Double Bass Full Circle Trouble

834federal

834federal

David Brodie
Feb 25, 2012
289
220
5,046
Philadelphia
#1
Anyone else have trouble with their Full Circle crackling and then failing? I had to run home from a gig to switch basses after sound check this weekend because the pickup completely failed.

I wonder if the connection between the removable wire and it's input might be the problem but I'm not sure. Meantime, I can't take this bass out until I figure out what's going on!
 
#4
Glad I’m seeing this. I have a Full Circle that I purchased and installed less than three months ago and it has started crackling/distorting when I dig in or emphasize certain notes. It’s not the amp because I’ve heard it do the same thing through others. Very frustrating because I really like the sound I get with it.

I will reach out to Fishman per your suggestion. Even if they replace it, it means another trip to the shop and that’s frustrating too.
 
#6
Welcome to the failed Full Circle club! I think I’ve replaced four of them now, excluding the one that a gang of marauding kittens chewed the lead off of. :rolleyes: The FCs are not a robust design and I think that Fishman is aware of this. Be wary of straightening the angle of your bridge without substantially reducing the string tension first.
 
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#7
I went through two of them a couple decades ago. It was either a short in the wire or more likely the piezo got damaged during bridge adjustments.

Fishman was great to work with and fixed me up.

I’ve had one on my Upton for like … probably 6-7 years? No issues. But could happen anytime. I carry a Rev solo in the gig bag just in case.
 
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#11
jmlee said:
Welcome to the failed Full Circle club! I think I’ve replaced four of them now, excluding the one that a gang of marauding kittens chewed the lead off of. :rolleyes: The FCs are not a robust design and I think that Fishman is aware of this. Be wary of straightening the angle of your bridge without substantially reducing the string tension first.
Click to expand...
I’m definitely NOT a member of this club! I’ve only had one FC go bad in the last 30+ years.
 
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#13
BobDeRosa said:
That happened to my FC after about five years and it was a bad barrel (the socket the 1/4" plugs into). My luthier had one lying around and gave it to me no charge. I think I've been playing it with no other trouble for about 10 years.
Click to expand...
Isn't there some sort of filter in the barrel of the FC? I thought I read that somewhere once. If so, you can't just change it out for a generic one without degrading the tone. I could also be completely wrong, haha!
 
#14
statsc said:
I’m definitely NOT a member of this club! I’ve only had one FC go bad in the last 30+ years.
Click to expand...

+1. I’ve had to replace two in 20 years, and I think they were both the old models. Both replacements still going strong both over 10 years in…one maybe 15.
 
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#16
OK...so I want to be encouraging, but...my experience is that it may be the most fragile, overpriced, let-me-down-on-the-most-important-moment, underbuilt, hypersensitive, piece of junk pickup that I have ever used. The entire concept of wanting to change the voice of the pickup being tied to rotating the height adjusters and thereby changing the action of my setup is just wrong to me. W T F non bass playing engineer came up with that one???? Every time I see one installed on a nice gigging musician's bass I feel like I just got French kissed by a stranger during the first six months of the COVID pandemic. How am I supposed to light my bass on fire and jump off the stage into the crowd while constantly concerned about all of those things? ;)

That said, for very delicate people, when you find the sweet spot it can sound very good & I like the quality of the adjuster on the non-pickup side. Your experience may be different than mine; I respect that & wish all of you well.
 
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#17
Earl said:
Isn't there some sort of filter in the barrel of the FC? I thought I read that somewhere once. If so, you can't just change it out for a generic one without degrading the tone. I could also be completely wrong, haha!
Click to expand...

The one my luthier had was a Fishman, noit a generic part.
 
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#19
james condino said:
OK...so I want to be encouraging, but...my experience is that it may be the most fragile, overpriced, let-me-down-on-the-most-important-moment, underbuilt, hypersensitive, piece of junk pickup that I have ever used. The entire concept of wanting to change the voice of the pickup being tied to rotating the height adjusters and thereby changing the action of my setup is just wrong to me. W T F non bass playing engineer came up with that one???? Every time I see one installed on a nice gigging musician's bass I feel like I just got French kissed by a stranger during the first six months of the COVID pandemic. How am I supposed to light my bass on fire and jump off the stage into the crowd while constantly concerned about all of those things? ;)

That said, for very delicate people, when you find the sweet spot it can sound very good & I like the quality of the adjuster on the non-pickup side. Your experience may be different than mine; I respect that & wish all of you well.
Click to expand...
You have a way with words………..
 
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