No output from neck pickup

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alberto2000
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No output from neck pickup

Post by alberto2000 » Mon Aug 01, 2022 1:20 am

Yesterday I got my old 1994 MIJ JM from our ex-rehearsal space. The instrument has not been touched for about 10 years. I plugged it in and there was no sound at all so I switched to middle position and then there was sound but only from the bridge pickup. Switch it to bridge, works too. But no sound from neck pickup :derp:
I checked the wiring and everything seems to be soldered well, no cold solder joints or loose connections whatsoever. Could it be the pickup is broken? :wtf: does that happen?
Or could it have to do with the circuit select switch? Since the neck pickup output cable runs there.
Any help is greatly appreciated!

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øøøøøøø
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Re: No output from neck pickup

Post by øøøøøøø » Mon Aug 01, 2022 11:09 am

Suspect switches first.

Exercise them a lot and see if anything changes. Press on them, pull them, sneak them in between positions… see if any contortion of position will make them start to wake up.

Then clean the hell out of them with contact cleaner (Blue Shower, EML, DeOxit, etc).

Only after you’ve completely ruled that out should you suspect the coil. It’s vastly more likely that a guitar sitting still somewhere has developed corrosion on its switch contacts than to have a coil open up for no reason (corrosion can also do this, but only in extreme circumstances).

But you can use a digital ohmmeter (multimeter) to check coil resistance right at the spots where the lead-out wires attach, or at the wires themselves. Turn the volume pot all the way up to do this test if you don’t want to disconnect from circuit.

If you see a resistance in the outside the window of 3k to 20k ohms you’ve got reason to suspect the coil, and should desolder for further testing (a healthy Fender single coil will most likely measure in the neighborhood of 6-8k)

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alberto2000
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Re: No output from neck pickup

Post by alberto2000 » Mon Aug 01, 2022 11:11 am

Thanks it's the 3 way switch... will clean the hell out of it :) thanks

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camilonava27
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Re: No output from neck pickup

Post by camilonava27 » Tue Aug 02, 2022 1:06 pm

alberto2000 wrote:
Mon Aug 01, 2022 1:20 am
Yesterday I got my old 1994 MIJ JM from our ex-rehearsal space. The instrument has not been touched for about 10 years. I plugged it in and there was no sound at all so I switched to middle position and then there was sound but only from the bridge pickup. Switch it to bridge, works too. But no sound from neck pickup :derp:
I checked the wiring and everything seems to be soldered well, no cold solder joints or loose connections whatsoever. Could it be the pickup is broken? :wtf: does that happen?
Or could it have to do with the circuit select switch? Since the neck pickup output cable runs there.
Any help is greatly appreciated!
This tends to happen on those early Japanese jazzmasters pretty frequently. I find that most of the time it’s the switches. Like someone else mentioned, mess around with the switch, wiggle it about, and then spray it with a can of duster, and electronic contact cleaner. You should be good after that!

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timtam
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Re: No output from neck pickup

Post by timtam » Tue Aug 02, 2022 7:12 pm

alberto2000 wrote:
Mon Aug 01, 2022 11:11 am
Thanks it's the 3 way switch... will clean the hell out of it :) thanks
So the neck pickup works OK when switched to the rhythm circuit ?
"I just knew I wanted to make a sound that was the complete opposite of a Les Paul, and that’s pretty much a Jaguar." Rowland S. Howard.

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