How To Make a Bass Gain Knob
If you like the tone of your bass but you wish that it were capable of putting out a stronger signal, you can install a gain knob into the body of your instrument. To do this you will need to convert your bass from a "passive" instrument to an "active" one, installing a battery-powered preamp inside the bass. A number of companies sell bass preamps for as little as $100; with some tools and some care, you can install these into your instrument yourself and save the money it would cost to pay someone to do it for you.
Other People Are Reading
Things You'll Need
- Bass preamp
- Battery
- Phillips screwdriver
- Wire cutter
- Wire stripper
- Small screwdriver
- Pliers or crimper
- Matches
Instructions
-
-
1
Unscrew and remove the existing control plate on your bass. The control plate knobs will be connected by wires, so set the whole plate face down on the body of the bass. To prevent scratching your bass, cover it with a towel or cloth.
-
2
Note which wires are connected to the neck and bridge pickups and which are connected to the bridge and cavity grounds.
-
-
3
Cut the wires from the original control plate, as close to the plate as possible.
-
4
Strip each wire back 0.2 inches.
-
5
Connect each wire to the corresponding connections in your preamp. Consult the instruction manual of your particular preamp for this information; it varies depending on your model. Twist each stripped wire strand tightly together before inserting it into its corresponding wire connector. Tighten the wire connectors with your small screwdriver.
-
6
Insert all three ground wires into the crimp barrel, which should be included with your preamp. Crimp the wires.
-
7
Slide the heat shrink, which should also be included with your preamp, over the crimped ground wires and seal it by holding a lit match to it. Be careful not to actually burn any part of your bass.
-
8
Connect your battery to the preamp, then drop the preamp and battery into the bass cavity.
-
9
Fit the new control plate over the cavity and screw it back onto your bass.
-
1
References
Resources
- Photo Credit Thinkstock/Comstock/Getty Images
