good test is to shake the guitar when plugged into amplifier. If anyt-
hing is loose or if the pickup’s leads are touching something you
will hear it. This should not happen.
Install the strings and test the system. Now play, keep it real and
enjoy!
10 TROUBLESHOOTING
10.1 No sound at all or intermittent sound
• Check the guitar cable and amplifier / mixer you are using.
• Check that the battery is not discharged. If the sound is noisy or
distorted, replace the battery.
• Check that the transducer and battery connectors are inserted onto
the pin headers of the preamp correctly.
• Check that the plug is making good connection with the output
jack. It may be so that the output jack is not sticking out far enough
when the strap button is on. To check, unscrew the strap button off
and plug in to the jack. If the symptoms go away the output jack
needs to be removed and the nuts adjusted so the jack sticks out
further.
10.2 Loud hum
• Check to see that the connectors of the UST / AST are inserted
with the two holes up. If these connectors are upside down the
system will work but it will buzz.
• Check that the connectors are inserted correctly onto their pin
headers at the preamp.
10.3 Resonance or distortion with some played notes.
After installation the UST pickup can have very high output, enough
to overdrive the B-Band preamp input, causing distortion. The UST
will lower in output, under pressure of the saddle, in 1 to 3 days.
There are a couple places where a resonance can typically occur
with some notes, causing distorted-sounding output. First, check
that the lead portion of the transducer to the preamp is not touching
anything and that the battery or output wires are not loose and thus
cause resonance.
With the UST, another place, which in some cases has caused reso-
nance, is the UST hole from the saddle slot to the inside of the gui-
tar. Using a soft padding in it has cured these problems effectively.
With the AST, if resonance is occurring, it may be coming form the
first 5 mm (.20”) of the “lead” wire coming from the AST. Using
double stick tape, stick this first 5 mm (.20”) of the lead to the gui-
tar.
10.4 Imbalance, one or several strings sound louder or quie-
ter than the others (with UST)
If there’s only a very slight imbalance, let the saddle “shape” on the
UST for a few days. The fault may be repaired on its own. Users have
reported that after three (3) days the saddle has settled on the UST
and the balance becomes perfect.
10.5 Possible reasons for imbalance:
• The saddle or the bottom of the saddle slot is not flat.
• The saddle fits too loosely in its slot.
• The saddle slot might be too tight for the saddle to go in all the
way. Try pushing on the saddle firmly to seat the saddle all the
way down on the transducer.
The saddle is too short.
• There is debris in the saddle slot.
• The angle of some of the strings behind the saddle is too low or
too high.
• The top of the guitar is bent.
• The pickup is not installed all the way to the end of the saddle slot.
• If the material of the saddle is bone.
Bone is a natural material and the density and grain may not be
consistent. This may cause inconsistencies in the way the sound
is distributed making some strings louder or softer than others. We
highly recommend a manmade material for the saddle.
10.6 If the balance problem does not disappear on its own,
do the following:
• Check there is no debris or paint in the saddle slot.
• Check saddle that it is not too loose or tight in its slot. If it is too
loose the saddle can tilt when the strings are tightened. The tilt will
bring the bottom of the saddle off the pickup causing balance
problems. If it is too tight it could be possible the saddle is not
going all the way down on the pickup making a bad connection
and causing balance problems.
