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Replicating Fender's "no - load" tone pot.

GroovyDude — Sun, 27 Apr 2008 15:57:00 GMT

Here's a cool and easy little mod you can easily do youself. I found this online awhile back, tried it, and thought I'd post it here.

Myself, I do use the tone control on my guitar. Potetiometers are simply variable resistors. They contain a wafer which has carbon deposited on it, and when the knob is turned, a wiper drags across the surface and varies the resitance. The closer to 10 on the knob, the less resistance. However, even at maximum, there is still some resistance. The lower the pot value, the more the load. This translates to a reduction of signal that makes it to your amp, and a reduction in the higher frequencies. The tone knob is the bigger culprit since it has anywhere from a 0.020 to a 0.100 microfarad cap attached and going to ground. And even when the control is a '10', it is never completely out of the circuit.

For some, the solution is simply clipping the wires to the tone pot, rendering it useless. Then Fender came out with their "no - load" tone pot, which works great, but is only available in 250k (I prefer 500k), and it clicks when the pot is turned to ten. Once it clicks, it is removed completely from the circuit. It works because once it clicks, the wiper is removed from the carbon contact, which forces the signal to go straight from the volume control to the output jack. It works great, but I like to do swells with my tone in kind of a faux-wah sound, so the clicking action didn't work for me.

So the solution for me is to take apart the tone pot and remove the carbon from the wafer where the wiper would be at it's maximum setting. See below:

Tone pot installed (the one closest to the jack).

Sorry about the flash, but you can see the wires removed, and it was only necessary to remove one side of the capacitor.

I used needle nose pliers to lift up the tabs on the side of the pot

Disassembled pot. Make note of how it went together, of course. The part we're concerned with is the wafer, which has cap attached. The carbon deposit which generates the resistance is the black circular area which joins the outside two lugs.

I used an exacto knife and a needle file to remove a very small amount of the carbon deposit. Now the wiper will not make contact with any of the carbon when set at the maximum position. This will open the connection, causing the pot to be completely removed from the circuit.

Reassemble and reinstall. It you have some tuner cleaner, shoot a bit of that in there to clean out any stray bits of carbon and relubricate the pot, and enjoy the extra bit of gain and high end that was previously not there!

New Photos Added

PlayBassKen — Sun, 10 Feb 2008 11:06:00 GMT

Go to the "Concert Photos by Ken Arnold" and check out some new pics!

DIY wax pickup potting

GroovyDude — Wed, 28 Nov 2007 21:36:00 GMT

Most guitarist (and some bassists) who've ever played using a lot of volume, gain, or both knows all too well about that microphonic squeal that can plague a gig. So you end up rolling the volume back during quiet passages, although some squeal always ends up getting through. Listen to Randy Rhoads at the beginning of Crazy Train for a great example.

So what causes it? First you must make sure it's the pickup. Try your guitar with a different amp. If it's definately your guitar, make sure there's not some loose metal, such as a pickup height spring, that's not vibrating sympathetically. Your pickup will transmit that sound to your amp, and it sounds just like a microphonic pickup. If I eliminate everything else, I'll remove the pickup from the guitar, and wire it to a jack. Plug it into the amp, and adjust to normal settings. If it still squealing, then the coils are vibrating.

So do you just chuck it and spend $150.00 or more on new pickups? While I recommend being prepared to do just that, you can always try potting.

Pickup potting is simply using some substance to "seal" the pickup and prevent the coils from oscilating. Using wax is not difficult, and it's cheap. You could pot a dozen pickups with about $10.00 worth of materials.

There are some pickups that cannot be potted. Any that have already been potted with epoxy cannot be repotted, such as all variations of EMG, Shadow, and Bill Lawrence. Pickups that have been potted with lacquer will be very difficult, and generally will only show slight improvement.

Good candidates are pickups that come on imports. Epiphone pickups sound pretty good to my ears, as do the "Duncan Designed". Ibanez pickups are manufactured by DiMarzio's overseas manufacturing, and are not too bad either. Any pickup that you believe sounds good that doesn't fall into the categories in the previous paragraph are good candidates.

