Help with P-up testing.

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Author Message Jonnie73 Username: Jonnie73 Registered: 09-2006 Posted on Thursday, January 25, 2007 - 12:49 pm:    Cheers anyone who can help. My Bridge P-up has stopped working. I'm trying to find out wether it's a break in the wiring or the P-up it'self. I've tried searching for info on how to measure the P-up with my multi meter but can only find info on Moding or replacing them. I'd like to be sure its dead before splashing out but I'm a bit of a novice with the meter. Any help or a point in the right direction is much appreciated as I prefer to learn how to deal with problems myself cos its interesting, nothing to do with being a skinflint honest! Fingersmcoy Username: Fingersmcoy Registered: 10-2006 Posted on Thursday, January 25, 2007 - 4:08 pm:    What kind of guitar do you have,& what type of p/u is in question?Certain models are know for its electronics failure.ie. Epiphone Les Paul pickup toggel switches.When they go they mimick a pick up failure , but its only the toggel switch,as i found out the hard way! Fox Username: Fox Registered: 02-2003 Posted on Thursday, January 25, 2007 - 4:28 pm:    Find the pickup wires, they go (depending on guitar) normally to the volume pot OR selector switch. Turn the potentiometer fully "open" so you get the reading from pickup. Humbuckers have normally DC resistance in the range 6-16 kOhms.. If the multimeter shows a value in that range, the pickup is OK. Normal points of malfunction are, as Fingers said, the selector switch, because almost everyone uses nowadays the short "eastern" switch that has a habit to work itself "loose" in those contact springs. Sharp-nose pliers, careful bending and tightening of those screws that hold the switch together should do the trick. Next you should check and double-check all solder joints..could well be a bad "cold" joint somewhere.. Hope you find the trouble and have it fixed in no time... Jonnie73 Username: Jonnie73 Registered: 09-2006 Posted on Friday, January 26, 2007 - 9:45 am:    Cheers guys for for the advice, I tested the pick up 15.40 kOhms, so thats ok. Guess what? One of the connector tabs in the switch had fatigued so has no spring in it. cheap switch. Its on my first semi which is a tanglewood chicago 2 which I'm going to sell as I now have an 83 AS50. I've ordered a switch, hopefully it will be fairly straight forward to wire up. Good news I don't have to replace the Pick-up. Nice one Fingers and Fox for the help. Jonnie Fingersmcoy Username: Fingersmcoy Registered: 10-2006 Posted on Friday, January 26, 2007 - 11:02 pm:    Gemberbier Username: Gemberbier Registered: 05-2006 Posted on Thursday, February 01, 2007 - 8:16 pm:    Btw: there are some exceptions to that 6-16 kOhms rule. A Gibson Tony Iommi for instance, the 1981 Blazer bass pickup (R > 18 kOhm), and the old Maxon humbuckers can easily measure 225 kOhms. Combining these old Maxons with a modern pickup might lead to balance problems. Ginger

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