major output drop after installing Pre-B1???

turkishpunkass · July 2nd, 2008, 06:58 PM

so i just got my telecaster back today from getting the Dimarzio Pre-B1 installed, and there is a huge drop in output. I mean, i can seriously barely hear the new pickup compared to the neck pickup or the old bridge pickup. This pickup is supposed to be twice as hot as the one i had taken out, which was just the standard vintage bridge pickup that fender put in the Aerodyne telecaster.

Any idea what can account for this? did the tech not know what they were doing when they installed it? is there any way to mess up the wiring on a tele so the bridge pickup loses most of it's output. I mean, by all rights, this B1 should be blowing away the old bridge pickup i had in here. and yes i tried adjusting the height, which made virtually no difference.

turkishpunkass · July 2nd, 2008, 07:08 PM

i also noticed that i can hear my fingers touching the volume and tone pot through the amp, and the single coil hum goes away, as if i am grounding the guitar or something when i touch the pots. and when i roll off the tone knob on the bridge pickup, it also decreases the output, and the sweep on the volume knob seems to be a lot more abrupt. this situation is just screaming at me "something isn't right."

turkishpunkass · July 2nd, 2008, 07:14 PM

and what i do hear coming from this pickup is all treble. none of the mids and low end described in the specs of the pickup. either my pickup is ****ed or the install was crap. i'm so pissed. pardon my french.

e-merlin · July 2nd, 2008, 07:41 PM

Time to take it back for a recheck of the wiring. The pickup should also be checked for continuity and impedance. That thing should have a lot more output than the stocker.

turkishpunkass · July 2nd, 2008, 09:18 PM

what is the chance of getting a faulty pickup from dimarzio?

i really don't want to think the tech screwed this up because she is supposedly really good and everyone i've talked too says she does great work.

BAW4742 · July 2nd, 2008, 09:25 PM

Take it back to the tech. If she is a good tech she will want to know there is a problem and make it right.

Unless of course the problem is the pickup in which case Dimarzio should make i right.

turkishpunkass · July 3rd, 2008, 05:59 PM

i went back to the tech today.

she trying switching the polarity on the pickup and it made no difference. then she hooked up the wires from the pickup to a voltmeter and it read almost nothing coming from the pickup. when she hooked up the stock pickup the meter jumped to about halfway.

dead pickup methinks.

any ideas? is it common to get a dead pickup straight from the factory?

e-merlin · July 3rd, 2008, 07:03 PM

Not common at all. Stuff happens and it really sucks when it happens like this. I'm sure DiMarzio will make it right, though. They really stand behind their stuff. I had an old pickup of thiers I bought used. It wasn't working like I thought it should and got in touch with them. They said to send it back and they would look at it. I was expecting a bill when they were done, but they fixed it and sent it back no charge. I'm a big fan as a result. I've used several of their humbuckers, a set or two of Twang Kings, a PRE-B1, and several others.

turkishpunkass · July 9th, 2008, 02:31 PM

so i called dimarzio and they were super cool about the whole thing. the tech said it was most likely something up with the pickup because its kind of hard to screw up the wiring on a tele bridge pickup. he said the pickup carries a 5 year warranty and i just need to ship it back to them for a replacement. apparently you don't even need the sales receipt to do this, which is good news for dimarzio pickup owners.

i'll keep you guys posted on how the replacement part works out.

JKjr · July 9th, 2008, 02:52 PM

Love my Pre-B1. Had exactly the same problem with mine...pickup was bad. Only bad pickup I've ever gotten. The replacement has been installed for close to a decade now. Doesn't seem much "hotter" than my Nocaster or 52RI though, but sure kicks some midrange butt.

appar111 · July 10th, 2008, 10:37 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JKjr

Love my Pre-B1. Had exactly the same problem with mine...pickup was bad. Only bad pickup I've ever gotten. The replacement has been installed for close to a decade now. Doesn't seem much "hotter" than my Nocaster or 52RI though, but sure kicks some midrange butt.

I have a Pre B-1 in my homebrew esquire and dig it too--- not drastically louder, but fatter and just a tad compressed, but still sounds very much like a tele.

clayfeat · July 10th, 2008, 11:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by turkishpunkass

i also noticed that i can hear my fingers touching the volume and tone pot through the amp, and the single coil hum goes away, as if i am grounding the guitar or something when i touch the pots. and when i roll off the tone knob on the bridge pickup, it also decreases the output, and the sweep on the volume knob seems to be a lot more abrupt. this situation is just screaming at me "something isn't right."

Since this pickup doesn't have a baseplate, you will need to run a ground wire from one of your pots to the bridge.

