Preamp for L2000?

[Mr. Mom]

Finally got me arse around to ordering an Aggy pre! Can't wait!

[Ken Baker]

Which one did you get? Any idea how you'll wire it up?

Ken...

[Mr. Mom]

I got a four knob one switch three band Aggie.

I really need a Blend, so somehow, someway, that Blend knob on the pre is going to have to fit in one of the L2000's "toggle switch" holes!

I'll have to wire the series/parallel/single coil switch myself. And by that I mean pay somebody to do it. But it shouldn't be too 'spensive.

Stay tuned!

[TDR1138]

...somehow, someway, that Blend knob on the pre is going to have to fit in one of the L2000's "toggle switch" holes!

timon-s-scared-face-timon-25886614-640-380.jpg (33.8 KiB) Viewed 9565 times

[Ken Baker]

..... so somehow, someway, that Blend knob on the pre is going to have to fit in one of the L2000's "toggle switch" holes!

[Mr. Mom]

IMG_0562.JPG (26.4 KiB) Viewed 9548 times

[Mr. Mom]

Got the bass back with Aggy pre installed.

Aaaaannnnnd........The Blend is wired backwards. The mini toggle I ordered to be used for series/parallel/single coil was wrong so they used a three way mini toggle from the original preamp. Not only is the wiring wrong (I think they messed up the parallel and they hooked up the wrong coils for single coil mode) but the original mini toggle pops pretty loud when switched. Which will not win me any friends in the soundman community.


Sooooooooo....Coupla questions:
--Exactly what type of three way mini toggle should I order?
--Is it possible to have the inner coils "on" in single coil mode? Or does it have to be the outer coils?
--In single coil mode, does a faint signal come out of the coil that is "off"? IOW, I put the neck pickup in sc mode. I tapped on the neck coil (of the neck pickup) and there's a loud TAP TAP that came through. I then tapped on the bridge coil of the neck pickup and a got a faint tap tap. Faint, but audible. Should that be the case? Maybe the other coil is picking up the tapping? Does that make sense??

Anyway, other than that the pre sounds great! Seriously...It does! And to my ear the pickups sound better in passive mode, too, with the Aggy pre installed.

EDIT: Seems like the Blend is wired backwards in series and single coil BUT works correctly in parallel mode? And in parallel mode seems like the bridge pickup is just fine but the neck pickup is wired out of phase? WTF did the tech do?? It's definitely going back and it'll get done right, but man...Is this really that hard of a job to do?

[Ken Baker]

Aaaaannnnnd........The Blend is wired backwards. The mini toggle I ordered to be used for series/parallel/single coil was wrong so they used a three way mini toggle from the original preamp. Not only is the wiring wrong (I think they messed up the parallel and they hooked up the wrong coils for single coil mode) but the original mini toggle pops pretty loud when switched. Which will not win me any friends in the soundman community.

Did you give them a circuit drawing to use or did they just wing it? This is the circuit I used in my L-2500. It's also shown in this thread on the first page. It's a known-to-work circuit. The pickup select switch can easily be replaced by a blend (it's child's play). I'm not sure exactly what you're after in a circuit, but there is that.

--Exactly what type of three way mini toggle should I order?

The switches are spelled out in my L-2500 circuit description. You'll find the manufacturer (CK), the manufacturer's model number, and the Digikey item number.

--Is it possible to have the inner coils "on" in single coil mode? Or does it have to be the outer coils?

Depends on how the coil switch is wired. My circuit uses outers.

--In single coil mode, does a faint signal come out of the coil that is "off"? IOW, I put the neck pickup in sc mode. I tapped on the neck coil (of the neck pickup) and there's a loud TAP TAP that came through. I then tapped on the bridge coil of the neck pickup and a got a faint tap tap. Faint, but audible. Should that be the case? Maybe the other coil is picking up the tapping? Does that make sense??

To hear a faint tapping sound from the "off" coil is more-or-less normal, depending on how you're doing the tapping. Basically, the "on" coil is hearing you tap on the "off" coil via mechanical conduction. Kind of like tapping on a 2X4 at one end and feeling it on the other. I'm not saying you don't have a wiring fault; you probably do, but that could be what you're hearing. Try using the tip of a small screwdriver but don't tap so much as touch. The pole piece will draw in the screwdriver, producing a nice click sound.

Anyway, other than that the pre sounds great! Seriously...It does! And to my ear the pickups sound better in passive mode, too, with the Aggy pre installed.

The Aguilar preamp isn't totally transparent, but it does product nice tone. I also found passive mode to be excellent, primarily because the preamp is totally isolated from the signal chain when in passive mode. No EQ in passive, but that's okay with me.

WTF did the tech do??

That, my friend, is the $64,000.00 question!

It's definitely going back and it'll get done right, but man...Is this really that hard of a job to do?

If you have a circuit to follow, it isn't all that difficult. If you're winging it? Well, let's just say I wouldn't recommend winging it. The toughest part for me was dealing with the mess of wires. I used a fistful of clips and tape to selectively keep stuff out of the way while I was working.

Sorry you're having troubles. Hopefully, a second pass through will find & correct the faults.

Ken...

[Mr. Mom]

As usual, thanks for your help, KB!!

I think the Blend issue is just a matter of the wiring being backwards.

I did get a chance to use the bass this past weekend as Series works just fine. And using the Blend to lean on the bridge pickup takes the place of Single Coil mode for me, for the most part. (Single Coil just has this "grunt" that came in handy with the stock preamp.) Blending towards the bridge pickup will give me enough of that single coil grunt that I told the tech to wire the bass in series/parallel with no single coil with a quality on-on mini toggle.

The bass sounded just fantastic when I gigged it (at my church gig). I'd say the Blend was about 60% bridge/40% neck? Something like that. Not burpy. But very strong and assertive. Nice!!

Anyhoo.....I took the bass back yesterday and was received with many, many apologies. I'm to pick it up today. Stay tuned....

[Mr. Mom]

Oh, and I've got some new knobs on the way, too.

I'll post a pic when it's all put together.