New Cutlass Bass with no output?

[aleksi]

Hi!

I got lucky and picked up a brand new Cutlass Bass, (from 2016 but it was in store for a long time). It plays great, but there is no sound when plugged in to an amp.

I took it to a local luthier to check it out, but unfortunately there were no loose cables / wiring to solder and fix it fast.

He thinks that it might be a faulty jack or something wrong with the pickup. What do you think? Is it possible that there is also faulty wiring from the factory? I found only one wiring diagram, but it was mainly for the controls not the wiring itself.

 

[racerx]

Luthier should've been able to catch it/fix it. I'd recommend trying again with someone else reputable - on a passive circuit there shouldn't be a whole lot to look at. I can't say I've ever opened up one to be sure, but I imagine this diagram is similar/same:

P-Bass Style Wiring Diagram

Wiring diagram with one P-bass style split pickup, 1 volume and 1 tone. Typical P-Bass wiring diagram. <strong>Click diagram image to open/view full size version.</strong> </strong> Ready to get started? Don't forget the <a...

guitarelectronics.com

 

[Rod Trussbroken]

Hi!

I got lucky and picked up a brand new Cutlass Bass, (from 2016 but it was in store for a long time). It plays great, but there is no sound when plugged in to an amp.

I took it to a local luthier to check it out, but unfortunately there were no loose cables / wiring to solder and fix it fast.

He thinks that it might be a faulty jack or something wrong with the pickup. What do you think? Is it possible that there is also faulty wiring from the factory? I found only one wiring diagram, but it was mainly for the controls not the wiring itself.

Not sure what you mean. Did you buy it from someone who had it in storage or did you buy it new from a music store (albeit made in 2016) . If it's the latter case then take it back to the store. Don't mess with it as you may void any warranty

If it's the former case I would contact Ernie Ball Customer Service for advice and perhaps the correct wiring schematic. Their email is:

[email protected]

 

[Golem]

If it’s not under warranty then you’re headed for a luthier anywho. Before you go there, snip open one leg of the tone capacitor and see if you get output. If so, you just need a new cap. If thaz no answer, caps are cheap.

The tone cap bleeds higher frequencies to ground. A bad cap might might bleed ALL signal to ground. There’s not much to check out on a passive ax if all the wiring is intact.

You do own more than one guitar cable ... I hope. (Just don’t wanna overlook the obvious !!!)

 

[aleksi]

Not sure what you mean. Did you buy it from someone who had it in storage or did you buy it new from a music store (albeit made in 2016) . If it's the latter case then take it back to the store. Don't mess with it as you may void any warranty

If it's the former case I would contact Ernie Ball Customer Service for advice and perhaps the correct wiring schematic. Their email is:

[email protected]

Hi! So I bought it from the music store, but it is located in another country, shipping it back and forward is not an option so I really like to get it fixed. Because this is discontinued bass, it’s very hard to find another one. I wrote to EB customer service and I’m now waiting for the response. Thank you for your help.

 

[Rod Trussbroken]

Hi! So I bought it from the music store, but it is located in another country, shipping it back and forward is not an option ....

That's unfortunate. When you get the schematic maybe take it to a tech or try what Golem says above.

 

[aleksi]

Hi! Just to let you know, my luthier got the bass fixed. He told me that there was a grounding issue with the jack tip touching the tone knob inside, maybe from the lack of playing. Also the store refunded me the fixing cost very fast. So everything fine here. And if you are interested, they might have one more "New" Cutlass Bass for sale.

 

[Rod Trussbroken]

A happy ending