This customer has a set of Gibson 57 Classics. He loves the tone, but they are manufactured the way they were in 1957, with no potting at all. They squeal badly even with the moderate amount of gain he uses.

As stated before, you should be prepared to replace the pickups prior to attempting potting. The pickup can be damaged to the point of non-functionality, although I've never had one go bad during the process.

So here we go. You need the following supplies: double-boiler, parrifin wax, beeswax, dowel rods & rubber bands.

A double boiler is a pot in a pot. I don't have one, so I made one out of a metal coffee can. I drilled four holes, and ran dowels to support the can so it doesn't touch the bottom or the sides of the larger pan. The dowel on top is to support the pickup in the wax without it touching the sides or the bottom. The extra hole in the back is a drainage hole, in case I melt too much wax.

You use an 80/20 mix of parrifin and beeswax. The reason for the beeswax is parrifin by itself hardens too solid when cool, and can flake off. Beeswax keeps it flexible enough when it hardens to prevent that. I used 1 lb of parrifin, so 20% is 3.2 ounces. I uses probably closer to 4 oz. A perfect 80/20 mix is not imperative.

Fill the large pot with water. Fill it up as full as you can without the small pot floating, and turn on the heat. Your goal is 140 - 150 degrees. Anything hotter can damage the pickup. So turn the stove on low and give it time.

You can see what happens if you get distracted. I let the water boil, and the wax is 200 degrees. Way too hot!!! A pickup's plastic bobbins can melt at that temperature, as can the lacquer coating on the pickup coils. It took over an hour for the wax to cool to the correct temperature.

The water still looks like it's boiling, but it's actually wax which drained out of my extra hole.

I used an old guitar string around the dowel and through the screw hole to suspend the pickup in the wax. If the pickup has a cover, leave it on. Also leave the pickup tape on. What I didn't show is the rubber bands wrapped around the pickup. The pickup tape's adhesive will loosen at this temperature, so the rubber bands will keep it in place.
There was a rush of bubbles at first, indicating the wax was getting into the crevices just like we need. Let it sit for 15 - 20 minutes, but do not walk away! You need to monitor the temperature for the whole process. 150 degrees is the maximum.

And we have two potted pickups. Let them cool for about 5 minutes, and wipe the wax from the face of the pickup. Install them and see how successful it was. Keep in mind, if you're using a ton of gain, a lot of volume, and stand close to your amp, this does not guarantee no squealing at all, but you should have an immense improvement.

I offer this service for $10.00 per pickup if you're not comfortable with the process. Much cheaper than a new one.

Kelsey Smith Benefit Concert 8/3/07 @ French Quarter

lbriscoe — Tue, 31 Jul 2007 19:55:00 GMT

Please plan to attend the Kelsey Smith Benefit Concert, Friday, August 3, 2007 at The French Quarter in Jacksonville, Florida. Kelsey Smith was the neice of a Jacksonville band member. She was kidnapped and murdered on June 6, 2007. The proceeds from this show will be used to fund college scholarships in Kelsey's name and to help the Smith family.

For more info about Kelsey, follow this link. Murder of Kelsey Smith

Vintage Guild Bass Restore V

GroovyDude — Fri, 27 Jul 2007 19:41:00 GMT

And the finished product. The owner and I are quite happy with the result. The mahogany darkened to a very rich brownish red. And it still sounds amazing.

Oh, and I did find a pic of my 80's Kramer that I painted. It was my first real success painting. I edited most of the pic to spare you my 1987 hair band get-up, although you get the gist with my purple & black striped wristband and glittery jacket. :)

Vintage Guild Bass Restore IV

GroovyDude — Wed, 25 Jul 2007 23:14:00 GMT

The owner decided he didn't want the wine red finish like the original. He really liked the wood grain, so he requested just a clear finish. So I applied 17 coats of clear after the sealer, with light sanding between coats. Waited four days, and rubbed out the finish.

I think it's good when you can see the refection of the clock on the wall in the finish. :)

Vintage Guild Bass Restore III

GroovyDude — Mon, 23 Jul 2007 21:56:00 GMT

After doing the previous work, the owner took it home and played it for awhile. A few months later, it came back to me roughly sanded down, although there was quite a bit of yellow paint still in the wood pores. Bad pic, but you get the idea.

