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Waxings

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I just received my new 2019 Les Paul Standard 50’s. This is my first experience with a Les Paul. I’m wanting to see if what I’m experiencing is normal. I’m experiencing some minor hum in the following situations.

 

1) When in the neck position and the volume is 10 I get a little hum. When I back it down to 9 it’s gone.

 

2) When I’m in the middle position and on 10 on both volume pots I get no hum. If I turn down one of the 2 volume pots a little, It introduces some hum. If I turn the other volume pot to the same position as the other volume pot the hum goes away?

 

Is this normal or is something wrong with my new LP?

 

I own other guitars but none with wiring electronics like the LP.

 

Thanks for your help!

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I went to a local store today and tried another two. Same thing...  When the pickups volume is out of balance, in the middle position, it seems to introduce some really low level hum. Nothing really bad just not silent.

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I had never had a desire to own a LP in the past. Then it started eating at me.... I tried it out and LOVE it. Completely different then my strat, telecaster but so great for other tones.

Im really happy with the purchase.

 

Thanks for your help

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A tele and a strat, and now a LP, you've got it all just about covered!

I wouldn't worry about the "hum"  they all make some kinda noise, something you're not unfamiliar with given what else is in your collection.

 

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  • 2 weeks later...
On 5/23/2019 at 2:58 PM, Waxings said:

I went to a local store today and tried another two. Same thing...  When the pickups volume is out of balance, in the middle position, it seems to introduce some really low level hum. Nothing really bad just not silent.

I had a similar issue with my V. Selector switch. They cleaned it. It was fine for six months. Then it started sticking in the neck position and sounding scratchy again. I sprayed it with compressed air, and that took care of the sticking.

Haven't plugged it in since, though. It was late last night.

If it's under warranty, they should fix it and it should be an easy fix.

It could also be New Gibson Syndrome. I've worried unduly about all my Gibson purchases. The cure for that is gigging and especially touring. You go from "is this minute scratch a crack" to "God, I hope that c**t didn't piss in the neck pickup again. If not, all good."

 

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6 hours ago, Pinch said:

I had a similar issue with my V. Selector switch. They cleaned it. It was fine for six months. Then it started sticking in the neck position and sounding scratchy again. I sprayed it with compressed air, and that took care of the sticking.

Haven't plugged it in since, though. It was late last night.

If it's under warranty, they should fix it and it should be an easy fix.

It could also be New Gibson Syndrome. I've worried unduly about all my Gibson purchases. The cure for that is gigging and especially touring. You go from "is this minute scratch a crack" to "God, I hope that c**t didn't piss in the neck pickup again. If not, all good."

 

 

Do you know what they used to clean it? I use deoxit as suggested by a tech several years ago before I serviced my own guitars. When I get a used guitar with a switch that is sticking or having volume drop in certain switch positions, possibly due to bad contact, I just spray a little Deoxit on the top side of the switch and move the switch rapidly across its positions. This usually does the trick and last for a long time. I don't know exactly for how long, because I usually apply Deoxit to switch and pots every 1.5 years to every other year on my guitars. As I understand it, it is safe on nitro finishes. 

 

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On 6/5/2019 at 7:51 PM, pauloqs said:

 

Do you know what they used to clean it? I use deoxit as suggested by a tech several years ago before I serviced my own guitars. When I get a used guitar with a switch that is sticking or having volume drop in certain switch positions, possibly due to bad contact, I just spray a little Deoxit on the top side of the switch and move the switch rapidly across its positions. This usually does the trick and last for a long time. I don't know exactly for how long, because I usually apply Deoxit to switch and pots every 1.5 years to every other year on my guitars. As I understand it, it is safe on nitro finishes. 

 

No idea, sorry. Some kind of contact cleaner.

As it's a PCB board, I'm not very comfortable with liquids. Likely because I have no idea what a PCB circuit board actually is 😉 Compressed air did the trick this time.

I was a bit stumped though, because I can understand oxidation when you tour, but it was fine after we got back (unlike us). It's obviously the switch though, or cleaning it wouldn't change a thing, and I'm betting it's your switch, too. Again - it's under warranty, they should fix it. And remember that a replacement guitar can end up being crap. If you're happy with your guitar, and it would appear something minor is an easy fix, no point in getting a brand new one that could end up being a dud.

 

Edited by Pinch
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53 minutes ago, Pinch said:

No idea, sorry. Some kind of contact cleaner.

As it's a PCB board, I'm not very comfortable with liquids. Likely because I have no idea what a PCB circuit board actually is 😉 Compressed air did the trick this time.

I was a bit stumped though, because I can understand oxidation when you tour, but it was fine after we got back (unlike us). It's obviously the switch though, or cleaning it wouldn't change a thing, and I'm betting it's your switch, too. Again - it's under warranty, they should fix it. And remember that a replacement guitar can end up being crap. If you're happy with your guitar, and it would appear something minor is an easy fix, no point in getting a brand new one that could end up being a dud.

 

 

Although it's a PCB board, the switch and pots are conventional. On a LP, the switch is far away from the board so there is no risk of getting contact cleaner on the PCB. You can get to the pots from the top without ever opening the control cavity, so you won't be getting contact cleaner on the PCB board. Even then, Deoxit is safe on PCB boards. The switch is a stupid simple. They can break or be faulty, but honestly unless a piece of it physically breaks, I don't see what else can go wrong with them that is not easily fixable. The cleaning did the trick. It's not a recurring problem. I continue applying Deoxit to prevent the build up of dust that can lead to poor connections and sticky switches. I have lost count of the amount of time that I bought a used guitar super cheap that only required very minor adjustments. For instance, I bought a Godin LG that played honorably when I first got it just because the action was  astronomically high, yet I brought down the action without creating any buzz and it turned out to be a fantastic player. 

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