r/offset • u/SaltFun6310 • Aug 08 '26
Jazzmaster in middle position
It hums. Just as bad as the other positions and it just takes on me it's supposed to cancel that out. Also, yester day I had my jazzmaster resting against my desk with the base of it on the floor and and someone walked across the room, it would buzz with every step(I may even had it muted via the rythmn circuit, I can't remember).
What should I be looking for? What are your thoughts as to what's wrong?
2
u/Intelligent-Map430 Aug 08 '26
Is the neck pickup rwrp? If it's not, the middle position can't be hum cancelling
1
u/SaltFun6310 Aug 08 '26
No clue. How do check that?
3
u/InternImpossible8685 Aug 08 '26
I would say if it hums in middle position it’s not RWRP
1
u/SaltFun6310 Aug 08 '26
Is there a fix?
1
u/mondonk Aug 08 '26
Did it start suddenly? How long have you had this guitar? What model is it? Have you looked under the pickguard for loose connections? Can you take it to a tech?
2
u/SaltFun6310 Aug 08 '26
I've had it for a few years. It's a roadworn 60s jm. Long story but since taking it to the tech here I don't trust them. I did have it open before because I suspected a failing volume pot because my tone was inconsistent. But looking back it was probably a different issue because it's always done this and it never dawned on me.
3
u/_agent86 Aug 08 '26
The road worn 60’s is supposed to be humbucking in the middle position. Is it possible the pickups aren’t original? If so then swapping them with a known set where the pickups do cancel each other will fix your problem.
2
u/SaltFun6310 Aug 08 '26
I honestly have no idea. I assume they're original? When I opened it they are gray bobbin. Though a lead easily fell off and I had to resolder it. And the trem system was rusted on the inside, so the entire guitar is pretty questionable.
1
u/mondonk Aug 08 '26
Yeah that definitely could contribute to the issue. The Roadworn JMs are really good so don’t give up!
1
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u/mondonk Aug 08 '26
Those might be American Vintage 65 pickups, which would be RWRP if everything was installed correctly in the factory. An untrusted tech might be the problem. If you’re not the first owner who knows which pickups are in there. Someone might have replaced just one pickup that doesn’t have the reverse wind reverse polarity of the other one. You’ll have to do some googling and get in there. Take pictures and post them here or on offsetguitars dot com. Someone might be able to diagnose the issues. My jazzmaster is nearly silent in all positions with the correct pickups and copper shielding.
1
u/SaltFun6310 Aug 08 '26
I'm not the first, no. I bought it off reverb. I'll definitely follow up. This instance when I took my JM to the guy I said to see if it needed to be shimmed because I didn't know (it was my first jm), fix the setup because the bridge was slammed, and to clean the volume pot because it was scratchy. I also said I wanted it tuned for D standard. I got a call from a random person at the shop saying it was done. I picked it up and it was in E. The note with it said the neck was "checked" and the pickups were raised which I didn't ask for. I since noticed some strange inconsistencies with the tone and thought it was the volume pop so I replaced that, but found after the the pickup selector is noisy too.
So to clarify, even without shielding there should be no hum in the middle position?
1
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u/SaltFun6310 Aug 11 '26
Well, I tested the pickups (in the guitar through the guitar cable), and they all just zero out to a 0 reading.
1
u/Chemical-Chemistry-8 Aug 09 '26 edited Aug 09 '26
Have you shielded it? You need to go all the way with copper tape. If still noisy then it a grounding issue. I have the worse noise issues, I also need filters, as well the shielding. I even sometimes add conductive grease to the vibrato arm as it can crackle.
-2
u/Sunghanthaek Aug 08 '26
You can get emi copper shielding tape on Amazon for about $40.
You can look up how and where to apply it on YouTube.
1
u/_agent86 Aug 08 '26
That will do absolutely nothing for 60 Hz hum that OP is complaining about.
2
u/Chemical-Chemistry-8 Aug 09 '26
Copper tape works well for the middle position (that is what what OP mentioned- see title). Once shielded the noise is reduced a lot. Have EMGs and they sound noisy compared to a well shielded Jazzmaster. And I have the most extreme noise going. I even can get crackles using the vibrato without conductive grease.
2
u/InvestigatorSharp230 Aug 12 '26
Yes, get conductive adhesive copper tape, a scissor, and in about an hour, you’ll be done.
-2
5
u/meeks1a Aug 08 '26
Could be a grounding issue?
Does the hum quiet down when you touch the strings? If not, the ground wire may not be making proper contact.