Radio is coming through the PUs on my Deluxe at times

[hlrowe]

I've been using the mag pickups exclusively. My tone pot is noisy when I touch it (no grounds are loose that I can see) and it doesn't work at all. Deoxit was no help. Not getting any acoustic tones from the Fishman either using the toggle. Occasionally, I am getting what sounds like short wave radio through my Bose L1 when it's plugged in. Very random. It must depend on what drives by or more likely, flies by. Talk about microphonic! I think I'm going to strip everything out and put in the Graphtech Ghost system this Fall along with new pots. No sense trying to repair the old electronics at this stage, even if I could get parts.

[vjmanzo]

Ugh oh—definitely sounds like the Fishman Powerchip is the problem. However, I’m sure someone somewhere would be willing to pay good money for that “radio-microphonic” feature!

The Graphtech Ghost system is nice; do you think you’ll use the Graphtech saddles too?

I’ve had to swap a few pots on my “Refined” Flys through the years, so I think what you’re saying about stripping everything out makes sense; USM used off-the-shelf switches and pots on Flys when they took the helm, and they do tend to fail and bleed.

[hlrowe]

Yes, a new project for the innovation lab. A radio transmitter

I hadn't thought about using the Fishman saddles? It would be nice to keep them. Saves me a bunch of labor and the Graphtech Ghost saddles cost $124.95. Could i just hook them to the Graphtech PE-5017-00 summing board? It costs $4.30. Worth a try. I need to go back in there and see how everything is wired and make sure nothing is loose. I'm pretty sure the preamp board is bad like you mentioned. My Fly will actually start squealing occasionally while plugged in sitting on the stand with everything on. My best guest is radio interference from whatever?

Do you remember what pots you used/ordered? For the push-pull I've seen a Dimarzio 500K at many places. My volume pots all work but might as well swap them out and go with new. Same with the toggles. I'm thinking standard CTS short shafts that are solid.

I'll do a step-by-step with images when I do the project and create a PDF for the community. Including links and pricing.

[vjmanzo]

Fantastic! It will be great to have that documented; thanks in advance!

I recall some people on the old forum mentioning that wiring the original saddles to the Graphtech summing board made the piezo sound a little noisy, but I’m not aware of any definitive verdict on that; it will definitely work using the existing saddles...that’s what I’d do! The saddles on ‘05 Flys were still made of the original material stainless steel; the later saddles were the ones made by Graphtech, which are not made of stainless steel.

I have the pot and switch values noted on the Anatomy of a Fly post, but I don’t have anything sourced. i’ll try to find some receipts for what I used. This is another area where your process documentation will be very helpful!!

[Big Swifty]

I have the pot and switch values noted on the Anatomy of a Fly post, but I don’t have anything sourced. i’ll try to find some receipts for what I used. This is another area where your process documentation will be very helpful!!

Don't know if it's of any help, but the original pots were Tocos America brand. Did a bit of research when the master pot failed on my pre refined once. I sent them a message, they could be ordered, minimum batch 1000 pieces.

I ended up sourcing a new one from forum member Marvin, so didn't pursue the Tocos enquiries, but they are theses i'm pretty sure:

https://tocos.com/products/potentiometers-7-mm-9-mm

Also found the following info on an old notepad from the time..

Parker FLy Master Pot
TOCOS
A10kX2
DCJ

Stereo 10k audio taper

TP96G00 25SK A103 A103
25mm long shaft,
Bushing diam 9mm
shaft diam 6mm

B.S.

[vjmanzo]

Awesome, @Big Swifty! You're a legend! Great info—I’ll update the master parts list post with this info!

[Patzag]

Before you throw everything away ...
Grab a soldering iron and go over everything.
Sounds like a ground issue. Moving the wires with your hands means nothing. If you have a cold solder joint, you'll run into issues.
Resolder the piezo wires to the bridge plate.
Check all the pots with a soldering iron. Reheat and reflow.
That's what I would start with before decking the chip is dead.

[scarabei]

I am having the same issue. I got a mint condition 1996 Parker Fly Deluxe. Guitar is perfect cosmetically and plays amazing. The one problem - terrible radio interference. I narrowed down the issue to Fishman Powerchip. When I turn off Mono mode (while using regular guitar cable) the radio interference gets quieter, but doesn't disappear completely. With Mono mode back on and high gain, it's like listening to the radio. Unusable!

Here is a link to the video I made to illustrate the issue:
https://www.dropbox.com/s/c039zeukqlpzr ... e.mov?dl=0