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Hum/buzz on new Jackson Pro Dinky

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  • Hum/buzz on new Jackson Pro Dinky

    I just picked up a Jackson Pro Dinky on clearance. I love the guitar; it would have been a bargain at the regular price, and I got a major discount. The only issue is buzz/hum on the 2-3-4 pickup selections (it's a 5-way selector). I assume it's related to coil-splitting wiring; it's basically single-coil noise. I have another 2-humbucker guitar from another company (Ibanez RG), and there's no noise on any of the wiring options. I was wondering if anyone knows if this is just how Jacksons sound, or if this could mean that there's an issue with the guitar's wiring. I may not be able to exchange it, because I bought it on clearance, so I'd like to know if it's fixable.

    Is this noise a bug or a feature on this guitar? If it's a bug, is it fixable? Thanks for any feedback!

  • #2
    Which Dinky specifically? There are multiple pickup configurations across the entire Dinky range, including HSS, HSH, and HH, all of which can be paired with a 5-way switch. It would help to know which model, then we can identify the pickups to see if they're true single coils (noisy), noiseless single coils, split humbuckers, etc. I'm assuming it's HH since you mentioned you have "another 2-humbucker" guitar?

    Wiring issues can be easily remedied, but see if the store can perform the work for you without extra charge. Otherwise, bring the guitar to a competent local technician for inspection, resoldering, or rewiring.

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    • #3
      Originally posted by Number Of The Priest View Post
      Which Dinky specifically? There are multiple pickup configurations across the entire Dinky range, including HSS, HSH, and HH, all of which can be paired with a 5-way switch. It would help to know which model, then we can identify the pickups to see if they're true single coils (noisy), noiseless single coils, split humbuckers, etc. I'm assuming it's HH since you mentioned you have "another 2-humbucker" guitar?

      Wiring issues can be easily remedied, but see if the store can perform the work for you without extra charge. Otherwise, bring the guitar to a competent local technician for inspection, resoldering, or rewiring.
      Thanks very much for reply! It's a Jackson Pro Dinky HH hardtail. 2 humbuckers (JB/'59), no tremolo. 5-way selector. Positions 1 and 5 are just the neck and bridge pickups, respectively. No noise on either of those. The 2-3-4 positions are parallel/series combinations that split the 'buckers:

      Position 2: neck/bridge, parallel
      Position 3: neck/bridge, series
      Position 4: neck/bridge, parallel w/ filter

      I'm pretty sure that the parallel positions involve coil-splitting. All three of them are noisy; 3 is the noisiest. The noise is similar to typical single-coil noise, in terms of sound and volume.

      My inclination is to take it to a local shop and see if they can do something about it, and to contact the retailer and see about a price reduction. I bought the guitar on clearance, so I'm not sure that they have another one to give me.

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      • #4
        single coils are definitely noisy

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        • #5
          Ok, my Fender-certified tech ended up saying that there WAS an issue with the at-factory wiring. He didn't seem very familiar with superstrats or 5-way selectors. He gave me the guitar back with no noise on position 3, but some noise still on 2 and 4. It sounds like he got silence on the 3 position, not by wiring it as Jackson intended (inner coil of both humbuckers), but rather, as Gibosn would have done (both humbuckers, full-on).

          So I sent it back to The Online Retailer that I bought it from - I gotta say that I love the guitar so much (ergonomics, sound) that I really want to make it work. The Online Retailer's tech told me that he had contacted Jackson, and that he was told that there may be noise on 2 and 4 because they're each only one single coil.

          I've had other 2-humbucker guitars with 5-way selectors that are silent on all positions (e.g. Ibanez RG Standard and Prestige). However, those may not have been wired for coil-splitting like the Jackson Pro Dinky is. So I have a question for other Jackson Pro Dinky owners: do you have some noise on your 2 and 4 selector positions?

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          • #6
            Originally posted by Ted Pikul View Post
            Fender-certified tech... didn't seem very familiar 5-way selectors.
            Half joking, but can someone revoke this "Fender-certified" technician's certification? The Stratocaster is probably the most common Fender guitar model and virtually all of them have 5-way selector switches. This should be routine for him. What, does his shop only perform tech work on the earliest Fender Strats which had 3-way switches? 🙄

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            • #7
              I think that it was the superstrat wiring that mixed him up. Based on available evidence, he's an extremely skilled luthier who just doesn't see many (or any) shredders.

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              • #8
                The fact that this guitar is a "shredder" shouldn't make a difference. A competent technician should be able to follow a wiring schematic for the switching options you want (the options you specified in post #3 are represented by the first image below) and observe the correct color scheme for your brand of pickups (different brands have different color leads; see second image below).

                https://guitarelectronics.com/2-humb...ume-1-tone-06/


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