| Author |
Topic: Single Coil PickUp Hum... How can I minimize or eliminaate i |
jeff reynolds
From:
Jackson, Ms.
|
Posted 9 Nov 2002 4:59 am |
|
Is there a Gizzmo / Gadget... or any thing I can put in line that will take out this hum I hear thru my Seesion 500? It seems to not be as much when I plug in to one of my old fender Tube amps ... Deluxe or the Twin.
Could it be the Tube vs. Solid State thing here???
May be That the session needs to go back to Mike Brown and Company for a "makeover" as the Women say??????
------------------
Dekley S12U 7X5 / Session 500, Gibson Flying V, ES335, Peavey Oddesy / Fender Quad Rev. , Twin Rev. & Deluxe Rev. W/ ProFex II
www.theearthangels.net
|
|
|
|
James Quackenbush
From:
Pomona, New York, USA
|
Posted 9 Nov 2002 7:52 am
|
|
Jeff,
Hum and noise when playing a single coil
pickup can depend on a few factors...One thing that I noticed when playing single coils is that flouresent lights wreak havoc on noise, and also the big number one factor that I found is where your steel is in relation to the amp..Turn on your amp and set up your steel ready to play...Then pick up your steel and turn it on different angles to your amp...
You will be SHOCKED ( not electrically ) to find that there is a certain angle that will yeild you much less noise...It's like the steel acts as an antenna for noise, and once you find the right angle, no noise...Belive me it can make a HUGE difference... Jim |
|
|
|
Gino Iorfida
From:
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
|
Posted 9 Nov 2002 8:40 am
|
|
One thing I noticed about hum... is that soemtimes those pesky reverb tanks add hum-- in other words, try turning off your reverb first.
ALso, you MAY be hearing hum due to the Session 500's filter capacitors reaching the end of their life, that will add HUMMMMM
One thing I found is a GOOD test as to where hum problems are, is simply, turn off the volume knob (or voume pedal in this case) on the instrument.... after years of playing Fender Telecasters, I'm no stranger to hum, and am in the habit of turning off the volume knob when not playing. Kills ALL pickup induced hum
Finally, another source of hum is ground loops. This is caused by using effects etc with a power supply into the amp.. You have multiple ground paths. The easy way to tell if this is the case is to go straight from insturment to amp, then start adding in things until you notice the hum start.
|
|
|
|
Rob Hamilton
From:
Acton, MA, USA
|
Posted 9 Nov 2002 11:13 am
|
|
Another source is light dimmers. Turn the dimmer all the way on or all the way off. (Sometimes on a stage, you don't have a choice, and it can be very aggravating.)
On the guitar end, make sure the ground wire coming out of the pickup is connected to the changer (and thus the strings). Mine was disconnected for a while and the hum was a problem until I found and corrected it.
--Rob
------------------
Sho-Bud Pro-I, '62 Fender Vibrolux |
|
|
|
Donny Hinson
From:
Glen Burnie, Md. U.S.A.
|
Posted 9 Nov 2002 1:03 pm
|
|
| Jeff...what sort of volume pedal are you using? |
|
|
|
Earnest Bovine
From:
Los Angeles CA USA
|
Posted 9 Nov 2002 1:44 pm
|
|
It helps if you disconnect the volume pedal while you move your guitar around and listen for the quietest place.
You might could move of turn off the hum sources such as TV sets, computer monitors, transformers, etc. TV tubes and computer monitors put out more niose behind and beside them than they do in front of them. So if you must leave them on, point the screen right at your pickup.
You can get metal tape (e.g. copper on one side and sticky on the other side) and wrap it around the sides of your pickup. I don't know how much that will help, and it may change your sound. |
|
|
|
chas smith R.I.P.
From:
Encino, CA, USA
|
Posted 10 Nov 2002 6:12 pm
|
|
When the "find where the noise is coming from" guys "work" a studio, it's likely they'll start with a single coil pickup and a Pignose amp, just walking around the rooms pointing the pickup in all directions. So it's a problem inherant with single coils. To reiterate what Earnest said, all computers, and that includes digital effects boxes, digital delays etc., send out an RF signal which the pickups pickup very nicely.
Last night I had to move my rack to a 45 degree angle to the guitar, to cut the hum from the transformers in the amp (MosValve).
I can't use my favorite guitar to record with the 'full rack' because of the single coils and everything I tried, didn't work. I use a different guitar with EMG pickups which are much quieter, but don't sound as nice.
| Quote: |
| You can get metal tape (e.g. copper on one side and sticky on the other side) and wrap it around the sides of your pickup. I don't know how much that will help, and it may change your sound. |
I think the concept here is a limited faraday shield and it might have to be grounded to work fully. As I understand it, anything that interferes with the flux lines of the pickup will alter how it sounds, if it blocks radiation in, it blocks magnetism out.
At one time I contemplated putting a faraday sheild made out of chicken wire or hard cloth around my entire garage, walls and roof. I was doing a lot of aluminum welding, AC argon, which uses a high frequency modulation to stabalize the arc. I was sending out enough RF to wipe out channels 2 thru 7 on the tv sets a half a block in every direction. Fortunately they all thought it was the guy with the short wave base station. If you carried around a chicken wire cage for you and the guitar, it will also shield you from the beer bottles. |
|
|
|
