Only Bridge pickup working!

[virtual-cs]

Hi there ...

First posting here so .... Regarding my (2014) G&L Tribute ASAT Classic Bluesboy semi-hollow ... so that's MFD single on the Bridge and AS4255C at the neck.

Couple of weeks back suddenly got no sound from the middle and neck positions ... but bridge position was fine.
Presumed the switch had gone so, today, replaced it. (I'm not an electronics wizard but have changed pots/switches etc on other guitars and am quite happy to use a soldering iron and follow instructions.)
New switch - Same problem!
Whilst I'd got it apart checked for lose cables, bad joints etc ... all seems fine ... and, Yes, the 'bucker "hot" was/is wired in correctly.
No squealing ... no hum ... Bridge pu working fine, volume and tone working fine .... just no sound in the neck and middle position.
Could I have a DoA switch (seems unlikely these days) ... could the 'bucker have died on me? ... but I'd have thought I'd still get some sound from the middle position?

Any ideas before I go for a replacement 'bucker?

With thanks - Chris

[Craig]

Hi there ...

First posting here so .... Regarding my (2014) G&L Tribute ASAT Classic Bluesboy semi-hollow ... so that's MFD single on the Bridge and AS4255C at the neck.

Couple of weeks back suddenly got no sound from the middle and neck positions ... but bridge position was fine.
Presumed the switch had gone so, today, replaced it. (I'm not an electronics wizard but have changed pots/switches etc on other guitars and am quite happy to use a soldering iron and follow instructions.)
New switch - Same problem!
Whilst I'd got it apart checked for lose cables, bad joints etc ... all seems fine ... and, Yes, the 'bucker "hot" was/is wired in correctly.
No squealing ... no hum ... Bridge pu working fine, volume and tone working fine .... just no sound in the neck and middle position.
Could I have a DoA switch (seems unlikely these days) ... could the 'bucker have died on me? ... but I'd have thought I'd still get some sound from the middle position?

Any ideas before I go for a replacement 'bucker?

With thanks - Chris

You might check pickup DC-R readings in all three positions, to see if you get readings for each pickup and both together, see: Measuring Pickup DC-R. If you get no reading for the neck pu, try a replacement pu.

Hope this helps.

[virtual-cs]

Thanks for pointig me in that direction. Will check it out tomorrow with my multimeter.

[virtual-cs]

Hi … Craig ... thanks again for the direction and here we go ...
Vol & Tone pots to max ... Connected a (Fender) guitar cable to the jack, then with a crocodile clip connected my multimeter -ve to the sleeve at the other end and then touched the end of that jack tip with my +ve.
My multimeter isn't an expensive one but ... with it switched to the 2000K setting I got 'lowest' readings of … Bridge 6, Middle 0 and Neck 0. (The Middle and Neck position readings fluctuate around a lot but do give low of 0; whereas the Bridge on its own will settle at 6?)

So … leaving the -ve probe connected I opened up the control plate and, with the switch in the Bridge position, applied the +ve multimeter probe to the Bridge pickup connection on the switch … it gave a lowest reading of 6.
With the switch in the neck position I tried the same with the Neck connection and got a lowest reading of 0.
With the switch in the middle … if I touch the Bridge connection it again reads 6; whereas if I touch the Neck connection it again reads 0.

Next thing I tried ... touched the -ve to the Bridge connection at the switch and the +ve to the Earth(Ground) on the Vol pot = reading of 6.
Did the same for the Neck switch connection to the Volume Earth and got reading = 0.

So, would that indicate that the 'bucker is indeed dead? If that is the case I'm still confused as to why I'm not getting at least some sound in the middle position, even if it's a weird squark/yucky one?

With, in anticipation, many thanks again … Chris

[Miles Smiles]

If that is the case I'm still confused as to why I'm not getting at least some sound in the middle position, even if it's a weird squark/yucky one?

Could be the case, if the pickups are wired in serial, but normally they should be in parallel. But I don't know, if the latter is true for the Bluesboy.

[virtual-cs]

Miles .... Hi & thanks for that thought.

