Dean Rhapsody 5-string bass

RandyTheHack

New member
Help! I have a 5-string Dean Rhapsody bass guitar with EMG HZ pickups. My experience at home is... I love the sound this bass makes! HOWEVER... I play in a worship band and there I have a major problem. We're located approximately 600 feet from the base of a 300' radio broadcast antenna. Depending on atmospheric conditions, phase of the moon and the alignment of the planets, I get so much over-modulation from the radio antenna, I get KLOVE coming out of my bass. I've been able to isolate the source to my guitar; it's not the power system, nor the amp, effects pedals, cables, etc. as I've tried a Music Man bass on the same rig, and have no issues with sound at all.

I've been reading about EMG HZ pickups and I understand the pickups are passive, fed through an active pre-amp just before the cable jack. I was told by a local sound tech who had similar experiences under a different radio antenna, the only solution I would find is with Humbucker pickups. However, reading what I've read tonight, I'm wondering if Humbuckers will solve the problem, or if I need some heavy-duty shielding around the pre-amp in the bass, or maybe a combination of the two.

I'm a software engineer by trade. Electronics are definitely outside of my areas of expertise; I can barely spell it. I need some advice; current planetary alignment has things so bad, I seem to have little more than a wearable 5-antenna FM radio at the moment. Thanks in advance!

Randy
 
There is a chap on this board who is an old school electronics gy who just knows his stuff. Ecc83 (Dave) probably can help.

I am wondering if the cable between bass and amp might be the problem. But if Dave picks this up, maybe he can shed some light on the topic.
 
Hi Randy, do you know how much 5-string rhapsody matters to you? if not the current model, how much will it cost? Accomplished.
 
Shielding paint in the body and proper grounding, shielded wiring if it doesn't have it. Sorry if that means electrical work.
 
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