Help! Luke 3 SSH position 2, 3 and 4 pickup selector positions not working

[moyers]

Hey all, first post here.

I have a Luke III SSH that i recently picked up and love. I also have a Luke III HH and a Albert Lee with the 3 mm90's and love them as well. I am a big Ernie Ball/Music Man fan.

Tonight I was playing on a session and all of the sudden I lost sound on 3 of the 5 positions on the SSH. I could get bridge by itself, and I could get neck by itself, but all of the in-between positions using the middle pickup were just gone, no output at all. I checked the battery, and pulled the back plate off to look at the wiring and it all checked out fine. Crazy thing is that I can't get any noise out of the guitar in those middle three positions. I tried to create a short to see if i could get a buzz out of the guitar in those positions, but could not get anything out of the guitar in those three positions. It sounds normal in the neck and bridge though. I am assuming that it is the 5 way selector, but the wiring in these guitars are a little more advanced than most guitars, so I thought I would check here for direction before I started diving in. Any ideas on what could be causing this?

Thanks for the help.

Jeremy

 

[DrKev]

Call customer service ASAP. You'll find the details in my signature they have a toll-free number for US and Canada residents. This is what they are there for. Let them help you.

 

[moyers]

Perfect, will do DrKev. I didn't realize that EBMM had a customer service department to help with issues like this. That's great!

Thanks!

Jeremy

 

[DrKev]

They do. Some say they are the best in the business too.

 

[moyers]

Thanks again for the info. I called the service department and was told that since I purchased this Luke used, (although I have purchased two other EBMM guitars new) that I was on my own to figure this out. He said that the middle pickup may have gone bad, but I would have to take it to a tech myself to have it checked. I can do the work myself, so I'll dig into it and see what I find, but I will be surprised if the pickup just quit working all of the sudden. We'll see.... Not sure what I expected when calling them, but I was kind of bummed about the response and lack of "support" that I got.

 

[A.J.]

We offered to have you send the guitar in to us but because it was purchased used there is no warranty and you would incur a charge for labor. We recommended seeing someone locally since it is most likely a problem with the middle pickup (possibly with the switch) and should be easily diagnosed locally saving you shipping charges. Let us know if you aren't able to resolve the problem and we'll gladly provide additional support.

 

[moyers]

I understand A.J. No problem. I'll get it resolved locally. Love the guitars and I do understand the warranty issue for sure, just frustrating to have it die in a somewhat mission critical setting like that. It is not a reflection of the quality of the company or the guitars by any means, things just happen some times at inopportune times. Can I get parts from you guys once the issue is diagnosed?

 

[DrKev]

Not sure what I expected when calling them, but I was kind of bummed about the response and lack of "support" that I got.

No matter what brand you look at, indeed no matter what product, warranties only apply to the original owner. That's just the way it is, I'm afraid. But as AJ said, yes, it should be a very easy problem to diagnose, and probably fix.

 

[A.J.]

You can absolutely get parts from us along with wiring diagrams etc. Just let us know what you want!