So, after about 4 hours with some steel wool and paint stripper, you have the next pic.

Next we do two washcoats (thinned finish), fill the grain pores with a very dark reddish brown grain filler, and the sealer.

Vintage Guild Bass Restore II

GroovyDude — Fri, 20 Jul 2007 20:01:00 GMT

We restored this bass in two phases. The initial issues addressed were a broken headstock & a new pickguard.

Most people have seen my headstock repairs before, so I only posted a pic of the after. It was more a split running roughly a thirty degree angle to the wood grain, so it wasn't as traumatic as some of the others I've done. It only required reinforcement on one side. I used my traditional graphite spline.

Next was the pickguard. This was quite challenging. The original pickguard was not available, so no template. I used the pic I found in the first post, used the largest pickguard blank I could find, and freehanded one. I think I got pretty close.

Vintage Guild Bass restore

GroovyDude — Wed, 18 Jul 2007 20:02:00 GMT

Many of us made not-so-great decisions in the 80s. With EVH's striped paint job, then the popularity of the painted graphics on Jackson guitars, many musicians tried their hand at doing their own paint work. We had varying degrees of success.

We stripped off the old finish, and used several cans of Krylon trying to make our guitars look cool. A lot of perfectly good guitars were ruined during these experiments. I personally had an import Kramer Baretta that had no less than eleven paint jobs before I settled on a modified rising sun graphic. If I can find a pic, I'll post it.

The big mistake we all made was stripping off the original finish. For some reason, we thought we had to remove the old finish before doing a new one. If you decide to attempt this yourself, be advised all that is necessary is taking some 600-grit sandpaper, and sand off the shine. As long as the finish is not damaged, you can then paint right over it. Your results will be much more professional, because you'll have a good level substrate to start with. Getting the surface level is the hardest & most time consuming part of finishing.

So we have a mid to late 70s Guild b302. It was painted a very bright yellow, and splashes of neon pink, orange, and green applied. The owner said it glowed under a black light. It's was pretty cool in its day, but completely not acceptable today. The original pickguard was replaced with a home-made plexiglass pickguard, and EMG electronics were added. I will preface this by saying this is an amazing sounding bass made of solid mahagony. You don't see bodies made of one piece of wood anymore. Two is the minimum unless you're willing to pay a very high premium.

I found a pic that gives you an idea of what this bass orginially looked like. We're going to try to bring it back to it's former glory.

Keep It Rolling

PlayBassKen — Mon, 15 Jan 2007 20:45:00 GMT

In this part we will focus on those who wish to make music more of a career than a hobby. These are the professional musicians, which is not to say that a hobby musician can't be professional. It simply means that this select group has made music more of a priority and look to gain a large portion of income from the work they help produce. These can be bands playing cover tunes or originals, but we're going to stay focussed on bands performing original material. With that said, let's talk about getting started from the ground up and working your way to the top. As you begin rolling along you will encounter many bumps in the road along your path to success, so watch your step along the way.

Rolling along isn't easy, so you have to get very creative in your approach. Keep in mind, this is not a level playing field and it's crucial to your success how you handle business from this point on. You either do or do not have a product that sells and this is where the music industry differs greatly from any other product on the market you may find for many reasons. Let's say you have a product, a recording of your music, packaged and distributed. Along with that you have a product, your performance in front of a live audience. Not only can they hear it, they can see it, so how well you perform adds to your ability to sell more product. In some cases your recorded product will sell, but your live peformances will not. You're at least gaining some momentum, despite the hard fact that your live performance needs work. You have to sell as much product as possible to succeed in any business and the music industry holds true to that.

After all, that's what business is all about. You have to give buyers something that makes them purchase your product rather than your competition's and to do this takes very creative marketing, as well as good performance. There are so many talented performers out there in the world, as I'm sure you're aware, but that doesn't always guarantee success. Many of them are sitting at home wondering why they aren't out there on the scene while others who may not be as talented are enjoying major success. Why? Perhaps they have the talent to play, but not to perform. Maybe it's their attitude toward others or they just aren't with the right group of players. Whatever the reason, they seem to think that because they have this talent they deserve their time in the spotlight, but talent isn't everything.

