Re: How do you test electric guitar electronics?

From: Ross Herbert (rherber1_at_bigpond.net.au)
Date: 12/01/04 

Date: Wed, 01 Dec 2004 07:57:29 GMT

On Tue, 30 Nov 2004 16:20:07 -0500, "mark"
<marcoraicevic@videotron.ca> wrote:

>Hi everyone,
>My electric guitar was working several weeks ago but since I opened it and
>removed the pickguard and touched the toggle switch and jack it's completely
>dead. I get no sound from the guitar now. I didn't solder anything or remove
>anything or change anything at all. I bought myself a multimeter from radio
>shack. How do I go about troubleshooting or testing the electronics of the
>guitar to find out what's wrong or if any of the parts (jack, 3-way toggle
>switch, volume and tone pots) need to be replaced? I checked the wiring and
>there doesn't seem to be any loose connections or shorts.
>
>Any help will be greatly appreciated,
>Thank-You,
>Mark
>
Why did you open it up and remove the pickguard and "touch" the toggle
switch and jack? You say it was working before and you imply that it
only stopped working after you opened it up. What did you use for
tools and what did you "touch" the switch and jack with? I hope it
wasn't a 4lb hammer.

Not that total ignorance should stop you making a cursory
investigation, since that was a preliminary step in the lives of most
people who end up fixing things for other people who know nothing
about fixing things, or who are not interested in knowing how to fix
things. Given that you admit to knowing absolutely nothing about the
item you are trying to fix the secret is in knowing how far you can go
"touching" things without causing further problems.

My advice to you is to get your guitar seen to by somebody
knowledgeable in electronics if you want to use your guitar sometime
soon. Otherwise, you are going to have to spend a lot of time studying
electronic components, finding out how to read and decipher circuitry
by inspection, and how to use test instruments such as your newly
acquired meter. That should keep you busy for a few months provided
you are diligent and spend at least 4 hours per day at it, and that is
just to learn the rudimentary basics. Even then you would be battling
to absorb any knowledge without an adviser to explain things and
answer the many questions you would probably come up with.

Nah, better get somebody to fix it and.... YOU MUST PAY.

Relevant Pages

  • Re: How do you test electric guitar electronics?
    ... I Think I found the problem I bent the jack thingy so that when I plugged ... the cable in wasn't connecting after bending the jack thing that gets pushed ... I get no sound from the guitar now. ... > knowledgeable in electronics if you want to use your guitar sometime ...
    (sci.electronics.repair)
  • emg pa2 buzzing
    ... I have wired an emg pa2 preamp booster to the output (just before the jack) ... before i switch it on, the guitar is silent... ... i soldered both black wires to ground, ...
    (alt.guitar)
  • Re: Takamine Battery Life
    ... Do I need to remove the jack plug after use to "switch off" the electronics? ...
    (rec.music.makers.guitar.acoustic)
  • Re: How do you test electric guitar electronics?
    ... After reading your problem, and also reading the comments back and forth, I ... them the few dollars to fix your guitar electronics, ... removed the pickguard and touched the toggle switch and jack it's completely ...
    (sci.electronics.repair)
  • Re: OK, Ive had it! Guitar problems.
    ... If you like the guitar, why not just have the pots, jack, and switch ... replaced with quality parts? ...
    (alt.guitar)