The Steel Guitar Forum

In reviewing comments on this forum regarding distortion....my distortion feedsback like crazy....it was suggested that my pickups were microphonic and that waxing them would resolve this problem...could somebody walk me thru that process....thanks

The common term in "Potting".

Here's a how-to description: http://www.guitarnuts.com/technical/electrical/index.php

If you search this section for "potting" you'll find many discussions, like http://steelguitarforum.com/Forum11/HTML/002628.html

Thanks Joey.

Before i waxed the pickups, i still wasnt sure that my pickups were "microphonic". I lowered the pickups and no longer have that annoying feedback!!

Craig,

Sometimes the feedback is induced by somethign else that is vibrating--a screw or spring. On stamped bridge Teles, that is usually what causes the feedback.

If you do wish to pot your pickup, get some parafin wax in the canning section of the grocery store. Some guys like to add a little beeswax to the mix. Melt it in a coffee can slowly and get a thermometer. You don't want the wax above 160 degrees because it can melt plastic and the shielding of the coil wire. When you hit 160 degrees, remove the wax and container from the heat, and lower your pickup in there all the way under wax for 5-10 minutes max. Remove the pickup and let it cool for an hour or two before replacing it.

Caution, Craig. Somehting I have seen from reading, not from personal experience, is that it is possible to melt plastic pickup parts in the process of potting. I forget which pu's are most susceptible but it was enough to deter me from trying home potting remedies (not to mention the serious fire hazards of improper wax melting techniques).
Also, I occasionally get some pretty radical feedback with distortion devices. Am I reading you correctly that this is a distortion/overdrive issue? Do you have feedback when playing loud & clean?

---ooops, just saw Al's post re: melting. Actually I thought the melting issue I read about was more than just cable shielding.<font size="1" color="#8e236b"><p align="center">[This message was edited by Jon Light on 10 March 2005 at 01:55 PM.]</p></FONT>

What type of pickup/guitar/amp are we talking about?<font size="1" color="#8e236b"><p align="center">[This message was edited by Geoff Brown on 10 March 2005 at 08:00 PM.]</p></FONT>

It would appear that the problem is resolved. I will know better next week when we have a gig and i play louder than in our practice room...the issue pertains only to distortion/overdrive. I am playing on a derby, having george L 66 pickups, thru a nashville 1000...it has an incredibly clean sound when not distorted. Thanks for your time and interest everyone.