounding. But my bridge pickup is lacking in sound very hard. It sounds wimpy, with less balls than my telecaster bridge pickup. Anybody got some tips on how to adjust the pickup/polepieces? And what's the distance between your bridg pickup and strings on you les paul. Maybe I can copy it, and start from there. Thnx for the help in advance, really want it to sound full and meaty again, cause i'm in love with this guitar. Oh and by the way, I got a pair of Gibson Classic '57 in there, factory original. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members ryknow774 Posted May 2, 2007 Members Share Posted May 2, 2007 Sounds like your friend might have jacked your old pickup and stuck a different one in Had it happen to me before by a supposed friend..pull it out and check and make sure its a 57 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members inHK Posted May 2, 2007 Members Share Posted May 2, 2007 Sounds like your friend might have jacked your old pickup and stuck a different one in Had it happen to me before by a supposed friend..pull it out and check and make sure its a 57 Wow that would really suck if that happened. I was going to suggest pickup height when i saw the title of this thread - obviously you have tried that already. Good luck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members lexvandoef Posted May 2, 2007 Author Members Share Posted May 2, 2007 Haha, oh no I'm sure that didn't happen. He was fiddling around with it alright, but I was with him al the time. And I checked before buying. Anybody got some advice on the pickup height? If I jack it up to high it gets louder, but also a bit more trebly. And I I put it any lower, the output of my neckhumbucker is to much. And that one is low already. Tips on the pickup height anyone? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Burgess Posted May 2, 2007 Members Share Posted May 2, 2007 I'm kind of interpreting this as it sounded good when you tested it at the store but it doesn't sound good now that you have it home. Would you say that's accurate? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members kdp86 Posted May 2, 2007 Members Share Posted May 2, 2007 I would start by lowering it way down, and adjust each side a little until you find where you like it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members lexvandoef Posted May 2, 2007 Author Members Share Posted May 2, 2007 I'm kind of interpreting this as it sounded good when you tested it at the store but it doesn't sound good now that you have it home. Would you say that's accurate? Hmmz, not quite. It sounded good indeed when I tested it. And after that I went straight to my own rehearsel space to play it on my '79 Marshall JMP 2203. It sounded great then too. Even at home on my smaller practice amp it sounded good. And then when I let one of my friends play it, he adjusted it to his liking, and I thought, well I can always get my setting back. But that's the problem, I can't. Anyone got suggestions on setting for the height of my bridgepickup? It really bugs me, I know it sounds great. And I've tried lowering my bridgepickup, but then the output drops very much, so much the neck pickup is much louder. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members lexvandoef Posted May 2, 2007 Author Members Share Posted May 2, 2007 Okay, I finally adjusted it to my liking, I lowered both the bridgepickup and the neck pickup. It still doesn't have a lot/enough bass though, very strange. The neck pickup however is a bit much on the bassy side. I tried raising the treble side, but it doens't make a lot of difference. Anyway, the output is balanced nog, only my bridge pickup still is to thin. Oh and besides that, sometimes it seems like my bridge pickup is shorting or something It doesn't make any sound at al, and when I touch it, and touch my strings at the same time, it hums and buzzes real loud. Does anybody know what's going on? Oh and I checked the pickup, the braided wire isn't knicked somewhere, and it is a classic '57. Please help me, I really like my guitar. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members RUExp? Posted May 2, 2007 Members Share Posted May 2, 2007 Are you sure the tone control for the bridge pickup wasn't just rolled down before? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Pope on a Rope Posted May 2, 2007 Members Share Posted May 2, 2007 Open it up and look at the wiring. If you don't see anything obviously wrong try some contact cleaner in the pots and the switch. It is possible that something may just need cleaning. Dirty pots and switches will do things like you described. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members lexvandoef Posted May 2, 2007 Author Members Share Posted May 2, 2007 I'm sure the tonepots were all on 10 I had that one figured out a couple of days ago when they weren't And there was nothing obviously wrong with the wiring, no dead solder connections of knicked wires. Every thing as clean as a whistle. I don't think it's either the pots of the switch. When my bridge pu doesn't make any sound, or humz buzzes likes it shorting when it touch it and the strings, I have to adjust the heigt of the pickup to cure it. Just like there is something touching or shorting under the pu. But I checked twice. everything is clean and the screws aren't toughing the wire. And the lack of bass still concerns me Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members 's mel gibson Posted May 2, 2007 Members Share Posted May 2, 2007 You know? All this up and down thing with your p'up heights might have caused a bad/cold solder joint to finally break somewhat. It's barely hanging on and about to finally break off completely. Where it'l stop working. At least it's not a mystery which p'up it is. Let's start with the easy stuff first. Spray some Tuner Control Cleaner and Lubricant in the toggle switch, vol and tone controls for the bridge p'up. Wiggle and twist everything.No help?Open up the control cavity and poke around the pots while playing thru an amp. Tap the pots and caps hard but don't break things.Still no help?Resolder the contacts one by one. Like heat them up until they melt and maybe add a bit more solder if necessary.Still no help?Take out the bridge p'up and controls and install something else. Maybe the toggle switch too.This is the last resort. It's got to work. And this is a harsh lesson for all you kind hearted souls with nice guitars that let their little friends {censored} with your guitars using a screwdriver to {censored} with anything on your guitars. Your buddy's an asshole full of bad luck!Another thing! If you're doing a gig,...nobody should be allowed to touch your guitars that you're going to use prior to the gig for at least 48 hours. It's totally bad luck. They all try to see how far they can bend the note and more than likely, the string they abused is going to break during the gig. Or they lose a Floyd Rose Fine Tuner. Take it from me. I binder, dundat! