T5 distortion problem

[dennisKC]

Hi, I'm new to this forum but I hope someone can help point me in the right direction toward solving this issue.  I usually run my T5 in position 1 (neck pickup + sensor) but I started getting an unwanted distorted sound.  My other guitars sound fine through my rig so the problem is definitely in the guitar.  I took it to my go-to repair guy but he could find nothing obviously wrong.  I read on Taylor's web site that sometimes metal (the ball end of a string or maybe steel wool shavings) can get stuck to the magnetic pickup and cause distortion - I opened it up and blew it all out with compressed air - I could not see or feel any obvious metal stuck to anything.  I also heard from another friend that sometimes you can get a "leaky" diode on the preamp that might cause something like this.  So, last night I used it at a gig and it was worse than ever but I discovered that the sound when using JUST the bridge pickup (which I rarely use at all) was totally clean.  AHA!  So, I'm guessing that means the problem is not in the preamp itself and must be a faulty neck pickup.... yes?  Could it be something else?  Has anybody had this issue and, if so, what was the cure?  Any advice will be greatly appreciated.

[HondaMC1]

Just a thought-
Position 1 is sensitive to feedback from microphones or speakers.
Taylor used to sell rubber boots to cover the sound holes to avoid feedback.

[dennisKC]

yeah, it's definitely not a feedback issue.  It's a garbled, distorted mess. 

[Gutch]

I've found with my T5 that issues tend to pop up right due to low voltage a couple hours of use before the battery dies.  Have you checked your battery?

[dennisKC]

yes, I've swapped out the battery.  I'm really thinking it's the neck pickup.  Can't seem to find replacement parts.  Any ideas?

[Earl]

Sounds like it's time to call the Mother Ship and ask.  Someone in customer service or the repair department should have an answer.  If you are the original owner and the T5 is not more than two years old, it should be covered by warranty.  But they should also be able to give your local tech some clues and guidance if it isn't covered.

[theonemanband]

Hi, I'm new to this forum but I hope someone can help point me in the right direction toward solving this issue.  I usually run my T5 in position 1 (neck pickup + sensor) but I started getting an unwanted distorted sound.  My other guitars sound fine through my rig so the problem is definitely in the guitar.  I took it to my go-to repair guy but he could find nothing obviously wrong.  I read on Taylor's web site that sometimes metal (the ball end of a string or maybe steel wool shavings) can get stuck to the magnetic pickup and cause distortion - I opened it up and blew it all out with compressed air - I could not see or feel any obvious metal stuck to anything.  I also heard from another friend that sometimes you can get a "leaky" diode on the preamp that might cause something like this.  So, last night I used it at a gig and it was worse than ever but I discovered that the sound when using JUST the bridge pickup (which I rarely use at all) was totally clean.  AHA!  So, I'm guessing that means the problem is not in the preamp itself and must be a faulty neck pickup.... yes?  Could it be something else?  Has anybody had this issue and, if so, what was the cure?  Any advice will be greatly appreciated.

Did you ever get this sorted Dennis as I am having exactly the same issue with my ten month old T5z-12c. Like you, I have been through all the obvious............ battery, guitar cable, switches, input levels etc., etc. and after trying the various pickups individually and like you, I have DEFINITELY isolated it to be a neck pickup issue.
The dealer who supplied this rare guitar is over a hundred miles away so returning it there would be an issue as it is my gigging instrument but we do now have an authorised Taylor service centre nearby.

As I said Dennis, did you ever get this sorted?.................or is there anyone out there who has any info on this issue?
(Just to re-iterate, it is DEFINITELY when the neck pickup is selected, with any of its configurations).

[Edward]

FWIW, and an FYI:

The bridge pup sounds good and clean because it is simply a magnetic pickup ...which, as a simple magnet strung with wire, really never go bad short of physically messing with it.  Thus, the under-fingerboard neck pickup (and it's likely that is what we're talking about here) is exactly that: a simple mag pup that just do not go bad.

So what the likely culprit is --and what has gone bad in the past-- is the body-sensor pickup.  These are little fluid-filled sensors, built similarly to a mic-coil, and they do fail.  I've had two ES guitars that have failed over the past decade or so (both addressed on Taylor's dime, one by an auth tech, the other by the factory themselves).  This body sensor is in series with your fingerboard pup.  So those switch positions which include the body sensors (I don't own a T5 but have played them ...it's all the other positions except the bridge, right?) will incorporate the nasty, distorted signal from the failed sensor.  I am willing to bet this is your issue.  But of course, the only way to isolate the problem is to replace the sensor harness with a new one.  Yes, call Taylor and get in touch with a Taylor-authorized tech nearest you.  Hope that gives you a lead. 

Edward

[theonemanband]

Hi Edward, thanks for your response; let me see if I understand this correctly.
The body sensor pickup is ONLY switched in (active) at position number 1 (together with the neck pu). (pos.2-neck pu. only / pos.3- bridge pu. only / pos. 4 & 5 neck & bridge pu's. series/parallell).
The body sensor however remains as part of the total wiring loom and as such, any fault with the sensor itself will be apparent despite which pickup configeration is used, is that correct?
As I said, the bridge humbucker on it's own is clean, but as soon as the neck pickup is bought into play, (switch pos. 5/6), on it's own (pos.2) or with the body sensor (pos.1) the guitar sounds overdriven & distorted. I have also tried disconnecting the body sensor, so that seems to eliminate that from the equation and all the evidence still seems to point to the neck pickup.

[Edward]

I'm working off my memory of having played a T5 as I'm not an owner, so you know the switch positions far better than I!
But yes, the bridge bucker alone is good because, well, it's alone and it's good.  If one of the other pups is at fault, you will not hear the fault because it is not switched in with your bridge pup. 

But the other positions sound distorted likely because either the body sensor(s) has failed, or the neck pup has; the former is likely, the latter not so much, but possible, though I don't see how as it really is just a mag pup.  And with these pups wired in series with one another (or even in parallel, for that matter), you will have the faulty sound in any of those positions.  IS position 2 on a T5 really only the fingerboard pup?  Verify that (what do I know!).  If so and you have junk for sound, then that eliminates the body-sensor as faulty.

Likewise, if you have physically unplugged the body sensor harness and you still get the noise, then it surely ain't the sensors!  If this is, indeed, the case, then either your neck pup has gone bad, or the preamp has gone wonky.  No way to isolate which without replacing with known good components.  So yessir, it's time to call the mothership

Edward