That goes back to the creative approach, which means you have to separate yourself from the rest of the pack by not only being a good player and performer, but also a good business partner. Finding the right group of people to share in your success is not easy in this business or any other, so you have to do more in order to achieve your goals. This means getting together with others who share your same ambitions and have the skills to help you get where you wish to be. For those out there who have experienced this or are still enjoying the success this formula has helped create I applaud you. You have accomplished a feat that is certainly not easy to do, so you are hereby commended for making it happen. For those who have not there's still plenty of time. It's all a matter of knowing when to cut your losses. Does this sound familiar with any other jobs you've had in the past?

You have to teach yourself that it's nothing personal, it's just business when you just don't fit or someone doesn't fit with you. Any business is like this and it's these same principals that we must adopt when we get into the music industry. You'll hear every reason to be let go from a band, such as hair color, height, weight and even how you dress. The music business is one of the most discriminating businesses there are, but it's what works. In any case, it is what it is and you can't take it personal. You just have to move on until you find the right group with the same mindset all looking to achieve a common goal, success. Unfortunately, you can't have much success if you can't earn money and that's something very hard to do in this business if you're not careful at how you go about it.

Let's get back to the basics here. We're talking about the point where you have your band together and are ready to gig out. Just like in any other business it's very hard to get your foot in the door, so you have to give them a reason to let you in. A quality demo of what your band is like can be a great start, so spend some time to make sure what you are dishing to potential clubs fits what they're looking for and is as good or better than your average competition is giving them. This is very much a "who you know" business and having friends in the right places will always help. If you don't have any friends in the clubs to help get your band some gigs to start off with you may have to settle for playing a few promotional gigs to gain a fanbase until you reach a point where your band becomes a commodity. By that I mean you are now filling seats wherever you go.

However, you can't make playing for free just for the sake of performing a habit because it will quickly be taken advantage of by the few clubs out there that rely on bands like this. The bottom line is, you should be paid if you perform. It's not so much a matter of money, it's a matter of professional business and music is no different from any other retail market. It's just a different form, so keep that in mind. When you play for free for exposure make sure you're getting exactly what you expect out of it and get everything in writing. Even if it's just a simple e-mail covering the basics of when, where and what is expected from both your band and the club. Regardless what the gig is, it's always best to get it in writing. This reduces the chance of a misunderstanding and helps both the band and the club/promoter hold up their end of the deal.

Another thing bands tend to do is sell themselves short just to play out. This is a crucial mistake because it makes you look desperate to play and gives club owners a larger list of "bargain bands" while preventing other bands from getting paid what they may be worth. You should get paid what you're worth while being reasonable with your expectations. If your band is drawing well consistantly it gives you the advantage when approaching club owners because they know they are likely to have a very good night in sales. For those bands who have worked hard, yet still fail to draw larger numbers after several gigs it's time to take an honest look at cutting your losses. Sorry, but this is a brutally honest business and unless you are honest with yourself your individual success is jeopardized. You have to know when it's time to move on or make the necessary adjustments to improve your band's worth. It can be as simple as changing up your set, tweaking your songs or replacing members of the band. If you want your band, your business, to be successful you have to be willing to make these decisions or you will fail.

Once you begin playing out you need to keep your gig calendar as full as possible because every show means the potential to sell more product and increase your worth on the scene. You don't want to become stagnant in your hometown, either. Use it to build a solid fanbase, then begin to branch out to other clubs within your region until you have expanded your market considerably. To do this a band must be at a level of self-sufficiency, which means they are making enough money to support themselves on the road away from home. This is why you start out working in your home town, then begin playing clubs in other cities nearby where you can split a few motel rooms and return home in a relatively short period. Keep as much money in a band fund to keep things rolling as you can possibly afford and, with the right alignment of the planets, the moon and the stars, you may begin to see your dreams unfold.

