Help! Help please, where does this loose wire go? Stingray 4 HH bass.

[Skaine]

Hi there,

I bought a used EB Stingray 4 HH today from the shop. When i opened the active circuit cover to check inside (i needed to check because i was buying a used bass), i saw that chrome colored wire loose and its tip was in one of the screw holes also shown in the picture.

Isnt it supposed to be connected somewhere or is it normal? Never had an active bass or a Stingray before so i am clueless, please help.

 

[jones4tone]

That wire connects the control cavity plate to ground. It's usually bent to something of a "U"-like shape and slipped into one of the cover plate screw holes.

 

[Skaine]

That wire connects the control cavity plate to ground. It's usually bent to something of a "U"-like shape and slipped into one of the cover plate screw holes.

So is it normal, no problem with that? Because one end of the wire connected inside the plate in the cavity (as seen in the picture) and the other end is only connected to the screw itself. Sorry for my lack of knowledge

 

[jones4tone]

Completely normal. One end is connected to ground of the circuit of the guitar, so it's just to keep you from getting electrical hum from an ungrounded control cavity cover. All of my EBMM guitars have them. There's also a wire that runs from the circuit to the bridge (and sometimes the trem claw on guitar models that have them) for the same reason.

 

[Karl]

Something is not right there, obviously someone has messed around with it. And that doesn't look like a wire to me as there is no outer sheath on it. It looks more like solder. Is there a ground wire coming from your bridge?

 

[Daniel]

Hi Skaine,
That particular bare wire should make contact with your control cavity plate. You'll notice the inside of the backplate has a bare spot where there is no paint or coating. That wire should make contact with that area. When your guitar was built, that wire was placed into that screw hole and held in place by the screw. When you removed the plate, the wire popped out of the hole. But when you put your control cavity plate back on your bass, you should put the wire back in the hole to be sure it makes contact with the bare spot on the back plate. Let us know if you have any questions.

 

[jones4tone]

Something is not right there, obviously someone has messed around with it. And that doesn't look like a wire to me as there is no outer sheath on it. It looks more like solder. Is there a ground wire coming from your bridge?

Nope, it's not solder. The ground wire for the cavity cover is not insulated.

 

[Skaine]

Its not a solder for sure, i checked it and that particular wire doesnt have contact with the bridge. I was worried previous owner might have messed it, because i bought the bass as used and this grounding method is much different than the other basses that i had before.

As far as i see everything is in order as Daniel explained. Thanks for all advices, really appreciated. I am surprised with the nice and quick customer support of Ernie Ball by the way, thanks!