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BluesWithoutBlame

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About BluesWithoutBlame

  • Birthday 10/16/1956

Converted

  • homepage
    home.online.no/~jacker
  • occupation
    Computer Programmer
  • hobbies
    Music, Aikido.
  • Location
    Oslo. Norway
  1. One comment, then I'll drop it. The rudeness and sarcasm is not that endearing. Nobody asked you to get to it "in a flash". I spent time and thought forming the question. You gave a one sentence reply, indicating it was too much, or not concise enough. I replied immidiately, trying to comply with how you wanted it...and you skipped over it AFTER without any comment, answering other questions, and ignoring mine. You could have simply said "sorry, I work most with amps, and this is getting out of my area of expertise", but you chose to just ignore it. When I mention it, more rudeness and snarky comment about "sorry I didn't get it it in a flash" (as in "gee...sorry I didn't drop just everything and concentrat solely on you"). Well, that wasn't the issue. Listen, we can just drop it here. I thought this was a civil help page, I see further up more of the same rudeness on someone elses serious question about dangers with grounding, and he also got the "Only to you" (funny) short skrift. Well, thanks. I learned something. I guess I don't need your help after all. But thanks.
  2. Is this how it works at "ask myles"? I may have given too much info at first, you asked med to break it down to smaller questions, I did...and you ignore it? Thanks.
  3. Hi again. Basically, I think I did find out the solution(s). I think it is static buildup on the pickguard. The questions now are just these: 1) Any experience with this crackling static electric discharge on strats because of the plastic pickguard? 2) If I use "cling free" spray or material to wipe the pickguard...will it work if I am only wiping the front of it? Or do I have to take off the pickguard and wipe also the underside? 3) When I can finally shield it with foil, I probably will want to shield also the trem cavity, and jack cavity. The ground wires common to those two cavities, and the pickguard...are they enough to shield it, or do I have to also connect them with seperate "ground wires"? Hope this is more readable/concise.
  4. Hi Myles...this is my first post to you. I asked this on another forum as well, but then remembered you had a "sticky" thread for questions. Mine is regarding the electronics on a MIJ '69 RI strat (I THINK it is a '69 RI, definitely MIJ and strat). It's kinda long, I tried to give as much precise info as I could, since this seems to be a triicky problem (to me anyway). Any help appreciated: I noticed (and then realized I had been hearing it for a long time, but just hadn't focused on it) recently while working with a new pedal some static electric-like crackling. To cut to the chase, I absolutly traced it to the guitar....a MIJ Strat "60's" (I think it was 69 Remake or something). It is definitely the source of the problem. Posted about this and someone mentioned grounding. So I took it apart. I ohmed out all connections that were direct, and all had 0 ohms to ground, though I should mention...I have a finicky multi-meter, and occasionally I would read infinite on some connections, but I took off the leads, put them back on and read 0 ohms. I hav ehad this happen before with this meter, so I don't think it indicates anything. Anyway, I also visually inspected the whole thing....after much careful looking with a magnifying glass, I DID see a copper thread that was sort of trapped behind the (final?) winding that I see on the neck pickup that goes (looking at it from the top) from bottom left up at an angle to top right, and continues out to where the pickup leads attach. It looked "fuzzy" up on the corner...at first I thought someone scored it accidentally or something, but seems intact. I removed the one strand (it was about 3/4" long, almost coiled...). Aha...I thought. This must have been the problem. I had been meaning to do two mods anyway also to this guitar so I took the oppurtunity while I had the pickguard assy. out. I added a .001mF cap in parallel with a 150k resistor to the volume pot...where switch comes in, to the wiper. Also I moved the one wire from the switch so the second tone control controls the bridge pickup instead of the middle (which is useless...for me since I always keep it on ten anyway...now I can adjust my bridge PU which needs it!). Just to be thorough, I also touched up the connections that seemed "strange" on the meter, even though I believe it was the meter. Soldered the input jack and trem ground back in place, put on the strings, and damned if the crackle is still there. I noticed: 1) The pickup selector switch sometimes makes a similar sound...if I move it quickly to a different settting. 2) This is weird...the crackling builds up. I mean, if I play heavy chords or dig in (more current from the pickups) it happens more often...but it happens maybe once every 30 seconds or so...not too regular, but not continuously. 3) This is even weirder (until one figures it out, and then it makes perfect sense...) but even without playing much, if I let it sit, and then touch the pickup mounting screws on the BOTTOM of either the neck or middle pickup I get the crackle...exactly as a static electric discharge. If I immidiately touch it again, no noise. Has to build up. BUT this doesn't ever (so far) happen if I touch the screws on the bridge PU. Nor does it happen if I touch other ground points like the mounting screws for the PU selector switch. Yet I can ohm it out between the middle mounting screw and those other points is 0 ohms. It also happens on the neck and middle upper screws but seems less. Originally, and as far as I can tell the problem hasn't changed after I did the mods. (and it sounds so GREAT otherwise...with volume down, or bridge PU when I move the tone) and originally the only "chargeup" component in the guitar was one cap that goes from one side of the second tone control to the shell of that control. This seemed non-standard. At least the schematics I see on the net, usually show stock setup being that cap from one side of the FIRST tone pot to ground, but I think electronically it is the same, because there is a wire from the one tone control side, to the same side on the second tone, THEN from there to ground. When I say I ohmed out all direct points, that includes the ground wires from the pickup (at the little solder bead on top to the furthest tone pot shell and points in between...both other shells) as well as the other wires. Again, this builds up like static charges do. Takes some time, less if I am playing harder or chords, and I can force a static electric discharge by touching SOME of the mounting screws (forgot to mention...a couple other that only mount the pickguard to the body discharge it also!!). This guitar has just a small foil area right under the switch, vol, and tone controls. I DID notice an oily feel on the bottom of the pickguard, and it seems to pick up dust..hair. I wonder if the actual pickguard could be doing this? Any ideas? Any good tricks I can try to isolate or test? Should I remove all the electronics again and use spray adhesive and foil to shield the underside of the pickguard? Just edited this (made it even LONGER...sorry :-) adding this...I'm in Norway so we're 6-8 hours ahead of the US, while waiting for a reply I looked into this and other forums using search. It's probably good to have here as well, since I went into a lot of detail on this, but it seems like this might be a case of "static cling" static buildup on the actual pickguard. Read some folks claim a temporary solution, using the "cling-free" swatches that you put in the clothes dryer and going over the pickguard with it. Next time I have some more free time, will more permanently (hopefully) fix by glueing aliminum foil (as heavy duty as I can get) on the underside of the pickguard. Will have to remove all electronics (and NO site yet I've seen mentions...it is a GREAT idea to first measure the heights both low and high string side of all three pickups before removing them!! That is, if you want to get them back where they were) first. While I'm doing that will also do the same in the jack cavity and trem cavity. One followup question...is it better to twist the wires going to the jack, to minimize inuction and noise? Thanks!
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