Now it's time to separate yourselves from the rest of the pack by providing a show that patrons want to see while expanding to a broader market. You have to develop consistancy with your show while playing on different stages using different sound systems and lighting, unless you bring your own. It takes some time to build up to, but having your own sound, lighting and crew who knows how to get the most out of what you give them can jolt your success rate up tremendously. Granted, it's an extra expense and a very costly one, but once you reach this level you should be able to command a rate of pay that more than compensates for what you spend. You should always keep your sights set on higher levels of performing, which means having the right people to get you there. This means having a manager that can get you to that level, as long as your sales provide for it. The moment you get your first big break when you go out on tour with another national touring act is the moment where your dreams begin to come true. Congratulations! Now wake up and get back to making it all happen.

The Ever Changing Music Industry

PlayBassKen — Sun, 07 Jan 2007 23:26:00 GMT

The digital age has brought about many changes in the way we buy much of our entertainment products today and music remains top of the list when it comes to buying and selling conveniently online. However, it has also brought about major changes to the means and manner in which we can now produce, market, then distribute our products by taking advantage of the options we have today. It's time to examine some of these new options available to us and how they can help us spend less while earning more. There are so many options available to both artists and consumers for buying or selling entertainment products that are worth fortunes, yet don't cost us a penny. Things like the Internet, digital recording or online sales are changing the landscape of the recording industry right before our eyes, but few realize what's right in front of them.

Like any business you are in constant competition with everyone else in different companies in your field and it's amazing to see how few understand this or even take note. Most get blinded by the big dream of becoming a superstar or going out on a major world tour, but just how hard is it? Well, that really depends on the level of success you wish to achieve and how you go about everything. In general, the odds of 'making it' for anyone in the talent pool are astronomically stacked against them, including the most talented individuals the world has to offer. This isn't meant to say, "Stop dreaming.", but you do need to open your eyes very wide and understand the industry you have chosen to be a part of.

Let's put this all in perspective from a simplistic point of view, as there are many paths, twists and turns you may face along the way. Welcome to big business. Yes, it's time to get back to reality because this is a business and it's up to those who wish to be successful here or in any other business to conduct themselves accordingly. Simply put, make smart decisions and increase your worth in your industry. The basic concept is to get a product to the mass market that will sell and make money. Remember, there are thousands of others selling their products, as well, so how good your product is compared to theirs can make all the difference between who's living the dream and who's still dreaming. Does that sound simple enough?

We'll start by taking a look at what it costs to record music, produce it, then distribute it to the market. Today's digital technology gives us a wealth of products and services to help make this possible to just about anyone, so you need to use it wisely. Recording an album years ago would cost you tens of thousands to get a proper recording of your music, but the new wave of digital recorders, software and hardware have spawned a horde of new recording studios. Many operating from someone's back room in their home. If utilized properly this can save a band a lot of money and time with emphasis on the words utilized properly. This is where the term GIGO comes into play, which stands for Garbage In - Garbage Out.

Once you have your final product it's now time to get that into the hands of potential buyers. Just as it is for marketing any other product you have to let them know your product exists, which used to mean sending out thousands of demos and promo packs to record labels who most likely placed them in file 13 (where most end up) trying to get a record deal. Getting a record deal was crucial to many bands years ago because the record companies would take care of all the advertising, marketing, sales and distribution. Of course, the bands would pay dearly for all that later and most went into bankruptcy because of bad deals. Now, bands can do this all by themselves thanks to sites like GarageBand.com or MySpace, just to name a couple. This gives you direct access to millions of people and costs a band or artist only the time it takes to type everything in.

The same goes for distribution, which can now be done by uploading your CD artwork and music to sites like CDBaby.com or Soundclick.com where buyers can either buy the song/songs they like or the entire CD with just a few clicks of the mouse. Your CD comes right to their doorstep completely packaged and UPC coded. Remember going to shows and seeing boxes of t-shirts, hats and other items that your favorite band was selling behind the counter? Bands used to spend hundreds or even thousands of dollars with very little returns and often having lots of items left on the shelf. With sites like CafePress.com bands, once again, can upload their artwork to sites like this and begin selling merchandise without a penny out of pocket. Starting to get the picture now?

There are so many ways the digital technology of our time has provided us with avenues that were only available to a very select group, and this has opened the playing field to a whole new dimension. On the other hand, it has also brought about some adverse effects. Issues such as illegal file sharing, duplication of copyrighted material and the like are costing the entertainment industry billions of dollars per year. Just as shoplifting is to retail outlets, internet and local piracy has hit the entertainment industry hard. However, there are new methods of digital recording signatures made to help curb or significantly reduce the amount of theft occurring. Governments across the world are also stepping up their efforts to help prevent ongoing piracy that takes money out of all our pockets.

