insane that the factory doesn't know about and solve such an issue
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Horrible Noise from a Brand New G&L 2500
- Thread starter SteveFabulous
- Start date
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- l2500 g&l
Do you have any other active basses in your house and if so have you tried those? It sounds to me like you have a wiring issue or a problem with the preamp. I am surprised that something like that would get by final QC but I know that many companies have QC issues nowadays that seems to flip through the final inspection before they get shipped out. Either way if it's new, it's under warranty G&L will get you taken care of. But it shouldn't be like that. Before you touch anything inside the wiring like the preamp or the harness or anything I would contact G&L. It's their mistake let them fix it. Most companies are very straightforward with warranty work but if they know that you have been inside messing around with anything that gives them an out that they can use if they want to.
I occasionally get horrible noises from my basses, then I realized, 'Yep, I really sound like that' . . . . .
I've done both copper foik and conductive paint. I personally prefer using copper foil. The conductive paint is pretty gross to smell when you're using it and it requires a few coats in my experience. So while the copper foil tape is maybe a bit harder to apply, it definitely takes less time when you take into account the multiple coats + dry times of the conductive paint. Pretty sure the copper tape is cheaper too. You can get a big roll of the copper tape for cheap and it'll probably last most of your life assuming you aren't applying it to new basses every month.
I have 3 G&L basses with the MFD pickups, an L-2000, M-2000 and SB-1. None of them have any shieling in the control cavities and they are all dead silent.
My feeling is it's an issue with a component, like a bad potentiometer, the preamp or even one of the pickups or maybe a soldering issue.
The best thing would be send the bass back for warranty repair, although G&L can be a hassle for repairs, but an electronic issue is easier to fix that say a bad neck.
Good luck!
My feeling is it's an issue with a component, like a bad potentiometer, the preamp or even one of the pickups or maybe a soldering issue.
The best thing would be send the bass back for warranty repair, although G&L can be a hassle for repairs, but an electronic issue is easier to fix that say a bad neck.
Good luck!
Also it's a cheap and easy thing to do, I don't believe a copper foil can be SO expensive to impact final price of an instrument of that caliber.
If the noise goes away when you touch the strings then proper shielding should take care of it. G&L and Rickenbacker are two companies at that pricepoint who don’t add any shielding to their instruments, which is crazy to me for the price.
Also worth checking out the wiring inside and comparing it to the wiring diagrams on the G&L website (or at least tapping the poles in each pickup switch position to make sure all the correct coils are active). I had a brand new US L2500 many years ago that arrived miswired at the coil switch- their control cavities are notoriously messy like rat’s nests so not surprising they would sometimes cross wires while assembling too. It’s possible miswiring is causing a single-coil noise floor.
Also worth checking out the wiring inside and comparing it to the wiring diagrams on the G&L website (or at least tapping the poles in each pickup switch position to make sure all the correct coils are active). I had a brand new US L2500 many years ago that arrived miswired at the coil switch- their control cavities are notoriously messy like rat’s nests so not surprising they would sometimes cross wires while assembling too. It’s possible miswiring is causing a single-coil noise floor.
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I have an L2500 and it’s the quietest bass I own. However, the noise is does have varies a bit based on location. If this was more of a problem I’d put in copper foil or other type of mu-metal shielding.
So Update
I've booked it in to my friendly luthier for a copper makeover. (though I will aslo ask him to check pots nd ID any other poss causes) Ridiculous I should have to do this for a new bass but I bought it from the US so can't send it back easily
Also noticed that turnoing off the same room dimmer switch (thanks fort thje heads up) reduces the noise bny 50% but even so it's not fit for (recording) purpose - and I don't want to sit in the dark
It's not AS Bad on DI to desk - but again too noisy - these days guitrs should be quiet until you make then loud
thanks everyone
I've booked it in to my friendly luthier for a copper makeover. (though I will aslo ask him to check pots nd ID any other poss causes) Ridiculous I should have to do this for a new bass but I bought it from the US so can't send it back easily
Also noticed that turnoing off the same room dimmer switch (thanks fort thje heads up) reduces the noise bny 50% but even so it's not fit for (recording) purpose - and I don't want to sit in the dark
It's not AS Bad on DI to desk - but again too noisy - these days guitrs should be quiet until you make then loud
thanks everyone
Make sure the ground wire going from the electronics cavity to the bridge is solidly attached to the bridge. Many times the wire is just "shoved" under the bridge and makes contact from the pressure of the bridge screws. In some cases the wood against the wire becomes indented from over tightening, and there's no contact with the bridge metal. This has happened to me on several occasions over the years. Simply repositioning the wire fixes the issue.
Thanks - going to take it to Stuart - in Doncaster my trustworthy luthier. He will find tirnissue and bullet proof it I’m sure. I’ll post the results and ping G&L with an offer to cover the costs ( apart from my 5 hour drive and 3 hours wait I expect !)
Yes indeed but…. I have somewhat complicated by purchasing from the US so popping it back to the shop not a great option!
I believe you're going to find out that the active pre-amp is bad. If so, G&L does sell them. Also possibly G&L would send a replacement to a local shop under warranty. I hope you get it sorted out.