I bought it online & new from a well known German High St & on-line store ... quite a bargain I thought ... for £350 (UK), so I guess that's about $400 (US) these days!
So, to the best of my knowledge, the original wiring, which I simply copied when replacing the switch, was as set at the factory!
So, another Q is ... Is the factory set wiring // or series?
If the 'bucker is dead .... next question arises .... what to replace it with? I do like the guitar, much prefer it to 'Thinlines' I've tried, but, @ only £350 not sure if I want to turn it into 'project' guitar spending 1/2 as much again on pu's.
Still that's for another day at the moment.

Thanks again & best wishes for now - Chris

[Craig]

If that is the case I'm still confused as to why I'm not getting at least some sound in the middle position, even if it's a weird squark/yucky one?

Could be the case, if the pickups are wired in serial, but normally they should be in parallel. But I don't know, if the latter is true for the Bluesboy.

If you want to check under the cover of the neck pickup, see this post, before removing it: http://guitarsbyleo.com/FORUM/viewtopic ... 345#p40345.

[virtual-cs]

Craig ... Hi again ...

If I take the pick cover off (looks like I'll need to remove the pick guard first) .... What am I looking for / aiming to check?
The link doesn't go into why the covers being taken off apart from aesthetics?

Thanks ... Chris

[Craig]

Craig ... Hi again ...

If I take the pick cover off (looks like I'll need to remove the pick guard first) .... What am I looking for / aiming to check?
The link doesn't go into why the covers being taken off apart from aesthetics?

Thanks ... Chris

Since you already checked both hot and ground wires at the switch and you got no signal, I would check the metal cover to make sure it is grounded.
If so, then remove the cover and test the hot and ground wires where they are connected to the pickup plate.
If you don't get a reading above 0 at those test points, then there could be a break in one or both of those wires.
You should be able to determine which wire is faulty by metering both ends of each wire.

Hope this helps.

[virtual-cs]

... I'm on it

[virtual-cs]

Hi again .... mmm ... Mission Accomplished!

Plate and Earth = 0
Plate and Hot = 3

So presume that means fault/break in the Earth wiring at the Humbucker end as ... Just to be sure I disconnected the humbucker Earth on the Volume pot, stripped it back a bit, re-tinned and resoldered it ... still got the same result.

If there is anything else to check please do say, however; having had the thing apart I think I'll just replace it anyway as, even to me, it does rather seem dead! (Probably a Tonerider AlNiCo Classic (PAF type), whilst I'm at it I'll most likely change the Bridge to their Vintage Telecaster with AlNiCo's too.)

btw - anyone thinking of removing the AS4255C cover just for an aesthetic effect ... my advice would be don't! My 25W soldering iron did nothing and my 100W soldering iron did ... nothing too; apart from both of them melting the waxing. So what power of hairdryer could do the job??? ie. I'm pretty sure that even if the Humbucker had been working ... I doubt it would do properly now!

I'll leave it until tomorrow by when, if I don't hear back I'll presume my suspicion, under your direction, to be correct and will check out the Toneriders more seriously.

With many thanks - Chris

[Craig]

Hi again .... mmm ... Mission Accomplished!

Plate and Earth = 0
Plate and Hot = 3

So presume that means fault/break in the Earth wiring at the Humbucker end as ... Just to be sure I disconnected the humbucker Earth on the Volume pot, stripped it back a bit, re-tinned and resoldered it ... still got the same result.

If there is anything else to check please do say, however; having had the thing apart I think I'll just replace it anyway as, even to me, it does rather seem dead! (Probably a Tonerider AlNiCo Classic (PAF type), whilst I'm at it I'll most likely change the Bridge to their Vintage Telecaster with AlNiCo's too.)

btw - anyone thinking of removing the AS4255C cover just for an aesthetic effect ... my advice would be don't! My 25W soldering iron did nothing and my 100W soldering iron did ... nothing too; apart from both of them melting the waxing. So what power of hairdryer could do the job??? ie. I'm pretty sure that even if the Humbucker had been working ... I doubt it would do properly now!

I'll leave it until tomorrow by when, if I don't hear back I'll presume my suspicion, under your direction, to be correct and will check out the Toneriders more seriously.

With many thanks - Chris

Glad to hear you were able to identify the problem. It's too bad you won't be able to fix the original pickup, though.

Check out this post: Bluesboy neck pickup (Seth Lover replacement options).

Let us know what replacement neck pickup you ended up using and some details about how it sounds, too.

If you have not already, please do add your guitar to our G&L Registry.

[virtual-cs]

Thanks again Craig ... and will do on those 3 things.