Pick-up Help...Don Mare, you there?

[raf]

I have a G&L ASAT Classic Tribute that I absolutely love. (I am obviously an amatuer ) I like the way it feels and sounds. That being said, I have squeal issues when I boost my gain...think 70s classic rock...bad company-ish. If I don't over-compensate with volume or tone adjustments, it is tough to control. I know alot of guys "wax" their pickups to prevent this; in fact Jim Weider recently told me that after his tech waxed his pick-ups, he can stand in front of his amp, get lots of sustain, & never get a squeal. Looking for advice or maybe a little direction to rectify the problem without spending a fortune or ruining my pick-ups...any comments appreciated.

[GuitarJonz]

Originally Posted by raf

...in fact Jim Weider recently told me that after his tech waxed his pick-ups, he can stand in front of his amp, get lots of sustain, & never get a squeal

Was that something recent?? You'd think that Jim Weider would have known about waxing pickups to stop squeal long ago, since he's done all those instructional tapes/Cd's about vintage gear & technique. More wax potting will definately cut squeal, but the question is...will it suck tone??? I don't know the answer to that, but will be interested in hearing opinions. I know that some guys equate good tone with a more microphonic pickup (less wax).

[raf]

Originally Posted by GuitarJonz

Was that something recent?? You'd think that Jim Weider would have known about waxing pickups to stop squeal long ago, since he's done all those instructional tapes/Cd's about vintage gear & technique. More wax potting will definately cut squeal, but the question is...will it suck tone??? I don't know the answer to that, but will be interested in hearing opinions. I know that some guys equate good tone with a more microphonic pickup (less wax).

Specifically, I asked Jim how he kept his high end without squealing & his reply was:

"thanks , my pickup is waxed by my guitar tec Dominick Ramos, so if you have someone who knows how to put just the right amount of wax on without killin the highs of the pickup you can stand in front of an amp with a tele and sustain without the bird chirps!! take care , Jim W"

[Don Mare]

in most cases its the base plate

[raf]

Originally Posted by Don Mare

in most cases its the base plate

Hey Don. Thanks...tell me a little more.

[woodman]

ideally, the base plate should be perfectly flat and 100% stable, to keep it from vibrating like an oboe reed. the funky ol' Fender plates sound best to me, but they're often irregular ... i put 'em on a belt sander to flatten the underside, and also add smaller screws to the top of the plate to keep it stable.

you can also try stuffing your pickup cavity with foam, that's worked for some people. it's your axe, but if it was me, i'd try to avoid altering a good-sounding pickup.

[raf]

Originally Posted by woodman

ideally, the base plate should be perfectly flat and 100% stable, to keep it from vibrating like an oboe reed. the funky ol' Fender plates sound best to me, but they're often irregular ... i put 'em on a belt sander to flatten the underside, and also add smaller screws to the top of the plate to keep it stable.

you can also try stuffing your pickup cavity with foam, that's worked for some people. it's your axe, but if it was me, i'd try to avoid altering a good-sounding pickup.

I have read about the foam...I am a little timid in modding the pick-up myself. I may try that & see how it does.

[robt57]

I've run/spooled thread over the string on Tele bridge PUPs, like 1/8" worth and had decent success with squeal.

[woodman]

Originally Posted by raf

I have read about the foam...I am a little timid in modding the pick-up myself. I may try that & see how it does.

you wouldn't be modding the pickup — just the bridge plate.

[Zhangliqun]

Some silicone between baseplate and pickups helps a lot, but proper potting will kill squeal without hurting tone. 5 minutes in the pot with very thin mix (more beeswax, less parafin) will do the trick.

But sometimes the bridge on your Tele is the culprit. Some are made very thin and aren't screwed down on the end facing the neck and they can vibrate pretty bad.

[tpaul]

Originally Posted by woodman

ideally, the base plate should be perfectly flat and 100% stable, to keep it from vibrating like an oboe reed. the funky ol' Fender plates sound best to me, but they're often irregular ... i put 'em on a belt sander to flatten the underside, and also add smaller screws to the top of the plate to keep it stable.

you can also try stuffing your pickup cavity with foam, that's worked for some people. it's your axe, but if it was me, i'd try to avoid altering a good-sounding pickup.

Woodman, I think you're referring to the bridge plate, but I'm not sure about Don Mare - he may have been referring to the base plate (the metal plate attached to the underside of the bridge pickup). I think the terminology here has the OP confused.

[red57strat]

I found some sticky, spreadable beeswax that's made for crafts. I spread it on the bottom of the pickup, put the baseplate on it and heated it with a soldering iron to re-flow it. It worked great!

I don't like the idea of using silicone. It's pretty acidic.