How come your tech didn't notice that the pickup didn't sound right?

turkishpunkass · August 8th, 2008, 03:49 AM

everything is sorted out now. dimarzio sent me a new pickup and i had a buddy install it for me. pickup sounds AMAZING. still very much a single coil tele sound but with a fuller, more aggressive tone especially when overdriving. i am very satisfied with the sound of this pickup.

July 2nd, 2008, 06:58 PM	#1 (permalink)
turkishpunkass TDPRI Member Join Date: May 2008 Location: seattle Age: 25 Posts: 22	major output drop after installing Pre-B1??? so i just got my telecaster back today from getting the Dimarzio Pre-B1 installed, and there is a huge drop in output. I mean, i can seriously barely hear the new pickup compared to the neck pickup or the old bridge pickup. This pickup is supposed to be twice as hot as the one i had taken out, which was just the standard vintage bridge pickup that fender put in the Aerodyne telecaster. Any idea what can account for this? did the tech not know what they were doing when they installed it? is there any way to mess up the wiring on a tele so the bridge pickup loses most of it's output. I mean, by all rights, this B1 should be blowing away the old bridge pickup i had in here. and yes i tried adjusting the height, which made virtually no difference.

July 2nd, 2008, 07:08 PM	#2 (permalink)
turkishpunkass TDPRI Member Join Date: May 2008 Location: seattle Age: 25 Posts: 22	i also noticed that i can hear my fingers touching the volume and tone pot through the amp, and the single coil hum goes away, as if i am grounding the guitar or something when i touch the pots. and when i roll off the tone knob on the bridge pickup, it also decreases the output, and the sweep on the volume knob seems to be a lot more abrupt. this situation is just screaming at me "something isn't right."

July 2nd, 2008, 07:14 PM	#3 (permalink)
turkishpunkass TDPRI Member Join Date: May 2008 Location: seattle Age: 25 Posts: 22	and what i do hear coming from this pickup is all treble. none of the mids and low end described in the specs of the pickup. either my pickup is ****ed or the install was crap. i'm so pissed. pardon my french.

July 2nd, 2008, 09:18 PM	#5 (permalink)
turkishpunkass TDPRI Member Join Date: May 2008 Location: seattle Age: 25 Posts: 22	what is the chance of getting a faulty pickup from dimarzio? i really don't want to think the tech screwed this up because she is supposedly really good and everyone i've talked too says she does great work.

July 2nd, 2008, 09:25 PM	#6 (permalink)
BAW4742 Tele-Holic Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: Maryland's Eastern Shore Age: 51 Posts: 512	Take it back to the tech. If she is a good tech she will want to know there is a problem and make it right. Unless of course the problem is the pickup in which case Dimarzio should make i right.

July 3rd, 2008, 05:59 PM	#7 (permalink)
turkishpunkass TDPRI Member Join Date: May 2008 Location: seattle Age: 25 Posts: 22	i went back to the tech today. she trying switching the polarity on the pickup and it made no difference. then she hooked up the wires from the pickup to a voltmeter and it read almost nothing coming from the pickup. when she hooked up the stock pickup the meter jumped to about halfway. dead pickup methinks. any ideas? is it common to get a dead pickup straight from the factory?

July 9th, 2008, 02:31 PM	#9 (permalink)
turkishpunkass TDPRI Member Join Date: May 2008 Location: seattle Age: 25 Posts: 22	so i called dimarzio and they were super cool about the whole thing. the tech said it was most likely something up with the pickup because its kind of hard to screw up the wiring on a tele bridge pickup. he said the pickup carries a 5 year warranty and i just need to ship it back to them for a replacement. apparently you don't even need the sales receipt to do this, which is good news for dimarzio pickup owners. i'll keep you guys posted on how the replacement part works out.

July 9th, 2008, 02:52 PM	#10 (permalink)
JKjr Tele-Meister Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: raleigh nc Posts: 160	Love my Pre-B1. Had exactly the same problem with mine...pickup was bad. Only bad pickup I've ever gotten. The replacement has been installed for close to a decade now. Doesn't seem much "hotter" than my Nocaster or 52RI though, but sure kicks some midrange butt.

August 8th, 2008, 03:49 AM	#13 (permalink)
turkishpunkass TDPRI Member Join Date: May 2008 Location: seattle Age: 25 Posts: 22	everything is sorted out now. dimarzio sent me a new pickup and i had a buddy install it for me. pickup sounds AMAZING. still very much a single coil tele sound but with a fuller, more aggressive tone especially when overdriving. i am very satisfied with the sound of this pickup.