Jackson RR5 pickup issues....HELP!

[gnr]

Hi all. New to the forum and I need help...

I recently bought a Jackson RR5 Pro. While the guitar looks amazing I absolutely hate the sound coming from it (First and last time I ever buy a guitar over the internet!). It seems really unresponsive, weak and low output and the sound has no clarity whatsoever. I've never heard such a muddy sound. I say "sound" because I'm not entirely sure its down to the pickups. It almost seems like the volume is only half way up and the tone is down low. According to the Jackson website the Bridge pickup is a Seymour Duncan JB SH4 and the neck is a Seymour Duncan Jazz SH2N, although other sites like Musicians Friend say it has SD TB4 (actually almost every site I visit says something different, not sure what the confustion is about).

So do you think it could be an issue with the pots or wiring that is causing it to sound like this or is it the pickups? To be honest I would be surprised if it was the pickups because SD have a pretty good reputation. Incidently, the jackson website says it has 2 volumes knobs and one master tone, but it actually has 1 master volume and 2 tones. Could this be a factor, maybe incorrectly wired?

Any help would be appreciated as I really want to like this axe but I can't when it sounds like this.

Cheers, john

 

[hanumanlangur]

Re: Jackson RR5 pickup issues....HELP!

How close are the pickups to the strings? You should raise the bridge pickup to be between 1/8" and 1/16" from the strings. That's what Seymour recommends for humbuckers. Then you should raise the neck pickup so the volume is equal with that of the bridge pickup.

Jackson tends to set pickups really low at the factory, so they naturally sound weak. I have no idea why they (and some other guitar manufacturers) are dumb about things like that, but they usually are. The JB and Jazz definitely sound better when they're at a proper height.

P.S. Welcome to the forum!

 

[Perry D]

Re: Jackson RR5 pickup issues....HELP!

mine came with a Tb-4 and a Sh-4. mine sounded really really good. it could be just a pickup height adjustment.

 

[jasona84]

Re: Jackson RR5 pickup issues....HELP!

Well I'd say something is wrong, someone may have tried an amatuer wiring job melted the inside of a pot or two, easy fix. Your safest bet is to go to a guitar shop and have them test it out And if there's a wiring problem bill the seller. Overall electronics are usually easy to fix. Could be a capacitor problem maybe?