25th Anniversary sound issue.

[KevinUK]

Hello everyone, I have just picked up a used 25th anniversary. The guitar is beautiful and plays like a dream, however I have an issue with gig level response.

I find that the output is "muddy and weak" yes at test levels sounds great but I was playing last Saturday and using my Axis supersport, decided to switch for a couple of numbers to the 25th and my sound just died, no sustain no bottom end and no treble.

Looking at PUP height they are wound as low as they can be, I am wondering whether this could be the issue, any idea's ?

 

[ozzyrules]

That's kinda crazy. My 25th screams; right up there with my EVH.


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[guitarp77]

That's kinda crazy. My 25th screams; right up there with my EVH.


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Same here...one of the most responsive axes I own...

 

[mikeller]

May need to tweak the amp EQ

 

[beej]

I would go over the switching to make sure everything works as expected, and you don't have any wiring issues. (e.g. Make sure it wasn't re-wired incorrectly.)

Pickup heights can certainly make a difference, so that could be an issue. If you email the CS folks, they can probably tell you what the stock heights are and you could go from there.

 

[Siddius]

Maybe 250k pots are bringing you down. I felt the same way with my Y2D, but when I switched to 500k pots, it started screaming

 

[DrKev]

Siddius - the 25th Anniversary guitar has 500k pots.

What beej said are my first thoughts too.

Stock pickup heights for the Reflex/25th Anniversary are 8/32" (6.5 mm) for the neck pickup and 6/32" (5mm) for the bridge pickup, measured from the bottom of the open string to the top of the pickup cover. These measurements are for the low-E string, and should be a little less for the high-e string.

You can of course adjust the pickups where ever you like but don't get much closer than 1/16" (1.5mm) to avoid any issues with magnets/string pull.

 

[KevinUK]

Thank you people, food for thought there, out with the screwdriver and the white lab coat !!

 

[DrKev]

out with the screwdriver and the white lab coat !!

Hooray! Good times!

 

[KevinUK]

Well I checked my PUP height, both were wound as low as they could go and that provided a gap between PUP cover and underside of string of approximately 12 mm to me that may be the problem , what do you think ?

 

[DrKev]

12mm? Oooh, yes, I think that would be way too low! Getting those pickups closer to the strings will make a significant difference in tone and output.

You have the Music Man specs above, you can also try the Bill Lawrence method here (see point number 3)...

Bill Lawrence Website

You could also measure the heights on your Axis Super Sport and dial those in on the 25th as a starting point (which will really show you how different the guitars sound). Remember, when adjusting pickup heights you can adjust to suit your tastes - bass/treble balance and bridge/neck volume balance. The only wrong answers are "way too low" and "way too high". Anything else is entirely up to what pleases your ears best. Just make sure you use the right size screwdriver (so as not to damage the screw heads).

 

[Barny]

Well I checked my PUP height, both were wound as low as they could go and that provided a gap between PUP cover and underside of string of approximately 12 mm to me that may be the problem , what do you think ?

Yowzers, that is way too low IMO, all my reflex guitars and my 25th have been set up as Dr. Kev described as a starting point and I have adjusted them to taste, the Roasted Maple/Pau Ferro reflex for example is considerably more resonant than all of the others and much louder acoustically, so I had to slightly lowers those from the factory set up, but only by about 1/0.5mm extra, 12 MM seems ridiculously low.

 

[KevinUK]

I have set up now as dr Kev advised (thank you).

At home levels it sounds great now, but it is gig levels that matter and not letting me down when reaching for that cutting note !!! I am sure it will resolve and then I can fine tune.

Thank you