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members lexvandoef Posted May 3, 2007 Author Members Share Posted May 3, 2007 Thnx for the advice. Not going to let anyone screw around with my beloved axes anymore. And I tried the first 3 tips you gave this morning. I resoldered all the contacts of the bridgepickup, and checked and lubed the pots/switches. But everything still works as it did. Yes the bridgepickup never stopped working, only in some positions regarding the height it stopped working and buzzed like crazy. After adjusting the height it worked perfectly. Anyway, my guitar works now, still a bit bugged about the lack of bass though Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Burgess Posted May 3, 2007 Members Share Posted May 3, 2007 Hmmz, not quite. It sounded good indeed when I tested it. And after that I went straight to my own rehearsel space to play it on my '79 Marshall JMP 2203. It sounded great then too. Even at home on my smaller practice amp it sounded good. And then when I let one of my friends play it, he adjusted it to his liking, and I thought, well I can always get my setting back. But that's the problem, I can't. Anyone got suggestions on setting for the height of my bridgepickup? It really bugs me, I know it sounds great. And I've tried lowering my bridgepickup, but then the output drops very much, so much the neck pickup is much louder.I do setups on all my guitars and pup height is part of my routine. I generally raise the pup until I start hearinng some string pull and then back off a bit. There's no science to my method just feel. Give that a try. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Burgess Posted May 3, 2007 Members Share Posted May 3, 2007 Thnx for the advice. Not going to let anyone screw around with my beloved axes anymore. And I tried the first 3 tips you gave this morning. I resoldered all the contacts of the bridgepickup, and checked and lubed the pots/switches. But everything still works as it did. Yes the bridgepickup never stopped working, only in some positions regarding the height it stopped working and buzzed like crazy. After adjusting the height it worked perfectly. Anyway, my guitar works now, still a bit bugged about the lack of bass though And yeah, it's cool to let someone play your axe but I draw the line at anyone making adjustments to guitars I've setup for my preferences. Anybody try that stunt with any of my guitars and that would put them permantly on the "Stay the fuck away from my axes" list! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members lexvandoef Posted May 3, 2007 Author Members Share Posted May 3, 2007 I kinda share your opinion now too Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members peavey_impact Posted May 3, 2007 Members Share Posted May 3, 2007 Yeah its pretty gimp that he actually messed with your pickups and shit. IT'S YOUR GUITAR!! What a bastard Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members lexvandoef Posted May 4, 2007 Author Members Share Posted May 4, 2007 Ah, last night my guitar finally got it's mojo back. I don't really know why, but I fiddles around a bit more, and listened and suddenly the sound was just there. My bridge pickups still isn't a very bassy pickup compared to the neck, but it sounds great now. But I'm still a bit picky The neck pickup seems a bit bassy, solutions? Happpy again Nobody fucks around with my guitars any more Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Burgess Posted May 4, 2007 Members Share Posted May 4, 2007 Ah, last night my guitar finally got it's mojo back. I don't really know why, but I fiddles around a bit more, and listened and suddenly the sound was just there. My bridge pickups still isn't a very bassy pickup compared to the neck, but it sounds great now. But I'm still a bit picky The neck pickup seems a bit bassy, solutions? Happpy again Nobody fucks around with my guitars any more Any pickup you put into the bridge position is not going to be as bassy as whatever you have in the neck position. It's simple the nature of having a pickup at that location. The sound of the guitar itself is not as bassy at the bridge position and that's simply physics. Unless you can change the laws of physics the bridge position will never be as bassy as the neck position. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members lexvandoef Posted May 4, 2007 Author Members Share Posted May 4, 2007 Oh yess, I know that, I kinda familiar with physics But you should here my old epi les paul. It's very lifeless compared to my new les paul, but the bridge pickup is quite bassy, it's shaper than than the neck pu, but it has got almost as much bass. Kinda weird, and not very sublte. And the guitars sounds dead compared to my new one, but it's got a powerfull bridge pu. Anyway, the guitar now sounds like it should. Only my weird problem about the bridge pu still is there sometimes. From time to time, it just stops working and humz and buzzes alot when i touch it. And the it just out of nowhere starts working again Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Burgess Posted May 4, 2007 Members Share Posted May 4, 2007 When's the last time you changed strings on this guitar? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members lexvandoef Posted May 4, 2007 Author Members Share Posted May 4, 2007 My epi or Obg? Well both last week. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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