Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility Jump to content

dartveiga

Members
  • Posts

    6
  • Joined

  • Last visited

Posts posted by dartveiga

  1. I love my JTV-89F. It's one of the best guitars I ever had. But, IMO, EMG active pickups are the best. I use EMG 81 and 85 and they sound great. So I decided to install those in my Variax JTV-89F.

     

    After searching the Internet I could not find any source of reliable information regarding this topic. So I decided to share my experience.

     

    I made a video documenting the process. You can find it on Youtube.

     


     

    !!! WARNING !!! If you do this, you'll void your guitar warranty.

     

    After installation all the Variax models are working perfectly. Also tuning and custom tuning.

     

    Issue #1: The EMG pickups do not allow to split coils and the Variax uses a 5 way switch. While in magnetic pickups mode, position 2 produces the same sound as position 1. And position 4 the same sound as position 5.

     

    1 = Bridge

    2 = Bridge

    3 = Bridge + Neck

    4 = Neck

    5 = Neck

     

    When you activate the modeling mode, all the positions continue to be independent, as in stock mag pickups.

     

    Issue #2: When the active pickups are powered, the volume control acts almost as an on-off switch. At 1/5 of a knob turn you start to hear sound already at almost 80% gain. Bellow 1/5 of a turn, no sound at all.

     

    Issue #3: Tone knob seems to produce no noticeable effect.

     

    That's it. To me, now I have a perfect guitar. I don't use much the tone knob, and I can control volume with my volume pedal.

    post-668177-0-69614100-1459788903_thumb.png

    post-668177-0-37173100-1459788966_thumb.jpg

    post-668177-0-93360200-1459789000_thumb.jpg

    post-668177-0-83734800-1459789015_thumb.jpg

  2. Dartveiga:  To say that the root cause of problem is the piezo's is not necessarily correct.  You piezo's are very likely working as designed.  Replacing the piezo for your low E string is not likely to solve the issue you are having.  Changing the piezo might help, but there are many other, less invasive things you should probably try first.  Check for improvement after trying each of these suggestions:

    -Raise the bridge on the low E side by about 1/2 rotation on the screw.  (even very slight fret buzz can cause a PLINK sound from the piezo)

    -Try a heavier or lighter gauge string for your Low E.  (I used a .052 Elixer Polyweb on my JTV-59 and that reduced the PLINK sound dramatically. I believe that the Polyweb coating on Elixer's also carry less harmonic overtones to the piezo's and deliver a cleaner fundamental note to the piezo's.  Yes, it's a compromise for sure.)

    -Check neck relief.  If you're neck has no relief at all and is very straight, you may have some string rattle or buzz which may be causing PLINK sound.  If you've never adjusted a neck before, check out some instructions on the web and practice on a cheaper guitar first.

    -Adjust the string volume of the E, A, and D strings downward.  I typically lower the volume on my Low E string to 85%, the A to 75% and the D to 75%.  This also helped minimize PLINK sounds coming from my Low E when I was palm muting the Low E using heavy overdrive.

     

    I also recommend that you do an experiment in workbench.  Turn your Low E strings' volume to zero in workbench.  Now palm mute your E string and also pick it open.  You'll notice that some or all of your other Piezo's can still translate vibration from (or "hear") your Low E string.  This just shows how incredibly sensitive Piezo's are.  As you may imagine, string buzz or vibration from any loose hardware is also heard by the piezos.  The better skill you have at setting up your guitar to eliminate string buzz and provide the piezo's with the clearest, purist, fundamental note, the less likely you will be to have the PLINK sound. 

     

    These suggestions don't work for everyone, but it is a good starting point, especially considering that Line6 service providers are more challenging to find or travel to in Brazil.  You have come to the right place Dartveiga, the Line 6 community of users are a great resource to find tips, tricks and tweaks to get the most out of your Line 6 gear.  I really hope this helps you.

     

    artdib2, man, first of all, thank you for trying to help me out! Thank you!

     

    Unfortunately, none of your tips seemed to fix the problem directly. BUT, when I was messing around with Workbench, I discovered that the problem was much bigger using the Les Paul body. When I switched to neutral body, the plinky sound almost disappeared. The sound of the guitar is, of course, a lot different, but is preferable than using it if that annoying noise. At least I can use it with different tunes.

     

     

     

    All piezos are the same, but the replacement is wasted.
    You can choose between two approaches:
    1. update the firmware to version 2.30 (does not exist yet)
    2. Replacement of the bridge from the new high quality series (has not yet been manufactured)
     
    Another possibility is the complaint here:
     
     
    I strongly recommend this option.

     

     

     

    What I can infer from this is that it really seams to be a problem with the software/firmware of the Variax JTV-89F. I opened a support ticket and I'm about to write an Amazon review (https://www.amazon.com/review/RVRYUN696G0P4/ref=pe_1098610_137716200_cm_rv_eml_rv0_rv) about this problem. Hope this get the attention from Line 6 support to fix this up.

  3. Just to clarify... It "IS" a piezo problem, right? For SURE?

     

    Because I'm in Brazil. I have no chance returning the guitar. Also we have no authorized Line 6 dealers or tech support here, unfortunately.

     

    My best hope is to know exactly what's the problem and try to fix it myself. The piezos are small enough so I think I could import some of them by mail and replace'em myself.

     

    Other doubt: All the piezos are the same or they differ from string to string in any way? 

×
×
  • Create New...