Culov Posted November 21, 2010 Share Posted November 21, 2010 I recently bought a Epiphone Thunderbird Bass on craigslist, and whenever i plug it into the amp there is a buzzing sound. The sound can be reduced to nothing if I just push the cord into the output jack a little more. I opened up the bass and realized that there is no ground wire connected to the output jack. I found a diagram online on where to connect the ground wire, and was wonder if I just added one would this possibly fix the buzzing issue? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amx05462 Posted November 21, 2010 Share Posted November 21, 2010 its worth a try. you might want to change out that jack at the same time . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigneil Posted November 21, 2010 Share Posted November 21, 2010 its worth a try. you might want to change out that jack at the same time . yup, i would probably replace the jack plug too. It also occurs to me that if the earth wire is missing that perhaps someone has already been in there doing their own modifications. it might be worth looking up a wiring diagram and checking that every thing else checks out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigneil Posted November 21, 2010 Share Posted November 21, 2010 P.S welcome to the forum Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Culov Posted November 21, 2010 Author Share Posted November 21, 2010 Thanks for the advice. I was wondering where I can order a Epiphone Output jack. I bought a generic one at guitar center, but the diameter is too large and doesn't fit into the hole. Also if anyone has a Thunderbird IV could you mind telling me if this is the proper diagram http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2443/4056693936_4607b33a26_o.png&imgrefurl=http://www.talkbass.com/forum/showthread.php%3Ft%3D594395&usg=__g9MzZ3q5oEEHIMMPRaajpdGRyb8=&h=524&w=584&sz=64&hl=en&start=2&zoom=1&tbnid=EPd-wuJYtCQ5SM:&tbnh=121&tbnw=135&prev=/images%3Fq%3Depiphone%2Bthunderbird%2Bwiring%26hl%3Den%26biw%3D1022%26bih%3D967%26addh%3D104%26output%3Dimages_json%26tbs%3Disch:1&itbs=1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Whitmore Willy Posted November 21, 2010 Share Posted November 21, 2010 Culov, Welcome to the forum. The jack you bought is probably imperial. Epiphones use metric parts. You can either buy a metric or you can put some tape over the hole to protect the finish and open it up a tiny bit with a small file. As far as a metric jack....Where do you live? This forum is world wide. Willy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigneil Posted November 21, 2010 Share Posted November 21, 2010 That diagram looks good to me Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brianh Posted November 21, 2010 Share Posted November 21, 2010 The ground wire was probably inadvertently twisted off by the previous owner trying to tighten the nut. If the jack you bought says Switchcraft on it, that's the one you want to install - best industry standard jack and far better than the Epiphone factory junk. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Culov Posted November 22, 2010 Author Share Posted November 22, 2010 I live in California. I was able to solder on a ground wire which helped ease the buzzing. The only way to stop the buzzing all together if I have the tone at 0. Is it normal to have buzzing when I put the tone up? Btw thanks for all the suggestions. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Whitmore Willy Posted November 22, 2010 Share Posted November 22, 2010 Culov, I've no experience with the T bird bass. But, as far as I do know it has TB humbuckers in it. If that is the case, then excessive buzzing does not sound right. Have you narrowed it down to the guitar? Check by trying another cable. They do go bad. If you have access to another guitar, try that and make sure the problem is not with your amp. Have you tried it in another outlet? Once those are eliminated, at least you will know for sure that it is a ground issue with your guitar. If it is your guitar, there could be a loose wire. (you've already had one.) Does the buzzing go away when you touch the strings? If not that might be a good sign as the bridge/tailpiece ground might be OK. As it was used, who knows what the other guy did? He could have swapped out the pups at some point and put the originals back incorrectly. A good eyeballing would be a good place to start after eliminating everything else. Willy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnhowell00 Posted December 12, 2010 Share Posted December 12, 2010 I recently bought a Epiphone Thunderbird Bass on craigslist, and whenever i plug it into the amp there is a buzzing sound. The sound can be reduced to nothing if I just push the cord into the output jack a little more. I opened up the bass and realized that there is no ground wire connected to the output jack. I found a diagram online on where to connect the ground wire, and was wonder if I just added one would this possibly fix the buzzing issue? I have the same problem with that noise, its VERY annoying when trying to record or play a small acoustic gig. The noise disappears when I touch the metal of the jack but it doesnt seem like a grounding problem. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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