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Post subject: What's the best way to shield a metal pickguard?
Posted: Mon Mar 09, 2009 1:45 pm
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My wife bought me a beautiful Fender Custom Shop pickguard for my 2004 Jeff Beck Artist Strat.
Image

I had it installed by a local luthier. When I "open it all the way up" (put volume control on 10) I get undesired feedback from the pickups on higher gain patches (which had no issues when I was using the plastic pickguard. When I back it off to 8, the feedback goes away right along with the sound I want out of the pickups.

The guard is grounded, and when I use any pickup I can tap on the guard and make percussive noise. I'm sure the guard makes everything brighter.

So, is there a way to insulate or cover the guard and eliminate the undesired feedback? Would a ply of plastic underneath help? Or should I get a clear pickguard to put over the custom shop one?

Thanks in advance for any thoughts, help, advice.


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Post subject: Re: What's the best way to shield a metal pickguard?
Posted: Mon Mar 09, 2009 5:52 pm
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firebrand wrote:
My wife bought me a beautiful Fender Custom Shop pickguard for my 2004 Jeff Beck Artist Strat.
Image

I had it installed by a local luthier. When I "open it all the way up" (put volume control on 10) I get undesired feedback from the pickups on higher gain patches (which had no issues when I was using the plastic pickguard. When I back it off to 8, the feedback goes away right along with the sound I want out of the pickups.

The guard is grounded, and when I use any pickup I can tap on the guard and make percussive noise. I'm sure the guard makes everything brighter.

So, is there a way to insulate or cover the guard and eliminate the undesired feedback? Would a ply of plastic underneath help? Or should I get a clear pickguard to put over the custom shop one?

Thanks in advance for any thoughts, help, advice.


You can buy an aluminium screening plate that you can put underneath it: here's an ebay link.

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll? ... 0331391402

Hope that helps.


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Post subject:
Posted: Tue Mar 10, 2009 11:03 pm
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Thats a nice pickguard by the way! :)


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Post subject:
Posted: Wed Mar 11, 2009 7:07 am
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A secondary metal plate will be useless; a secondary plastic plate will look awful and treat the symptom rather than the cause.

If your luthier used springs to mount your pickups, switch them out for rubber surgical tubing. If this tubing is already there and/or it does not eliminate the feedback, your pickups should then be coil (re)saturated (wax dipped and impregnated).

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Post subject:
Posted: Wed Mar 11, 2009 8:22 am
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Quote:
Thats a nice pickguard by the way! :)


Thanks. It looks absolutely stunning on my Surf Green guitar. The "vintage tint" of the pickup covers and knobs comes alive with it on.

Quote:
If your luthier used springs to mount your pickups, switch them out for rubber surgical tubing. If this tubing is already there and/or it does not eliminate the feedback, your pickups should then be coil (re)saturated (wax dipped and impregnated).


It should be surgical tubing beneath. That is how they were originally mounted. I will see who I can find to wax the pickups. Good to hear your thoughts on putting a ply beneath the guard too.

If all else fails, I may invest in an aluminum shield. It's only about $20 shipped and at this point anything is worth it to make the guitar work with the new guard. I know I don't want to give up the pickups regardless though, and if worse comes to it this guard will look great in my (future) studio.


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Post subject:
Posted: Wed Mar 11, 2009 9:54 am
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I've done it this way with good success :

http://www.guitarnuts.com/wiring/shielding/shield3.php

Good luck!

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Post subject: I finally had the time
Posted: Sat Apr 11, 2009 3:45 pm
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So I pulled the guitar apart, and found the surgical tubing had been replaced with springs. I went on a little shopping spree. I found aluminum tape and covered the entire back of the pickguard and the pickup cavities.

It has quieted down the feedback a little. It's a resonant tone around 1-2k (I have nothing to measure it with at home). This "feedback" is present to a degree in every setting, but is uncontrollable when using the bridge pickup (unless I back off to 5 on the Volume, which alters the overall sound drastically).

At higher gain settings, I can get this feedback by simply tapping the pickguard or the strings. It's akin to a microphone howl.

Unfortunately it is not a hum issue. It's more of a resonance issue with the combination of pickups and pickguard and their proximity to the bridge.
:roll:


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Post subject:
Posted: Sat Apr 11, 2009 3:49 pm
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P.S.

I did replace the springs with tubing, just not surgical. If anyone has some surgical tube pup "springs" you're not using . . .

I also remounted the pickup selector with hard felt washers, but I still hear an abundance of noise when I use the switch.


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