Again, there are so many changes and these are just a few examples of how they are affecting us today, so now it's time to open our eyes. We have so many ways to get the job done, which should place more emphasis on creating an even better product for our target audience. There are more tools for us to use now, so the potential to increase sales is much higher. At the same time it has also increased the competition to record levels making it harder to earn the consumer's dollar and only a scant few will survive. Hopefully, I've done my part to open your eyes to the big picture. The picture of the ever changing music industry.

Editorial: Promoters in Jacksonville

lbriscoe — Sun, 19 Nov 2006 16:24:00 GMT

Currently in Jacksonville there are many new promoters. Many of these promoters just appearing from out of the Myspace Woodwork. I say Myspace, because that is one of the main reasons for all the new promoters. That happens to also be where most of the actual promoting happens.

I feel a lot of these promoters have serious ethics problems. Many of these promoters are booking a lot of the younger teenage bands and really treating them like shit. Some require pre-sale tickets that the bands must purchase and if the don't sell then they're screwed. Most of the bands don't even realize that they're being taken advantage of.

Unfortunately, there is such little money to be made in local/original music for bands. My problem with this situation is the promoters are taking more than the fair share of the money, which could go toward the bands.

The quality of actual promotions is another problem I have with these guys. Many are not doing anything to promote the show. Others simply post bulletins on Myspace as their promotions effort. I don't feel a bulletin or two justifies as promotions. If promoters are going to take 30% or more of the door, I would expect some effort.

These promoters can give a bad name to local music in Jacksonville. They can also give a bad reputation to a venue. If the promoter does a bad job, or treats people like shit; the venue get's the blame.

Venues need to be aware that the promoters are in some way going out and representing the venue. If the show turns to shit or the performers or fans are misrepresented, the venue can be blamed.

Ethics problems and down right stealing is another issue. I have witnessed first hand this happening.

The show was a $6 show. An unsuspecting fan/victim was asking how much to get it for an adult and a child. "It'll be $15 for you and $10 for the child". "That's bullshit!” she said. The promoter/door person; not realizing they were already informed of the price, said "Oh I guess six each".

I think for a promoter to walk away from a small show with $200-$300, after paying two or three of the six bands $20. That's bullshit. Why couldn’t it be split between all six bands with an even share to the promoter?

Let me set things straight. I'm not against all promoters. There are several promoters in Jacksonville that do a great job. There are a few promoters in Jax that have been around for a long time doing a very respectable job. Tim Hall from Jack Rabbits for example is one of the most influential and respectable promoters in Jacksonville. He books show not only at Jack Rabbits, but at many other venues in town.

I'm pretty sure many of these promoters seeing this article, will really be pissed off. It won't be the first time that I've pissed people off and it won't be the last. This is going to be an ongoing series. I feel if we discuss the problems with the Jacksonville Music Scene, and make people aware; we can make it better.

-Larry Briscoe
-JaxBands

Journey - Def Leppard review posted...

PlayBassKen — Thu, 09 Nov 2006 11:00:00 GMT

Stop by the Reviews section to check out my review on last night's Journey - Def Leppard concert. What a great show for us 80's rockers, like me.

Planetfest!

Juno — Mon, 06 Nov 2006 15:50:00 GMT

I case you missed the fianl battle for PlanetFest you missed a great show. I (we) enjoyed sharing the stage with all the bands and defiantly look forward to throwing down with them @ PlanetFest. Congrats to Bound for winning the main stage ((i'm still crying foul about the masccot)) those guys kick ass!! See everyone on the 18th! more details as they come available..~J

Greetings, everyone!

PlayBassKen — Mon, 06 Nov 2006 14:48:00 GMT

The forums are once again filling up with activity and it grows every day. Don't forget to check out the Events area to find out who's playing where and be sure to support the bands out there busting their humps to bring some great, live music to you. There are many great venues here in Jacksonville to catch the best live entertainment, so show your support by going to a show!